DISORIENTATION GUIDE - Campus Activism
DISORIENTATION GUIDE - Campus Activism
DISORIENTATION GUIDE - Campus Activism
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Disorientationby Sean Burns new university scene, your new town, and your new socialpossibilities. As you read through these pages and learnmore about various justice issues and campus-connectedactivist organizations, think about disorientation as a questions: what is a university education? How does auniversity education, and the institutional complex itself,social order, and how do I want to participate in it – bothin my years here at UCSC and beyond? A fundamentalassumption of the disorientation perspective, a perspectivethat by no means I want to portray as uniform, is thatuniversities, not just UCSC, offer a particular orientationtoward reality – a worldview of sorts. This essay offersthan providing answers. Needless to say, universitiesdiffer considerably in their culture, student bodies, faculty,and articulated missions. This essay is less about suchdifferences and more about assumptions built into thedegree-oriented process of university schooling. Likewise,if you believe that in the act of practicing critique we arealways simultaneously suggesting strategies for change,this essay is also about how we can help direct the collectivecreativity, intelligence, and will of this campus communitytoward creating a genuinely democratic, economically just,and environmentally sane world.4The UniversityBasic Assumptions of Schooling random window shoppers what a young person should doin order to learn about the world, nine out of ten peoplewould tell you: go to school. In our culture, learning isassociated with schooling. To obtain knowledge is to obtaindegrees. The higher your grades, the more competentto have a monopoly on learning. This is not an illusion,schools are strategically organized to serve this function.None of this is particularly groundbreaking, but let us thinktwice about the consequences and contradictions of thesecultural assumptions. If school is a place to learn aboutthe world, why is it designed to remove students from thedaily activity of their community – in some cases for up to25 years? This may be less evident in college than in highschool or middle school, but by the time we hit UCSC, thisaspect of the hidden curriculum has been well ingrained: policies and books they produce. Similarly, we might ask:If school is designed to foster independent thought, thenwhy does all our work achieve validation through evaluation(grading) – a process by which one’s work is measuredagainst pre-determined content and form?In short, I believe that most schooling processesoperate on an upside down conception of learning. The bestway to explain this is through example. Think about the lastanything in sight, which is one way of saying that we area deeply curious, learning-oriented species. If this is so,why then do the great majority of students – people whoall at one time were those relentlessly curious three-yearolds – yearn to get out of school? I believe one answer tothis question lies in understanding how school inverts thelearning process. Rather than create a setting where youngpeople can explore their curiosity, most schools are set upto ensure that students consume predetermined curriculain a predetermined process of scheduled courses and
assignments. Interestingly enough, the higher you climbthe schooling hierarchy, the more apparent choice youhave in determining what you want to explore. But to whatdegree have our curiosities, or desires, our political andsocial imagination, been deeply trained by the time youroll into UCSC? The act of disorientation is about exploringsuch questions.Writers who think about therelationship between schooling and capitalism frequentlypoint out that the process by which a young personbecomes accustomed to depending on schools for learningis an essential experience of socialization into the valuesof a market driven society (aka capitalism). As Ivan Illichwrites in Deschooling Society, “Once we have learnedto need school, all our activities tend to take the shapeof client relationships to other specialized institutions.” Inother words, in our society we learn that we go to schoolto get knowledge, the hospital to get health, the police toget safety, the government to get security, the salon toget beauty, the store to get food, the church to get saved.What if instead of paying to get degrees so that we mightsecure a job so that we can buy all of the above, we spenttime cultivating our ability and our communities’ ability toprovide for those needs? Such a vision is hard to sustainin a society predicated on an extreme division of laborwhere few people own the primary means of production.Disorientation is about sustaining such a vision andfostering questions and practices that resist a complacentacceptance of the status quo social order.One cornerstone of the U.S. social order is athe right-wing Bush Administration, we are a classlesssociety and any analysis which speaks about structuralracism and economic inequality is just trying to breedhatred and division. As if division needs breeding in acountry where the incomes of thewealthiest strata haveincreased at 15times the rateof the bottom90 percent ofAmerican workingpeople over thepast 10 years. (SeeJune 25, 2003,New York Times,Share of IncomeGrew Even Bigger,Data Shows”) Whilethe gap betweenthe businesselites and theaverage workingAmerican has consistently widened in the past decades,this inequality between those who own and those wholabor is not new in the U.S. - Economic inequality existedin the colonial period, but what historically has made theU.S. a so called exception has been that this differencehas not been understood as a product of inheritancedemocratic project has always been to maintain propertyrelations that serve the rich while creating a popular beliefthat suggests anyone who works hard enough can makeit big in this country. Research shows that this “rags-toriches”scenario is extremely rare. One might say that theexceptions, from Andrew Carnegie to Ice Cube, in someways have bolstered the imaginative rule.One way this contradiction between the dominantmyth of meritocracy and the reality of class-based, racist,and gendered inequality is perpetuated is through certainbeliefs about the U.S. education system. In other words,many popular ideas about education help to distract peoplefrom recognizing the roots of social and environmentalinjustice. If, in theory, schooling is believed to give equalopportunity to all children, then academic achievementis one way to justify socioeconomic inequality. Ratherthan a system being criticized as unjust, individuals areblamed for failure or celebrated for success. Paradoxically, systemic social inequality and dysfunction can be tracedto problems with education. I believe that neither of theseinstitutionalized schools, individual students, political-5
economy, and dominant cultural myths.My analysis so far has suggested that rather thanunderstand education as automatically a solution to socialproblems, schooling is often complicit in the perpetuationof social and environmental exploitation. The connectionsbetween corporate and military interests and universitieslike UCSC run deep. Just do a little investigating into whoholds positions as UC Regents, university trustees, andwho predominantly funds campus research. (See articlein pg. 18) When we begin to see our education and oureducation the way to solve problems rather than createmore of them? Facing such contradiction is never apainless process, but it is precisely where growth – bothon an individual and collective level – often occurs. Sowhat can we do in our own lives and as activists in theUCSC community to reduce these contradictions? Thisseems to me a question at the core of the disorientationproject.Disorienting One’s Universe(city)A natural starting point is the question: Why am Ihere? Trends indicate that more and more undergraduatesview college as a pre-professional training ground wherejob hunt after graduation. While the thinking behind thisapproach is aimed at keeping future doors open, I see thistrend as closing doors in two ways. First, on an existentiallevel, I think it is important for us to takeevery opportunity we can to explorewhat concerns us, fascinates us,challenges us, and motivatesus on this all too fragile journeywe call life. Having the boomand bust indices of theemployment market as stimulating.Second, on amore pragmatic andstrategic level, ahigh percentage ofemployers are notprimarily interestedin an employee withspecialized skillsanyway. Do a quickGoogle search onthousands ofweb sites that6The Universityemployees can 1) creatively solve problems, 2)communicate effectively and work well with others,passionately exploring any major here on campus willchallenge you to develop such skills. The point being:make decisions on terms that work for you. Think aboutwhat you value in this world and what you imaginecould be improved. Ask yourself: what are the originsand consequences of the values I embrace? What kindof vocation will allow me to live out these values andcontribute to the changes I aspire to see?The people and student/community organizationscontributing ideas and art to this publication value aworld rid of racism, imperialism, homophobia, patriarchy,war, and the web of exploitation related to these forms ofviolence. We are all in some way searching, struggling, andeven at times succeeding, in bringing together our work asstudents at UCSC and our commitments to building socialand environmental justice movements. At times, as you willand taking action against the UC system for its hypocrisy,shortsightedness, and exploitation. We do this as communitymembers, people who take seriously the possibilities forpositive social change at and through this university. Afterall, the U.C.s belong to the public. Disorientation is abouta dedication to ensuring our education and our university
either been laid off or have received cutsso severe that they can no longer supportthemselves simply by teaching here. Those a greater workload for less pay than thefull time faculty, and it’s only getting worse.Lecturers receive little warning before beinglaid off and are often times being rehired ata moment’s notice when admin realize theydon’t have anyone to teach vital courses;this is a serious problem if you’re trying tobe foolish to think that this doesn’t affecthow they teach and how much you’ll enjoytaking their classes.The UC has watched many of its in the past several years. This year,2011, salary increases are on offer to thefaculty. And while there have been some major cuts atthe administrative level at UC, there is still an enormous,non-teaching, administrative class in the system, onethat has grown along with tuition payments - more than3,250 admins at the UC make more than $250,000 whilethey lecture us about the need to tighten belts. Our newbuildings are products of “bond” sales that utilize our risingtuition payments as collateral for unscrupulous creditors(see below). And everyday the indebtedness of ourgeneration grows, as we’re burdened with the conditionsset down by creditors, and burdened with debts that arenever forgiven in bankruptcy. Tuition hikes now seem tobe the “natural” way to deal with the crisis; tuition hikes willincreasingly underwrite the maintenance and improvementof the university. UCOP wants us to think there’s noalternative. We know there is another way. We have toeducate ourselves about our own history so we can act tochange it.II. A Little Matter Called TuitionIn 1960, the UC published a “masterplan” toguarantee access to higher education for all Californiansregardless of economic background. Although it neverachieved these utopian ideals, the cost of a UC educationfor students was considerably lower in the 60’s and 70’s.the original 1960 masterplan, tuition was excluded fromthe UC’s funding sources; in its place, some student feeswere introduced to help cover the cost of student servicesfees were reassigned to the general UC operating budgetduring a period of immense fee increases. Revenuegenerated by students could be used for a whole slew ofthings, including construction projects. Finally, in 2009 theRegents caved under pressure and decided to rename“fees” to “tuition”.The gradual transformation of “fees to tuition”wasn’t merely symbolic; it normalized the idea thatstudents as individual consumers should be more involvedin purchasing their education – the idea being to encouragedirect state funding to wither away. Instead funding for theuniversity would increasingly rely on federal and privatestudent loans. This alone is reprehensible, considering society as a whole, andhas been an important means through which historicallyoppressed communities have empowered themselves. Forevery dollar that California spends on higher education, transformation allowed the regents to completely changethe priorities of the university to suit their desires. In 2003,the regents voted to allow tuition (among other things) toback bonds the UC took out to fund capital projects – inother words, to fund construction. Furthermore, the textaccompanying this new UC code restricts the UC fromdoing anything that might impair or diminish the securityof UC bonds! This means that the UC’s highest budgetarypriority is to maintain its stellar bond rating, not education;it does this by pledging your tuition as collateral for thebonds, and because the Regents can raise tuition at will,UC bond ratings will always be stellar.This may leave you scratching your head wonderingwhy they did this. Well, the short answer is that relying ontuition PRIVATIZES the university, and this in turn allowsconstruction companies to make lucrative deals with theUC, as well as allow research partnerships with largeendeavors”.9
10III. PRIVATIZATION: what the hell is that?In his famous account of the public sphere,historian and philosopher Jurgen Habermas points outthat the origins of the modern term “private” are found inthe military: as in, a soldier who is not immune from thelaw. While it is no longer 11 BC, it’s worth rememberingthat public and private remain linked by who the lawcollective, societal wealth, the investor and creditor class,the elites of society, have gained enormously as a directresult. The United States today is a country of increasinginequality because the elite are allowed to make the lawwork for them.At its most basic level, PRIVATIZATION simplymeans taking things that are publicly owned and makingthem private: “run it like a business” is their battle cry.Following a severe recession in 1973, the libertarian rightconvinced policy makers at nearly all levels of governmentthat public ownership is terrible and that taxes are theworst thing to happen since the Ford Pinto. When peoplesay that the UC is being privatized, they’re referring to aprocess that has several faces. All of the land that the UCs, Cal States andCCs are on, including the facilities on them, arepublicly owned. Much of the equipment and fundsthat are used in higher education are also publiclyowned. Many of the biology, chemistry, physics andengineering labs produce knowledge by using thesepublic resources, but much of that research andThis also happens a lot in the Humanities and SocialSciences, as when someone publishes their work orhelps design proprietary knowledge (like textbooks).But it’s the “hard” sciences that produce knowledgeis, private ownership of public work happens in everysingle department at UCSC. It’s done in the nameof ‘public-private partnerships’, but the public only It’s not just knowledge that’s being privatized: theland itself, or as is more often the case, the buildings, arebeing privatized too. Private construction companiescompanies like British Petroleum, along with several facilities are not for the general public or even studentuse. Similarly, construction companies hired to do thebuilding – often behind schedule and way over budgetDick Blum, and are awarded ridiculous contracts (seemore on page 12).The UniversitySidebar: Rape Prevention & PrivatizationIn the summer of 2010, UCSC closed the doorson the Rape Prevention Education program, locatedin Kresge having been run by a passionate staffer,Gillian Greensite, for some 30 years. It was the lastUC to close such a center. It was then relocated andreassigned under the newly remodeled Health Center rape as a medical issue rather than recognizing it asa social problem. Meaning the primary method of rapeprevention should be reducing alcohol usage – whichis merely associated with rape – rather than educatingthe campus community on recognizing what rape reallyis. Indeed, the administration emphasized programsthat put the burden of responsibility on potential rapevictims rather than on society as a whole. Consequently,Greensite was not allowed to teach rape as a socialissue in its own dedicated workshop, leading to herforced retirement.Strangely enough, the administration didn’t dothis because of budget cuts as the actual funding to theprogram didn’t decrease. It seems it was a political move:if only because it removed the word “rape” from the schooldirectory and improved the admin’s ability to market thecampus as a safe place, rather than deal with a problemthat’s common on every campus, and in every corner ofsociety in a responsible manner. In continuity with theonslaught of privatization, the responsibility to save anyremnant of a holistic rape prevention program was puton the shoulders of concerned students. Privatizationoften places the burden of responsibility on suchconcerned students, rather than keeping something asvital as a complete rape prevention program among thetop priorities of the university administration; all of this inorder to attract potential students and their money. Most importantly, for us as students anyway, isthat federal and state money is being laundered andprivatized through our student tuition. This year, for thehigher than state funding for the UC. Much of theseincreased costs will be paid for with PELL GRANTS,CAL GRANTS and STUDENT LOANS, and all aregovernment funds that must be taken out in higheramounts to cover the rocket-like rise of educationcosts. Student tuition, unlike direct state funding, canbe used to guarantee the UCs credit rating, to investin the stock market and to engage in predatory marketbehavior (think of Oliver Stone’s movies on Wall Street).Every time tuition goes up, both the government andstudents give more money to UC money managers sothey can play the stock market (and they have a pretty
poor record in this regard). This gives several privatein public and private money to enrich themselves. Thereis little risk for the UC’s private investors because, ifanything goes bad in the market, the Regents can raisetuition to cover the losses. It’s we students – whoseloans will remain with us for decades – who make itpossible for these shenanigans to take place. Finally, privatization aims to make it increasingly university. University of Phoenix, ITT Tech and HealdCollege are among the most well known of theseinstitutions, but there are several others. From a veryyoung age, everyone is told that to succeed in life,you need to go to college; as that imperative becomes turned away from Community College), students must because at least two of our Regents hold controllingvote to raise fees and cut budgets, they’re effectivelymake most of their money from federal student aid andstudent loans – however, over 11% of students at for-Given all of this, what is there to do? You could, asmany do, put your head down and hope that, if you workreally hard, concentrate on studying, don’t fuck around onXbox, you will get a job when your four years are up. Youcould hope this job is not at Walmart. You could hope youdon’t have to live with your parents when you graduate orthat in some inexplicable way, there will suddenly be goodjobs and hot tubs for UC grads in four years. You canhope, with millions of others around the world, that thingswill work out for you because you’re awesome. You canthink to yourself that there is nothing that can be done, thatthe Regents and UCOP know more than students (andfaculty), that it is pure coincidence that several Regentsand administrators are getting very wealthy at the expenseof California students. OR, YOU CAN TAKE A SIDE ANDjoin the millions of students from around the world - fromplaces as diverse as Puerto Rico, Greece, Chile, Englandand Austria - who are, BOTH IN AND THROUGH THE their role in the world. Join thousands of students inCalifornia this year who will be in study groups and picketlines, sit-ins and strikes. LIKE millions the world over, theytoo have decided to stop wishing upon stars, choosinginstead to create the world they live in.11UAWThe Teaching Assistant’s UnionThe UAW 2865 is the union that represents theUniversity of California’s 12,000 teaching assistants,readers, and tutors. We were motivated to enter graduateschool by a passion for learning and a dedicationto teaching. But in recent years, we’ve watched theuniversity’s commitments to education and diversitysharply decline. This decline in quality has been statewideand from K-12 through higher education. This is troublingbecause quality public education is fundamental to ahealthy society. We want to change this. Students haveeducation is no different.We know that uniting and organizing for others canbring real change that improves people’s lives. Before wewere unionized, we were exploited and vulnerable. Wehad no job security, no health insurance, very little tuitionassistance, and no protections against being overworkedour own circumstances, as well as the quality of UCundergraduate education. Unfortunately, over recentyears, the services and education students receive hassharply declined even as tuition has risen 67%. students and to Californians. Last winter, a group of activistswithin the union, inspired by their own experiences in thepublic education movement, campaigned in our local’sstatewide election under the name Academic Workers for aDemocratic Union, or AWDU. The AWDU platform focusedon democratizing the union and the UC, and devoting ourlocal’s history and AWDU’s victory has reinvigorated theunion as a site for serious struggle against very urgentchallenges. rights of students, educators, and workers to a qualityeducation, respect, and decent pay. We have reachedout to the UC Student Association as well as all unionsrepresenting UC and CSU workers, to develop long-term,statewide plans to challenge the privatization of publichigher education, and the de-funding of the state servicesthat are vital to the lives of Californians. Our vision includesa variety of tactics, especially creative combinations ofdirect action and legislative strategy. We hope to expandand deepen this coalition and welcome your participationand support. Ask your TA how you can get involved, orvisit us at: www.uaw2865.org
Know Your RegentsThe University of California is managed by a groupof people called the Board of Regents. According to theCalifornia Constitution (Article IX, Section 9), the Regentshave “full powers of organization and governance” over theUC system. You pay your tuition to them, and their controlnuclear research laboratories and more. So who are they?Who exactly are the people making the decisions thataffect the wellbeing of the UC’s 371,000 students, facultyand staff, and what do they do with the UC’s $19 billionoperating budget? And how do they become Regents?The basics: There are 26 Regents, and and 18 ofthem (the majority) are appointed by the CA Governor toare people who are on the Board because they hold other Regent. The student Regent is appointed by the otherRegents, serves for two years, and isn’t allowed to voteon policy matters until their second year. How’s that forrepresentation?One might think that people as powerful as theRegents should be elected democratically by the students,staff and faculty of the UC, but as you can see, that’s nothow it works (yet). Presently, the makeup of the Boardof Regents is heavily affected by anyone with enoughincludes some of the wealthiest people in the state, withconnections to some of the most powerful corporations inthe country. (The Constitution states that “the universityshall be entirely independent of all political and sectarianRegents and in the administration of its affairs”, but thisisn’t enforced in any substantial way.) So here’s a question:can the Board of Regents effectively make decisions inthe best interest of the hundreds of thousands of low tomiddle-class students, staff and faculty of the UC whenso many of the Regents are themselves members of theeconomic elite?Here’s some dirt we’ve found on each of the UCRegents; it felt so impersonal to let them screw us without more info, and feel free to do more research on your own.12Dick Blum(appointed 2002; term expires 2014)Richard Blum is a San Francisco- over a business empire that is, to saythe least, expansive. Hedge funds?Blum owns one outright and wieldsReal estate? His primary investmentvehicle, the $7.8 billion Blum Capitalthe planet, CB Richard Ellis, of which Blum is chairmanThe Universityof the board. Construction? Until public scandal promptedhim to sell off his holdings, Blum was a majority partner ina construction and engineering company that did billionsin business with the US military, among other governmentof which Al Gore serves as frontman? Health industryhealth care? Border-town maquiladora that build weaponscomponents for the Department of Defense? Check,check, check, and check.The greatest investment of Blum’s career wasundoubtedly his marriage, roughly 30 years ago, to thepolitically Joe Lieberman-esque US Senate Democrat,Dianne Feinstein. At the time of this meshing of Blum’s ambitions, Feinstein was Mayor of San Francisco and Blumhis fortune staked to various development projects in theCity. (W. Parrish and D. Bond-Graham, 2010)Sherry Lansing(appointed 1999; reappointed 2010;term expires 2022)Lansing was recently the chairmanand CEO for Paramount Pictures,a company with an annual incomeof some $20.1 billion. Peter Byrne,the same investigative reporter who miscreancy (‘How the UC Regentsher: “Since September 2006, Regent Lansing... has beena member of the board of directors of Qualcomm Inc., forwhich she receives an annual director’s fee of $135,000,plus stock options. According to her economic disclosurestatement, Ms. Lansing owns “more than $1 million” in 2009, Qualcomm paid her $485,252. Documents releasedby the UC Treasurer show that, after Ms. Lansing joinedthe Qualcomm board, UC quadrupled its investment inQualcomm to $397 million. (Reclaim UC, 2011)George M. Marcus(appointed 2000; term expires 2012)George Marcus made his fortune ininvestment banking, and is “the boardchair at Marcus & Millichap and theEssex Property Trust, a member ofReal Estate Roundtable (an industrylobbying group), and a co-founderof the National Hellenic Society”(Sheyner, 2011). With disregard forthe ideal of a 100% publicly funded UC, Marcus haswith private donations from UC alumni. Even if this were of a failure to grasp the concept of education as a publicgood. Marcus also has a history of unpleasant interactionswith UC students. Marcus was present at UCSC during a
