On Tuesday, Dec. 6th, the United States Supreme Court began to decide if schools that ban recruiters from their campuses can lose federal funds. There were protests and actions at military recruitment stations all across the nation. The Santa Cruz Chapter of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship has created a scroll with 28,000 names in Arabic of Iraqi civilians who have died in the war. This is one of the most conservative of the reported numbers of Iraqi civilian deaths.

As part of the nationwide day of action, the scroll was displayed at the military recruitment center on 41st Avenue in Capitola along with other signs and banners opposing the continued war in Iraq and the daily loss of Iraqi and American lives. The scroll is three feet high and over one hundred feet long.

The Army, Marines and Navy recruitment offices in Capitola were voluntarily closed, though the Air Force office remained open for business.

Photos: Counter-Recruiters Return to Capitola Recruitment Center as Supreme Court Rules on Solomon Amendment

Audio: Rockin' the Boat: Peace Action at Capitola Military Recruitment Center

Indybay coverage: December 6th Nationwide Protests to Say College, Not Combat

Previous SC-IMC coverage: National Stand Down Day in Santa Cruz || Rally, Queer Kiss-in Greet Military Recruiters at UCSC || All Around the U$, Recuiters are Feeling the Heat || Police and Watsonville High Administrators Fail to Silence Community Voices || UCSC Students Kick Military Recruiters Off Campus || Santa Cruz Recruiters Closed for Peace Until Further Notice

Dear Good Times,

Your article on UCSC’s College Republicans was more like a 7-page Republican press release than it was decent journalism. You create the illusion that the College Republicans are on the up-and-up, while failing to see through their ridiculous hype. The Republicans claim that they have “315 students signed up,� while the organization itself can only get a handful of students out to a meeting – the most pictured in the article was 13. This is in stark contrast to other organizations on campus, such as the Student and Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ) or Students Against War (SAW), both of which regularly get over 50 students every week. The Republicans have been completely ineffective at actual organizing. They claim to support military recruiters, yet were nowhere to be seen as SAW organized the 300 students that kicked recruiters off campus on April 5. Little more than a week later, the Republicans opposed a strike by low-wage AFSCME workers, while the unions and the SWCJ got over 1,000 students out in the streets, physically shutting down the campus, helping AFSCME win a better contract. This fall, Republicans worked hard to organize a protest against striking metro drivers, only to find that more than two-dozen students from the SWCJ and MEChA marched circles around less than 10 Republicans. These Republicans are not thriving – they’re failing. Yet, the Good Times and the corporate media irresponsibly focus on them. In your article, 7 Republicans are quoted in depth, while the only “alternate� opinion is from the UCSC Democrats’ president – an organization that frequently has more in common with the Republicans than they do with mass organizations like SAW and SWCJ. It’s time for the media to stop encouraging these ineffective racist Republicans who say things such as “we need more black people on the front lines� and “they can shoot all the terrorists, easily spotted by their non-white skin,� – an organization founded by Matthew Cox - one of two frat kids charged by the D.A. for brutalizing a decade old fish. Stop encouraging them and start doing honest journalism.

December 1st is World AIDS Day. The Santa Cruz AIDS Project, in remembrance of those who have lost their lives to AIDS and those who live bravely with the disease every day, hosted a candlelight vigil in downtown Santa Cruz.

participant wrote: "Me and my girlfriend went to the vigil. It was moved inside the Vet's Hall because of the rain. There was about 50 people crammed into a smallish room. The group held candles while listening to a few musicians and names of their loved ones who have lost the fight against AIDS were read. The feeling of being there was much like the rain showering down outside, but it was good to be with other folks who have been affected by this epidemic."

On Wednesday, November 30 – the UC wide Nuclear Day of Action (announcement and PR), approximately one hundred UCSC students took part in a spirited rally at the quarry plaza on the UC campus. The day’s events, called “DeNuke UC,� sent a loud and clear message to UCSC administration, the UC Regents as well as President Robert Dynes that Santa Cruz students do not stand for nuclear proliferation in the name of education.

The 2-hour long event, organized by the UCSC Students Against War, featured performances by the Raging Grannies, speeches by students and community members as well as a guerrilla-theatre “UC-Bechtel wedding ceremony. The day was culminated by an informative talk by former Lawrence Livermore Lab employee and whistleblower, Leuren Moret.

By decorating the colorful papier-mache bomb in the center of the crowd with writing and art, students, faculty, and community members were able to share their thoughts on the Bechtel-UC partnership as well as the continued research of new nuclear weapons at UC-run labs. “Don’t take my money for nuclear development: don’t steal my education,� read one quote, another called for the dismissal of the UC Regents and President Dynes.

Photos: Photos from UCSC DeNuke Rally || De-Nuke UC Speech & Pictures

Audio: Rockin' the Boat: De-Nuke the UC

Previous SAW / Demilitarize UC coverage: (May 2005) 3rd Weekly UCSC Weapons Inspection Tour || (May 2005) UC Regents Ignore Massive Resistance, Vote to Build Nukes

Other SAW coverage: (March 2005) UCSC Students Against War Teach-In Draws Hundreds || (April 2005) UCSC Students Kick Military Recruiters Off Campus || (October 2005) Rally, Queer Kiss-in Greet Military Recruiters at UCSC

Especially because of its low cost, easy availability, and widespread accessibility to listeners, the pirate radio movement has been growing, and in effect, has been democratisizing and localizing radio for the masses.

