A sidewalk display on Weyburn Avenue declares that “All
Roads Lead to Westwood,” and Sen. John Edwards, D-NC, hopes
UCLA is a stop on the path to the White House. Edwards, in
California for campaign activities, made a brief visit to UCLA
Tuesday afternoon, stopping by to chat with students and faculty at
Earth Day celebrations held at Bruin Plaza. Edwards, a first-term
senator, is among a handful of prominent Democrats vying for a
chance to challenge President George W. Bush in 2004. In a short
address, Edwards charged the president with pursuing poor
environmental policies. “It’s important that we all do
the things necessary to protect our planet. … This administration
is doing the opposite,” Edwards said. This past January,
Edwards unsuccessfully opposed air pollution regulations proposed
by Bush, arguing they undermined clean air laws. Supporters of the
new rules said easing regulations on industries would aid the
economy. During his remarks, Edwards announced a proposal for the
government to provide funding for four biomass refineries ““
facilities that would use agricultural products to produce ethanol
fuels. With much of the country focused on the aftermath of war in
Iraq and international terrorism, Edwards said he expects
environmental concerns to resonate with voters during the race for
the White House. “I think the environment will be enormously
important. … It’s a human health issue,” he said
after his speech. Research on new energy sources is connected to
national security concerns, Edwards said, citing a need for the
United States to develop domestic energy rather than relying on
sources in the Middle East. “You need to become less and less
independent on oil,” he said. In general, attendees to the
Earth Day event gave Edwards a positive reception for his
environmental stances. Gregor Hodgson, director of Reef Check, a
UCLA Institute of the Environment program that monitors coral
reefs, called Edwards a “very strong environmental
candidate.” Edwards’ talk with students was not limited
to environmental concerns. While discussing his support for a
multilateral foreign policy, he was immediately asked why he
supported war in Iraq without United Nations’ authorization.
Replying that he considered Iraq a “unique” situation,
Edwards said, “I believed then and I believed now that the
potential for Saddam Hussein to have nuclear capabilities and what
he was doing to his own people, that he needed to be
stopped.” Later, he said the United States should work with
international organizations to rebuild Iraq. “We want the
United Nations as involved as possible, we want the European Union
involved, we want NATO involved,” he said, adding their
participation would “add legitimacy” to U.S.
efforts.
Raising awareness Edwards was not alone in trying to garner
Bruins’ attention ““ several student and on-campus
groups set up tables in the plaza, hoping to gain support for their
various causes. “We have a bunch of issues … fair trade
coffee, we have our Taco Bell boycott, on-campus worker
issues,” said second-year anthropology student Nathan Lam, a
member of the environmental coalition. Greenpeace provided an
exhibit on solar energy using a solar-paneled truck to power the
entire event. “It’s enough to power three single-family
homes,” said Maureen Cane, who graduated from UC Berkeley in
2002 with a degree in international development, and is a member of
Greenpeace and the Sustainability Coalition. In the middle of the
multiple groups advocating environmental policies was an
organization trying to get students to register to vote, though
they had little success. Sandra Perez, regional director for the
Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, which usually
targets Latino/a voters in the general community, said students
often register to vote but fail to cast a ballot during elections.
“They’re tremendously apathetic and they’re being
ignored by the political parties,” Perez said. Edwards,
campaigning at UCLA, said the burden is on politicians to get
students and other young Americans interested in politics. “I
think it’s our responsibility … to get young people
involved,” he said.