“We have been waiting for Napolitano to come… and finally she is here, but she is hiding, she remains in one building and does not leave…where she says she is doing her “listening and learning tour” behind doors with only a certain number of students, but you know this is bullshit because she is hiding and for what? What does she have to hide from us? We must ask ourselves this because if she is hiding she is not hiding alone… the regents are behind her… they are not innocent either… they continue to violate student rights like Napolitano continues to violate human rights because even if she is not the head of homeland security department anymore what she has done continues to impact our lives today and this is something we will not forget no matter how hard Napolitano and the regents try…” –S. R.
Nearly one month ago, on February 13th 2014, upwards of two hundred and fifty people congregated at Sproul Plaza to protest Janet Napolitano’s appointment as UC President. News of the last campus visit on her “listening and learning” tour brought us together to mobilize weeks in advance. Leading up to the day of her visit, we circulated a letter demanding her immediate resignation and the democratization of the UC President and UC Regents selection processes. A multitude of student and staff organizations endorsed the letter and committed to participate in the day of action.
There is a great deal of speculation and misinformation concerning the day of action organized by the Student of Color Solidarity Coalition. Although this is not the first action we have taken–our first action protesting Janet Napolitano’s appointment took place in the Fall semester, on the day of Chancellor Dirks’ inauguration, at which Napolitano spoke–we feel that it is necessary to bring clarity to the events of this day. We are taking this opportunity to connect to the local and the statewide UC community and beyond, to those who were watching closely, sending us their support from a distance. We are issuing this statement in order to share what happened during the day of action and the takeover of the Blum Center so we can reflect and formulate future strategies.
At the end of this post, we provide a link to personal statements written by participants from the day of action. Since each person experienced the day of action differently, we believe that these narratives are absolutely essential to understanding that day.
Students of color are still fighting back at UC! - CM
Reading about the roadblocks in Dr. Vivek Murthy’s confirmation hearings makes me incredibly frustrated. He’s super well-qualified, understands his role as a doctor beyond just providing care for patients, and is kind of a whiz kid. The main obstacle is: the NRA. He thinks gun control is a public health issue.
In the words of the Washington Post’s Paul Waldman: come onnnnn.
- CM
American Apparel’s “Made in Bangladesh” ad campaign objectifies a Bangladeshi American woman while doing absolutely nothing for the garment workers their PR team has been wringing their hands over.
A proposal to repeal part of California’s affirmative action ban has some in the state’s Asian-American community up in arms.
Conservative Asian American groups defeated SCA5 in California through fearmongering and bad data interpretation, which is unfortunate.
But there’s a silver lining: Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Los Angeles VP Karin Wang says, “People are ready to hear a larger message” on education justice. - CM
34 years ago today, President Jimmy Carter signed the Refugee Act, adopting formal legal definitions of refugee status and providing support for refugees already in the U.S., allowing refugees to settle and build community in cities across the country. - CM
I’m pretty sure using your native language (and an official language of the State of Hawaii) still constitutes conducting yourself “in a respectful manner.”
The Sikh Coalition has a new report out about bullying of Sikh youth in schools. They interviewed students online, in person, and through bullying workshops at gurdwaras, and they found some pretty staggering numbers regarding the incidence of bullying. They also asked the youth about what could be done to address the issue.