demonstration to end poverty wages in the University, andwas photographed smacking away the camera of a studentjournalist. Addressing the workers whose wages were inquestion he said that he “would not give them anything”(Bradley, 2008).13Norman J. Pattiz(appointed 2001; reappointed 2003;term expires 2015)Pattiz got his start in the businessworld by founding Westwood Onein 1974 – America’s largest radionetwork organization. Westwood Oneand sports programming on local TVstations, and its empire includes NBCRadio Network, the CBS Radio Network, CNN Radio,and Fox Radio News. Pattiz has a history of being caught Pattiz was also nominated to the Broadcasting Boardof Governors (oversees government broadcast like TheVoice of America) by President Clinton, which suspiciouslycame after over $300,000 of campaign donations to theDemocratic Party and a backing of Hilary Clinton’s bid forSenate. While on the BBG, Pattiz was chairman of theMiddle East Committee, serving as a driving force behindthe creation of Radio Sawa and Alhurra Television, the U.S.Government’s Arabic-language radio and TV services toover 22 countries in the Middle East, to supposedlycounteract “Islamic Extremist News” in the Middle East.This media mogul is not someone you’d want tobe on the bad side of, seeing as he controls so much ofAmerican media. Apparently all of Pattiz’s experience inthe media somehow qualify him to be not only a Regent,but also the Chair of Oversight of the Department ofEnergy’s UC-managed nuclear laboratories (Los AlamosNational Lab and Livermore National Lab).Paul Wachter(appointed 2004; term expires 2016)Paul Wachter was GovernorSchwarzenegger’s main money-man,and one of the most powerful politicalinsiders in the state. He got his startin the world of the super-rich as the of Santa Monica-based companystrategic and asset management” company is so exclusivethat according to a statement of economic interests formscompany more than $10,000 a year. Multiple clients fromMain Street Advisors were directly connected to GovernorSchwarzenegger himself, most notably the “ShriverBlind Trust” – as in Maria Shriver, Schwarzenegger’swife, and a member of the Kennedy Family. Wachteris also the manager of the blind trust into which all ofSchwarzenegger’s investments were liquidated when heof millions of dollars invested in securities, private equityfunds, and over 100 business ventures. Not surprisingly,many of these business ventures were in partnershipwith Wachter. Given Wachter and Schwarzeneggar’sbuddy-buddy relationship, it’s hard to see how Wachtercould act as an independent, disinterested managerof the governor’s assets in his position. In fact, it wasSchwarzeneggar himself that nominated Wachter to theBoard of Regents in 2004.Russell S. Gould(appointed 2005; term expires 2017)As of July 9th, 2009, Russell Gouldhas been Chairman of the Board ofRegents. Gould was appointed tothe Board in 1998, and formerly heldthe positions of Vice Chair and Chairof Finance for the Board. Gould gothis degree in political science at UCBerkeley and has been representingfor the crooked politics of California ever since, witha resume that includes Director of the Department ofFinance of the State of California from 1993 to 1996 andprior to that, Secretary of the Health and Welfare Agencyfrom 1991 to 1993. The gold star on Russell’s resume is hisemployment with Wachovia Bank as Senior Vice President.Wachovia was once the fourth-largest bank in the UnitedStates based on total assets; however, in 2008 Wachoviafound itself in the middle of a nasty Battle-of-the-Bankswhen both Citigroup and Wells Fargo attempted to buy outWachovia in light of its looming failure. Initially Citigroupmade an offer to Wachovia with government supportthrough the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, andthen soon after Wells Fargo submitted an even higher offerof $15.1 billion in stock, claiming they did not need thegovernment guarantee that Citibank opted for. AlthoughWachovia’s stocks had fallen 97% in 2008, the battle wasstill ruthless to gain ownership of its assets because in thecrisis provided a unique opportunity for the world’s bankingmonopolies to bloat themselves to new extremes. In theend Wachovia sold itself to Wells Fargo, completing themerger on December 31st, 2008. And all this came justbefore Wells Fargo hit the Bailout jackpot, being one of bailout, and being the bank to receive the biggest amountof money in one shot - $25 billion dollars. Long story short,Wells Fargo buys out Wachovia for $15.1 billion, hits thegovernment up for a bailout jackpot of $25 billion, and ourof (our) money.(continues next page)
14George Kieffer(appointed 2009, term expires 2021)George Kieffer’s appointmentto the Board of Regents appears Maria Shriver’s attorney, but resigned(presumably in an attempt to defendagainst claims of political favors) justbefore Shriver’s husband (Schwarzeneggar) becamegovernor. Kieffer is also the former Chair of the LAChamber of Commerce At the very know least, the guyknows how to dodge a question: when asked about his question is both too broad and too narrow,” and changedthe subject. He is very much a political player who knowswhom to get cozy with, as well as what to and what not tosay to stay in power. (Coastlines, Vol. 40, No. 1, 2009)Hadi Makarechian(Appointed in 2008.) Shamron, as well as Chairman ofMakar Properties Board of Directorsand Bannis Lewis Ranch ManagementCompany. A very rich man, he makesmost of his money through a vast webbusiness, and managed to buy his wayinto California (and UC) politics by donating $100,000 toSchwarzennager’s campaign. In a brief interview with aUCSC student journalist, his answer to the question “Doyou honestly think you represent middle-class studentslike myself?” was “I don’t know.” (Miska, 2010), (Padilla,2004)David Crane(Appointed December 2010; termexpires 2022)Crane was one of the top advisorsto Arnold Schwarzeneggar during histerm as governor of California. In thelast days of his term, Schwarzeneggarnominated Crane for a newly openseat on the board of Regents, butstalled by CA Senator Leland Yee of San Francisco.Crane has openly called for the elimination of collectivebargaining rights for public sectorworkers in California. This wouldmean that the unions to which UCworkers belong would lose all power and student activists would losethe crucial support that comes fromthose same unions.Monica Lozano(appointed 2001; term ends in 2013)The UniversityRegent Lozano is the CEO of Impremedia, LLC, the parentcompany of La Opinion Newspaper, which is the nation’slargest Spanish-language daily newspaper and wasfounded by her family in 1926. She also sits on the Boardof Directors for the Walt Disney Company, B of A, and is aTrustee for the University of Southern California.William de la Pena(appointed in 2006; term expires in2018)A respected ophthalmologist, andin spreading ophthalmology educationaround the globe, De La Pena is also a“giver-backer”. He has been appointedby George W. Bush as Regent to theUniformed Services University for Health Sciences andserved as a Special Delegate for the United Nations.Bonnie Reiss(appointed 2008; term expires in2020)Governor Schwarzenegger’s formerSecretary of Education. One of hermain goals is to use the media toinform the public of environmentalissues. Her odd career history asan entertainment lawyer, writer,producer, and accountment doesseem strange, but she seems tocare about the environment and education system.Charlene Zettel(appointed in 2009; term expires in2021)After receiving her degree in dentalhygiene from USC. She was elected and then to the State Assembly, aschair to the Republican Caucus. Shewas appointed by President Bush in2003 as the public interest director tothe Federal Home Loan Bank of Santhose positions, but she probably has clean teeth.Eddie Island(appointed in 2005; term expires in2017)Retired Lawyer and executive whoworked for the McDonell Douglas Corporation and the CaliforniaScience Center Board. He believesthe best plan of action to the StateBudget Crisis is to wait it out, and
shows his failure to comprehend the disconnect betweenrich and poor. He has enough money to not be hurt bythe ongoing budget crisis, so he can afford to wait it out.He is out of touch with the students he is supposed to berepresenting, some of whom can’t afford to simply acceptthe hikes and wait it out.Bruce D. Varner(appointed 2006, term expires in2018)Saying Bruce Varner is a bit out oftouch with the lives of UC studentswould be an understatement.Varner is a prestigious corporatelawyer handling cases like the recentmulti-million dollar takeover of theStater Bros. corporation. Varner isa friend and contributor to longtimeRepublican CA Rep. Jerry Lewis, who was recentlyunder federal investigation for his ties to lobbyists andcontractors. He also donated $5,000 to Schwarzeneggar’sre-election campaign before beingappointed to the Board of Regents.(SF Chronicle, 2006) (PE Business,2011)Mark Yudof(UC President,appointed in2008 by theRegents) to $828,084 -- budget crisis be damned. For context,remember that most TA’s, custodians and dining hallworkers are paid between $20,000 and $40,000 annually.Another perk to Yudof’s new job is his residence in theBlake House, a Northern California mansion that hasupheld a longstanding tradition of regal and lavish housingfor University of California president’s. Poor Yudof iscurrently living in interim housing in Oakland at the costof $11,500 a month because the Blake house is underelectrical and structural repairs costing between $2 millionand $10 million. We think he should have to live in thedorms. Interestingly enough, Yudof’s previous employer,the University of Texas, was the main competitor for controlover the UC-managed nuclear weapons labs (See UC andthe Bomb). It was a close race between UT’s alliance withLockheed Martin and the UC’s with Bechtel, WashingtonGroup International and BWX Technologies, but the UCtook the bid. Yudof didn’t have to feel the “disappointment”of losing this bid for too long once the UC Regents decidedhe was qualifed for the position at the top of their ladder.Not only is Mark Yudof in the ranks of the country’s highestpaid public universitypresidents, but he“[When Yudof was hired by the UC his]increased to $828,084, budget crisisbe damned. For context, remember thatmost TA’s, custodians and dining hallworkers are paid between $20,000 and$40,000 annually.”his long-covetedNuclear WeaponsLabs.In March of 2008, the Board ofRegents unanimously voted towelcome Mark Yudof as the 19thPresident of the University ofCalifornia. So who is Yudof, andwhy are all the Regents so excited to have him reign overthe University of California? At 63, Yudof has had a longhistory in running (and privatizing) public universitiesacross the country. He served as president of the fourcampusUniversity of Minnesota from 1997 to 2002, andchancellor of the University of Texas system from August2002 to May 2008. During his time at U of T, Yudof wasone of the driving forces behind an effort to give theuniversity’s administration the power to raise tuition at will.(Sound familiar?) Before that, he was a faculty memberand administrator at UT at Austin for 26 years, takingpositions such as Dean of the Law School from 1984 to1994 and Executive Vice President and Provost from 1994to 1997. Yudof’s employment history has, to put it mildly,been very well-paid. As Regent Blum described, “he’sexpensive, but he’s worth it!” While President of U of M,Yudof enjoyed multiple raises, bringing his annual earningsfrom $225,000 to $350,000; never mind that 75% of Uof M’s service workers were being paid poverty wages. In2002, Yudof arrived at University of Texas, doubling hissalary and becoming the 6th highest paid chancellor in theUnited States with a salary at $742,209 in 2007. With hismost recent move to the University of California, his total15Sources:regent/investors-club-how-the-uc-regents-spin-public-funds-employee-development-leadership/1122856-1.htmlinterview-with-stater.htmlc/a/2006/08/19/BAG2DKLDH01.DTLkieffer.htmlhouse-20101004ucprez28
The University of California is a prestigious andinfamously ‘liberal’ university (especially here at UCSC),presenting itself as an institution of progressive learning,academic integrity and intellectual freedom. But it’simportant to closely examine our university’s role in society,beyond this lofty and liberal image. We think it’s important,as participants in this academic institution, to be consciousof our university’s role as an essential building blockin supporting and perpetuating the strength of theever-expanding American military empire.Think of war industry as a pyramid that couldn’tstand without the support of all of its sides. The military,private corporations, and academia, while appearing tofunction independently of each other, are three pillars thattogether uphold United States military dominance. Withinthe military-industrial-academic complex, the militaryis responsible for enforcing defense, industry (primarilycorporations like weapons contractors) is responsible forproducing defense tools and machinery, and universitiesare responsible for providing the intellectual capital andresearch necessary to constantly develop our defensecapabilities. American hegemony (dominance) could notfunction without these three institutions working with andsustaining each other .16“Militarization of the university refers to the processand conditions in which a university’s people andresources have been mobilized to contribute tothe military enterprise of the political elites, theDepartment of Defense, and the D.o.D’s contractedcorporate subsidiaries” (Bond-Grahm, 2003). new science and knowledge, allowing the Departmentof Defense to continuously advance the dominance ofthe American military. Examples of this relationship canbe seen throughout the UC-system. A 2003 study ofthe research relationships between the Department ofDefense and full-time faculty at UCSC’s Baskin Schoolof Engineering showed that at the time, 51% of facultywere currently engaged in a research project that wasdirectly funded by the D.o.D (Bond-Grahm, 2003). Notingthe limitations of this study – that it focuses only on theBaskin School of Engineering at UCSC, that it does notinclude full-time researchers, lecturers, visiting professorsor graduate students, that this statistic does not refer to or other government bodies such as the Department ofEnergy of the Department of Homeland Security – it issafe to assume that a 51% rate of programs dependent onthe military enterprise is actually a modest estimate of theextent to which academia relies on the military (for funding)and the military relies on us (for research ). this relationship is a system of indoctrinating and preparingstudents and faculty to create a system that willperpetually guarantee the military a futuregeneration that is perfectly primedto work for the warfare state.Professor Charles Schwarzof UC Berkeley’sPhysics Departmenthas measuredrates of military/military- industrialemployment forgraduates as highas 48% for physics,34% astronomy,58% atmosphericscience, 28% appliedmathematics, 64% aeronautical engineering, 43% electricalengineering, 34% materials engineering, 36% mechanicalengineering, and 24% nuclear engineering (Schwartz).UC and The BombThe UniversityThe University of California provides one of the mostblatant examples of the intricate relationship between themilitary, corporations, and academia. Since the foundationof the Manhattan project, a term used to describe the World War II, the UC has overseen the nation’s two largestnuclear research facilities, serving as ‘manager” to the LosAlamos National Laboratory (Los Alamos, NM) and theLawrence Livermore National Laboratory (Livermore, CA).The UC managed the production of all 10,000+ nuclearweapons in the United States arsenal, and today manages
their “stockpile stewardship” (constant upkeep of all theweapons in our stockpile, essentially turning them intonew, more advanced bombs).We inherit a gruesome history as students (andfunders) of this institution. With the responsibility ofmanaging the creation of our entire nuclear arsenal, weare consequently responsible for all of their violent anddisturbing uses. This includes the two atomic bombsdropped over Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World WarII, resulting in over 200,000 acute deaths and generationsupon generations of resulting suffering. It includes the 67“test” bombs dropped on the Indigenous communities inthe Marshall Islands, equaling an average of 1.6 Hiroshimasizedexplosions over the Marshall Islands every daycontinuously for 12 years. And it also includes over athousand bombs detonated on the Western ShoshoneNation at the Nevada Test Site – the most bombed nationon earth – with 1,032 open air nuclear bombings and 21sub-critical nuclear explosions. Today, the Nevada TestSite is the proposed site to hold nuclear waste, buried ina ‘geological repository’ in Yucca Mountain- despite thefact that Yucca Mountain is on a fault line, and that nuclearwaste continues to be carcinogenic and radioactive forthousands of years. There has been a trend of environmentalracism inherent within our management of labs, in whichcommunities of color have nearly always been the targetsof nuclear attacks and nuclear pollution. In the case of thenuclear weapons complex and UC management, this hasespecially been true of Native American and Indigenouscommunities. A blatant example of this is that 18 of the20 proposed nuclear waste sites were located on NativeAmerican Reservations. How’s that for “let there be light”?Corporate TakeoverIn 2004 and 2005, this relationship between triad with corporate industry when management of LLNLManhattan Project. The decision to put the labs up was aresult of a history of shady and incomplete management bythe UC Regents over the labs, including security breeches,handling of radioactive material. However, the UC Regentswere able to maintain their grip on the world of nuclearweapons when they submitted their bid as a conglomeratewith military-industrial corporations Bechtel, WashingtonGroup International and BWX Technologies, forming aLimited Liability Corporation over the labs. They won thisnew contract, beating out a consortium between LockheedMartin and University of Texas (two other institutions thatrelate to your life as a student at UCSC, with a branch ofLockheed Martin located up the hill from us at the top ofEmpire Grade, and with our new UC President Mark Yudofcoming to us after being Chancellor at the University ofTexas [See article on the Regents, pg 12] .17The UC, now partnered with these threecorporations, has turned the management of LLNL andLANL from public management to private management,making it easier to change contracts, create new nukes,and withhold information. Their LLC (limited liability) statusconveniently removes responsibility from any one of theseinstitutions. It’s important to note the role our new “partners”play in society. Bechtel is a multi-national corporation, andworking on 20,000 projects on all seven continents sinceit was founded in 1898. Riley Bechtel is the 104th richestman in the world, and served on Bush’s “Export Councilto advise the government on how to create markets forAmerican companies overseas.” Examples of projectsBechtel has worked range from nuclear reactors to oilpipelines to “re- building infrastructure” in Iraq. They are mostnotoriously known for their involvement in the privatizationof water in Bolivia, leading to mass protests known as “TheCochabamba Water Wars.” BWX Technologies seemsto “specialize” in the management of nuclear weaponsfacilities, operating not only at LLNL and LANL but alsoat the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee andthe Pantex Plant in Texas. Washington Group Internationalwas acquired in 2007 by URS Corporation for 3.1 milliondollars, and now functions as the “Washington Division” ofURS. This provides another tie to the UC, because URSCorporation was contracted for part of the Long RangeDevelopment Plan here at UCSC (see LRDP). To make iteven more incestuous and complicated, Board of Regentsmember Richard Blum used to preside on the URS Board,interest (see ‘The Regents’, p.12).The UC is very much guilty of involvement in thismilitary-industrial-academic relationship, working closelyAs a result, the management of the University of Californiais not only guilty of a lack of vocal resistance to UnitedStates imperial policies, but of being an active participantin the deliberate violence, oppression and exploitationenacted by our government and our military at home andabroad . So what do we do about it? It should be notedthat efforts to de-militarize and to democratize the UC areone and the same. Would the UC participate in the militaryenterprises described above if it were run democratically,if students, staff and faculty had control over the affairsof university management? Would students choose topartner with so many major players in the war industry?Would you?References:-The Baskin Study, Darwin Bond-Grahm, 2003-http://www.corpwatch.org/index.php-Addicted to War by Joel Andreas-If You Poison US: Uranium and Native Americans by Peter H.Echstaedt-“Publish and Perish: Integration of University Science with thePentagon” by Charles Schwartz (1988, Science for the People)
UC & Corporate Financeand underwater sonar systems, “that make a measurabledifference in the world from our asset managementcapabilities to supporting the design and development ofnew weapons systems.”18not engage in any active tracking of expensesand that there is no set, comprehensive policy inplace for routinely checking on how campuses usenoncompensation expenses may be budgetedat the program, department, or college level; no knowledge of, oversight over, or other role intracking noncompensation expenses and that eachcampus has its own method for tracking theseexpenses.” (UC Audit 2010) money trail. Furthermore, through some stroke of luckthe audit didn’t include private funding and though itrecommended the UC state their funding sources, theirresponse was unsurprisingly a staunch ,”No.” Well hereare a few of those private corporations funding the UCsystem and stealing the intellectual property of studentsas well as limiting the research of our professors.URS, Perini, and the UCURS received a $25 million contract to build the LosAlamos National Laboratories, which was received whileChairman of the Regents, Richard Blum, was a principleinvestor and vice president of the board. In response tostudent-initiated pressure, Blum resigned. URS also helda $150 million construction contract for UCLA’s SantaMonica Medical Center, and has developed numerousother projects for the UC. URS subsidiary, EG&G, isanother defense contractor that builds weapons systemsThe UniversityIn October 2005, Perini Corporation acquired $700 & Sletten for $53 million. When Blum was a Regent, theboard hired Rudolph & Sletten to manage and serve as thegeneral contractor for a $48 million nanotech laboratory,the Molecular Foundry, at the Lawrence Berkeley NationalLaboratory. The project went $4 million over budget.During this time, Regent Blum was a principle investor inPerini. After the deal, Blum divested his Perini stock, which and URS received a combined $1.5 billion in defensecontracts while Blum was on the boards or an investor.Genencor, Genentech, and the UCAmong those that hold close relationships withthe UC, Genencor Inc., a subsidiary of Genentech Inc, isof particular interest. As UCSC enters into a new era ofresearch-based programs that attract external funding,“bio-nano-info tech revolution,” at the heart of which isGenencor and the Joint Venture’s plans for “The NextSilicon Valley”. The company has high ranking executiveson boards across Silicon Valley, including the Silicon ValleyNetwork, on which UCSC Acting Chancellor Blumenthalalso serves. In a nutshell, this is who is directing researchthe UC.Here are a few examples of the UC-Genencorrelationships:In August 2007, UCSC hired Phil Berman to chairthe Biomolecular Engineering Department of the JackBaskin School of Engineering. Berman, who will receivean annual salary of $156,000, previously worked forGenentech and VaxGen for 15 years.Such an addition to the UCSC faculty may becomemore frequent. The 2007 Strategic Academic Plan suggeststhat in the wake of rapidly decreasing state funding, UCSCshould hire faculty with an “entrepreneurial spirit” that canattract external funding.Genentech, Genencor’s parent company, alsohas a long history with UC San Francisco--the twowere engaged in a nine-year patent dispute, in whichtechnology developed and patented by the university. Thethe market, and made $2 billion in sales, giving rise to thecompany’s status as a global leader in the industry. The$200 million that Genentech gave to UCSF in a settlement
seemed to function more as an investment for the company.UC-B(P)erkeleyBP’s $500 million deal with UC Berkeley wassigned in November 2007, before BP had developed thepoor public reputation it now has, but even then, manypeople both in the UC Berkeley campus community andfunding energy research at a public institution.The UC-Military Industrial ComplexHalliburton provides oilservices and logistics. SubsidiaryKellogg Brown & Root providesmilitary support services andreceived $8 billion in 2003 alone incontracts for Iraq reconstruction. even before the invasion began.Received $16 million to build aprison in Guantanamo Bay. VPDick Cheney was HalliburtonPresident and CEO until takingworth over $10 million dollars.The Department of Energy’s LosAlamos National Laboratory, thepremier nuclear weapons lab inthe US, selected KBR as the newsite support services contractor.KBR, and Los Alamos functionsas a subcontractor to the UCwhich manages the lab. Inthe aftermath of HurricaneKatrina, KBR won a $500 millioncontract to rebuild US Navyfacilities damaged by the storm.Halliburton and its subsidiaryKBR have received billions ofdollars in contracts due to naturaldisasters and wars.Lockheed Martin isnumber one in the defenseindustry “Big Three.” Makes missiles and nuclear weapons.Received $17 billion in militaryin 2005. Former Lockheed VP Bruce Jackson chaired theCoalition for Liberation of Iraq, which promoted the Bushwar plan. LM has a facility in Santa Cruz County at theLockheed Martin Missiles and Space Company in BonnyDoon. The Trident and other missiles were worked on at thissite. The company battled the UC for a contract to manage19the Los Alamos Lab in 2005 and ultimately lost. LM hasalso made billions in Homeland Security contracts. Let’snot forget the many environmental and health catastrophesthat have resulted from Lockheed’s many toxic facilities.For example, after perchlorate contamination was foundin San Bernadino County’s drinking water, LM tried toconvince the EPA to lower perchlorate standards in H 2O tosave on clean up costs.Boeing number two in the defense industry “Bigcomponents and Apache helicopters. Received $16.6billion in military contractsin 2004. Largest USexporter. Like the otherbig defense contractors,has adapted marketingstrategies and applicationof products for use indomestic security. Underinvestigation for numerouscases of corruption and Sept. 6th, 2008, 27,000machinists went on strikedemanding increased jobsecurity and compensation.Further struggles involveduse of outside contractorsand higher co-pays anddeductibles. In 2005Boeing donated $150,000to the UC Regents, whichwas then passed to UCextension programs inan effort to improve the40% failure rate of theCalifornia subject examfor teachers (CSET) inmath and science. Onespokesperson for Boeingstated in regards toBoeing’s donations, “This isa win-win for the companyand the state. We have thepotential to become betterpartners in the commonchance to hire the studentsof 2005, Boeing is the largest manufacturing employer ofthe state of California.References:-UC Audit: http://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2010-105.pdf-Cal Disorientation Guide 2010
20 The University
