Students First! has a strong history of incorporating racial
issues into its politics and consistently gaining the support of
many ethnic student groups.
But after the results of the undergraduate student government
runoff elections were announced May 18, some Students First!
candidates and supporters approached racial issues such as low
minority enrollment directly, criticizing the university for what
they called racist policies and culture.
In a post-election rally, Jenny Galvez, chairwoman of MEChA,
which endorsed Students First! candidates during the elections,
told supporters that the campus needed to acknowledge the existence
of a “rich, white male privilege.”
Racial and diversity issues have been a major part of Students
First! campaigning since the slate was created in 1995. In 1997,
for example, the slate cited widespread access to education and the
installation of a general education diversity requirement as two of
its goals, according to the Daily Bruin.
Students First! also usually draws many of its candidates from
ethnic and cultural student groups such as MEChA, Samahang Pilipino
and the Muslim Student Association.
This election season, many Students First! candidates were
affiliated with a cultural student group, including MEChA, Samahang
Pilipino and Queer Alliance. The Students First! presidential
candidate, Lucero Chavez, was involved with MEChA.
Newly elected External Vice President Tina Park said she thinks
cultural groups support her slate because they identify with the
Students First! ideology.
“A lot of their values align with what we work on,”
she said, citing Students First!’s commitment to greater
diversity in admissions as an example. “Diversity issues are
key to them.”
Michael Espe, recruitment activities coordinator for Samahang
Pilipino, said part of the reason his organization supports
Students First! is the two groups’ common interest in
community involvement.
“We advocate for the needs of minorities outside of
UCLA,” he said. “Students First! has historically
helped with advocating for those communities.”
Former USAC President Jenny Wood, a member of Students First!,
said her slate has pretty consistently received the support of
major ethnic and cultural student groups since its inception, and
said she believes it is because of her slate’s commitment to
helping underrepresented communities.
But other students involved in USAC said they think racial and
ethnic issues play a larger role in campus politics than simply
defining similar and opposing ideologies.
Facilities Commissioner P.C. Zai, who is affiliated with
opposing slate Bruins United, said she thinks race has been used to
unfairly push special interest agendas.
“I definitely think (race) has been used as a political
tool, and that really disappoints me,” she said. “In
the past it’s played a huge part, and some people are trying
to keep it that way. But I think we should look beyond
that.”
Racial and ethnic issues were prevalent in Students
First!’s campaign this year: One of the slate’s
overarching goals was to increase representation of minority groups
on campus, particularly by increasing the number of minority
students admitted to UCLA.
“Students First! has definitely fought to ensure that
those who have had less of a voice historically have a
voice,” Wood said.
Many Students First! supporters spoke of giving a voice to the
voiceless, whom they generally defined as underrepresented minority
groups such as Latinos and blacks.
But Park said Students First! works on racial and ethnic issues
because they are relevant, not for political reasons.
“(Race) still plays a role and it can’t be
ignored,” she said.
Galvez said she agrees that race is relevant to elections, and
said that part of the reason MEChA and other groups support
Students First! is that Bruins United has ignored important issues
regarding minority rights and access to university resources.
“It’s more than just school politics,” she
said. “Racism does play a large role on this campus.
There’s more than just having school spirit, more than just
having a bar on campus.”
But Zai said she thinks Bruins United is often misrepresented as
being anti-diversity, and blamed traditional alliances for its lack
of support from ethnic student groups.
“I think it’s a historical divide, and a deep-seated
loyalty,” she said.
Espe acknowledged that traditional ties between Samahang
Pilipino and Students First! have contributed to the two
groups’ current relationship.
“Samahang has had a lot of history with Students
First!,” he said. “We’ve upheld our connection
with it, and Students First! candidates tend to come from those
mother organizations (such as Samahang).”
Many of these “mother organizations” usually fare
well when it comes to student government funding allocations. In
2004, MEChA, the Muslim Student Association and the Asian Pacific
Coalition, all perennial Students First! supporters, received the
largest amounts of student group funding.
Supporters of both Students First! and Bruins United did agree
that the racial issues being played out in campus politics reflect
larger issues in the community.
“I feel UCLA is a microcosm and that a lot of the cultural
groups have very valid concerns,” Zai said.
Park said she thought the presence of race in campus politics
could actually be beneficial.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing that
it’s an issue on our campus,” she said.
“It’s us being willing to talk about it when the rest
of the U.S. sometimes shies away from it.”