Feature Archives

On April 17th, community supporters and student activists at D-Q University received letters from the Yolo County District Attorney that informed them that the charges against the 18 arrested on campus on March 31, 2008 have been dropped. D-Q University is California’s only Tribal College and was founded in 1971 by Native American and Chicano activists. Friends of D-Q U will continue to demand justice for the three students arrested on February 20, 2008 on campus, as well as the two who were arrested as they slept next to the sweat lodge on ceremonial grounds on April 2, 2008. D-Q U's ASB and supporters are demanding an end to the harassment against the students by the Board of Trustees, the Yolo County Sheriffs Department and the Yolo County Board of Supervisors by writing letters to local and national officials.

Addy writes, "Since the administration is closing campus on 4/20, the UCSC students are extending an invitation to everyone to come up on Friday, April 18th to take over the quad. We'll have our 4/20 celebration early, to let them know that it is our campus, that we pay THEM. This new 4/20 policy is draconian and unnecessary as there have been no issues in the past."

At 9:45 in the morning of March 31st, a large force of Yolo County Sheriffs stormed the buildings at D-Q University, battering their way into the hallway of the large dorm with guns drawn, and arresting 18 students, community supporters, and elders. In a similar incident on February 20th, Sheriff's deputies came onto the sovereign campus and arrested three students. The students arrested on February 20th have their court date on Wednesday, April 2nd at 7:30am at the Woodland Courthouse and they have put out a call for supporters to attend. The court date for the 18 people arrested on March 31st is not yet known.

In early March, Finnish filmmaker Hannu Hyvönen came to Santa Cruz to participate in the EarthVision International Environmental Film Festival. While visiting Santa Cruz, Hannu recorded a video interview with Owl, a tree-sitter at UCSC's Science Hill. On March 13th, Uncle Dennis spoke with Owl and fellow treesitter Stitches during an Earth First! Radio Special broadcast on Free Radio Santa Cruz.

Outraged over the undemocratic nature of the University of California Board of Regents and the Regents’ continued management of the national nuclear weapon labs, on March 19th, students from the Coalition to Free the UC took nonviolent direct action at the UC Regents meeting at UCSF Mission Bay campus in an attempt to obstruct their ability to meet. Over 100 students from five UC campuses participated in the day of action as part of March 19th Direct Action to Stop the War.

Maestra writes, "The Pajaro Valley Unified School District board of trustees voted to send pink slips to 201 teachers, nurses, and school support staff. In a desperate move to balance a budget and save their own jobs, the administrators of PVUSD have decided not to trim the fat from the top of the pyramid, rather preserving their high salary positions while instead removing a possible 130 teachers from the classroom. What does this look like for students? Larger class size, for one."

Teachers at the San Francisco Institute of English will go on strike starting Monday, March 17 at 8:30 am to demand livable wages and the return of health care benefits. The English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers have not had a cost-of-living adjustment in 12 years and have been without health care benefits since 2004. The strikers are asking for community support on the picket line and for their strike fund.