An Injury to Oneis an Injury to All!Welcome to the University of California, Santaif not all, of the following things: buy books at the BaytreeBookstore; stand in line for a new student ID; eat meals inthe dining halls; take showers in a regularly cleaned dormbathroom, and throw last night’s beer cans into the justemptieddumpster outside your building.a public service; instead, it is based entirely in privateinterests and on private models, only this corporation usespublic funds and the fees and tuition of many hardworkingstudents to serve the already rich and powerful.The University can more than afford to take on itsrole as a public institution properly, to treat its employeeswith dignity and to keep its doors open to all studentswho wish to learn. Instead, it edges out more and morestudents with each fee hike and tuition increase. Instead, itdenies its employees salaries that meet the cost of living,and imposes greater and greater workloads on the samenumber of workers, directly decreasing the quality ofeducation and student life at UCSC.What happens to the surplus money that theUniversity makes each year? It’s clearly not going toworkers. It’s certainly not going to our overcrowdedclassrooms, shrinking library or overburdened TAs. Whereis all of this money going?! And what can we do to get itback?As you do each of these things, take a minute to considerwhat is happening around you. This university is staffed bythousands of people who do everything from teach yourclasses to clean your common room. Consider that it isthese people who make your university experience herepossible. The University works because they do.Unfortunately, the University of California, whichfunctions essentially as one of the largest corporations inthe state (see Regents p.48), also has one of the worstreputations as an employer. From its inception, the UChas been charged with labor violations: unsafe workingconditions, poverty-level wages and refusal to negotiate ingood faith with labor unions.Labor unions are the primary organizations thatrepresent workers and negotiate for their rights with theiremployers. They protect workers from unlawful terminationand harassment, and organize to increase job security,wages and opportunities against the incessant rollbacksof corporations and our government. Most importantly,labor unions can build solidarity among groups of peoplewho are all interested in the same thing: improving theirability to defend their rights and the value of their labor- no simple task at UC. Interested primarily in prestige, its employees. And for what? UC is a public institution and Because it’s priorities have nothing to do with improvingeducation and the communities on and around campuses.Rather than respect the surrounding communities and theworkers who come from them, the university treats them asexpendable. This does not even come close to constituting21The commitment to stand up together for all workingpeople’s rights is one of the most fundamental principlesof the labor movement, both ethically and strategically.Solidarity - the key to resistance - develops when we buildpersonal connections with the people in our communities.Get to know the people who clean your dorms andclassrooms, the people who drive your buses and process alliances like this is not only crucial to resisting the rollbackof our education, it also gives us a glimpse of what is lostUnion Cheat SheetEmployees: groundskeepers, custodians, shuttle driversand dining hall workers. www.afscme3299.org mmolina@afscme3299.org 831.425.4822ucaft.org/, allison@ucsc-aft.org uaw2865.org santacruz@uaw2865.org 831.423.9737. 0258 technical support, lab assistants, researchers. http://upte-ucsc.org/ upte@upte-cwa.org 831.429.8783
Ethnic StudiesOver four decades have passed since studentscommencement to highlight racism and discriminationtowards students of color on the campus. Their protestwas part of a wider grassroots political movement to realizeThird World studies at public universities in California andbeyond—a movement that would give rise to the College ofEthnic Studies at San Francisco State and the departmentsof African American and ethnic studies at UC Berkeley. Yet,whereas its neighboring institutions can claim legacies ofethnic studies over forty years old, UC Santa Cruz, in sharpcontrast, remains the only longstanding campus within theUniversity of California system without a formalized ethnicstudies program or department.The climate at UC Santa Cruz is notoriously hostile.Despite the historical and ongoing efforts of students whohave continuously fought for a department of Third World,Native American, and ethnic studies, UC Santa Cruz hasfailed to address the need for critical race studies as adedicated site of intellectual and political inquiry. Instead,“diversity” is managed along tokenistic or PR lines. Thereality at UC Santa Cruz is grim: lecturers are hired onan inconsistent basis to teach courses in critical racestudies which are nowhere advertised to the studentbody at large, student-of-color organizations sponsor andteach their own ethnic studies courses as well as shoulderthe burden of outreach to and retention of underservedminority communities, ethnic resource centers arechronically underfunded and their staff overworked, andfaculty of color are loathe to set foot on this campus anddepart in droves. Over the past year alone, UC Santa Cruzhas witnessed the suspension of Community Studies andAmerican Studies, the loss of all black studies facultyin the Literature Department, and the administration’s throughout the campus. Complicit in perpetuating a toxic22 Racism & Resistanceatmosphere of complacency, ignorance, and racism, UCSanta Cruz risks the distinction of being “the Arizona of theUC system.”The time is right—indeed, long overdue—forthe establishment of a department of ethnic and criticalrace studies at UC Santa Cruz. As a public institution ofhigher learning, the University of California is mandatedto serve the people of California. Given the shiftingdemographics of the state, UC Santa Cruz must adjustits institutional priorities away from bloated administrativesalaries and allocate permanent funding for ethnic andcritical race studies as an urgent comparative, local andglobal, interdisciplinary, and multilingual project—a criticaltheoretical and political project that articulates with queer,feminist, and labor studies in challenging asymmetricalpower relations and fostering emergent and minoritizedforms of knowledge production.We accordingly demand the following:* Establishment of an ethnic and critical race studiesdepartment with permanent faculty lines, a major and a* Increased permanent funding for the Ethnic ResourceCenters* Sustained, fully-funded recruitment, and retentionof students from underrepresented and underservedcommunities. In particular, full-time recruiter in StudentAdmissions who will outreach to underserved communitiesin San Jose and East Palo Alto.* Protection, retention, and education of AB540/undocumented students by developing an IntergenerationalImmigrant Resource Center that provides support throughprogramming, funding, and other resources. Funding ofAB540/undocumented education through institutional aid.working-class students and students of colorA Personal NarrativeI’d like you to know that the narrative UC Santa Cruzhas produced around “diversity” is a shallow interpretationof the meaning of the word. As brotha’ Cornel West putsit, true diversity is “multi-contextual” and if we accept hisStudies, a discipline that roots its analysis in the historicallegacies of colonized and oppressed people, the Universityto its students that comprise the very diversity they soproudly boast of.For 40 years students have been contextualizingthemselves, teaching their own classes and learning withand through each other, from the student lead classroomto the occupied buildings of UCSC. I’d like to share with
you what I’ve come to know of this 40-year history through Ethnic Studies has its roots in the beginning years of theuniversity where a group of Third World Students hijacked frustration with the inadequate resources within an alreadyculturally incompetent social and academic context. In 1981,students used “hunger as a weapon” against their bodiesto show the administration that they were willing to live anddie so that the intellectual traditions of non-western people,for the entire UCSC student body. (A short documentaryentitled Hunger Strike! is available at Mchenry library &youtube). The hunger strike resulted in the hiring of EthnicStudies faculty and the “E” or “Ethnic” general educationrequirement. Since 1981 the demands for Ethnic Studieswas missing the graduate student and faculty supportneeded to realize the department.The most recent revival of the movement forEthnic Studies is also perhaps the most successful one.Unfortunately this success is not due to a mass movement revolutionaries striking for 10 weeks and demanding that much like Berkeley did. Instead the success was a resultof a dedicated group of students, who were workingautonomously: holding rallies, social justice tours, generalassemblies, and weekly organizing meetings that informedtheir work institutionally, which consisted of meeting withadministrators, faculty, staff, and graduate students on aregular basis. The group of students, who I’ll refer to asthe “friends”, came together in an attempt to address theneeds and concerns of students of color in a movementtraditions, a quality absent during the Kerr Hall Occupationand surrounding student movement. As the friends beganto develop a collective vision for the trajectory of theirorganizing, Ethnic Studies became a central focus of allof our planning and strategizing. As we began conductingresearch about the history of Ethnic Studies in Berkeleyand UC San Francisco we realized there were limits tothe previous incarnations of the discipline, particularlythe underdevelopment of Indigenous studies, AfrikanEastern or Arab Studies, Mixed-Race Studies and even atransnational/global approach to these sub groupings ofEthnic Studies.With this realization came the language thatprovided the clear direction and vision for the UC SantaCruz brand of Ethnic Studies. We no longer understoodstruggling to establish a critical site of inquiry in the formof a “Critical Race & Ethnic Studies (CRES)” department,The following is an excerpt from the undergraduateproposal written by the friends outlining the vision for thedepartment: “Organized around principles of OppositionalScholarship, the Critical Race & Ethnic Studies Departmentis designed to cultivate a critical approach to the study ofrace, ethnicity, and their intersections with structures ofoppression and power in a global context.” The function ofthis language is to go beyond the brand of Ethnic Studiesthat focuses merely on identity politics and the nation stateand fails to indict the current structures of oppression thatwe are all intimately connected to. Essentially the wordingarticulates the radical nature and function of the type ofdiscipline we wish to see realized here at UC Santa Cruz,one that negotiates power to the extent that it has directto. The language was essential to develop especially whenour own student government (Student Union Assembly/SUA) had decided to make Ethnic Studies their project for23
the year, which manifested itself in sporadic, inconsistent graduate students, faculty, staff and administration. underdeveloped version of Ethnic Studies we as organizerswere trying to avoid. This means we, as students musthold the new SUA accountable to the students and theprojects they have decided to undertake. With this visionthe friends organized a rally on March 2nd, in which closeto 300 students were in attendance. At the climax ofthe rally the friends led a retreat at the Ethnic ResourceCenter. As Third World Students we felt it was important todistinguish ourselves from past actions by stating this wasnot an occupation but a “non-violent utilization of studentfunded resources for the distinct purpose of “echoing thevoices of the past that have demanded a critical site ofinquiry in the form of an CRES department” (Retreat!). Itwas through organizing for March 2nd that we developedthe relationships necessary to make CRES a reality in UCSanta Cruz. Since March 2nd, a group of graduate studentsof color from the Feminist Studies department have drafteda beautifully written and substantial proposal for a CRESdepartment that has been the basis of our interactions withfaculty and administration.Also, a faculty of color working grouphas formed to be responsible for draftingthe proposal for the CRES to bepresented in the Academic Senate,the universities governing bodyresponsible for approving anydiscipline for institutionalization.After an open forum onEthnic Studies a facultymember from the workinggroup approached me,“congratulations, youall have managed toaccomplish a lot in shortperiod of time. I hopeyou realize the urgencyand organization of theundergraduates really lit thefelt we had to get ourselvestogether.” Despite being theclosest we have been towardsgetting CRES we are still in theearly stages of its development,which means we as students haveon how the department begins to takeform. If the defunding of Ethnic Studiesat Berkeley/SF and American/Communitystudies here at UCSC has taught us anything24is that the administration does not prioritize disciplinesthat are critical of dominant power structures, let aloneanything to do with Third World Students. That is why Iam stressing the need for current students and futureCRES students to continue to organize and be willing to disciplines come under attack by any wing of the university.essential when we consider the most probably trajectoryof the development of CRES as a discipline, which willtake the form of a program, then a major/minor, andbecause a department would give the faculty a great dealof autonomy in terms of budget, content, and managementof resources. I would like to end by encouraging everyoneto check out the blog that the friends created in attempt tosustain a historical memory. Visit http://ucscethnicstudies. have been doing and updates on what is next for themovement in the coming 2011-2012 school year and howto get involved. La lucha sigue…Holla’ Back.Racism & Resistance
Prison Industrial ComplexTo Incarcerate or to Educate? That is the Question.You may be wondering why an article about prisonsis in The Disorientation Guide for UCSC. What relationshipscould institutions of higher education possibly have toinstitutions of punishment? The connections are many. Asnapshot: prisoners in California build many of the deskswe use here at UCSC. Lets dig deeper. On the level of stategovernment, the allocation of funding for prisons and theuniversities connects these institutions through California’sstate budget. On a societal level, prisons and universitiesmaintain the established order, which offers some peopleopportunities and locks other people in cages.As part of a global shift of governments away fromsocial services and toward social control, global spendingon prisons has sky rocketed while public education is beingdismantled. In the 1960’s California passed the state passedthe California Master Plan for Higher Education, whichlaid out the Community College, CSU, and UC systemsto guarantee access to education. This represented avisionary plan rooted in the belief that all people whowish to learn should have the opportunity to do so. Sadly,the state of California has been destroying the MasterPlan over the past three decades while simultaneouslyexpanding the prison system. Between the years 1980 and2000, the state of California built 23 new prisons and 2 newuniversities 1 ; in the mid-seventies, the UC received 6.6percent of the state budget and prisons received 3 percent,but now, the UC gets 2.2 percent and theprison industry gets 7.4 percentof the state budget 2 . Prisonsdevour social wealth thatcould go to social programslike universities and healthcare. The state has shownthat it cares more aboutpunishment than education.Universities and prisonsrepresent two fundamentalinstitutions for the propagationof the current social order;universities help determinewho will run this show whileprisons determine whowill be put in cages. InAmerica, these structuralforces tend to reproduce awhite supremacist capitalistsociety. If we actually want tolive in a just world, we mustcritically question injusticesand we must take direct25action based on what we learn. For universities andprisons, we must ask: Who ends up where? How do theyWith these institutions, two patterns stand-out:people of color in conditions of economic oppression tendto be thrown in prison while white people from conditionsof economic privilege usually go to college. With both assumptions about crime and deviancy then work to justify prisoners in the United States are people of color; there are black men in universities 3 ; blacks make up 6.2% ofCalifornia’s population at large, 29.1% of California’s prisonpopulation, and 2.3% of the population at UCSC. This nowhere. This social order is structurally produced andreproduced through prisons and universities. If we wish tolive in an actual democracy, with an educated population, This struggle is ongoing, how will you contribute?Due to various limitations, this piece cannot includea number of perspectives for understanding the prisonindustrialcomplex and the university. This is a startingpoint, not an ending. For more information and ways tocontribute to the struggle, start by looking up: CriticalResistance, Justice Now, On The Poverty of Student Life,Fire to the Prisons, and Abolition Now.References1. Education as Liberation2. Mad as Hell3. Masked Racism
Save theKnollIt’s September 10th, the night before thethe Guide to the printers. I’ve waited as long as possibleto write this piece because the campaign to Save the Knollis ongoing. I want to give the most up-to-date coveragepossible, but by the time you read this, more events willhave unfolded. This article is an introduction to the struggleto protect the sacred Ohlone burial site on Market Streethere in Santa Cruz.You are standing on occupied indigenous territory(See Ohlone History, p. 44). The place we call the UnitedStates was once home to millions of indigenous peoplefrom many different tribes. Over the past 500 years,European settlers carried out a barbaric campaign ofgenocide and theft. The land we know as Santa Cruzwas once the land of the Ohlone people. Beginning in1791, Spanish colonizers invaded the area, slaughteredindigenous people, stole land, and built the Santa CruzMission; this savage conquest has continued through theera of Manifest Destiny to the time of the Gold Rush totoday.These practices of genocidal colonialism havenot stopped—what is happening on the knoll at MarketStreet Field demonstrated this in the form of culturalgenocide and desecration. Market Street Field is a knownOhlone village site with deep cultural, spiritual, andbodies of Ohlone ancestors—it is a sacred burial ground.Despite this fact, the Santa Cruz City Council endorsed aconstruction project on the site in 2007. Before voting toapprove the project that would destroy this sacred place,former City Planning Commissioner Judy Warner calledKB Home (a Fortune 500 corporation that purchased thesite in 2010) has pushed this brutal project forward despitewidespread opposition from the Ohlone people, localresidents, archaeologists, environmentalists and historicpreservationists. moved forward with its plan to build 32 “green” homes,European settlers unearthed half of the body of a nine-In the words of Corrina Gould, a Chochenyo Ohlone26Racism & Resistancewoman, “What I say about this [type of] developmentthat happens all over the Bay Area is that it’s a culturalgenocide. They’re trying to wipe us out, in a different kindof way…When people go around to those places to try tolive like? There’s nothing here.” The knoll has not yet beendestroyed, it is still here, and while KB Home continueswith its efforts to bulldoze the burial ground, people areThrough the legal bureaucracy of the NativeAmerican Heritage Commission, the Ohlone people haverecommended that no more construction take place onthe burial ground. These laws allow indigenous people tomake recommendations about development projects onsacred sites, but the laws don’t give the indigenous peoplereal power to stop the desecration. Due to the failings ofthe colonial legal system, the Save the Knoll Coalitionformed to protect the Ohlone ancestors. The coalitionhas organized demonstrations, continued to protest atthe construction site, delivered demands to the KB Homecorporate headquarters, spoke at City Council meetings,conducted ceremonies, and hosted educational events toraise community awareness. Its unclear what the futureconcerned members of the Santa Cruz community will dowhatever is necessary to protect this burial ground from thebarbarism of colonial destruction and cultural genocide.The struggle to defend the Ohlone ancestors needs all thesupport it can get—I hope you contribute your time andget involved, check out savetheknoll.org and get going.References:Minutes from 4/19/07 Planning Commision Meeting; City ofSanta Cruz, p.4.Audio recording of Corrina Gould speaking at theOakland Intertribal Friendship House, 7/08/11. – “http://protectglencove.org/”http://protectglencove.org/
Engaging Education (e 2 )27What is e2?Engaging Education is a supportiveand dynamic space for programmingthat addresses the low rates ofrecruitment, retention and graduationthat historically under-resourcedcommunities face within highereducation. To build a foundationfor students to grows and evolve, e2promotes programming that engages ingrassroots organizing, student activism,community-building both inside and outsidethe University,and understanding legaciesof social justice struggle. e2partners with the Universitycommunity to provide apurposeful, transformativeand relevant educationalexperience for all students.Context and HistoryThe concept of e2:Engaging Education was Peace Vigil organized by the Ethnic Student OrganizationCounsel in response to two major hate incidents that hadas, “(v): Engaging Education: is not a organization or club –e2 is a conscious movement by students at UCSC towardsowning and taking responsibility for our education.” Studentswere outraged at the lack of support felt from members of theuniversity administration and the campus community in general.They decided that if any change was to be made it, it was goingto have to come from the students.The idea for the e2: Engaging Education Center,conceived at the Peace Vigil, was developed into the Measure10 <strong>Campus</strong> referendum during the e2 class (previously theESOC Leadership class) of Winter and Spring 2003. The classfacilitators and students worked on developing the beginningof the e2 center. The referendum was created in response tooutreach and retention. e2 has institutionalized student-initiatedoutreach and retention programs, which recruit and maintain arights of all students.Outreach and Retention“e 2 is not an organization or a club--e 2 is a consciousmovement by students towards owning and takingresponsibility for our education.”“e 2 believes there is power in numbers; throughsolidarity and unity the possibilities for change areendless.”“e 2 believes in the right to a free and accessibleeducation for all.”Education For SustainableLiving ProgramHey UCSC students, do you know what sustainability needs of the present without compromising the ability offuture generations to meet their own needs”. The Educationfor Sustainable Living Program (ESLP) gives students theopportunity to learn about this powerful concept while makingchange in our university. ESLP is an entirely student taughtclass that happens each spring quarter. If you feel like youreducation is not teaching you about topics you care about, dosomething about it.Students who enroll in the class attend a weeklylecture series on many different topics such as permaculture,food justice, and different types of activism. All studentsalso participate in either a student taught discussion section(CRAFT), or an Action Research Team (ART). Studentsparticipating in a CRAFT meet weekly to discuss the weeklyOutreach and Retention programs are studentinitiatedand student-run. Each targets, but is not exclusivelyfor, historically underrepresented communities. Our Outreachprograms seek to create opportunities for, and encourage highschool students to continue their education at an institution ofhigher education. Our Retention programs aim to help studentsreach their fullest potential as learners and graduate. Eachprogram fosters mentorship, builds a sense ofcommunity, and offers academic, and socialsupport. As the center grows, new programscan be created and supported by the centerServicesIn addition to our Outreach andRetention programs, e2 provides otherservices that help support and engagestudents during their academic career. Theseinclude:and hold events or workshops. are available every Monday through Thursday at the e2Redwood Lounge. internships. students can check out.Contact Us:Main: 831-459-1743lecture topic, and other sustainability topics. ART students studyimprove our campus in that area. All the ARTs and CRAFTs arelead by highly trained student facilitators.There are many ways to get involved in ESLP each witha different time commitment. If you just have a little bit of time,you can sign up for a 2 unit CRAFT. With a little more time, youcan participate in an ART. Students even more excited aboutESLP can sign up to teach an ART or a CRAFT, or work yearround to organize ESLP. ESLP is known as College 8, 61 foronline at eslp.enviroslug.org. Take charge of your education Learn in a community Learn how to make change at UCSC Make great friends Get UCSC credit for your activism CLEI 61 or 161
Local Plants & Herbs28Aaron WhiteThe EnvironmentLiving in Santa Cruz one should learn that food isnever far, whether you’re getting it from a dumpster or fromthe forest. Besides California Oaks, Manzanitas, Madrones,and Redwoods that make up our environment there’sa large number of herbs and plants that we can use forteas, tinctures, salves, and to eat. I’m only going to discussyou should go on a Free Skool herb walk, check out zineson local herbs at the SubRosa Infoshop, or pick up a copyof “Plant Uses: California” from the arboretum (also availableonline). You should know about plants as you can usevein of DIY. Harvest it yourself!Rosemary rather easy to identify due to its bushy nature and needlelikeleaves and the fact that rosemary is a common ingredi-in town. Aside from simply grabbing a bunch and throwingit into your lunch, you can also use rosemary in tea. Ineastern medicine it is believed to help with grief.Plantain (Plantago lanceolata)- Not to be confusedwith the fruit, this plant is often considered to bea “weed,” despite its numerous medicinal properties. Theplantain is a small plant whose leaves can be broad or The plant can be chewed up and used externally for insectbites, stings, burns and cuts. The juice can also be usedinternally (1-2 tsp, 3x/day) to help treat gastritis, ulcers, andbladder problems. If you’d like, you can throw some plantaininto your salad.Miner’s Lettuce (Claytonia perfoliata)- This plantis high in vitamin C and goes great in salads. It is ofteneasiest to identify in spring as it has small pink or white green, and look like small pond leaves.Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica)- The leaves are asoft and sometimes dark green, serrated, and will appearto be hairy. The leaves can be used for tea, used in soup,and can be eaten directly off the plant after rolling up theleaf and bruising its tissue to remove the hairs that mightotherwise sting you. This plant is high in protein and hasoften been used in folk remedies to treat rheumatism bydirectly applying the leaf to the sore area. Soaking nettlesin water or boiling will remove the stinging chemicals fromthe plant. Some people also use the Stinging Nettle forkinky fun but remember that everyone’s sensitivity to theplant is different.Manzanita (Arcostaphylos)- This woody shrub/small tree is characterized by its smooth red/brown peelingbark and its light green oval leaves. Manzanitas has smallriesin fall. The berries can be ground up and mixed withwater to ferment into a cider. The leaves of the tree canbe used in tea to help with bladder problems, urinary tractproblems, headaches, and sores, amongst other things.The Silver-Leaf Manzanita which can be found locally isendangered.Mountain Balm aka Yerba Santa ( Eriodictyoncalifornicum)- This plants leaves are lance or stake shapedand can be both thick and sticky. They are often dustedwith a black fungi which can be easily wiped off or washedaway. The leaves have been used to treat upper respiratoryailments and asthma. Another kind of Yerba Santa(Eriodictyon crassifolium) can also be found around herethough it grows to be much taller than Mountain Balm andThe leaves can be boiled into teas to mitigate coughs, sorethroats, and asthma. A strong tea is supposed to help withsore limbs.Bay Laurel (Umbellularia californica)- This tall treeis the sole species in its genus. It’s leaves are often mis-leaves are smooth and lens shaped and the tree can growup to 90 ft (30m) tall. The tree also produces an edible nutwhich is inside of a fruit that resembles a small avocado.Cut the nuts out of the fruit and then wash them beforebaking to leach out any toxins from the fruit. The nut is kindof sweet and can be dried and powdered and made intosomething similar to coffee. The leaves have been used totreat headaches, toothaches, earaches, sore throats andto help free up mucus in the lungs in order to expel it. I recommendmixing a small amount of bay laurel with somethingsweeter as many people don’t like such a bitter tastein their teas.
