Students blame Fed for economic crisis

Standing before the Sample Gates, 16 members of IU Students for Liberty and Hoosiers for Nader braved the 20-degree weather Saturday to protest what they believe to be the cause of the country’s economic crisis: the Federal Reserve Bank.

Passed by Congress in 1913 during the Christmas recess, the Federal Reserve Act gave a privately owned central bank the power to control the U.S. money supply. The problem with this, members of both groups said, is that because the Fed is a private entity, it is motivated by profit and run by un-elected officials who are not audited, taxed or required to show any level of transparency within the organization.

Organized in support of Rep. Ron Paul’s HR. 2775, a bill to abolish the Federal Reserve System, the groups’ protest is not unique to IU’s campus, IU Students for Liberty president senior Andrew Sharp said.

“Today was chosen as the national day of protest against the Federal Reserve System, and in 39 cities across the country people are gathering at the Federal Reserve locations to protest,” Sharp said. “We decided that instead of going to Louisville or Chicago, where there actually are Federal Reserve banks, we would have a protest here in Bloomington and spread the message.”

Activists around the country chose Nov. 22 as the date for the protest because it is the 45th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy – the last president to try to end the Federal Reserve by issuing metal-backed U.S. notes. After his assassination, the notes were taken out of circulation almost immediately.

Members of both groups seemed to be immune to the chilly weather as they held signs and passed out literature and chocolate gold coins to garner support and interest in their cause.

“We were trying to think of little things we could hand out to press the issue home, and one of the things we thought of was the chocolate gold coins, and we got them printed with the phrase ‘smart money’ on them,” Sharp said.

Members of both groups said the most effective way to return to a sound monetary policy is by returning to the gold standard – something the Fed eliminated.

“If we actually had a metal-backed currency, our money would have value,” Sharp said. “It is kind of silly to talk about the value of a dollar. The dollar was actually referred to as an amount of gold historically, and that’s the reason why the British pound is called the ‘pound.’” 

IU Students for Liberty member and freshman Peter Meehan said the response to the group’s protest was “hit or miss.”

“We’ve had some cars honking; some people have been interested,” Meehan said. “A lot of people don’t know what we are talking about, which is kind of sad, so we are trying to educate. Once people understand what’s going on, I think they’ll be a lot more responsive to what we’re doing.”

Freshman member Sam Spaiser was a little more positive.

“A lot of cars are coming by and honking at us,” Spaiser said. “People are rolling down their windows shouting ‘Ron Paul’ or ‘End the Federal Reserve,’ so it’s very positive.”