Stephen Colbert, who made a spectacle of joining the 2023 Writers Guild picket line, crossed a Harvard graduate student union picket line Thursday to appear at an event at the university where workers have been on strike for weeks — and both Harvard and his own union let him do it.
Colbert built his brand as a champion of the working class. But when actual workers — grad students at the richest university in the world — asked him to stand down, he walked right past them. The Harvard Graduate Students Union, on strike since Oct. 27, said it sent "multiple formal communications" to Colbert and cellist Yo-Yo Ma well in advance, warning that the venue would have an active picket line. The union also said it contacted both performers through their own labor organizations — SAG-AFTRA and the Boston Musicians' Association — asking them to move, reschedule, or cancel. SAG-AFTRA relayed the request. Colbert ignored it.
That is who shielded him: the union apparatus itself. SAG-AFTRA passed the message along and then passed on holding one of its most visible members accountable. Solidarity, it turns out, is conditional.
"They continued the event inside without regard for the picket line, and refused to speak with union members as they left the event," the union stated. "In other words — they crossed our picket line."
About 50 protesters demonstrated outside Sanders Theatre before and during the event, beating drums, sounding air horns, and chanting demands for better pay and working conditions. Roughly 40 minutes into the scheduled 90-minute discussion, titled "Arts for Life's Sake," a fire alarm forced the evacuation. The event did not resume. The union denied any involvement, stating the alarm "was unrelated to HGSU's picketing activity and we have no knowledge of its cause."
The union is seeking annual pay of $55,000 for research assistants and approximately $45,000 for teaching fellows on 10-month appointments, along with protections for non-citizen workers, an independent grievance process for harassment and discrimination complaints, and safeguards for sensitive immigration documents.
Author John Green showed what solidarity actually looks like: he moved his scheduled Harvard appearance online to avoid crossing the picket line and donated his proceeds to the union, according to The Boston Globe. "They're on strike and I had to move a thing to not cross a picket line," Green said. "Which was an easy decision... it was not a hard decision for me."
Breitbart framed Colbert as having been "chased away" and having "fled" the event — overstating what happened. The New York Post went with "rushed out" and "accosted." Fox News used the neutral "accused of crossing." The material fact is simpler: Colbert chose to cross the line, the alarm ended the event early, and he left without speaking to the workers outside.
Colbert co-founded "Strike Force Five" to support striking writers during the 2023 WGA walkout. He joined those picket lines with cameras rolling. At Harvard, with no cameras and no celebrity peers to impress, he picked the institution over the workers.
Harvard sits on the largest university endowment in the world. Its grad students are on strike asking for a living wage. Colbert walked past them. Next time he tells you he stands with labor, ask what it cost him.