GREENDOLLARSBuying green is good, but it won’t save the planet.You’re probably aware that we are already ina phase of global environmental collapse. If you’renot, you’ve been living under a rock or watching toomuch Fox News. Hopefully you’re doing what youcan to reduce your ecological footprint. You might alreadyhave a Klean Kanteen (®), re-usable canvasshopping bags, and 30% post-consumer recyclednotebooks for your classes this quarter. You might alreadyeat organic and local foods whenever possible.Those are good things! Keep doing them! Just knowthat simply ‘buying green’ will not, can not, stop theenvironmental catastrophe that we’re facing. Environmentalismis about a hell of a lot more than responsibleconsumerism. Here are two big reasons why:1. ‘Buying green’ turns environmentalism into aluxury for those who have enough money to affordit. It’s easy to get an ego boost by ‘shoppingethically’, but it’s good to remember that a largeportion of the population (locally and nationally)couldn’t walk into New Leaf and throw down $15on a pound of organic, fair trade, shade-growncoffee even if they wanted to.2. ‘Buying green’ takes responsibility for environmentalstewardship off of the corporations thaternmentthat is supposed to regulate those corporations,and on to individual consumers. Environmentalproblems get blamed on the decisionsof supposedly careless individuals, rather than onthe fact that our governmental regulatory systemsare utterly failing to protect us from the climatologicallycatastrophic consequences of corporategreed. This pattern of placing responsibility solelyon the individual is part of the same argument usedby the political right to justify institutional racismand sexism. (“The unemployment rate for blacks29is almost twice as high as it is for whites¹ becauseblack people are lazy. It has nothing to do with predominantly white management of US corporations.Women are only paid about ¾ as much asmen² because they’re not as capable. It has nothingto do with the fact that subtle prejudices stillUS corporations.”) “The environment is fucked upbecause people don’t recycle enough. It has nothingto do with the fact that unchecked corporateindustry produces mass quantities of stuff that we the parallel.So, where should we go from here? I don’t claimto have the answer to that question, but I can list offa few things that we (and you) can do. We can keepusing our Klean Kanteens and canvas bags. We cankeep recycling, we can buy local and go vegetarian/vegan (hell yeah!), and we can stop buying unnecessarycrap. We can compost. We can vote for politicalrepresentatives who aren’t bought and sold by the oil,corn and meat industries. If we’re willing to risk arrest,we can hold rallies, sit-ins and occupations againstthe corporations and government agencies that makesuch enormous environmental devastation possible.If we’re willing to risk torture and/or death, we canDo what you’re comfortable with, but know that noamount of petition signing and green-buying will bringthe machines to a halt as quickly as must happen ifwe want to have the possibility of grandchildren.References:1.http://www.bls.gov/cps/demographics.htm#race
Long Range Development PlanGoodbye Upper <strong>Campus</strong>; Hello College 12What do you mean by LongRange Development (LRDP)?When we walk aroundUCSC, College 9 and 10for example, it’s easy toforget that these new,modern buildings arepreceded by a longhistory--before fenceswent up and redwoodtrees were cut down,before cement waspoured and set. Theprocesses which madeway for these constructions have spill into budgetary and institutional spheres, ultimatelycontrolling the distribution of resources at UCSC.The College 9/10 buildings haven’t been aroundforever, and neither has UCSC. This university changeseach year, sometimes radically, and growth is a major partof that change. This is not the kindof growth we see in the forest, butan infrastructural growth that ismalleable to changing educational institutions and the investmentplans of larger infrastructures.The history of campus development is paralleledby histories of resistance. There are those who havestruggled to defend the beauty and uniqueness of avulnerable habitat and the scarce resources of Santa CruzCounty: students who have tried to stake out a space fortheir educational aspirations; faculty and staff committedto their work but often undercut by the administration’spriorities; Santa Cruz residents who have fought tirelesslegal battles with the UC.But wait, What is the LRDP?The UCSC 2005 Long Range Development Plan--approved in September 2006 by the UC Regents--is theprospective general plan for the physical expansion of theUCSC campus to accommodate an increase in studentenrollment. The LRDP’s approval has paved the way forthe construction of 120 acres of previously undeveloped(though certainly not undisturbed) land on upper campus;85 acres of which will be impenetrable surface (aka.concrete). Enrollment is expected to increase by 4,500students, bringing UCSC’s undergraduate population to19,500 full-time students by 2020. The stated goal of theLRDP is to expand UCSC’s capacity for academic, researchand professional programs and increase graduate studentenrollment.What form does growth take?30The LRDP sets the outer limits for projected growththe physical future of our campus. Along with the LRDPcome many other documents; especially important is theEnvironmental Impact Report (EIR). The EIR is a 900page analysis addressing how expansion would impactthe environment, including air and water quality, impactshousing. The way in which the EIR addresses environmentand infrastructure is incomplete and does not guaranteethe mitigation of future environmental impacts. These academic and local communities; they obstruct our abilityto learn and create at a University in the forest.Beyond these shortcomings, neither the LRDP northe EIR include analysis of a number of major elements ofUC life. NOTHING of the process for approving expansionaddresses our academic experience, the economics ofexpansion, and the maintenance of campus infrastructureas a whole. The EIR ignores the interdependency of allthese elements and systems which make up UCSC and theenvironment of which it is a part. There are no safeguardsto see that the administration pairs construction with effortsto maintain what is already here: a unique campus cultureand academic quality, a delicate redwood ecosystem, and athriving community. EvenEnrollment is expected to increaseby 4,500 students, bringing UCSC’sundergraduate population to 19,500full-time students by 2020.the UCSC sewer systemis under-maintained, yet ittoo continues to expand.So...how does thisgrowth happen?The LRDP and itsEIR are the product of Chancellor-appointed planningcommittees, the UC Regents, their environmental lawyersand councils, and the occasional LRDP/EIR public hearing.After the council receives public comment, they revise theTheir language, however, is vague and does not hold theadministration responsible to community concerns. Thereare many instances within the EIR where, though it is notedthat the environment will be greatly affected in a given way,mitigation will be pursued only “when feasible” (2005 EIR).This is of great concern to us. Those in charge ofapproving and directing expansion are not accountable inthe ways many people assume them to be. Despite thehundreds of concerns expressed at EIR hearings, thearticles written in response to the LRDP planning process,many of the concerns have not been confronted since 1999and there’s no reason to believe they will be any time soon(Meister’s Thesis, VIII). These concerns are serious andidentify Long Range expansion’s great political, ecologicalEnvironmental Effects:The EnvironmentSo, the LRDP and EIR do address environmentalimpacts, but they are incomplete and non-binding. Theydescribe many of the catastrophes that will accompanyexpansion, but leave out a great many more, and in no
way hold the University accountable for dealing withthese effects. Let us start with the illusion of the “Green”movement (see Environmentalism as Green Consumerismarticle). The UC hopped on the “Green” band-wagonin 2007 when they signed the “American College andUniversity Presidents Climate Commitments”. This requiresthem to abide by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED“Silver Standard”; in turn, they qualify for state and localgovernment initiatives and marketing exposure so long asthey build “Green” (www.usgbc.org/leed). Also sitting atopthe “Green” band-wagon is the “UC Policy for SustainablePractices and the Climate Action Compact,” which containsthe “GHG (GreenHouse Gas) Reduction Plan” (www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/index.html). The UC wears of Courage, and the whole time, they are being paid forby you and your steadily increasing student fees. These sustainable growth, but they reek with contradictions.First, the development over the huge diversityof vegetation and animal species is a blatant, violationof environmentally friendly construction. We would losea beautiful and valuable habitat with second growthRedwoods, Douglas Firs, mixed Evergreens, DwarfRedwoods and Hardwoods. Many of these species are onthe decline, like the Calypso Orchid and the Doloff CaveSpider in Porter Caves. Many more, like the Burrowing Owland Meadow Foam, are on the verge of extinction.Second, as the population of Santa Cruz grows,dense streets. The CO2 emissions will be astronomical,and will likely violate the 2009 California EnvironmentalQuality Act (http://ceres.ca.gov/ceqa/). The strain on SantaCruz water supply will also increase tremendously, assome 530 MILLION gallons of water be needed annually tosupport 19,500 students. Housing will not be sustainable oraffordable since landowners will take full advantage of thehigh demand. In tandem with the proposed development,we can expect overcrowding in homes and buses, noise points out that 13 intersections will likely fail by 2020 (2005EIR). What about all this is so “Green”?Academic Quality:Expansion brings with it all sorts of changes, andthe campus has to adjust. But expansion happens fast atUCSC, and the funds required to take on a larger studentpopulation are not secured in advance. The overall resultof this is a shift in the fundamental nature of academic life.Over decades of expansion, academics at UCSC havepriorities of UCSC’s founding vision. Today, this vision hasbeen replaced with the necessity of churning out graduatesand make way for ever-larger incoming classes.As more students are added, the cost of educatingthem actually increases--this has to do mostly with thechoice to divert resources from the maintenance of thecampus as a whole in order to use those resources forexpansion instead. In addition, “a campus’s average state31
funding per student declines with growth, and declinesmost sharply on the campuses that grow most rapidly.”(Meister, Eleven Theses on Growth, p.1) In this model,enrollment expands faster than educational infrastructure.In the midst of the shortages which accompanyexpansion, the administration looks for new sources tofund (our) undergraduate education. This is part of whywe see increases in tuition on the order of 7 and 9 percenteach year. The UC’s own Planning and Budget reportargues that expansion increases tuition while decreasingprogram and per-student funding. (See Sidebar A) It wassupposed to be free to attend UC! Now, who can and of attendance and the depletion of resources available tostudents as they try to work through their degrees. TuitionUCSC, who gets that privilege, and what purposes theirtime here ends up serving. The overall effect of increasingtuition is to displace the cost of education onto a privatelives and our society. is not enough to make up for the costs of expansion: TAstudentand Faculty-student ratios continue to decrease,depleting the very value of class-time. Marginalizedprograms are still cut each year (see The Budget Cutsarticle): students have fewer places to turn for academicsupport and fewer departments in which to build on theirparticular interests (an effect that is compounded by theCompetitiveness Initiative featured in Sidebar B). This allgoes back to the type of expansion UCSC is pursuing.The driving force behind UCSC academics becomes “theneed to graduate the increasing numbers of freshmen whoare already upon us while still preserving the possibilitythat a diminishing number of students can receive the kindof undergraduate education UC has traditionally promisedunder the Master Plan.” (Meister, 7)The basics of this process are complex andinterested in pursuing an open academic experience whileearning our degrees is clear: The struggle over expansionis the struggle over our academic life here and the role ourUniversity plays in our lives and in society as a whole.References:plan/docs/AcadPlan.Feb08.pdfcruz.ca.uc/cc/electionfonano.org-32QUEERUCSCOur whole lives are shaped around the idea thatthere are two genders. Men and women are supposedto use separate bathrooms, shop in their assigneddepartments, and act in different ways. Most peoplespend their whole lives trying to live up the gender they’reexpected to. Companies make millions of dollars everyyear off of products that are supposed to make us moreperfectly gendered.The terms to describe sexuality straight/gay/bi/lesbian are similarly restrictive because they are based they don’t incorporate the other aspects that make upour sexuality, like how we engage in what kind of sex. Inresponse to the gay liberation movement of the 70s, the allow some room for gay and lesbians to exist openly. But where gay and lesbian identities and people are exploited,tokenized, and fetishized. Gender and sexuality don’tthere still isn’t much space for people to exist outside ofgender binaries and homo/heterosexual.‘Queer’ is an inclusive term that allows us to break and sexual practices. The possibilities named by queerare much wider than the labels gay, lesbian, bisexual,and even trans, and intersex can encompass. When sexual orientation, and/or sexual practice to the mix thepossibilities are endless. There are more genders thantwo, more orientations than same/other and same/same,and so many fun sexual practices that we can’t even thinkof them all. Gender and sexuality identities aren’t stable- they can change over time. It’s okay to not know whatyou prefer, or to try something new. We just hope you cancarve out a space to be the gender you dream of, have funsex with the folks you’re attracted to instead of the onesyou’re expected to, and to join the still-desperate strugglefor political, social, emotional, and psychic freedom forqueers and our allies.RESOURCESGender and SexualityIn 2003, the Princeton Review said that studentsrated UCSC as the top public university for Gay LesbianBisexual Transgender Intersex (GLBTI) acceptance (okay,
they just called it “Gay Acceptance”). This might be true -to an inaugural symposium in 1971. Even the university’schancellor in 2005, Denice Denton, was queer. So, it’dseem that this is an absolutely fabulous place to be queer,to become queer, and to sort out what “queer” means. Well,we’re here to tell you that there is a lot of potential queerfun awaiting your pleasure this year - but it’s still no walkin the park to be out and fabulous at UCSC. There are abunch of good resources in this town, on and off campus,and hey, you’re not that far a drive from San Francisco.So in between making out with your roommate in your‘single sex’ room, here are some places to check out:The Lionel Cantu Gay Lesbian BisexualTransgender Intersex Resource Center is a sweet queerspace to escape the campus crowds. It’s up at Merrill,open M-F, and has comfy chairs, a kitchen, good lighting,and lots of printed and people resources. It’s a goodplace to meet people, take a break, and feel gender safe.The Resource Center aims to do education, advocacy,and to provide a safe space for queer UCSC students.Downtown,there’s the Diversity Center- They doFriday night movies, a queer youth task force, a seniortask force, host Santa Cruz Pride every year, and offer awalk-in resource. They’re a good bet if you’re interestedin volunteering in a queer space in Santa Cruz, and worthchecking out especially if you want to get off campus andmaybe help with the teen programming. Can’t let the oldfogies do it all! There’s also the SubRosa Anarchist Infoshopis a radical space downtown by the Saturn Cafe thatand Trans Days as well as a radical lending library full ofqueer resources.Zami Co-op is an autonomous intentional livingcommunity with a focus on queer identities. It’s more thana bit crusty, but a gem of communal radical queerness.Delta Lambda Psi is the country’s only genderneutral ‘farority’ founded in 2005. This is for those whoare looking for a non normative greek experience with alove for lady gaga and leopard print handcuffs. Meetingsare weekly Sunday nights at the Cantu Center.Out in the Redwoods: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual,Transgender History at UC Santa Cruz, 1965 - 2003 is afantastic written history of queer UCSC and Santa Cruz.Written through a class in 2004, this resource can be foundat the McHenry library and Lionel Cantu Queer ResourceCenter.UCSC has a number of housing options forlive. Gender neutral housing is available at all collegesthat will pair roommates regardless of biological sex. In33addition, many colleges such as Porter and Merrill, haveQueer Fashion Show (QFS) is an annual varietyshow in the Porter dining hall which includes fashion,music, spoken word, theater, and fabulousness to promoteacceptance of queer communities at UCSC, and bring upimportant social issues facing the community. Originallythe ‘alternative fashion show,’ QFS has been a cornerstoneof the queer community for decades.The Queer Student Union (QSU) is a studentledqueer organizing group which uses resources fromthrough speakers, events, and resources.A Quick Guide to Preferred Gender PronounsPreferred Gender Pronouns (PGP) refers to one’sdress, gestures, and actions. Gender is often presented inbinaries such as Man/ Woman; Boy/ Girl; Butch/ Femme;Dom (dominant)/ Sub (submissive), etc... Whereas, sex isin reference to biological distinction, which people oftenuse in the binary stating that the penis/testes makes youmale and the clitoris/ovaries makes you female. Thissex binary is problematic because it doesn’t account forpeople born with undescended testicles, micro-penises,enlarged clitorises, fused labia or any otherdifference that can occur duringbirth that complicates the sexbinary. So, when meeting not assume either their sex orgender and instead ask themtheir Preferred Gender Pronoun(PGP), which is how someoneHe-Him-His (Male pronouns)She-Her-Hers (FemalePronouns)Ze-Hir-Hirs / Ey-Eir-Eirs(Spivak/ Gender NuetralPronouns)Some people identify by theirname or “they.” While rare, asmall number of individualsidentify by “it.” There are morepronoun forms out there but itis rare you’ll hear them and ifyou do, just try to keep them inmind and treat that person withrespect.
