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Indybay Feature

Workers and Students Demand a Fair Contract at George Blumenthal's UCSC Inauguration

by ~Bradley (bradley [at] riseup.net)
On June 6th, George Blumenthal was inaugurated as the 10th Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz during a ceremony on the East Field overlooking the Monterey Bay. To mark the occasion, students and workers, organized through the Student and Worker Coalition for Justice (SWCJ) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) rallied at UCSC, marched to the Chancellor's Inauguration and blocked California Highway One at Mission and Bay during a 10-hour day of action to deliver a loud and clear message -- end poverty wages at the University of California.
bay-tree-plaza_6-6-08.jpg
For more background information, please read:

AFSCME Strike Postponed -- What's Next?
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/05/31/18503339.php

Here are some links to photo coverage from previous AFSCME actions from the 2007 - 2008 school year at UCSC:
§Students Support Service Workers
by ~Bradley
students-support_6-6-08.jpg
§Coronation of King George
by ~Bradley
king-george_6-6-08.jpg
§UC Priorities and Our Priorities
by ~Bradley
priorities_6-6-08.jpg
§Equality
by ~Bradley
equality_6-6-08.jpg
§Students and Workers Unite Fo' Justice
by ~Bradley
unite_6-6-08.jpg
§East Field
by ~Bradley
east-field_6-6-08.jpg
§Hagar Drive
by ~Bradley
hagar-drive_6-6-08.jpg
§Students and Workers
by ~Bradley
students-workers_6-6-08.jpg
§We Want a Say In Our University
by ~Bradley
a-say_6-6-08.jpg
§El Futuro
by ~Bradley
el-futuro_6-6-08.jpg
§Coolidge Drive
by ~Bradley
coolidge-drive_6-6-08.jpg
§mark!
by ~Bradley
mark-lopez_6-6-08.jpg
As a youth, Mark Lopez grew up in a culture of community solidarity and resistance on the Eastside of Los Angeles. Mark’s grandmother, Juana Beatriz Gutierrez, was one of the founders of the Madres del Este de Los Angeles (Mothers of East Los Angeles), a community based non-profit organization that successfully fought against the construction of a prison in Boyle Heights, as well as the construction of an underground oil pipeline, amongst other things. Mark’s mother, Elsa Gutierrez Lopez, worked as the Executive Director of Madres until his senior year in high school. This set a foundation to fuel an activist lifestyle and drive in higher education.
http://intern.ucsc.edu/cuip/success/lopez.html
§Justici@ y Dignid@d P@r@ Todxs
by ~Bradley
justicia-y-dignidad_6-6-08.jpg
§Julian Posadas
by ~Bradley
julian-posadas_6-6-08.jpg
§Tony Madrigal
by ~Bradley
tony-madrigal_6-6-08.jpg
Santa Cruz City Councilmember Tony Madrigal
§Tony's Unused Tickect to the Inaguration
by ~Bradley
tonys-unused-ticket_6-6-08.jpg
Tony Madrigal called UCSC to let them know that he would not be attending the inaguration unless AFSCME was given a fair contract.
§Sandra Lane
by ~Bradley
sandra-lane_6-6-08.jpg
Sandra Lane is UCSC's new Organizing Director of SUA. While working to get elected, here's what Sandra had to say:

