5/6/05: Complete with costumes and characters such as UC President Dynes and "Hans" of SNL fame, the march through Science Hill, organized by Students Against War (SAW)'s Demilitarization working group, highlighted UC's management of Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore Labs, as well as the large amount of weapons research currently underway on UCSC's campus. Student 'weapons inspectors' stopped outside the new Baskin Engineering building before a die-in outside the Science and Engineering Library. The inspectors also marched silently through the library and passed out information about UCSC's connection to the war machine.

Students Against War (SAW) meets every Friday in Conference Room #C above the Baytree Plaza at 5pm. SAW's demilitarization working group meets every Sunday in Cowell's fireside lounge at 7pm.

Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Audio: Hans; UC Plays Central Role in Thermo-Nuclear Weapons R&D

See also: UCSC's weekly "Weapons Inpsections" Tour a success (4/22/05) || Fiat Pax || FuckTheRegents.com

The past three weeks have been very eventful at UCSC: counter-recruitment efforts, an amazing strike (we won that shit – when is the party?), April 18th at Tent University, The state-wide student walk-out… Something is in the air. It is important for us to keep up the momentum, but also to reflect and learn from our own successes and mishaps. In this contribution to the ongoing conversations, I’d like to focus on the controversies and questions surrounding Tent University. I want to unpack the crucial criticisms that have been raised around this initiative, while also acknowledging the hard work and perseverance of Tent U’s organizers. Most importantly, I want to emphasize how this undoubtedly problematic event has still managed to open a space of possibility for student orgs and ‘the movement’ these orgs may potentially become and power. In sum I think student activists need to simultaneously engage in critical conversations about Tent U, while capitalizing on the moment it has provided – however awkwardly so.

Ward Churchill spoke for more than two hours at an event organized by Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MeCHA) de California State University Monterey Bay (CSUMB). Outside there were competing displays of support and disgust for Churchill. Some supporters poked fun at the recent controversy, while some took it quite seriously. Churchill discussed recent attacks on his scholarship, patriotism, heritage, and writing and the essay that has caused so much controversy.

Continuing the talk, he outlines U.$. Policy, foreign and domestic, victims of said policies; American Exceptionalism, Educational system.

Audio: parts 1 - 2 || parts 3 - 4 || parts 5 - 8
Pages for downloading the mp3s: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8

More audio courtesy of FRSC: Legal Update on Leonard Peltier's Case

On the afternoon of April 29, the DA announced that the charges brought against those arrested at Tent University the night of April 18th have been dropped. We greatly appreciate the faculty, community members and students who voiced their support for those arrested. Although this is a celebrated victory, we are still anticipating a date to be set with Chancellor Denice Denton as well as the academic senate to begin their investigation into the events of the week of April 18th.

For previous coverage, see: Letter to Chancellor Denton and EVC Kliger from UCSC Faculty and Staff

The US Justice Department estimates more than three-quarters of a million people in the US are gang members. For decades, various street gangs have operated in large US cities, but in recent years, many small towns and rural areas have become fertile ground for gang activity. As the U.S. Conference of Mayors convenes today in DC for a National Summit on Gang Violence, FSRN's Vinny Lombardo examines how one California community is confronting these issues and crafting solutions.

Audio: Listen to the Stream or Download the mp3

[ Free Speech Radio News || Santa Cruz Barrios Unidos ]

After thirty-seven years, San Jose State student activists and 1968 Olympic Medal Winners, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, are honored with a statue commemorating their world famous salute.

We have been racking our brains at paparazzi central and have not been able to come up with the perfect caption for this amazing photograph of our Chancellor, Denise Denton.

“National Stand Down Day� November 18, 2005
End The Iraq War - Demonstrations and Nonviolent Resistance at
Recruiting Stations Across the Country

November 18, 2005

On Thursday, October 20, the Filipino Student Association (FSA) at UC Santa Cruz held a vigil to honor Filipino Veteranos from World War II by fighting for the benefits that they deserve.

Hundreds of thousands of Filipinos served under the United States in World War II, many of them receiving prestigious medals. While promised benefits by U.S. President Roosevelt, the U.S. Government refuses to acknowledge their contributions. Many of these Veteranos have since died, but an estimated 7,000 live in the U.S. and over 30,000 in the Philippines.

Thursday's vigil was part of a national day of awareness sponsored by Student Action for Veterans Equity (SAVE). The day was "part of an ongoing campaign to 'paint the nation brown', stressing the awareness of the Brown Ribbon Campaign; an education and action campaign dedicated to the fight for Full Equity only and nothing less, through the passages of H.R. 302 and S. 146"

Quoted from the vigil announcement:
santacruz.indymedia.org/newswire/index.php

"October 18th, 2005 - UCSC Students Against War (SAW) organized a nonviolent rally and Queer Kiss-in against the presence of military recruiters on the UC Santa Cruz campus.

About forty students participated in a Queer Kiss-in in protest of the military’s discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell� policy. The Queer Kiss-in was staged in front of the military’s tables during the march and rally. From inside the fair, kissers were able to effectively block access to military recruiters without shutting down the entire career fair."

santacruz.indymedia.org/newswire/display/18812/index.php

The following photos are from the rally outside and from when students involved in the Queer Kiss-In jubilantly emerged from the job fair.