I AM NOT A FEMINISTAm I? I am not an angry, bra-burning, man hatingwoman. I’m not angry, I’m simply frustrated at the state ofthe world. I don’t burn my bra, because the bra isn’t thethe problem. I don’t hate men, because there are men whojoin me in the struggle for gender equality. Maybe I am aman, maybe I am transgender. I am a believer in equal payfor equal work, LGBTQI rights, equal access to education,ending discrimination, celebrating diversity, and equalIn recent decades, the word feminism has been from the institutions that are threatened by the feministmovement. While there are feminists who are butch, hairy,old, etc... (and there’s nothing wrong with that) those areneither the norms nor the standard of feminism as I see it.Feminism should be characterized by a belief that gendernot you identify with the label.Feminism is a social and political movementcentered on a belief in the ideal of social, economic, andpolitical equality of the sexes, taking into account theinequities further imposed by gender, sexual orientation,economic class, race, ability, age, and appearance. It isabout striving for equality. Not sameness, but equality.34Gender and SexualityHugo Schwyzer, a male feminist and gender studiesprofessor at PCC (yes men can be feminists) said thatthe goal of feminism is not to erase difference, but toacknowledge and adapt to it.“What’s the worst possible thing you can call awoman? Don’t hold back, now. You’re probablythinking of words like slut, whore, bitch, cunt, (I toldyou not to hold back), skank. Okay, now, what arethe worst things you can call a guy? Fag, girl, bitch,pussy. I’ve even heard the term “mangina.” Noticeanything? The worst thing you can call a girl is agirl. The worst thing you can call a guy is a girl.Being a woman is the ultimate insult. Now tell methat’s not totally fucked up.” - Jessica Valenti “FullFrontal Feminism”While many universities offer women’s studies andgender studies majors, UC Santa Cruz is the only schoolthat offers a Feminist Studies major. It goes beyond thestruggles of women and the politics of gender to touchupon many other institutions such as homophobia, racism,ableism, ageism, and classism, and seeks to understandand change the underlying causes of these sources ofinequality.The women’s movement has evolved. It hastranscended the realm of white, middle class, suburbanhousewives in which it developed, and manifests itself invarious ways throughout the world. The movement haschanged because people have made it change. You toohave the ability to empower yourself and those around the base of campus, take a Feminist Studies class (Prof.Bettina Aptheker is excellent), and keep talking to yourfriends about equality of all kinds, and about the globalstruggle for social justice going on whether you are part ofit or not.
FertilityCyclesThere is a vast growth of info out there about howto keep safe and healthy, but it takes good investigatingwhich is living and sharing with others. This page containsinfo about female-bodied fertility, and contains a helpful listof resources to check out.The info displayed here is meant to dispel myths aboutthe female-bodied cycle as dirty, abnormal, or taboo. Ourbodies are beautiful and strong, and this information ismeant to highlight the power of female-bodies, dispellingsystems of patriarchy that reinforce these taboo feelings.LUNACY“Who knows how to heal, knows howto destroy” -a woman’s testimonybefore the inquisition, 1499The uterus and period cycle issomething that is often side-lined asoffensive or gross. Historical evidence ofthis: the New-England witch hunts; modernday evidence: anti-abortion rallies outsideclinics.cycle and fertility patterns. This info is not just for the femalebodied;bodies aren’t quite that binary, so if you’ve goteyes and other parts, GET INFORMED! There will alwaysbe someone in your life that can use this information.Communication is the expression of reality, and by talkingwe can make a world that we can REALLY rock out in.It is important to keep track of your changing bodyand be in tune with certain aspects of your cycle that mayseem out-of-whack or confusing. The more aware you areof your body’s patterns, the more informed your decisionswill be about, for example, whether or not to drop madcash on the morning after pill, or whether you want toinvestigate the ALTERNATIVES. Keeping track of thecycle for a few months can blossom an awareness on howto plan/schedule and deal with day to day life. Keeping aneye out for the moon is an easy way to do this, becausethe human body and the moon link up pretty well. which can last anywhere from a couple of days to a week.When bleeding stops, there are a series of “dry” days.These days may feel damp, if you’re in a loving mood, butthe dampness is usually clear and runny. After these “dry”35days comes a series of “wet” days during which the bodysperm towards the egg, signaling:OVULATIONTo get an idea of when you are likely to be ovulating,before, and usually during ovulation. It is usually white,creamy, or stringy (yum!). Check for this before peeingelse’s!) to get a good idea of whats been brewing. Notingcause the same wet feeling, but it is less viscous andusually clear. Sperm* can also be confused with ovulation attention to both substances willmake the differences clear.Ovulation happens anywherefrom 12-16 days before bleedingreoccurs. The last “wet” day is theUSUAL day of ovulation. While theeggs only live for one to two days,sperm can live for up to SEVENDAYS if they are being kept warminside the body, meaning mostpregnancies start in the wide windowBEFORE and AFTER ovulation. Onthe FOURTH night AFTER the last “wet”day, there is little to no risk of pregnancy,and this remains true up until the cycle startsup again. Menstruation can sometimes hide bleed at the same time, so when the cycle startsagain, a pregnancy can start.Remember:Ovulation can be triggered early or late, depending oncircumstance. Cycles are most notably altered becauseof stress, which signals to the body that it is not a goodtime to get pregnant because of harsh circumstance,and menstruation along with ovulation decrease. Thisindicates the body’s needs are not being met. If you aretaking birth control, this pattern is altered according to yourprescription.RESOURCES-Herbal Abortion: The Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge byUni M Taimat-DIY Guide II-Walnut Avenue Women’s Center: 175 Walnut Ave SantaCruz, CA 95060; #(831) 426-306295060 # (831) 425-1551-Search FreeSkool Calanders for Related classes andSubrosa for written info
A StreetcarNamed Consentby Sophia SolaWhat is the best thing about going to college?Hooking up! That is, when it’s a mutually positive experiencefor both parties. Put that junk back in your trunks for justa minute. Unfortunately, most of us are subject to theprevailing sexual habits of our culture, and the resultsaren’t always pretty. Our habits can lead us to mindlesslypressure others into sexual relations they don’t want tohave. Alternately, our conditioning can make us vulnerableto unwanted sexual pressure. Most people don’t want to,or mean to, pressure another person into unwanted sexualrelations, yet it happen all the time. You can prevent sexualboundary transgressions and sexual assault (and promotehappy, healthy “be-bopping” instead) by taking a criticallook at your own habits, and then adventuring to thedelicious, harmonious land of sexual consent.Our habits are not all simple, but some of them canbe named. First, we have gendered habits. We’ve all beenraised in a patriarchal world, one in which women and menare supposed to be clearly distinguishable categories, andin which women are to be submissive and men are toshow their power in order to be accepted as “normal.” Weform habits that uphold these norms, and we play them outevery day, often without even noticing.Second, clear and honest communication isn’ttaught to us as kids. Straightforward communication canfeel uncomfortable, and being sensitive can disrupt our assumptions in order to avoid awkwardness or rejection.There are also other reasons we might pressuresomeone to have non-consensual relations with us,misread another’s words or actions, or be reluctant tosay “no.” But there’s no reason we can’t work to end thisfucked-up cycle. Bringing consent – mutual agreement,mutual desire – into the picture again will not only keepsexual assault and rape out of the picture, it will let theSo, what exactly is consent, that blessed key toempowerment and vanquisher of assholeness? In thiscase, consent isn’t legalese terminology, and it isn’t atrip. Consent is when a person freely proclaims wantingto engage in certain emotional or physical relations withsomeone else. That the person “freely” agrees means nocoercion or pressure was used on them. That the personagrees to “certain” relations means that consent should bea part of each new level of intimacy – asking once is neverenough. The word “proclaims” should also be deciphered:any old “okay” to any old question doesn’t mean that aperson consents. Consent means you must hear (and36 involved parties must consent to any action.Consent isn’t simple. But it will achieve one or more of thefollowing:of your partner/loverTools and Tips for Catching the Consent TrainBy now, you are probably bursting with questions.What about a body-language “yes”? If I have to ask forconsent several times in order to get a “yes,” is that okay?What if I hurt someone’s feelings? What if I can’t even saythe word “boob” out loud without blushing? What if I’veoverstepped someone’s physical boundaries before? Willbeing sensitive to others make me less hot or studly?Not all of your questions can be answered in thisarticle. But we can provide you with four essential tools ofconsent, as well as some tips for making consent more funand less daunting.Tool 1. ASKINGAlways, always ask before making a move.Whether you’d like to put your arm around someone’sshoulder, give her a goodnight kiss or go down on her, askinvited you to her house or you rode her to your campsiteAsk in words, not with a questioning hand, a raisedeyebrow or a special romantic moon-powered psychicconnection. Ask in a way that leaves room for “no.” Askopen-ended questions. Ask before every move you make.Some good ways to ask:“What would you like to do?”“Would you like to make out more or stop for now?”“What is your ideal goodbye at the end of a date?”“How far do you want to go right now?”“Do you want me to…?”Okay ways to ask:“May I…?”“Is it okay to…?”A bad way to ask:“I want to nibble your ear, okay?”Tool 2. LISTENINGGender and SexualityYour sweetheart cannot read your mind. He simplycan’t. And you can’t read his. When you try, you are in
danger of hearing only your own desires echoing hollowlyoff of him. Listen to his words, not what you hope he willsay. And be prepared to hear “no.” Until you really get toknow a person’s likes and dislikes, you may hear a lot of“no”s. You’ll probably hear plenty of “no”s even after yearsof dating. For example, my lover boy and I have beentogether for three years, and:Sophia: Lover Boy, do you want me to rub your ass withmy slippery, sweaty foot? It just came out of a cliplesscycling shoe.Lover Boy: No thanks. I’d prefer to cuddle.Sophia: Okay. I’m a little embarrassed for suggestingsuch a thing.37LB: I still think you’re cool.More about listening: “No” means no, but sodo other things, so pay attention. If your date is saying“Maybe,” “I guess,” “But we’ve been drinking,” “I’m thinkingabout it,” “Later would be nice,” or anything except anadamant “YES!” then it means no. If you ask several times,and badger a yes out of her, it doesn’t count. This is a veryimportant point, and bears repeating. “YES!” means yes.Everything else means no.Why be so negative? Why does “Okay, um… sure,”have to count as a no? First, because it can feel impossibleto give a cold, hard “no,” especially for people socializedas female. Second, because you don’t want to accidentallyhurt someone you have a crush on by mistaking ze’swords. Don’t get apprehensive. Your crush will say “YES!”when ze actually wants to do stuff.Tool 3. CHECKING IN WITH THE OTHER PERSONChecking in begins with talking about what each ofyou wants or doesn’t want from your romantic encounter.It can also include letting the other person know thatyou have assaulted someone in the past, or that you arean assault survivor. Checking in creates a time to say ifyou’re feeling awkward, wary, sad, joyous, expectant orand prevent embarrassment. When someone is checkingin with you, take all of his concerns seriously, even if theysound absurd to you.Tool 4. CHECKING IN WITH YOURSELFTake moments here and there to check in withyourself. Are you sober? Is she sober? Are you feelingsafe? You are really asking consent? Are you saying onething and meaning another? If you remember to check in happy and healthy in the morning.Now that you know the basics, here are some waysto make the consent ride a little smoother.Tip 1. Body language: Body language can augment(though not replace) your use of verbal consent. Bodylanguage can let you know when someone is feelingalong with positive body language does not equal yes.Tip 2. Humor: Making things funny always makes themless awkward. Making fun of your awkwardness alsoreleases tension. Remember that awkwardness willpass, but the warm fuzziness of consent will stay.Tip 3. Code: If you have been seeing someone regularly,try making up a code that make talking about yoursexuality easier for you. For example, if you don’t wantto say, “I am comfortable with prolonged, protectedcunnilingus tonight, but not penile penetration,” make upcode words: “I’m into going to sixth base with you tonight,with my coffee pot covered, extra sprinkles, vegetarian!”Or even: “Level three sounds good.”the moment” to get to know one another’s communicationstyles, preferences and boundaries will streamline yoursexual experience.Tip 5. Tough topics: It may seem challenging to bring upconsent and your personal assault history. Creativity andtransitional phrases can help. For example, you mightsay, “So, I was reading the Disorientation Guide theother day, and….” or “Before we eat more curry, I needto share a personal story….”Tip 6. State your boundaries: If you are feeling boldenough, let your crush know what your boundaries arebefore they need to ask. Along with letting him knowwhat you don’t want to do, let him know what you wouldbe into doing. Setting boundaries doesn’t just meanshowing your sweetie where the gate closes, it alsomeans showing her where it opens.Tip 7. Establish rules: Setting up rules with a long-termlover is practical and still consensual, though the originaltools of consent should remain an active part of yourrelationship. For example:LB: I love back massages. You never have to ask meabout them again. You can massage my back any time.Sophia: Okay. Fun!Time passes and so do many massages. One day,Sophia walks up to Lover Boy and begins a backmassage…LB, twitching: Ow, that hurts today.Sophia: I understand. Just let me know if you ever wanta massage again.The Trainwreck, Part 1: Screwing UpIt’s likely that you have at some point transgressedsomeone else’s boundaries, whether or not you were
called out on your actions. When this happens, it’s a timeto apologize to the person you had that interaction with.It’s a time to see if there’s anything you can do to makeup for your actions. It’s a time to listen to others. Don’t getdefensive. Don’t get angry. Don’t pity yourself. Listen toadvice and requests from others, and try to accommodatethem as best you can.If your transgression (your screw-up) was moreserious, and you are called out on your actions, you willlikely be named a “perpetrator” of sexual assault or rape.You may be asked to make amends, do internal work onyourself, or to go through an “accountability process.” Youmay be asked to avoid leadership roles for a while, or tostay away from certain people or places. This can seemharsh, but try to learn from what happened, and know thatmany people will want to help you though this tough time.Also, remember that the reason you have been calledout is because, out of your ignorance, power issues orcarelessness, you hurt someone badly.with. Consent makes sex better, whether it is casual ordevoted. There are a million reasons to practice consent.But you need to believe in the importance of consent, andact in the spirit of consent, to make it work. You must paymore than lip service to consent: internalize it, live by it,ask, listen and check in. And try your damndest not tocross any boundaries. Have fun at college, get ready tomeet some special people, and remember that the onlytrue lovin’ is consensual lovin’.Sophia Sola enjoys erotic check-ins and playingthe melodica. She believes that when the whole worldpractices consent, Moshiach will come. Or utopia orwhatever.The Movie Consent GameNext time you are watching a movie with your friends,keep tabs on the characters’ consent practices. Takea swig of kombucha each time you catch one of thecharacters acting nonconsensually, and talk about whatthe characters could have done better.There are as many different outcomes to an incidentof assault as there are perpetrators. Some perpetratorsrun away from the situation, only to be haunted by it foryears. Other perpetrators work hard to make amends, andis when a perpetrator is able to make amends, transformengrained habits and attitudes, and become an outspokeneducator on sexual assault and consent.38The Trainwreck, Part 2:If Your Boundaries Are CrossedIf your boundaries are crossed, remember that itwas not your fault. There is nothing you should have, orcould have, said or done differently to prevent this. Youdid not “lead them on.” The actions of the perpetratorare the perpetrator’s responsibility alone. Though youmight feel trapped, you do have many options. You canseek the advice of friends. You can have friends talk tothe perpetrator about the assault. You can openly call theperpetrator out on the assault. You can seek professionalhelp. Remember that you have the right to be listened to,and you have the right to make requests of the perpetrator.Whether or not you have friends to support you, there areresources you can turn to for help (see “Resources” box).If someone else approaches you because her boundarieshave been crossed, listen to her story and take her wordfor it. You are not the person to decide if the assault needsto become public, that’s up to the survivor. Whether thesurvivor needs time, protection or action, be there to givehim unconditional support.“The Spirit of Consent”Is Not Just a Boat in the Santa Cruz HarborWhen you practice consent, you learn quickly whoyou make sparks with and who you should just be friendsGender and SexualityVariation for lovers: Re-enact the movie scene but withgood consent practices….Resources:This list is incomplete. For example, it includes noinformation on consent and related topics.Local GroupsCollective: Based out of Santa Cruz, the CLIT Collectiveis a group that has come together to open dialog aboutsexual/intimate violence. Members are radical activistsworking to engage in grassroots and community-basedaction and response to sexual and intimate violence.Visit www.MySpace.com/ClitCollective.based sexual assault and domestic violence center.Phone: 831-425-4030, 24-Hour Crisis Line: 831-685-3737.this year. The old website is here: www2.UCSC.edu/rape-prevention.Myriad Accountability, Consent & Survivor Support ZinesStimulating Writings
OCCUPYEVERYTHINGon building occupationsIn the fall of 2009, we faced sizable impendingbudget cuts and tuition increases, that we, as students,faculty, and workers, feared with good reason, wouldn’tstop unless we stopped it. It was during this period whenstudents at UC Santa Cruz resurrected an old organizingtactic that hadn’t been employed in American universitieson a wide scale for some time – the occupation. It wasan overnight hit – the media buzzed, but more importantlystudents from across the state, and the world, cheered onand emulated UCSC students. A building occupation –taking over buildings and spaces with a group of students,as in the case of Kerr Hall here – is used to achievestrategic goals: ranging from concessions from theuniversity in negotiations, to the recovery and “liberation”of an organizing space for further political mobilization. Atits most radical, some sabotage of spaces may inevitablyoccur in order to perform essential services. It’s an often joyful, intense experience where adrenalinecourses through your body, as you begin to feel, forspaces, some collide and form new groups, separate andstart over again. At its best, its more fun and satisfyingthan anything else college has on offer.There are nominally two types of occupations.“Soft” occupations seek to keep doors open in a literal sortof way, as windows and doors are left without barricades. power or movement, meaning you think you can hold ontothe space by sheer popular support. This is an excellentmethod if there are large numbers of people involved, asit allows for new people to come and join the occupationwho might be excited at the prospect of something actuallycertainly result in a situation where the police will comewith the intent to arrest as many people as possible. Theonly offshoot of this is, of course, when there is somethingelse that can be levied against those who might call thecops, typically a threat of intensive property destruction.The second type, a “hard” occupation, seeks tothe premises. This is done through the usage of c-clamps,truck ties (both are inexpensive and can be found at yourlocal hardware store), and an imaginative utilization ofmovable furniture in the building itself. The idea here beingto garner support on the outside, while those inside lockingthe building down create a space for a demonstration tocome. It’s important in this circumstance to always plan for39support outside—because tactically, those on the outsidethe building.These two methods are not exactly mutuallyexclusive. In fact, the method that was utilized during theKerr Hall Administrative Building occupation at UCSCwas a combination of both types—where a movement ofstudents made it possible. All entryways, windows, etc.,were barricaded with the exception of the front door,materials. Further, the front doors, while not enclosed, wereMost important to the occupation is not theoccupation itself, but its placement in an overall strategy. Abuilding occupation is as good as its overall planning, boththe planning that goes into its execution, and the planning ofwhat to do after there is a successful takeover. One cardinalfailure of the Kerr Hall occupation of 2009 was that it neverthought of itself outside of the Kerr Hall building itself.Hundreds and hundreds of people came at various times,spent the night, provided materials, support, barricadedthemselves outside, served as lookouts, sabotaged coproutes, etc. But instead of looking to expand, to continuefacilitating an ongoing campus takeover, it was decided towait and hold the space hostage. The sad fact is that thisis an unsustainable practice; much like an polar version ofthe multinational corporation, which must expand or die, wetoo must continue to expand, take over, end business asusual, and continue to build a broad-based anti-austeritymovement.Occupations are acts of disobedience. Wediscovered that creating new friendships and solidarityacross difference requires installing a new social landscapeon the University campus. We used our bodies -- the forceof our collective physical presence in a space -- as abarrier to protect this new social landscape from a hostileoutside world. The administration labeled these attemptsto open spaces to new relational modes as “violent.” Theycriminalized our friendships. Accordingly, the police werecalled upon to separate us from one another. If our arms orhands were linked, they tore us apart. If we stood in a cluster,they broke us up into isolated units. If we made collectivedecisions, the administration blamed and disciplined a fewindividuals. Where coercion did not work, they attackedour bodies with pepper spray, billy clubs and brute force.It is deeply symptomatic of the society in which we livethat the security of physical property counts for more thanthe vibrancy and happiness of human life. Occupationsexposed these fucked up priorities. They taught us thatglobal structures of capitalism can be contested in thehere and now with a small group of committed individualsdeciding that inaction is no longer an option.Read more:occupyCA - the blog that started it all. Read the DIYoccupation guide and A Communique from an Absent Future(http://occupyca.wordpress.com/propaganda/)
How to Build aSTRIKE!Well over 1,000 students participated actively in asuccessful student strike on March 4th, 2010 as part of anationwide day of action in defense of public education.UC Santa Cruz was the only campus that shut downclosed UCSC for the entire day. The experience andlessons of the strike are a vital part of activist history atUCSC and provide an example of how a successful massaction can be built on campus.A small group of people started planning for March4th immediately following protests in November when theUC Regents pushed through a 32 percent fee hike for nextyear.We had all participated in the militant and inspiringoccupations from November 18-22th at UCSC, whenhundreds of students occupied and held two campusbuildings for several days. But we emerged from thoseactions with a sense that the protesters remainedsomewhat isolated from the wider body of students, facultyand campus workers, and that we had a lot of work to doif we were going to bring more people into the movementfor March 4th .40 OrganizingWe understood that if we were to remain true to thestatewide call for strikes and protests on March 4, we wouldhave to agitate among students and workers on campuson a much larger scale than before. We had progressedpast the stage where small, militant actions could inspirepeople--we needed to go out and organize people.Part of our preparation was political, theoreticaland educational. We organized a series of study groupscalled “How to Win a Strike,” in which we read about anddiscussed mass struggles like the Minneapolis TeamsterRebellion of 1934 and the Oaxaca teachers’ strike of 2006.Socialists from different political traditions, anarchists andto assess and learn from past struggles.We were also fortunate to stand on the shouldersof a strong organizing tradition at UCSC. In particular, wetook the April 2005 strike by campus workers in AFSCMEas a major source of inspiration. In the lead up to thataction, the Student Worker Coalition for Justice spentweeks talking to students about the strike and buildingsupport through a strike pledge campaign. These activistssuccessfully mobilized hundreds of students to join thepicket lines--we decided to adopt a similar model.The March 4th Strike Committee emerged initiallyfrom the UCSC General Assembly in December andof meetings attracted only a dozen or so people, but thegroup maintained its commitment to building through anopen and democratic approach. Every meeting of theStrike Committee was advertised publicly. We discussedand adopted a method of voting and decision-makingthat allowed for maximum possible input and participationfrom everyone involved. By late February,between 50 and 70 people regularlyattended committee meetings.The Strike Committee builtrelationships with campusunions. From the beginning,members and staff fromAmerican Federation ofTeachers (AFT) Local2199, which representslecturers and librarians oncampus, and United AutoWorkers (UAW) Local 2865,which represents graduatestudent teaching assistants,actively participated in theCommittee.Inturn,representatives of theStrike Committee attendedmeetings of University Labor
United, the coalition of campus unions. We distributedthousands of copies of an open letter to campus workersexplaining our goals for March 4th. Without the solidarity ofthe AFT, UAW, AFSCME, Coalition of University Employees,University Professional and Technical Employees, andthe Faculty Association, our strike would not have beenpossible.The Strike Committee also reached out to studentorganizations. We approached the student governmentearly on and persuaded it to pass a resolution in supportof March 4th. The student government eventually donatedmoney to support the action.Members of the Strike Committee also mobilized insolidarity with African American students during the “RealPain, Real Action” protests against racist incidents at UCSan Diego--and attended a teach-in on the Dream Actput together by immigrant rights activists on campus. Aworking group of the Strike Committee organized a wellattended“Solidarity Forum” to discuss issues of race andracism on campus.In order to build these relationships, it was vital forthe Strike Committee to have a clear political messagefor March 4th. Many students still believed that blame forthe cuts lay squarely on the California state government,and that we should focus our efforts only in Sacramento--or they believed that militant action wouldn’t work. TheStrike Committee adopted demands that focused on bothSacramento and the university administration--and usedthem as the basis for successfully convincing thousandsof people that the strike was worthwhile.By far the most important aspect of outreach forMarch 4th was a strike pledge campaign. For six weeksleading up to the strike, members of the Strike Committeewent out all day, every day, and asked students to signon to a pledge in support of the action. This gave us theopportunity to convince people that a strike would bepossible, necessary and effective. By the eve of March4th, we had collected around 2,000 signatures on thestrike pledge and had talked to thousands more studentsabout the plan for the day. We started to get a sense thatthis was going to be one of the biggest protests in UCSC’srecent history.The strike itself was a tremendously wellcoordinatedoperation. We had received word that theadministration would attempt to smuggle workers ontocampus as early as 5 a.m. Before dawn on March 4th,hundreds of strikers were already blocking the entrancesto campus. As the administration tried to sneak the successfully prevented their entrance. Workers themselveswere incredibly sympathetic to our cause, and not overlyenthusiastic about trying to cross the picket lines!41Throughout the day, nothing moved on campuswithout our permission. We had devised a system ofpasses so that Health Center staff could get to work, andparents of young children could get to and from FamilyStudent and Faculty Housing. As a result, many familiesshowed up on the picket lines to show their support later inthe day.Picket captains were vital to our success on March4th. The Strike Committee had chosen people for thesepositions in advance--they had the authority from thecommittee to coordinate the picket lines and keep thecampus closed. They played a crucial role in the earlymorninggame of cat and mouse with the administrationin which emergency vehicles were being used to forceopenings in the line for cars to pass through. Pre-selectedmedia contacts and legal observers also played anessential role in ensuring the day went well.In keeping with its traditional modus operandi,the UCSC campus administration tried to vilify studentprotesters by any means necessary. Early on the morningof March 4th, Executive Vice Chancellor Dave Kligersent out a message to the campus, accusing picketers ofviolence and claiming that we were armed with “clubs andknives.” He was referring to a couple of incidents in whichirate drivers attempted to force their cars through the ranksof peaceful picketers, resulting in minor injuries to studentprotesters and a few broken windshields. The incidentswere minor and the reports of weapons were completelyfalse, designed to slander the movement and attempt,unsuccessfully, to scare students away from the action.In fact, because we had done such broad outreachbefore March 4th, very few people tried to cross the picketlines, and thus the mood was overwhelmingly celebratorythis, even if some national outlets merely echoed theUCSC administration’s line, rather than investigating thereal story. Overall the day was a success, and althoughthe privatization of the University has continued real gainswere made through the strike which are worth elaborating.The March 4th Strike Committee and March 4thsucceeded in politicizing and training whole new layersof student activists who have continued to organizeagainst privatization and austerity. It equipped hundreds,even thousands of students with an experience of masspolitical action which will provide a reference for thoseand workplaces. It helped inspire students, workers andradicals around the country, and sent a clear messagethat the potential exists for mass student action in the USagainst austerity measures.
