A month ago, students walking down Raider Walk toward the Campus Center might have noticed the duo of anti-abortion advocates, distributing flyers and attempting to engage passersby in conversation. If they were not immediately disarmed by the insulting and incendiary reading material that was being handed out, they might be by the triptych of gore that rested several feet away.

Regardless of any individual’s stance on the issue, the blood, gore, and shaming that is spread by these pamphleteers in public areas is not conducive to an intellectual discussion. In fact, these protesters seem insistent on suppressing intellectual discussion, content to rest their opinions wholly on emotional appeal.

Furthermore, the protestor’s presence is unwelcome not only because of their message, but because of what they represent.

Moorpark College is by no means notorious for its political activists. We’re also not the most active student body by any means, which makes the presence of protesters especially uncommon.

With their confrontational attitudes and macabre photographs, posters, and signs, the protesters who graced our campus at the beginning of this month were kind enough to bring tabloid-sized pamphlets that degraded and name-called those who do not support their cause.

The pamphleteers, who were not Moorpark College students, represented a group that call themselves “The Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust.” By appropriating the struggles of the millions of lives that were affected by the Holocaust, the group denigrates the impact of the real Holocaust. In their attempt to draw attention to their cause, the “Survivors” succeed only in being offensive.

Shock is at the face of their campaign – elements designed to trigger reactions but not to inform.

Can we not be free from youth-targeted marketing on our college campus? Indeed, the abortion protesters, the discount paintball pamphleteers, and the petitioners all represent a common interest; people who are eager to exploit young people in order to further their own interests.

The omnipresence of advertisements is perhaps an aspect of our society that has always been present. However, it seems that in the dawn of the internet age, the industry of advertisement is again experiencing a boom. With advertisement platforms tied to social networking sites, even our social lives are entangled in a web of ads.

At a stage of life where we are so vulnerable to and surrounded by advertisements, there is value to areas that are ad-free. It seems like school should be the place where this is possible.

The youth-targeting marketers won’t be absent from our campus any time soon. As long as they act within their right to free speech, they are legally allowed on campus.

Even though we can’t kick the outside presence of advertisers out, we can foster a community of political activism within the campus. I’d rather connect with the student body of Moorpark College than with off-campus groups that attempt to exploit us. If student groups make an effort to be more visible on campus, the annoying and unwelcome groups from off-campus will fade into the background.

The issue with the presence of solicitors on campus won’t go away, but we can take strides as a student population to reduce the impact that these groups make on our turf. Together, we can send the message that our student body is more than just a captive audience.