Saturday, November 21, 2009
Protesting
The new 32% tuition increase in all University of California campuses will have many negative effects. Many students will be unable to pay for the upcoming tuition fees and will therefore not be able to enroll. A student activist was protesting the fact that this fee increase can be regarded as discriminatory because it will prevent many minority and low income students to be able to attend college. Although, I am not completely convinced that the policy is discriminatory, I do agree that it has major implications on the number of minority students that will be able to afford enrolling in a UC. It may not necessarily majorly affect the students who are attending now, but it will definitely affect their younger siblings. Moreover, I heard how some UCD students were arrested for taking over Mrak Hall. I saw the S.W.A.T. team helicopter circulating the building and think that calling them was an exaggeration on behalf of the authorities. The protest in Mrak Hall made me question what were the benefits of taking over a building. I know that it draws more attention to the matter from the public, but I would like to hear what are some other benefits or consequences for this.
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Yeah the helicopter was a little too much I think. I remember going back to campus around that time and was so confused why a heli was circling near the library. I heard people got arrested a little after the heli was there around 9pm Thursday night.
ReplyDeleteCome to think of it, I'm not sure how taking over the building helps either. I think it might just be a way to let people know the students care?
The helicopter wasn't part of the law enforcement team, it was a news station helicopter covering the news.
ReplyDeleteTaking over buildings do help especially Mrak Hall. That's where the administration is at.
I agree that the UCD police over-reacted with the amount of force shown. We have something called the 1st amendment, allowing us to protest. Furthermore, this is a public university and its students should not be considered as trespassers when in a building that their fees and taxes pay for. While there are different contexts, sometimes occupation can send out a loud message when other means don't work. Think about the occupation at Wounded Knee.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you and others about minorities having a harder time paying for school, but this increase will affect others almost the same amount. I know of families that have plenty of money and can not afford to send their kids to certain schools because they do not qualify for loans and do not have the money to pay out of pocket. Also as mentioned it seems like the authorities over-reacted in the situation and took measures that were not needed.
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