Two Perspectives on (Non)ViolencePlease understand that this subject is complicated and contentious, and to fully appreciate the nuances ofthese perspectives might take some patience. Thanks for taking the time to read this; you’re beautiful!Thoughts onViolenceWhile at UCSC, you’re going to hear a lot aboutnonviolent activism. Violence in radical social movements some contexts on the grounds of self-defense. Somesocial movements of the past and of the present (you mayhave heard of the Black Panthers, the EZLN, the ongoingrevolutions in North Africa and the Middle East) presentsolid arguments for armed struggle. As UCSC studentsand activists, we don’t face the degree of state repressionexperienced by the above groups. This isn’t to say thatstudent-led acts of peaceful resistance never lead toencounters with the police. When an on-campus protestescalates into an act of resistance that genuinely threatensthe undemocratic functioning of the University (the strikesand building occupations that swept through the UC duringthe last two years are a few examples), one can berelatively certain that university administratorswill summon people with guns and riotgear to put an end to the unrest. Who’sreally being violent in this situation?Fortunately, we’re goingto school in a time and placewhere police violence againstvisibly nonviolent students tendsto be publicized in a relativelysympathetic way. Any retaliationby any person without a badge,however, generally results in newsstories blaming students for thestudent movement that resurfaces atmost, in terms of favorable publicopinion, from adherence to non-violentdemocracy and autonomy in the UCcontinues, and the campaign will onlybe won with well articulated demands,large-scale acts of civil disobedience,and extensive media coverage directedtoward California voting public.42 OrganizingThe Problems withNon-Violencea user’s manualIt is strategic to abandon the hegemonic, dogmaticprogram of nonviolence. Nonviolence serves the state’seffort to protect capitalist interests. We argue, tacticallyand experientially, for a departure from strict, unquestionedadherence to nonviolent forms of social dissidence. Wewarn you now: this is not a philosophical discussion. Thereis an urgency that surpasses our privileged abilities tomuse about being peaceful, man. We are at class war, andmust proceed accordingly. We hope that we can dance,drink and/or smoke and/or drink tea and eat cookiestogether whilst we discuss nonviolence; (booze, weed,tea) it’s your choice, and you have the privilege to makethese kinds of choices. We ask you to think about howto invalidate the people’s demandsfor a just society, the state shouldnot have the monopoly onviolence and inasmuch thethreat of insurrection mustalways be on the table, andabout what constitutes“appropriate” forms ofprotest in light of state media interpretationsand the enactmentof violence. Issuesraised here are notexhaustive butare related to ourexperiences.Problemof violence. Theterm is misused(continues next page)
y mainstream media and political elite to describedestructive actions against property. We explicitlyreject that destruction of property is violence. Indeed,we maintain that property itself is violent: what it takesto make it, get it and keep it often includes threats tobodies. Although a relationship exists between violenceon humans and the destruction,alteration, or theft of property,the distinction is ignoredto sensationalizea newsstory, or todelegitimizemovementsworking for ajust world. Bodiesand livelihoods arethreatened and inreaction, property getsdamaged or appropriated.The police state does notintend to protect people. We stood inOakland at a demonstration againstthe BART killing of Oscar Grant, facingthousands of police in riot gear holdinglarge guns. The intent was apparent: toprotect things, not people. If care for thepeople were even a minimal goal of thepolice state, perhaps more effort wouldbe put into NOT BEATING or KILLINGunarmed people of color on the BARTwere also a reaction to the disciplining(killing) of mostly brown unarmed bodiesand the context of racism, poverty andjoblessness of the UK’s underclass.Dissenters were portrayed as violentand apolitical as they destroyed propertysymbolic of their oppression, and looteditems that could help them pay rent.Anger and uprising seem rather ordinaryresponses to such extraordinary strain on human life.Police are the perpetrators of a great deal ofviolence, yet the state controls the violence narrative.No matter the tone of an action, the state may respondthey are low-income people of color. During the Chicanomovement of the 1960s, police beat students who walkedout of racist schools in a nonviolent political action, yetthe media reported it was the protestors who were violent.During the recent UCSC strike, the administration falselyclaimed protesters were wielding clubs and knives. This43was a cynical attempt to paint an unsympathetic publicpicture of students and workers. Only months before,police pushed (government-issue) clubs at the chests ofstudents engaged in a nonviolent action at Kerr Hall. The“story”: political dissidents were “violent” because theysupposedly damaged property. The state’s overwhelmingability to control publicity regardingto enact violence with impunity,gives us good reason not to limitour options.Problem #2: The state monopoly onviolence. The doctrine of nonviolencefor the enemy. By resolving to only actstate (the cops, the administration, thewealthy overlords) we will be manageableand well behaved. Only the state controlsthe ultimate threat of bodily harm. Whetherby incarceration in inhumane prisons orimmediate physical pain or death, it isfrom the threat of violence that the statedraws power. We must maintain and buildour threat of insurrection. If we blindlytake violence off the table, we lose power.Once we limit our means of revolution, therevolution will be over.Problem #3: The tyranny of “appropriate”forms of protest. Let’s think about what is mosteffective. We are at war against injustice, whyshould we behave? We are lectured by eldersand disciplined police and media to behave in“appropriate” ways. Whether it is motivatedby 1960s nostalgia or a paternalistic form ofthe unquestioned doctrine of nonviolence, ifwe behave too well, we run the risk of co-optationby the UC administration and their capitalistinterests. Appropriately protesting students (e.g.,students at the state house, students pushing paper for oiltaxes) are featured on glossy brochures so the UC can sellitself: “look at what good citizens we produce.”Violence is not a solution itself. It should beemployed only when a situation demands it. Denying thatforce is necessary to upend oppression, or condemningforce, leaves the people at the mercy of those whohave since the dawn of tyranny raised weapons at usto extinguish opposition. We hope you think differentlywhen confronted with ideas of action. Any unquestioned,principled doctrine deserves a critical eye. Nonviolence,without critical examination, is bourgeois fantasia.
AnIncompleteOhloneHistory of Ohlone history. If that were my goal, it would representextreme ignorance or complete delusion. I am not aCostanoan Ohlone, nor am I indigenous to North Americaat all. To put it nicely, I’m a foreigner. I can only hope thatmy intention to provide some basic information, history, andanalysis will not lead to further marginalization of Ohloneculture and existence. I am not attempting to preach to theOhlones about what their lives are like, or to reinterpretthe history of their ancestors. I have no interest likewise,in idealizing their culture and stereotyping them as beinga “pure” or “unspoiled” people, though we do have muchto learn from them. In short, I want to provide some historythat hopefully is a little more fair, and a little less racist thanwhat has been written many times before.More than 10,000 Native Americans once livedin the coastal region stretching from Point Sur to theMonterey Bay. In fact, before the advance of Spanishcolonists, Central California had the most populatedcommunity of indigenous peoples anywhere north ofMexico. The Spaniards who came in search of ‘savages’to ‘civilize,’ as well as labor and resources to exploit,arrived (literally) millennia after the original inhabitants ofthe area: the Costanoan, or, Ohlone People. Ohlone is aMiwok Indian word meaning “western people,” and bothOhlone and Costanoan refer to a grouping of smallertribes in Central California who shared a similar language.Among the 10,000 Ohlone, there were about forty differentgroups, all with their own distinct culture. The HordeanOhlone of what is known contemporarily as Santa Cruz, or“Holy Cross,” is but one. These groups inhabited differentterritory, and had varying social practices and customs,as well as largely unique languages. Still, it is possible tospeak generally about the Ohlones because the groupsheld much in common.salmon and sturgeon, gathering seeds or brome grass, orcollecting clams and oysters, basic daily sustenance of theOhlone was achieved through the direct use of their bodiesinteracting with the environment. The earth was seen as avast and intricate network deserving of respect and awe,rather than as a simple mass of objects or resources tobe exploited. This more tightly integrated relation betweenthe human population and other forms of animal and plantlife, in tandem with the intimacy of the social relationshipswithin the groups, might explain the harmony said to havebeen found in much of Ohlone life before invasion.To further understand the deep bonds withinOhlone society, it is important to recognize that each tribeconstituted between roughly two or three hundred people.There was virtually no leaving such a situation unless onewas cast out completely. Such ostracization did occur,but it was very rare and reserved only for the greedy oraggressive. Margolin, author of The Ohlone Way, writesof greed: “Acquisition was not an Ohlone’s idea of wealthor security.” After a hunt, for example, the hunter wouldnot prepare meat for himself, but would rather distributewould receive admiration and respect, as well as a kindof insurance that they would be treated with similar trustand benevolence. This is what would be recognized todayas a “gift economy,” a method for the distribution of goodswithout bureaucracy, through a network of friends andThe Ohlone attitude toward their environmentwas characterized by respect, fostered by a direct andunmediated relationship with their bioregion. While they tooaltered the landscape somewhat, their damaging impacton wildlife was minimal - incomparable to the wreckage 44 History
family. This world of collective security and mutual aidwas unheard of to Europeans who felt that a strong (i.e.oppressive) government was the cornerstone of society.The Mission Period (1697 - 1834)Upon the arrival of the somber, gray-robed be described as fright and awe. The stability that existedamong the Ohlone for centuries was suddenly shockedinto a new reality. A member of the Portola expedition wroteof the Ohlone reaction to the Franciscan Monks: “Withoutknowing what they did, some ran for their weapons, thenshouted and yelled, and the women burst into tears.” Butthis was to be only a minor hysteria compared to whatwas to befall the Ohlone in coming years. When theMissionaries appeared to intend no harm, the Ohloneseed cakes, roots, and deer or antelope meat.” entranced by the novelty of the missionaries’ dress, theirmagic and metallurgy, their seeming benevolence. Otherswere captured through force. The mission project wascreated with the stipulation that the Natives would only beheld captive and forced into cultural “assimilation” campsfor a period of ten years, after which they would be “weanedaway from their life of nakedness, lewdness and idolatry.”Ten years of captivity and torture were just the beginningfor the Ohlone. Their language was criminalized, they wereforced to pray like white people, dress like white people,eat like white people, to raise cattle, abandon traditionalnative crafts, farm etc.In the Missions, Ohlones were baptized withoutknowledge of the implications of the ritual. The Spanishbelieved they had title over the Ohlones, could hold themwithout consent, and deprive them of any vestige offreedom or their previous culture. The Spanish postulatedby torture and imprisonment these ‘heathens’ would betransformed from “bestias” (beasts) to “gente de razon”(people of reason). If they attempted escape, soldierswere deployed to recapture them. Routine escapees were“whipped, bastinadoed, and shackled, not only to punishthem but to provide an example to the others.”Resistance Against the MissionSome Ohlones acknowledged that the only waythey could preserve their way of life was through theemployment of political violence, also more favorablyknown as self-defense. Certainly (much like today) lawhad little to offer the Ohlone, other than to reinforce theirservility to the theocracy of the Mission system. As such,along with the consistent escapes from the Missions, othermore insurrectionary actions were taken by the Ohlone. Asan Ohlone author put it on IndianCanyon.org:“They resisted in many ways. The restrictions that thePadres seemed to think were desirable for their neophytes,willing or otherwise. Santa Cruz Mission was attacked by45 their rights to life and liberty.”Phil Laverty wrote of the attack on Mission Santa Cruz:“On the night of December 14, 1793, MissionSanta Cruz was attacked and partially burned bymembers of the Quiroste tribe, an Ohlonean group[just twenty miles north of modern-day Santa Cruz].Based on all available information, this occurrenceattack on a mission building in Central Californiaduring the Spanish era. Nearly two years of armedresistance on the part of members of the Quiroste[Ohlone] tribe preceded the attack, which wasSpanish in the entire San Francisco Bay Area.”Ohlone resistance was on too small a scale however,in the area, the Quiroste, were defeated by sheer forcein numbers and a superior military apparatus. Anotherlarge blow to the health and morale of the Ohlone, were and mumps. These often were intentionally spread byEuropeans, and were much more devastating to theOhlone due to the lack of immunity to such diseases.Death rates at the missions soared, while birth ratesplummeted. This was partially a result of the isolation ofwomen and men into separate facilities (prisons) whichwere intended to enforce strict chastity regulations. In justsome sixty years, the missionary project left the Ohlonepeoples almost completely decimated. Native arts likebasket making were all but entirely forgotten. Nativedialects became mixed and muddled, or were desertedentirely, forcibly replaced with the dominant language ofthe Spaniards. The gift and barter economy that existedfor centuries at least, along with the intricate network oftribal relations and collective responsibilities shared by theOhlones, had virtually disappeared.The Mexican Era and Anglo AdvanceAfter California was ceded to Mexico from Spain inthe 1820s, the struggling Ohlone were jostled into a newbut equally disastrous position. The Missions were turnedover to the Mexican state in 1834, and the Ohlone whohad survived were now legally free, but without much ofthe knowledge or resources necessary to make it in themodern world (if this was something that was desired at all).Without a means to sustain themselves, some IndigenousCalifornians became servants to the Spanish, while othersformed wandering bands who subsisted by hunting cattle,horses and sheep. This was their only option, as the elkand antelope had almost entirely disappeared. Thesebands of “outlaws” were themselves hunted and killed.At Mission Dolores in 1850, an old man speaks about hispeople:“I am very sad; my people were once around melike the sands of the shore- many, many. They
have gone to the mountains- I do not complain: theantelope falls with the arrow. I had a son- I lovedhim. When the pale-faces came he went away; Iknow not where he is. I am a Christian Indian; I amall that is left of my people. I am alone. ”With California’s incorporation into the U.S. in1846 and the coming of Anglo settlers, exterminationbecame more overt and publicly acceptable. Indian killingwas a favorite pastime, and one subsidized by the U.S.Government. The 1850 Act for the Government andProtection of Indians led to looser protections for Nativechildren already heavily exploited as young slaves andservants. This act also ensured that Indigenous People’swere withheld status as legal persons, although theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo already ostensibly securedIndigenous Californian’s citizenship. With the LandClaims Act of 1851, most remaining Indigenous land wasexpropriated for the coming white settlers. Racism andhatred of California Indians led to the impossibility of theirreceiving fair trial, as virtually any white man would liefor another. The new inhabitants of California made theirdesire clear in this article from the Yreka Herald in 1853:“We hope that the Government will render such aidas will enable the citizens of the north to carry on awar of extermination until the last redskin of thesetribes has been killed. Extermination is no longera question of time - the time has arrived, the work treaty or peace be regarded as a traitor.” (YrekaHerald, 1853)Between 1850 and 1870, indigenous Californiansexperienced perhaps the most bloody and murderous timesin their history, with squatters and supposed ‘pioneers’tracking and assaulting any Native who could be found. InCalifornia, the population of 200,000 - 300,000 CaliforniaNatives in 1848, was reduced to 15,238 by 1890. As forthe Ohlone, all 40 tribes and almost all 10,000 people aregone.The Modern EraDespite the centuries of torment and subjugation,the Ohlone are not dead. Even as you read this, an energeticmovement is springing up around the preservation of anOhlone village and burial site located near BranciforteCreek (See Save the Knoll article). Another example ofa current Ohlone project is the Indian Canyon Ranch,which serves as an Indigenous cultural center and homefor Native Americans of many tribal origins. Also hopefulis Quirina Luna-Costillas, who has studied the MutsunOhlone language extensively, and started a foundationto research and teach it to others. Some have revivedthe art of traditional basket making and storytelling, andare writing about various aspects of Ohlone culture andhistory. These examples serve as a reminder of a living,persevering culture, and as a wake-up call to those of uswho consider the Ohlone to be deceased.46History
