Despite his complaint about Savery’s decision to exclude him from the class, True says, “Pancho [Savery] is the greatest teacher I have ever had.” . . . .
In a statement about his own character, True says, “I believe that I am an emotionally capable, intellectually gifted, cutting wit, hell of a person. I believe I have experienced more trauma and suffering and pain in my life than many of these, well frankly, middle class white girls at Reed could ever know in their lives.”
True distinguishes himself as a “freedom feminist,” differentiating himself from what he calls “toxic radical feminism,” which “speaks out against rape culture at the expense of men.”
Kate Hilts ’16 opposes True’s interpretation of feminism, and offers her own definition.
“Freedom feminism is not feminism,” she says. “Feminism is an understanding of the structures that oppress women and female-presenting people, and a belief that those structures should be dismantled. Freedom feminism is a soft term for a sub-category of men’s rights activism. Moreover, the existence of rape culture is indisputable. . . .
While interviewing with The Quest, True was ecstatic.
“Reedies have forgotten what student activism actually is,” he says. “Student activism can fuck a place up. I have sent the faculty and student services scrambling for cover. It’s been an enormous amount of fun.”
“This is the most fun I’ve had all year,” True continued, “and I have not this much fun since I was a kid. It’s so liberating.”
At the end of his petition, he wrote a haunting statement of his determination:
“No matter what happens. I love you, mom. I love you, dad. I love you my dear, dear sisters. I love you my dearest friends. I love you all, and I will sacrifice everything for you. … I do not want to be a martyr, but I will do that if that is what is necessary to make a statement.”