Aram Ghoogasian: USAC must close loopholes allowing illegal campaign fundraising

After a week of consistently being the top story, LET’S ACT! went out with a fizzle. Of the nine contested positions, it managed to win only two. The results are indicative of students’ attitude toward the Undergraduate Students Association Council and their angry reaction to LET’S ACT!’s alleged Machiavellian campaign tactics. The scandal that broke […]

Yiwei Sun: USAC must address international student issues

Browsing through the list of student group endorsements for the undergraduate student government elections, I tried to inform my vote by looking for my international student group’s endorsement. But, I was surprised to realize that none of the international student groups endorsed any candidates. Unfortunately, international students often don’t have a reason to be anything […]

Arthur Wang: Portrayal of Baltimore riots by media ignores societal context

Baltimore is burning – and you’d be lying if you said you didn’t see it coming. In remarks on the city’s unrest, President Barack Obama said that “this has been going on for decades.” By “this,” he was referring to cyclical poverty, substance abuse and incarceration occurring in neglected, mostly black, urban communities. Mere blocks […]

Editorial: UCLA made right call in keeping controversial speaker, despite pressure

UCLA had to answer hard questions over the merits of academic freedom last week. It answered correctly. This board commends the university and the UCLA Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies for holding firm in their decision to invite Cornel West, philosopher and professor emeritus of Princeton University, to speak at its “Moral Grandeur […]

Aram Ghoogasian: Students should not allow USAC slate politics to influence vote

The two largest slates in the undergraduate student government elections seem to live in glass houses. Yet again, a scandal has hit the Undergraduate Students Association Council. This time, LET’S ACT! is in the hot seat. A series of documents was leaked on Facebook Monday alleging that members of the slate illegally spent student fees […]

Submission: Grassroots efforts essential to improving transfer student experiences

Reflect back on your first weeks at UCLA. Reflect on how difficult those first weeks were. Advanced Placement and community college classes didn’t always translate into UCLA credits like you wanted them to, finding ways to get involved did not always come easily and not everybody on campus welcomed you for who you are. Balancing […]

Submission: USAC slates should focus on effecting change, not party politics

The Undergraduate Students Association Council is supposed to be a place to affect change and create a good experience for all students. It is supposed to be inclusive. It is supposed to be inviting. It is supposed to be a positive and enriching environment. I ran for USAC external vice president with the Bruins United […]