Santa Cruz HistoryFirst the land of the Ohlone, then Spanish, then Mexican, the United States, what we call Santa Cruz has been home tocommunities whose stories and struggles are rarely recorded,much less acknowledged in popular culture. Elementary schooltaught many of us about gritty, hard-working settlers and goldminers who pushed westward and eventually forged the statewho weren’t white, weren’t colonizers, but lived in the same areawe now call Santa Cruz. Partly, we hope to shed light on theand local scales. While many of us are somewhat familiar withthe history of racism in the national context, here we offer a verycondensed account of local history.Several immigrant communities have lived and sufferedunder various degrees of racism and xenophobia since beforeSanta Cruz was founded in 1866. Among the most importantin early Santa Cruz life was the Chinese population. Chineseimmigrants built the California rail system (among others) andwere an established, if ruthlessly marginalized, part of SantaCruz since its beginnings. There were three big waves of anti-the second in 1882, and the third beginning in 1885. The SantaCruz Sentinel played a prominent role in these efforts as well,particularly its publisher, Douglas McPherson (ancestor of longtimelocal politician and former California Secretary of StateBruce McPherson), who, in an 1879 Sentinel editorial referredto Chinese laborers as “half-human, half-devil, rat-eating, ragwearing,law-ignoring, Christian civilization-hating, opiumsmoking,labor-degrading, entrail-sucking Celestials.” Despitethe hateful environment, four Chinatowns existed in Santa CruzChinese Exclusion Act of 1882, local anti-Chinese sentiment (acounty vote in 1879 showed 2450 to 4 against the Chinese), lawstargeting the Chinese (anti-opium laws, and an anti-carrying-the Front Street Chinatown were forced to leave by the 1955the Long’s Drugstore and adjacent movie theater. (Today, theMuseum of Art and History is housed at the McPherson Center,a prominent building in downtown Santa Cruz.)Following the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, increasingnumbers of Japanese and then Filipinos began to move intoSanta Cruz County. By 1900 there were almost 1,000 Japaneseliving in the Monterey Bay area. With the bombing of PearlHarbor in 1941, Japanese-Americans all over the West Coastwere removed, 71% of whom were American citizens. Theywere sent to a camp in Arizona called Poston, the largest of thecamps with 17,000 Japanese- American internees.In 1945, after years in the camps, Japanese-Americans and property during the war. During this period, German andItalian Santa Cruzans were also affected, although not nearlyto the same degree as local Japanese. Santa Cruz’s Genoese- boats, due to a bizarre fear that they would somehow colluderight to continue living and working in Santa Cruz, the Sentinelcontinued to sing its xenophobic tune: “The United States cantake no chances by trying to pick for exclusion only those alienswho are known enemies. All aliens originating from countriesareas.”The African American community of Santa Cruz didn’tbecome particularly prominent until after World War II. HistorianPhil Reader notes, “Racism has always been a basic componentin the socio-economic makeup of this community, but it hasbeen the more visible communities which have born the brunt ofthis mindless prejudice.” Even while white Santa Cruzians werelynching Native Americans and trying to push the Chinese out oftown, in 1860 Louden Nelson, an ex-slave, left his entire estate tothe children of Santa Cruz. A decade later, perhaps in responseto this generosity, the trustees of the school board allowed threeAfrican-American students access to public schools, ignoringa law prohibiting the public education of “African, Oriental, andIndian” students. In 1880, Joseph Smallwood Francis graduated American to graduate from a “regular” public high school in thestate. At the turn of the century, as Santa Cruz County’s blackpopulation started shifting from Watsonville to Santa Cruz, antilynchingcrusader Ida B. Wells and her sister Anna (who alsograduated from Santa Cruz High) settled in town.With the 1914 onset of World War I and the 1916 releaseout at local theaters), treatment of local African Americans shiftedabruptly. Reader describes a suddenly hostile climate: “Bigotrybecame a policy in many quarters as blacks were banned ordiscriminated against at local hotels, road houses, and inns...Finding housing and jobs became an impossible task, so manyNegro families left in anger and discouragement. black residents to the Westside in the area now called “thecircles.” After an all-black Army unit was stationed at LighthousePoint, integration of Santa Cruz could not be undone. Thoughmany white residents disliked the changes, they could do little tostop it. Businesses, for example, were threatened with a boycottwhen city leaders tried to make certain areas off-limits to thenewcomers. Many men from the unit moved their families toSanta Cruz, stimulating the growth of a new African Americancommunity and establishing the Missionary Baptist Church. In1949, the Santa Cruz chapter of the NAACP was established.The NAACP’s campaigns included efforts for fair-housing laws,low- income housing projects, and local electoral politics.New waves of immigrants, mostly Latino, have continuedto arrive over the past few decades. Xenophobia and racism isstill present in Santa Cruz, even if the Sentinel may not use asdirect language as it once did. When UCSC opened its doorsin 1965, a fresh challenge to centuries-old white supremacyand patriarchy was launched, but efforts to make Santa Cruza more just place have always been present – from the Ohloneresistance to the Mission, to Chinese, Japanese, Italian, andAfrican American efforts to organize their communities forsurvival, and much more.This information was all borrowed from Josh Sonnenfeld’sthesis: ‘An Incomplete History of <strong>Activism</strong> at the University ofCalifornia- Santa Cruz’ Feminist Studies 2007.47
Timeline of Local <strong>Activism</strong>19651967Merrill College.1968attends UC Regents meeting atUCSC and is greeted by massstudent protests.7 be called Malcolm X Collegewith a focus on domestic ThirdWorld Concerns. It is nowOakes.1969and present an honorary diploma to Huey Newton (who at thetime was in prison). Years later, Newton earns a PhD from theHistory of Consciousness department.1970nationally after protestersat Kent State and JacksonState are murdered bypolice:total of 2,200 take overSanta Cruz streets andmarch to the Countybuilding to demand wesend a representative toWashington to lobby for ourwithdrawal from Vietnam.focus on Vietnam War issues.Highway 1 in front of Fort Ord.President Clark Kerr’s book, Uses of the University, atcommencement and Kerr refuses to speak after him.1971beginning of the local environmental movement.people.1974sustainable food systems.come out at UCSC.19751976Center forNonviolence(pictured nextpage) is founded.It is still locatedat 515 Broadwaystreet. Checkout www.rcnv.orgfor more info.activists“People for a Nuclear Free Future” and the “Abalone Alliance”who protest the building of Diablo Canyon Nuclear PowerPlant. No nuclear plant has been built in California since.1977formed. The group mobilizes over 1,000 students at HahnAdministration building to demand that the University divestfrom South African apartheid and reject the Bakke decisionoccupying the building.World and Native American Studies (TWANAS) program atUCSC. The intent was to examine the dynamic of race andclass interactions as a whole rather than merely dwelling onthe history of oppression and exploitation of each individualgroup.48History
a. One tenured track faculty member each in both Asian-American Studies and Native American Studies.b. The continuance of a part-time position in Asian-AmericanStudies.c. Additional funding for staff to search for and hire thesefaculty.1978a “greenbelt” through Measures O and J.1979distribute 100,000 copies over the next few years.newspaper is published.elected into SC city council. By 1983,progressives constituted the majorityon the council, a trend that continuesto this day.19811. Ed Castillo, the only instructor teaching Native AmericanStudies, is dismissed. UC Santa Cruz still lacks Blackstudies programs.2. TWANAS and the Native American Studies Support Grouppermanent faculty positions.present demands which are to be answered within 5 days.demands, instead proposing the formation of yet anothercommittee.4. The TWANAS Support Coalition organizes another rallyin response, and 25 people commit to not eating until alldemands are met.5. Third World and Native American faculty meet andunanimously agree to support the hunger strike, which lasted5 days.6. The University agrees in writing to:491977 Rally in front of Hahn Student Services. Banner reads,“(illegible) Overtun Bakke.”TWANAS logod. To replaceThird Worldand NativeAmericanfaculty whogo on leavein adherencewithactionguidelines.e. A proposal to the Academic Senate that each student berequired to take a course substantially focused on NativeAmerican and/or the domestic Third World.Resource Center.the movement against off shore oil drilling.existence of the Farm and Chadwick garden.Eight.19831982(Shaw) Stoller is denied tenuredespite the recommendationsof her department, outsidereviewers, and an ad-hoccommittee. After a longlegal battle, Stoller winsin 1987 and returns toteach.Lawrence Livermore National Lab,one of two UC-managed nuclearweapons production sites. 1,475 peopleare arrested.to multiple serial murderers, including the son of a provost.entrance to the Lawrence Livermore Weapons Lab. Five dayslater more than 6,000 join hands around the lab in oppositionto the lab’s work and in support of the arrested blockaders.In response, the Department of Energy buys a 196-acre“security buffer zone” around the lab.
Oakes College ethnic studies courses are dissolved.1984student support for the Ethnic Studies general educationrequirement.1985UNITY THROUGH ACTION is born. UTA drew together acoalition of Third World organizations.around the country.1989for recruitment efforts.added in 2003) space is won by students.1990out Santa Cruz for 2 days.signatures supporting the Ethnic Studies G.E. requirement.Petitions are submitted to the Academic Senate, which votesto include the requirement. This means VICTORY after 13years.better bargaining position with the administration on campuswideissues.former fashion modelAnn Simonton, protestthe Miss Californiapageant which washeld in Santa Cruz.Simonton (pictured atright) wears a dress ofraw meat to highlightwomen and is amongthe arrested. Next yearthe pageant moves toSan Diego.organize WestsideCommunity HealthClinic (later becomesPlanned Parenthooddowntown)1986largest public institution yet to take a stand against apartheidin South Africa. Actions are held at all UC campuses,including mock shantytowns, sit ins, teach-ins and rallies.These caused such disruption and bad press for the UCthat it sold its $3 billion in stock holdings of companies withties to South Africa. Mandela would later state that the UCdivestment campaign was a key part of international pressureto end apartheid.Merrill. It is called the “Alternative Fashion Show.”1987arrested.50foyer of McHenry Library. The action helps ensure that ethnicstudies courses are listed in the Schedule of Classes.1991over holiday break. 42 people are arrested in a day-longdemonstration. Native shell site is trampled and sacred sitesare destroyed. Construction of Colleges 9 & 10 begins. Thefull story can be found here: http://nativenet.uthscsa.edu/archive/nl/9201/0051.html.Operation Desert Storm.1994continued attempts to lay off Williams, consistent activism hasensured that the group continues today.1995the victims of the US atomic bombing of Japan.old tree behind former Bookshop site. City sells wood at aBig Creek Lumber mill in Davenport.Third World and Native American Studies Coalition. ESOCplays a key role in campus politics over the next decade.1996Historypeople and shut down the campus for 7 hours on January 17.Activists blockade Summit Road until injunction issued.Resistance continues over the next 3 years until monkey-Gamecock Canyon is trashed.
action in CA. Studentsencircle Hahn StudentServices building for8 hours. The protestends with ChancellorM.R.C. Greenwoodand the studentsissuing a statement onhow the administrationwill support studentefforts to ensure a diverse campus.1998Speakers include American Studies professors Judy Youngand Curtis Marez, as well as chancellor M.R.C. Greenwood.1999introduction of grades.2000help from Canopy Action Network. from property but then withdraws it.American Resource Center) opens.organized by the Ethnic Student Organization Council andSUA in response to violence and racism on campus.and for all the attempt to remove evals. Nevertheless,mandatory grades are voted in by the faculty senate. Evalsare kept optional.Loopholes in this policy later lead to another UC Sweat-Freecampaign.2001incidents increases by 400%. This was the last publishedHate/Bias report.at the base of campus to oppose a U.S. invasion ofAfghanistan.Bay Tree building.200251funding to address UCSC’s low outreach and retention rates,and act as a vital hub for self and educational empowermentwithin the community. The ballot measure swept the Spring2003 student elections with 69% of the vote, setting up“Engaging Education” or “E2.”the Coalition of University Employees (CUE, the clericalworkers’ union) and the American Federation of Teacherscampuses in response to “unfair labor practices” on the partgood faith, using such illegal tactics as deliberate not just bythe two unions, but student and worker allies.international issues:a. First city to pass resolutions against US wars onAfghanistan and Iraq.b. Joins cities across the country in opposing the Patriot Act,and raises question of impeachment of Bush.United for Peace (SUP) becomes active:a. Rallies: 700-800 students rally on October 7; 150 marcharound campus and orchestrate a ‘die-in’ on November 20;and 300 demonstrate on March 5.action with participation from schools across the country.carpools to the big antiwar rallies in San Francisco.2003pass a Clean Energy and GreenBuilding policy after a yearlong“UC Go Solar!” campaign bystudents and Greenpeace.campaign begins:workers, students, andthe union local AFSCME 3299 come together to start acampaign to cancel the University’s contract with Sodexho.Sodexho, the largest food service provider in the world,paying its workers poverty wages, not providing health careor full-time employment, and disrespecting dining hall staffon a daily basis.that the University cancel its contract with Sodexho, and thatall workers currently employed bySodexho be hired as full Universityemployees.coalition demands.DUMP
health care for their families, union representation throughAFSCME 3299, and respect. VICTORY!!!world make their opposition to a US invasion of Iraq known inthe largest protest in history. 5000-7000 (by police estimates)rally in downtown Santa Cruz.many from Santa Cruz, shut down San Francisco’s businessdistrict with mass civil disobedience. Protesters targetedwho stood to make millions off of the war.research at the UC, including management of the nuclearweapons labs.served in the dining halls. This ensured that at least $1.26/lb.of coffee went to the coffee farmers, a vast improvement overthe $0.55/lb poverty wage offered by the conventional market.2004purchased direct from a coffee growing cooperative in CostaRica through the Community Agroecology Network (CAN),earning $3.77/lb. for the farmer. See page 57.for a better contract for AFSCME workers with a rally at theworkers, and 300 pledges signed by union members werejust the beginning of a larger campaign for worekr’s rightsRadio Santa Cruz, but an outpouring of community supportallows the station to get back on the air.2005Students Against War(SAW) forms.students successfullykick military recruitersout of a campus job fair.strike SHUTS DOWNCAMPUS, leadingto a better contractfor campus serviceworkers, includingsweatshop-freeuniforms.University Santa Cruz (TUSC) takes place at the base ofcampus.end.paying for basic services, as a large new fee barely wins toexpand the problem-ridden Health Center.200 peopleturn out for arally organizedby the StudentWorkerCoalition forJustice insupport ofstriking metrobus drivers(UTU Local 23).Drivers struckfor 37 days against bad faith bargaining by the Metro Boardof Directors.military recruiter tables at the fall job fair to highlight themilitary’s discriminatory policies.database that lists SAW’s April 5, 2005 counter-recruitmentaction as a “credible threat” to national security; SAWmembers work with the ACLU to release the rest of thereport.2006“New Orleans: An American Disaster” to educate the campusKatrina.newspaper.year in a row.at the base of campus in support ofimmigrant rights and then march torally.Right: (sign reads “NoImmigrants? No Business!”)campaign ends in victory.activists from around CA disrupt aUC Regents meeting. One UCSCstudent is escorted out of the building for going over his 30second limit during the comment period.prioritization of UCSC Language Programs.to leave the base of campus after “free speech zone” hours52Historyto demand concrete infrastructural support for diversity at
UCSC.coalition of students from a variety of struggles protests theregents’ comment period.in UC history) and arrest3 students. ChancellorBlumenthal shows no concernabout the pepper sprayingand condemns the protest.Later the administration triesto make an example outof one of the arrestees, ablack woman named AletteKendrick, by suspending herfor 3 years.2007Alette holding a picture of Blumenthal.Wages, Not for War” rallycalls for a reprioritization ofresources to focus on the needs of low-paid service workersrather than on weapons development and war. The rallycorresponds with anti-war student strikes on several othercampuses nation-wide.(photo by Bradley Stuart / Indybay.org)withdraw from upcoming spring job fair.(MIRA) organizes a week of actions and awareness insupport of immigrant rights and May Day.organizes Palestine Awareness Week events including amock check-point established by Baytree.hunger strike, raising the pressure for UC severance ties withnuclear weapons lab.Students and Allies break down police barriers to providefood to Tree Sitters on Science Hill, who had ascended thenight before. Students hold an autonomous zone beneath sitfor two months after.hosted at UCSC.2008the Iraq War, Students Against War (SAW) holds a weekagainst war in the Quarry Plaza, with a simulated NuclearWaste Dump, educationals, and a rally. On March 19th,UCSC joins other campuses in a Coalition To\Free theUC action at the UC Regents meeting in Mission Bay, inconjunction with Direct Action to Stop the War.U.S. Army takes sweeping wins in categories such as “MostMoney Poured Into Violent Gaming Industry” and “MostHomophobic”Week, Angela Davis speaks to packed audiences College9/10.speaking on campus.AFSCME 3299 workers hold rally and march calling for aFair Contract and Protesting the Inauguration of ChancellorGeorge Blumenthal, who failed to provide public support forthe campaign. Demonstrators shut down the intersectionsof Bay and Mission for 3 hours. Graduation speakers alsorefused to speak in solidarity.strike to call for a fair contract and an end to poverty wages.bookstore demanding justice for AFSCME workersthe proposed 3 year suspension of Alette Kendrick.Speakers include Angela Davis and members of the UCActivist Defense Committee. In response to this outcry, theadministration backs off from this severe punishment on May30.UCSC rehiresworker AngelaRuiz after a dayof student andworker protest.Angela wasfor attendinga unionsponsoredprotest againstUC President Robert Dynes, even though she had receivedexcellent evaluations and the protest was during her lunchhour.53Opens-The downtown coffee shop/bookstore/radical libraryserves as an open community space for student activists,community members, and radicals.AFSCME members, labor activists, and union leadersgathered in San Francisco to demand a fair contract forUniversity of California service workers. Union leaders fromaround the state were arrested after they refused to leave thepublic comment period.budget cuts, the Beach Flats Community, a primary Latin@community, experienced major cutbacks to communitycenterpieces including the community garden and communitycenter, a wellspring of education and opportunity.