Pirate radio, a term which “implies the unlicensed broadcasting use of any part of the radio spectrum that is reserved for use by governmental, public, or commercial licenses� (Wikipedia.com), was created “in the efforts to reinvent radio as a vehicle of participatory democracy and a resource for community development� and a means for which local populations could reconnect with the cultural and civic life of their communities (Howley, 2005). Especially because of its low cost, easy availability, and widespread accessibility to listeners, the pirate radio movement has been growing, and in effect, has been illegally democratisizing and localizing radio for the masses. Read more...

see also: Indymedia News vs. Neighbor's Account

Because of the explicitly democratic nature of Indymedia, my sociology professor wished to know the differences between Indymedia and a neighbor yelling about what he did that day from across the street. Since anyone has access to publishing on the Indymedia site, and everyone has their own concept of what is "newsworthy", one might think that these two modes of information profileration are very similiar. I intend to show how Indymedia is a equal or greater news souce than one's ranting neighbor. Read more...

SAVE STANLEY "TOOKIE" WILLIAMS

The State of California has set December 13th as the execution date for Stanely Tookie Williams, whose remarkable change from co-founder of the Crips gang to Nobel peace prize nominee was made into the movie "Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story" starring Jamie Foxx. Foxx has spoken up for Williams, saying "We can't let it happen. We've got to do everything we can to get the word out."

Take part in the international day of action locally at a teach-in taking place at UC Santa Cruz this Wednesday, November 30th at 7:30PM featuring professor Angela Davis, professor Paul Ortiz and a special performance from Rainbow Theatre.

Audio: Save Tookie Williams Teach-in at UCSC

additional action earlier in the day: "At 12 noon (on Wed, Nov 30th, 2005) , a protest rally at Santa Cruz City Hall (809 Center st., Santa Cruz) will feature speakers from the ACLU, Santa Cruz City Council and Death Penalty Focus. Santa Cruz will be declared as a "World City Against the Death Penalty" by Santa Cruz Mayor, Mike Rotkin." ( Photos and Audio)

Audio: FRSC: Interview with Barbara Becknell Tookie Willams advocate/editor || FRSC audio PSA

Photos: 11/19/05 Save Stan Tookie Williams Rally at San Quentin, CA

see also: Save Stanley "Tookie" Williams

from Indybay.org: Teach-ins, Day of Action Demand Clemency for Stanley "Tookie" Williams || November 30th Day of Action Against Executions || December 8th People's Clemency Hearing for Stanley Tookie Williams

[ Campaign to End the Death Penalty] [ SaveTookie.org ] [ Tookie.com ] [ Critical Resistance ]

In front of the Military Recruiting Center on 41st Avenue in Capitola, over 50 activists gathered on Friday Nov 18th to call for an end to the Iraq war, and to bring our troops home now.

Spreading out along a whole block of 41st Avenue, participants carried signs, banners, and flags, and flashed the peace symbol to the passers-by!

The day was called National Stand Down Day because "stand down" is a term used by the military for days when they have training, reviews etc., and so "stand down" from their normal duties. Thus, citizens all over the country "stood down" for an hour or two from their normal duties to help bring this war and occupation to an end!

Photos: "National Stand Down Day" at Capitola Military Recruiters

see also: National Stand Down Day at Recruiting Stations Across the Country

The U.C. Regents met at U.C. Berkeley's Clark Kerr Campus on Wednesday and Thursday, November 16th and 17th. Wednesday, the regents voted to raise student fees. On a 17-to-2 vote, they raised fees by 8 percent for undergraduates and 10 percent for graduate students. They also voted for top university administrators get pay raises; UC President Robert Dynes' base salary will increase from $395,000 to $405,000.

The regents switched the day to vote on feehikes, a day ahead of time to surprise the students and ignore their concerns. Activists from the civil rights group B.A.M.N (by any means neccesary), S.T.A.N.D (students taking action now Darfur ), U.C.S.A (University of California Student Association ), the G.R.N (Global resistance network), and hundreds of other students from all over California came to the U.C regents meeting to make an expression and demand for equal rights for all students.

Photos and more on Indybay.org

Second report from George Cadman working with the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) in the Bil'in village of Palestine. George is watching/waiting for the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) to observe and document the soldiers entering the village to arrest boys for allegedy throwing rocks.

George describes the demonstration today (11-19-05) at the Qalandia checkpoint, the main entry way between the West Bank and Jerusalem where a wall is being constructed which will in its completion effectively cut off 80,000 residents of east Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank.

Audio: Download the mp3 (9:53 minutes / 4.5 MB)

Keep tuned to Free Radio Santa Cruz 101fm for more reports this month.

previous coverage: Report from Occupied Palestine 11-15-05

On Tuesday, November 15, students involved with the New Sweat Free Campus Campaign at the University of California Santa Cruz posted clothing with anti-sweatshop messages around campus. Their efforts were part of a national day of action aimed at increasing awareness about the use of sweatshop labor to produce collegiate apparel.

The campaign, spearheaded by United Students Against Sweatshops, is demanding that university administrators back up their Codes of Conduct with an actual program of enforcement, the Designated Suppliers Program. These Codes of Conduct are official documents requiring that all university licensees have their goods made in factories that are not operated under sweat-shop conditions.

Currently, while Presidents and Chancellors across the country are meeting with students and expressing interest in adopting this program, Chancellor Denton continues to stall meeting with UCSC students and refuses to take a stand on the issue.

UCSC students and workers will continue to make sure that this campaign is at the forefront of campus issues and will not tire until the university makes a concrete commitment to guaranteeing that our clothing and uniforms are not produced in sweatshops.

previous coverage: Students and Workers Demand a Sweat-Free UC || Creative Activism Raises Issues at Denton's Investiture