blog

Thousands of students, faculty and employees staged a walkout at University of California schools yesterday to protest the Universities handling of budget cuts.  Protestors objected to forced furlough days for faculty and a proposed 45 percent tuition hike for students. The largest of the walkouts was at UC Berkeley (UCB) with 5,000 people in central Sproul Plaza.

Despite university police intervention, some of the 400 UCLA students and faculty who gathered at the Chancellor's office were able to find their way inside to stage a sit-in. Students demanded and won a meeting with Chancellor Block for themselves, faculty, and union representatives.  The meeting is scheduled for October 6th.

Many people marveled at the unity between students, faculty, and workers. Ilzig Khisamov, a senior at UC Irvine, said that this level of cooperation was "amazing, albeit rare."

"Our problems are connected," said Isaac Miller, a member of the UCB Solidarity Alliance, a group that helped organize the rally in Sproul Plaza. "Our struggles have the same roots. If a crisis is a moment to choose, then it's time for us to make an educated decision. Our solidarity cannot be cut."

Jonathen Duran, a senior at UC Davis where an estimated 600 people rallied, said in an email, "We had a lot of people willing to be a part of the cause...Everyone marched to the administration building and yelled the whole time."

Even students outside the UC system--at San Francisco State and at City College of San Francisco--rallied in support.

The protest came after weeks of mounting frustration amongst students, faculty, and union workers. Last week, 14 protesters were arrested at a UC Board of Regents meeting after voicing themselves on fee hikes and budget cuts

Walkout participants on all UC campuses will be planning future action in the coming weeks.

More from UC Berkeley's Daily Californian
Even more from the Daily Californian
More from UCLA's Daily Bruin
Even more from the Daily Bruin
More from the San Francisco Gate