Students march from the Beach Flats Community Center tosit demonstration ended immediately after students left forWinter break. Students had been occupying the trees inprotest of UC expansionist policies and the Long-RangeDevelopment Plan. After facing threats of legal action,protesters abandoned their redwood platforms above ScienceHill. Following the protesters descent, UCSC cut down48 redwood trees and 11 oak trees to make way for theconstruction of a campus biomedical facility. Due to budgetcuts throughout the UC-system the plans to build the facilityhave been put on hold and the land remains vacant anddead.2009settled their contract with the UC after a year and a half ofwage increases, a pay system that rewards seniority andundergrad programs. These cuts were especially damagingto the social sciences, humanities, and the arts andthreatened to obliterate the Community Studies Department.Two founding Latin American and Latino Studies professors,Susan Jonas and Guillermo Delgado, were given notice thattheir positions would be terminated along with other staff andfaculty members. Students mobilized in opposition to thecuts and in support of the faculty and Community StudiesDepartment.members braved the rain to celebrate International Workers’Day and speak out for immigrant rights. Students marchedfrom campus to the Beach Flats.Hunger Strike-TheStudents of ColorCoalition (SOCC)organized a fourdayhunger strikein protest of budgetcuts and in oppositionto UC policies,noting that cuts aredisproportionatelyaffecting students ofcolor and marginalizedcommunities within the university. SOCC’s demandsincluded among other things making the university asafe sanctuary for undocumented students. SOCC alsodemanded that the university hire a full-time director of theAmerican Indian Resource Center and Women’s Center.President Mark Yudof. This leads to an UPTE strike andfaculty walkout on September 24.Arrested by FBI-Café Pergolesi, a downtown coffee shop,snitched on four local animal-lib activists to Federal Agentswho charged them under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act(AETA). Each faces ten years in prison for attending protestsagainst animal experimentation at the UC and allegedlypublishing the names and addresses of UC professors whoexperiment on livinganimals.Project/TWANAS Revival-Two radical, alternative,student-made newspapersresumed printing in theearly months of 2009 afteryears of stagnation.at Family Student Housing-Students living at FamilyStudent Housing broughttheir kids out to QuarryPlaza to protest repeatedrent increases anddeteriorating apartmentconditions.UCSC admins announced major cuts to student services and54Historygarners the attention of students across California, and muchof the world, when dozens of students occupy the GraduateStudent Commons for 7 days. Over the next several monthsoccupations follow at UCSC, UC Berkeley, San FranciscoState University, CSU Fullerton, UCLA, UC Davis, and more.Alongside the demonstration students throw dance partiesand distribute information. The term electro-communism iscoined. A real sense of student unity across the state forms.The text, A Communique from an Absent Future, makes itsdebute. (see more: http://occupyCA.wordpress.com)several hours.the budget cuts movement across the state, particularly ineducation. It brings in over a thousand in attendance.library for 23 hours in protest to budget cuts affecting thelibraries.Hall, leading to the 4 day occupation of Kerr Hall, the mainadministrative building on campus, in protest of a 32% fee
increase, among other things. Students at UC Berkeley andUC Davis also occupy spaces.2010night to publicize the upcoming March 4 Strike, attractinghundreds of people from several colleges as it made its wayfrom Porter to Stevenson.San Diego, resulting in an uproar from students across theUC, including Santa Cruz.entrances to campus in protest of budget cuts for the entiretyorganized themselves to stop incoming workers being forcedto commute to campus despite its closure as early as 4am.However, the momentum failed to continue onto the next daydespite interest, due to fatigue and poor planning. Across thestate, and the US, millions of students protest cuts.days.occupations is attacked by police and three are arrested.statewide conference was held in April to organize a day ofaction against budget cuts for Oct. 7th. However, it fails tomeet hopes of another March 4. 2-300 attend at UCSC torally. The demonstration included many theatrical elements,including a zombie squad and puppets to raise awareness.Education program, the last of its kind in the UC. It wasreassigned to SHOP, ultimately reclassifying rape as amedical issue.outside a Regents’ meeting at UCSF to protest an 8% feeincrease. 13 students are arrested, and dozens more arebeaten and pepper-sprayed by police while holding picket2011the words ‘FREE EDUCATION’ with their bodies whileby three TV stations and several local newspapers.Ethnic Resource Center to demand the creation of the longoverdueCritical Race and Ethnic Studies department. Theaction succeeds in establishing an ongoing open forum onthe creation of such a department.May 5, hundreds of students hold an impromptou symposiumabout racism at UCSC in Cowell dining hall after the message“Stop the invasion, kill a mexican” is found scribbled on aCowell bathroom wall.UCSC) are arrested for sitting in at the state capitol buildingin Sacramento in protest of the $28 billion in cuts to socialservices in the latest CA budget. All students but one havetheir charges dropped.55
56 Downtown
Free Skool Santa Cruz is another one of theexciting local projects happening in this town that isaimed at building strong community, and creating a worldthat we enjoy living in. The basic goal of this project is tocreate a network for the free exchange of information andskills, which is outside of the traditional market economyand institutional educational structures. YOU, me, andeveryone make Free Skool happen. Free Skools exist allover the place, with high numbers of them in the U.S.andCanada. The way it works in Santa Cruz is that there isa collective of people who get together and look at classideas, organize them onto a big calendar (complete withclass times, summaries, and locations), and then distributeit different areas in town. ANYONE can submit a class ideaon whatever they want, and propose to teach it anywhere/anytime they want. There are 3 sessions or quarters in eachyear of Free Skool SC (Fall, winter, spring, or summer).All classes are free, although some teachers may requesta donation if there are materials supplied for you. Themeaning of “free” in the title is not only in reference tomonetary cost but also to the concept of liberation throughself and community reliance. Here is a short statement fromthe Free Skool SC website: “As much as possible, FreeSkool works to blur the line between teachers, students,and organizers. Teachers make most of the arrangementsfor their classes including subject, material, timing, andlocation. Classes are informal, egalitarian, and are held inhomes, social spaces, and parks.”What kinds of classes take place through FreeSkool Santa Cruz?Class topics are very diverse and vary each freeskool session. Some classes you might see or go to are:-Homebrewing-DIY Silkscreening-Bee Keeping-World Without Police Discussions-Introduction to Anarchism-Creating community spaces-Boat Design-Tenants Rights-Soap Making-Deodorant MakingThere are many other classes offered other thanthose above. If you have an idea for a class you shouldput something together and teach a class of your own. I your own though.From my own personal experience...For me, Free Skool SC has been a way for meto connect with other people in Santa Cruz and sharemy interests. I have been both a student and a teacher/to myself and my community are numerous. I’m thankful tohave the opportunity to share my passions with other peoplewho are eager to learn and discuss, and Free Skool hasmade this possible. As a student of the university, it’s alsorefreshing to get out of the formal educational environmentand interact with all sorts of people of all different agesin the Santa Cruz community. And most importantly forme, Free Skool has helped me to form new thoughts andopinions on how I want my education to be, and given methe tools to direct it in that way.Free Skool calendars are distributed at variousplaces on campus, so if you get your hands on one checkit out. There will likely be at least one interesting classthat you can attend (even with your busy college life).Calendars can often be found in the Kresge Foods Coop,located on the south side of Kresge College. You canalso visit the SubRosa Anarchist Infoshop downtown for aFree Skool calendar. For more information and a scheduleof classes, check out the Free Skool Santa Cruz website:http://santacruz.freeskool.org57
DIY Guide to Santa CruzAn Incomplete List of Independent Local ProjectsMeaningful projects begin with people who aremotivated to put into action their desires for the kind ofworld in which they want to live. Here is a short list of someof these kinds of projects in Santa CruzAnarchist LibraryPick up some summer reading now that you have a bit offree time to sit in the sun. Anarchism, cultural studies, history,literature and poetry, ecology, indigenous studies, biography,gender studies, for the kids, political and economic theoryand more!Bike Churchhttp://bikechurch.santacruzhub.orgA community bike shop and tool cooperative. Mechanicsare there to help you learn how to work on your bicycle. Weencourage people to get their hands dirty and familiarizethemselves with this machine that they rely on.Computer KitchenStrives to reduce the amount of technology that ends up into work on and learn about this technology. Open Wed & Sun.The Fábricahttp://thefabrica.wordpress.comA community textile arts cooperative organized by a collectiveof artists for the purpose of artistic collaboration and creativereuse. A space to work on projects or learn to sew, knit, etc.http://www.freakradio.orgOn the air since 1995 without a license, broadcasting 24 of federal regulations. Broadcasting programs unavailable oncorporate controlled stations.Free Skool Santa CruzCalendars distributed widely around Santa Cruzhttp://santacruz.freeskool.orgA completely grassroots, collective effort to create an and how we relate to each other.http://www.guerilladrivein.orgAn outdoor movie theater under the stars that springs up inbringing a broad community together, and reclaiming publicspace.Meristem Health DistroZines available at SubRosa and onlinehttp://meristemdistro.blogspot.comInformation to empower ourselves and each other, take our to minimize our reliance on the western medicine. Topicsinclude herbalism, medicine making, reproductive health,women’s health, mental health, emotional support, sexualhealth, and more!Red Root Herbal Collectiveredrootherbal@gmail.comRed Root Herbal Collective is a group of herbalists in trainingwho provide herbal and nutritional education. They also offerprivate herbal consultations.Santa Cruz Solidarityhttp://scsolidarity.blogspot.comand landlords. We take collective action to solve individualproblems such as stolen security deposits and unpaid alone! Come learn about ways that you can take action to getwhat you need!SubRosa: a community spacehttp://subrosaproject.orgAn anarchist and radical space offering anarchist books andliterature, local gourmet coffee, shows and a weekly open mic,gallery art by emerging local artists, and a garden courtyardsocial space. It also hosts the Anarchist Lending Library, freecomputers, and many free skool classes.Union of Benevolent Electrical Workershttp://ubew.orgCreating technical infrastructure for both the local radicalcommunity and a wider community of radicals and activists. groups making radical social change through direct action,community involvement, and education. Women and geeksof color welcome.Brazen Square Dancing in the streetsOf course there is much more going on aroundtown than this short list encompasses. Keep your eyes andears open; talk to others (word of mouth is the best way togreat DIY way to spread the word). Let’s joyfully tear downthe world around us and create something wonderful in itsplace.58 Downtown
Homelessness& City OrdinancesOnce you leave campus and enter the city ofSanta Cruz, there’s an entirely new set of rules andregulations to be aware of. If you’re walking out of or sporting a back pocket full of cash, you probablydon’t have much to worry about. But, if you happento keep you out of the downtown area. These lawsare designed for the persecution of individuals without homeless people!Technically, these regulations are supposedto be for everyone, which would make public spaceuninhabitable. They are designed to keep peoplemoving, providing no free place to sit and take a muchneeded break, unless of course you have a recentlypurchased cup of coffee in your hand, or a largeshopping bag full of new shoes.This trend of criminalizing the poor terrorizesa fragile population and promotes an atmosphereof hostility, a sense of unease. The city’s extensivepolice force may imply a concern for safety, but itsfor the property rights of downtown businesses thanfor the well-being of the members of our town’s lowesteconomic strata. The reality is that homeless peoplereduce tourism, and that just can’t be tolerated byWitnesses and photographs of police harrassmentcan make a report to HUFF(423-HUFF). To get a history of local police visitwww.huffsantacruz.org.DOWNTOWN LAW!!!*Do not sit on the sidewalk, you can be ticketed if:coin/ money machine);sidewalk;telephone, public bench, public trash compactors,info or directory/map signs, sculpture or artworkdisplayed in public property, or vending cart;*Do not sit on any public bench for longer than 1hour;*Do not sleep in the car or in the park;*Do not walk a dog downtown;*Do not politically table or street perform indesignated areas for longer than an hour;59
Student OrganizationsThese are some important student organizationshere at UCSC. However, the complete list of all thevaluable, radical and empowering organizations is muchCruz to organize and hang out with.Student Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ)is composed of students, campus workers, andorganizers from the various unions on campus (see p.x).The purpose of the org is to build student awarenessof labor issues on campus and to foster student-workersolidarity within the . SWJC is a non-hierarchical collective,meaning there are no permanent leadership positionsand everyone has an equal voice in the decision-makingprocess. Historically it has been an invaluable resourcefor the labor movement at UCSC, and new members arealways welcome!TWANAShas a 30 year history of being a collective studentof color publication at UCC. We believe that TWANAS svaluable and necessary because it provides a voice forUCSC students of color, which can give strength to teachthe communities represented. In order for TWANASto truly represent UCSC students of color, we need theparticipation of every community of color at UCSC. If youshare our vision for collective action, we invite you to joinus. Send us your articles, photos, artwork and poetry!to submit content and learn how to get involved:TWANASPRESS@GMAIL.COMMovimiento Estudantil Chicana/o de Aztlan (MEChA)The Chicano Movement of the late 1960’s helpedspark cultural and historical pride in our people. Chicanas/Chicanos demanded to be treated as equals anddenounced acculturation and assimilation. Brown pridebegan to express itself through poetry, literature, art andtheatre.The contributions of the Chicano Movement arenumerous and continue to be very valuable to our society.M. E.Ch.A was established at the Denver Youth conferencein 1969 by student organizations(such as UMAS &MAYO)that came together to create one organization that wouldwork towards the self-determination of our gente.Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán(M.E.Ch.A.) is a student organization that promotes highereducation, cultura, and historia. MEChA de UCSC is60Resourcescommitted to the liberation of nuestra raza’s minds, bodies,and souls through educational, economic, and politicalempowerment.M.E.Ch.A. was founded on the principlesof self-determination for the liberation of our people. Webelieve that political involvement and education is theavenue for change in our society. In the time of the newsun, los estudiantes of MEChA, los guerreros/as in otherplaces, and la gente all over the world are here to claimour voices and our rights as humankind. Por la raza, hablael espiritu.Students Informing Now (SIN)Our mission is to help promote higher educationparticularly in support of marginalized students, especially,but not limited to, AB540 students. We aspire to developa safe environment and network where students don’thave to be afraid to ask questions about their educationalcircumstances. By working collectively with the community,we aim to empower and inform, consequently bringing voiceto those that are unjustly silenced. We aim to achieve theseambitions by employing popular education methodology;everything done without shame... SIN Vergüenza!Vision: One-day there will be equal opportunities ineducation. Education will be free of charge. Eliminate barriers that restrict higher education tothe economically and socially privileged. Advocate for a just immigration reform. Eliminate all forms of oppression Maintain S.I.N.’s legacy long after foundingmembers have graduated.www.StudentsInformingNow.orgThe International Socialist Organization (ISO)The ISO is committed to building an organizationthat participates in the struggles for justice and liberationtoday--and, ultimately, for a future socialist society. TheISO’s members are involved in helping to build a numberof struggles: the movement to stop war and occupation, the struggle for women’s rights like the right to chooseabortion, opposing homophobia, and standing up forworkers’ rights.A world free of exploitation--socialism--is not only tradition of revolutionary socialists Karl Marx, V.I. Leninand Leon Trotsky in the belief that workers themselves--the vast majority of the population--are the only forcecan’t be brought about from above, but has to be won by
workers themselves.We see our task as building an independentsocialist organization with members organizing in ourworkplaces, our schools and our neighborhoods to bringsocialist ideas to the struggles we are involved in today,and the vision of a socialist world in the future.SocialistWorker.org; WeAreMany.orgiso.santacruz@gmail.comThe Committee For Justice in Palestine (CJP)CJP is a SOAR sponsored student organization.Our mission is to bring attention to the lifestyles ofthe indigenous Palestinian population currently underoccupation. This ranges from setting up events celebratingPalestinian culture to raising awareness of the politicaland public speakers, and by holding music and culturalevents. As a group we do not take a position on a solutionmany different opinions.Our goal is to spread awareness and to shed lighton the Palestinian struggle. You do not have to be fullyinformed about the issue to join; as long as you have aninterest in civil rights and a willingness to learn, you arewelcome! FREE PALESTINE!Radical/ Empowering Organizations cont. The (GLBTIQ) Network SFL (Slugs for Liberty) CLIT Collective Sister Solidarity SO (Socialist Organizer) Student Environmental Center Blender (Student Run Trans Support Group) Kinetic Poetics Project (KPP) Olive Tree Initiative (OTI) Rainbow Theater Rainbow TV Sex Positive Autonomous Coalition for EnvironmentalSustainability (SPACES) Los Guerrilla GatitosSome of the most radical and effective studentactivism in recent years has been organized by groupsof students that decided to act outside the institutionallyrecognized channels. The UC-wide 32% fee increasethat was imposed in November 2009 was met with wavesof building occupations and strikes, coordinated in largeThese actions had far-reaching effects: statistics releasedlast year by the Public Policy Institute of California showed61that 74% of residents say the state does not provideenough money for colleges and universities, up 17 pointsfrom October 2007 (Baldassare, 2010).It should be noted that the actions that inspiredthat value shift among voters were not supported by UCadministration, and the resources that made those actionspossible were mostly provided by students themselves. how those resources can be used. Direct action organizinggenerally requires that students network and act outsidethe channels provided by the university. Within or without“the system”, GET INVOLVED!Other Wonderful Resources:SOAR (Student Organization Advising &Resources) - SOAR is an umbrellaorganization for most student orgs at UCSC. For a full listof UCSC student orgs, or to form a new organization, visittheir website.Student Media - SM is an umbrella organizationfor all student media organizations at UCSC: everythingfrom City on a Hill Press to Banana Slug News to theDisorientation Guide. Funding for student publications isallocated by Student Media Council, which is made up ofrepresentatives of all student media orgs that want to be inattendance.Resource CentersEl Centro (Chicano Latino Resource Center) AARCC (African American Resource & CulturalCenter) AIRC (American Indian Resource Center) AA/PIRC (Asian America/Pacifc Islander ResourceCenter) Women’s Center Lionel Cantú LGBTI Resource Center ABSA (African/Black Student Alliance)APISA (Asian/Pacifc Islander Student Alliance)FSA (Filipino Student Association)SANAI (Student Aliance of North American Indians)MESH (Mixed Ethnicities Student Headquarters)MIRA (Movement for Immigrant Rights Alliance)
RecommendationsProfessors who are badasses (take classes from them ifyou ever get the chance):Andrew Matthews (ANTH)Carolyn Martin Shaw (ANTH)Alan Richards (ENVS)Jeff Bury (ENVS)Steve Gliessman (ENVS)Bettina Aptheker (FMST)Gina Dent (FMST)Stewart Cooper (KRSG)Flora Lu (LALS)James McCloskey (LING)Gary Young (LIT)Jody Green (LIT)Bob Meister (POLI)Eva Bertram (POLI)Megan Thomas (POLI)Nameera Akhtar (PSYC)Regina Langhout (PSYC)Travis Seymour (PSYC)Aida Hurtado (PSYC)Craig Haney (PSYC)Danny Scheie (THEA)David Lau (LIT)Gopal Balakrishnan (HISC)Debbie Gould (SOCY)David Brundage (CMMU)Andrea Steiner (CMMU)Anjali Arondekar (FMST)Books (not that you want extra reading, but these aresome good ones):A Thousand Plateaux, Deleuze & GuattariAn Introduction to Civil War, TiqqunAnarchism and Other Essays, Emma GoldmanBury My Heart at Wounded Knee, Dee BrownBrave New World, Aldous HuxleyCaliban and the Witch, Silvia FedericiChomsky On Anarchism, Noam ChomskyConquest of Bread, Peter KropotkinEyes of the Heart, Jean Bertrand AristideHow Nonviolence Protects the State, PeterGelderloosOur Bodies Ourselves, The Boston Women’sHealth Book CollectivePedagogy of the Oppressed, Paolo FreireV for Vendetta, Alan MooreSociety of the Spectacle, Guy DebordSweetness and Power, Sidney MintzThe Art of Loving, Erich Fromm62 ResourcesThe Coming Insurrection, The Invisible CommitteeThe Kite Runner, Khaled HosseiniThe Monkey-Wrench Gang, Edward AbbeyInformative Pamphlets/ZinesA Day Mournful and Overcast, Iron ColumnBananarchyCivilization Will Eat ItselfCommunique From An Absent FutureMusic that some of us like, which may or may not have apolitical message:Blackbird RaumBirdeatsbabyBlue ScholarsBrother AliBob DylanDead PrezLupe FiascoManu ChaoM.I.AMinor ThreatRage Against the MachineSaul WilliamsThe CoupThe Welfare PoetsVictor JaraZion IVagabond OperaMovies that you should watch because they will takeyour mind and fuck it: AKIRA Berkeley in the 60’s Brother From Another Planet Capitalism, A Love Story Der Baader-Meinhof Komplex El Norte Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind Fight Club King Corn La Haine Lal Salaam Libertarias Life Is Beautiful Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind Salt of the Earth Sin Nombre The Corporation The Edukators The Great Dictator
The Legend of Bhagat SinghThe TrialTout Va BienY Tu Mama TambienWebsites with more information than you even want toseehttp://theyesmen.org/http://crimethinc.com/http://anarchistnews.org/http://zinelibrary.info/http://occupyCA.wordpress.com/http://anti-politics.net/distro/http://blackpowderpress.com/http://www.ruckus.org/http://reclaimuc.blogspot.com/DedicationsSpecial thanks to:Susan WatrousTere AlanizWes ModesSubrosaAaron DankmanBradley Stuart (for photographs)and our FinanciersPoetryPablo NerudaOriahKinetic Poetics (UCSC slam poetry team) -63
Know Your Rights& Resist the Police StateThis government’s system of laws exists to maintain thedominance of those in power, and the police are its armed enforcers.If you doubt this, look at who are selectively targetedby local laws: people who are homeless, young, poor, black orbrown, dissenters. On a global scale, look at who dies and whogets rich from our wars and other man-made disasters. For 250years in this country, the government and their enforcers haveconsistently fought against people working for liberation: indigenousresistance, land reformers, slave revolts, abolitionists,labor organizers and workers, free-speech advocates, women’sand civil rights workers, anti-war and anti-globalization protesters,and recently, animal rights and environmental activists.Your relationship with the police is at heart adversarial.While there may be cops with hearts of gold, the job of all policeis to arrest and prosecute you. As such, it is almost never in yourbest interest to cooperate with the police.Keeping yourself safe and resisting the police statecomes down to these simple principles:1) Non-cooperation: If you talk with the police, you willl likelyunintentionally hurt yourself, your friends, or others.2) Do not consent to searches: Never give law enforcementthe okay to examine your pockets, car, backpack, or home.3) Remain silent: Use the magic words and then stay silent.4) Talk to a lawyer: Never take advice from the police, theymay try to trick and mislead you.5) Use trust and intuition: Without being paranoid, work onlywith people with whom you have a history of trust.6) Mutual Support: Support those who are dealing with copsand courts. Don’t leave people isolated - show strength innumbers.Rights During a Police EncounterIn a police encounter these rules will help protect yourcivil rights and improve your chances of driving or walking awaysafely. From here on out, we are talking about your “rights”guaranteed by law. Though in our view, what you can do andwhat you can do legally are two different things. Hopefully, thesethese rights also apply to minors and non-citizens.Stay Cool & Politely AssertivePolice are well armed and often unpredictable, so remainingcool and calm will keep you safe. Treat them with thecaution with which you would treat any dangerous, unpredictable,armed person.Be polite and yet assertive to ensure that your rightsnot absolutely submissive, but standing up for your rights willkeep you safe in the long run, in court when it really matters.Determine Whether You Can LeaveYou don’t have to talk to the police. As soon as an of-leave without another word. You have the right to end an en-arrested. Don’t waste time trying to determine your status. Testwhether you are free to go, and then go. If you aren’t free to go,Use the Magic WordsIf you are detained or arrested, use the magic words:“I’m going to remain silent. I would like to see a lawyer.”Do not talk to police. Wait to talk to a lawyer who is representingyou. Even casual small talk can come back to hauntyou. Anything you say can, and will, be used against you.Cops have numerous tricks to get you to talk. Theycan and do use fear, solitude, isolation, lies, advice, playingyou against others, and even kindness to get you to cooperate.Don’t be fooled. If you need to say anything, repeat the magicwords.Keep in mind the credo: If no one talks, everyone walks.have nothing to gain by talking to the police... and everything tolose. will make things easier for you, and many people hope to be letoff easy if they are honest and direct with the police. The only arrest scare you into admitting guilt. Better to spend a night injail, than years in prison. Ask to speak with a lawyer, and remainsilent.Refuse to Consent to Searches allow them to search your belongings, your car, or your home.Refuse to consent to a search, with the phrase:“I do not consent to a search.”Usually, a search request will come in the form of anambiguous statement, such as, “I’m going to ask you to emptyyour pockets.” Answer such requests unambiguously. Repeatas many times as necessary. You are under no obligation to al-is because he doesn’t have enough evidence to search withoutyour consent.Always keep any private items that you don’t want othersto see out of sight. Legally speaking, police do not needsearches you in spite of your objection, do not physically resist.Your attorney can argue to have evidence thrown out of court.You are not obligated to identify yourself (except whenWhere to Go For More HelpIf you feel your rights are being violated, hold tight untilyou can talk to a lawyer. If you don’t have your own lawyer thecourt will appoint the public defender to defend you. For moreinformation about your rights, law education, and what to do ifyour rights were violated, check out:Bay Area Legal Resource Network Midnight SpecialLaw Collective National Lawyers Guild ACLU of Northern Californialegal.resource.network@gmail.commidnightspecial.netwww.nlg.org/sf 415-285-5067www.aclunc.org 415-621-2493There may also be legal help in your community thatless,or an non-citizen. Ask around in your community.For more copies of this handbill, or to send corrections, emailfreeskoolsc@riseup.net