"I am running for the Organizing Director of SUA because I am passionate about organizing campaigns on campus to better the lives of students and workers. Through organizing, I have been an advocate for lowering student fees, worker's rights, and increasing diversity on campus. I feel that through student-led and student-run organizing we can create concrete change and represent the needs of students! My experience includes: Legislative Liaison for the UC Student Association Board, Office Intern for the Organizing Director of SUA, Multi-racial caucus chair for the United States Student Association board, SUA voting member, and College Eight Senate member. These positions have given me the opportunity to engage in campaigns to reach successes such as registering over 1,000 new student voters during the Get Out the Vote campaign, coordinating lobbying efforts in-district, Sacramento, and DC, and contributing to the Wage Parity campaign to raise workers wages."
http://elections.ucsc.edu/candidates.cfm
§Alette Kendrick and George Blumenthal
by ~Bradley
alette-george_6-6-08.jpg
Hundreds Rally at UCSC in Solidarity with Alette Kendrick (May 24, 2007)
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/05/25/18421131.php
§Flyers to Commuters
by ~Bradley
flyers-to-commuters_6-6-08.jpg
§Bass
by ~Bradley
base_6-6-08.jpg
§Nicholas Gutierrez
by ~Bradley
nicholas-gutierrez_6-6-08.jpg
§Maria Padilla
by ~Bradley
maria-padilla_6-6-08.jpg
§AFSCME worker at UC Berkeley
by ~Bradley
worker-ucb_6-6-08.jpg
§MORE PHOTOS
by ~Bradley
** PLEASE SEE THE SECOND SET OF PHOTOS AT:

UC Workers and Students Block California Highway 1 in Santa Cruz to Protest Poverty Wages
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/06/07/18505111.php
Add Your Comments

Comments (Hide Comments)
by Old Skool
Alette contended that she was singled out at the Regent's protest in 06 because she was black; she said it was profiling, and racist. (Of course, she later copped to her actions and apologized for them in court). Now she's calling someone a white devil and that's not racist ?

A devil.........guess it takes one to know one.
by take it way back
i think there is a difference between being prejudice and racist. alette is still fighting her way through a racist system and blumenthal is the white devil representation of that system.
by Take it back to humanity
If you are she are portraying a human being as a representation of a system rather than a human being, and feel that needs the further addition of racial assignment as well as demonizaton...then I guess it's okay to call you black witches.

...or does it only work in one direction?
by local
I just bet George was devastated that Madrigal called to say he wasn't coming to the event. Then again the event went on, so I guess he wasn't too upset about Madrigal not being there. And what about Julien? He's like a bad check that keeps bouncing back. And Kendricks photo say it all about her. I think the other posters covered her hypocrisy very well. And it seems from the photos that the vast majority of those protesting are students. Now why is that not surprising to anyone?
by disappointed
It's frustrating to hear people equating the 'white devil' sign with the racism of the government. African American people were brought to this country as slaves, legally defined as 3/5 of a human, expelled from political processes, and had all manner of violence used against them for centuries. To equate a 'white devil' sign with the racism of our political and social institutions is grotesque. 'Racism' against white people carries what history with it? Does it effect you on a day to day basis?
by Santa Barbara student
Wonderful!

Keep it up. Blumenthal and the whole damn UC management need to be checked and shut down. From the campus level to the system-wide level, the UC is terribly flawed.

UC treats workers horribly
UC makes nukes
UC is in bed with corporations
UC Regents are a plutocracy
UC's admissions policis are racist

The whole state's priorities are out of wack. It's long past time to escalate our movement and demand structural changes.

This action was a brand of the kind we need more of. Disruptive protest activity. Calling it like it is.

And a shout out to Alette and Julian! Anyone who knows these people personally knows how committed they are to justice. I'll back them up anyday.
by Double Standard Time
You're apparently unaware of the nuances and personal histories associated with this story. When those are added into the mix, the issue changes significantly and Alette's use of the race card becomes more transparent and repugnant.

Suffice it to say that Alette has a personal agenda with Blumenthal, and the fact that she called him a racist if he didn't bail her out of a campus judiciary charge two years ago makes it both ironic and personal that she'd use racist terms against him now.

Also, if you're going to give Alette a free pass because her ancestors were slaves, then Blumenthal gets the same free pass because his Jewish ancestors were treated with equally horrid racist abuse by the Nazis in WWII.

Bottom line is Alette has a personal vendetta, and I don't excuse her racist tactics. She plays the race cards from both sides to satisfy her agenda.
by Someone who I don't know who I am.
....the University could get someone besides a white male as Chancellor. Like say a lesbian, that'd be a great step in the right direction, wouldn't it!

Oh wait, most of the "activists" here would just constantly belittle her and drive her to suicide.
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