Activists at UC Irvine and UCLA have responded to three race-related incidents at UCSD over the last two weeks, holding demonstrations in support of black students at UCSD.
At around 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 24, a group of about 20 UCI students and employees barricaded themselves into the UCI administration building. One hour later, they issued a list of 15 demands including increased funding for the ethnic studies department — a request motivated by the recent events at UCSD.
“As evidenced so blatantly at UCSD this past week, black subjects are in an antagonistic position against the institution; this sentiment is reinforced by administration, and creates a safe space for anti-blackness,” they stated in the document.
Seventeen students and university employees were cited for unlawful assembly and refusal to disperse, leading to the protest’s breakup at 2:40 p.m.
Students at UCLA held their own sit-in on Feb. 26. Led by the Afrikan Student Union of UCLA, about 100 protesters occupied the office of UCLA Chancellor Gene Block and demanded that he pressure Fox into taking decisive action against racism at UCSD.
Block responded by reading a letter signed by UC President Mark Yudof and the other nine UC chancellors — including Fox — that condemned the acts of intolerance at UCSD.
“We will not allow the actions of a few to speak for this University,” the statement read. “We denounce them. We have a responsibility to speak out against activities that promote intolerance or undermine civil dialogue. As always, the remedy for bad speech is good speech.”
The ASU was moved to act when the BSU sent a letter to organizations at various UC campuses on Feb. 19, declaring a “state of emergency” at UCSD.
“Please stand on solidarity with our Brothers and Sisters from UCSD … Our students at UCSD are being silenced and made uncomfortable,” the ASU said in a statement posted on their Web site.
Readers can contact Hayley Bisceglia-Martin at hbiscegl@ucsd.edu.
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Racism begins with our families, parents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, grandparents, people we admire, respect and love.
However, as we grow and mature we come to the realization that what we were told by our family when we were children were slanted lies base on their prejudices. We realize that most people are like ourselves and not so different and want the same things, like a home, steady work, a Medicare plan and schools for our children (if you travel you will see this). We realize that most people are of good hearts and goodwill.
This reminds me of a parable from the good book where a Levite and Priest come upon a man who fell among thieves and they both individually passed by and didn’t stop to help him. Finally a man of another race came by, he got down from his beast, decided not to be compassionate by proxy and got down with the injured man, administered first aid, and helped the man in need. Jesus ended up saying, this was the good man, this was the great man, because he had the capacity to project the “I” into the “thou,” and to be concerned about his fellow man.
You see, the Levite and the Priest were afraid, they asked themselves, “If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?”
But then the Good Samaritan came by. And he reversed the question: “If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?”
That’s the question before us. The question is not, “If I stop to help our fellow man in need, what will happen to me?” The question is, “If I do not stop to help our fellow man, what will happen to him or her?” That’s the question.
God bless all my brothers and sister that stood side by side with our brothers and sisters in need, when you saw a wrong you tried to correct it, you may argue the methods but not the reasons. I know God will not discriminate by country of origin, our sex, our orientation, color of our skin, or our religion as men do.