By Ryan Ozimek
Daily Bruin Contributor
Starting today and continuing through tomorrow, the
Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC) is conducting
their Death of Education Campaign in order to inform students about
what they believe are the pressing issues facing students in the
November election.
Speaking to students in Meyerhoff Park this morning, the
undergraduate government’s External Vice President Alberto Retana,
along with representatives from the Asian Pacific Coalition, the
Gay and Lesbian Association (GALA) and Raza Women will explain what
they have planned for the two-day campaign.
Fourteen campus organizations, from the Vietnamese Student Union
to the UCLA Voter Registration Coalition will have members spread
across the campus to spread the word about the issues and register
students to vote. Volunteers will set up cardboard cutouts of
tombstones, signifying what they feel may be the death of the
education system, along with banners and flyers across campus.
In a press release, USAC officials stated that the Death of
Education Campaign will focus on "Chancellor Young’s refusal to
expand the booklending program, immigrant rights, the
prioritization of prisons over education, domestic partnership,
welfare ‘reform,’ affirmative action (Proposition 209), fee hikes
and cuts to financial aid."
According to USAC President John Du, the campaign is designed as
"a big wake-up call for students about the health of their
education system. The idea is to get students aware and educated so
that they can take action to fight for their education."
Although the campaign will cover many issues, Du said that
emphasis will be on saving affirmative action and the
anti-Proposition 209 campaign.
"I think that there is a great sense of urgency by the student
body with all the different attacks on education these days," Du
commented. "That’s why so many different student groups and Council
members are focusing on the death of education."
Du pointed to Proposition 209 as the reason behind the the
special focus on affirmative action policies, especially in light
of the July 1995 decision of the UC Regents to do away with the
policy in admissions and hiring.
"Proposition 209 is on the ballot, the fight (to save
affirmative action) has just begun. It’s clear that if 209 fails,
the regents will rescind their decision," Du said.
"Even if Proposition 209 passes, people will still fight for
justice, because racism and sexism will still exist," he added.
USAC officials hope that this campaign will show students how
issues both within the university system and outside it will affect
the university’s own environment.
"The program will link all these issues to the access to
education during a time when the education system is coming under
attack," Retana said.
The original idea for the program came from Retana’s election
platform during the spring of this year in addition to past student
protests on the state of education.
"In my platform, I said I would initiate the program from within
the external vice president’s office," Retana said. "My committee
and I created the program and then outreached to on-campus groups
for help with the campaign."
The campaign will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. both today and
tomorrow.