The weary students huddled together. Many were fighting sleep,
and all were cold. Some opted to return to the comfort of their
rooms, put off by the cold and their workloads.
But some refused to back down from their post. They continued to
defend the symbol of their loyalty to the cause ““ the Bruin
Bear.
“(People from USC) won’t do anything to the bear
when people are here,” said Joe Vardner, facilities
commissioner for the Undergraduate Students Association
Council.
Vardner worked with USAC General Representatives P.C. Zai and
Marwa Kaisey to organize the week-long event, dubbed Operation
Bruin Bear Security.
Calling themselves the Bruin Bear Security Force, a dozen
students gathered at McClure Stage at 11 p.m. Monday, some staying
until 7 a.m. Tuesday, braving temperatures that dropped into the
high 40s, to protect the school mascot from possible vandalism
during Blue and Gold Week.
Those who spent the night slept in shifts.
The guardians of the mascot gazed suspiciously at any sizable
groups lurking near the bear for too long. One such group turned
out to be comprised of UCLA students, simply wanting to buy
security force T-shirts.
Though students have camped out by the bear in the past, this is
the first time such an event has been formally organized. The
camp-outs will continue for the rest of the week from 9 p.m. to 7
a.m. every night and will include improvised games and
activities.
University police, Community Service Officers and Los Angeles
police are also patrolling the campus at regular intervals.
Officers on patrol that night said they stopped several students
dressed in USC gear earlier, before they reached the bear.
“There are many terrible people that would like to deface
the representation of our spirit, and we can’t stand for it
any more,” said Jason Kaminsky, USAC campus events
commissioner.
Zai and Vardner expect more people to participate in the
security force as the week progresses, especially following the
movie showing and other Blue and Gold Week activities.
“(We want to) try to establish a new tradition at UCLA,
and this would be functional and fun,” Zai said.