FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
11/30/2005

CONTACT: Students Against War’s Demilitarize UC press team via:
Steve Stormoen, sstormoe (at) ucsc.edu, (831) 420-0545

UC Santa Cruz Students Rally against the UC Los Alamos Lab Bid
DeNuke UC day of action a loud voice against nuclear proliferation and corporate interest

On Wednesday, November 30 – the UC wide Nuclear Day of Action, 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.

The Students Against War presented the following demands to UC administration:

1) Retract their bid for the Los Alamos National Lab (LANL).

2) End their management of Lawrence Livermore National Lab.

3) Acknowledge and heed the opinions of an informed student populace regarding future involvement in the nuclear weapons business.

4) Comply with international law, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, in order to improve the standing of our institution and our nation in the international community.

5) Provide and promote opportunities for scientists and engineers to engage in research and employment in ethical science outside the realms of the nuclear weapons and defense industries – help end the current climate of coercion by lack of alternative opportunity and allow scientists and engineers an honest freedom of choice.

6) Commit to cleaning up the area around LANL and the community of Los Alamos and repair the environmental damage the lab has caused.

7) Issue an apology to those affected by the labs, and the weapons those labs have produced.

Interviews and photos available upon request.

For more information, contact Students Against War’s Demilitarize UC press team through Steve Stormoen: sstormoe (at) ucsc.edu, (831) 420-0545.