Live Blog: Updates from the Nov. 9 Day of Action, Occupy Cal

Occupy Cal organizers plan for Thursday gatherings

A crowd of protesters fill Sproul Plaza at around 10:30 PM.
David Herschorn/Staff
A crowd of protesters fill Sproul Plaza at around 10:30 PM.

Wednesday marks another day of action at UC Berkeley. Among the plans are teach-outs beginning at 8 a.m. and a noon rally on Sproul Plaza. Also a possibility is the establishment of an encampment under the moniker “Occupy Cal” — but the campus administration has forcefully stated that such an encampment will not be tolerated, and UCPD has said that it will take “appropriate actions” to enforce campus policy. Still, organizers have said they will go forward with the encampment, which will be finalized at a 1:30 p.m. general assembly.

#occupycal: Read complete Daily Cal coverage


Jamie Applegate, Alisha Azevedo, Adelyn Baxter, Travis Bickham, Geena Cova, Weiru Fang, Sara Grossman, Sara Khan, Jasmine Mausner, Curan Mehra, Damian Ortellado, Annie Sciacca, Christopher Yee and Oksana Yurovsky of The Daily Californian reporting from the field.

2:01 a.m.

As the number of protesters in Sproul Plaza dwindles, so does the number of police. A bus has come to pick up the contingent from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.

1:29 a.m.

Occupy Cal participants have voted to strike — theoretically in solidarity with demonstrators across the UC system — on Tuesday. The vote passed by a count of 569 yeses, 31 noes and 29 abstentions. General assembly meetings are to occur every day in Sproul Plaza at 6 p.m. to plan for the strike.

12:55 p.m.

Update: The arrested protesters were actually taken to Glenn E. Dyer Detention Facility in Oakland, according to UCPD Lt. Alex Yao.

11:54 p.m.

Thirty-nine protesters have been arrested so far, according to UCPD Lt. Alex Yao. Seven were arrested earlier in the day while 32 were arrested during the second round of clashes between police and protesters. All of the arrested demonstrators have been sent to Santa Rita County Jail for processing. All of those arrested were arrested on two charges: resisting and delaying a police officer in the performance of their duties and failure to disperse when given a dispersal order. Over the course of the day officers from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, the Oakland Police Department and UCPD responded to the protest. Yao could not confirm which forces are still at the protest and would not disclose the number of police officers dispatched during the protest.

A shirtless protester is led away by police.

11:41 p.m.

According to ASUC President Vishalli Loomba and ASUC External Affairs Vice President Joey Freeman, police will move in and arrest protesters if they don’t leave. The student leaders said the police would issue a warning before arresting demonstrators.

11:35 p.m.

The Occupy Cal general assembly has said that they will reconvene tomorrow at 6 p.m. and has put out calls for food and blankets. Organizers plan to also gather 10 a.m. to urge student participation and recruit more students for the movement.

11:16 p.m.

As the Occupy Cal protest gains global recognition — the protest’s hashtag #occupycal recently trended worldwide on Twitter — participants put out a call for donations of food and blankets to get through the night.

Tony Zhou/Staff

11:11 p.m.

Occupy Oakland and Occupy SF protesters have showed up in Sproul Plaza as well, numbering in the hundreds. Speakers continue to talk via the human microphone.

10:10 p.m.

The police have cleared the encampment and set up a skirmish line at the base of Sproul Hall.

Police line up outside Sproul Hall in riot gear.

Meanwhile, the general assembly has started up again. A speaker has proposed meeting a 10 a.m. Thursday morning and to begin recruiting other students to support Occupy Cal.

9:37 p.m.

Police and protesters are clashing on the grass as officers use batons to advance against protesters, who have linked arms around the tent. Police have pushed their way through the line and are taking down the tent.

9:29 p.m.

Approximately 50 police, having made a line at the northwest corner of Sproul Hall, are now pushing protesters back with force.

9:17 p.m.

About 150 protesters are linking arms on the grass next to the Sproul steps in order to surround the tent and are calling for more people to join them.

8:58 p.m.

Approximately 200 people are still standing on the steps of Sproul, but there is not much discussion of the encampment. Rather, protesters are playing board games and blowing bubbles as they await the arrival of Occupy Oakland demonstrators, who are expected to arrive on campus around 10 p.m. A band is also expected to come to provide live music for the Occupy Cal protesters.

8:13 p.m.

The fire alarm has been pulled in Dwinelle Hall.

7:55 p.m.

Police are walking a perimeter around the Occupy Cal encampment.

7:32 p.m.

The Occupy Cal assembly has voted overwhelmingly to maintain the encampment despite the administration’s demands. After the vote, successive speakers have discussed plans with the assembly. Police are now nearby the assembly.

6:30 p.m.

ASUC President Vishalli Loomba is now addressing the Occupy Cal assembly:

“This afternoon went very well. There was a lot of constructive dialogue. It is difficult to see now with these negotiations; it’s very tense. I’m worried and unsure about what’s going to happen. I’m trying to facilitate for the students. My concern, first and foremost, is their safety.”

6:25 p.m.

Le Grande is now speaking to the general assembly:

“You may gather 24/7 over the next week on Upper Sproul, but our policy says no tents, no sleeping bags, no fires or cooking and no sleeping. We hope that you will work with one another and us to maintain these guidelines. If not abided by, we will give you a 10-minute warning before the police come.”

Protesters responded with chants of “bullshit.”

6:11 p.m.

Campus administrators have begun to speak to the general assembly. Le Grande has entered the assembly’s circle to speak to the protesters. ASUC President Vishalli Loomba, Vice Chancellor for Equity and Inclusion Gibor Basri and UCPD Chief Mitch Celaya are also there.

According to CalSERVE Senator Andrew Albright, the protesters will be allowed to stay in the plaza 24/7 but will not be allowed to have an encampment. They will be allowed to keep canopies but will not be allowed to keep tents, according to Albright.

5:46 p.m.

Protesters are concerned about Sproul Hall lawn sprinklers going off this evening and are trying to get them shut off. Approximately 40 students from Sociology 124 — the sociology of poverty — have joined the occupiers.

Berkeley City Councilmember Kriss Worthington is at the protest in support of the students and called the police actions “illegal.”

5:25 p.m.

Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Harry Le Grande and other administrators will come to the Sproul steps to speak with protesters in about 15 minutes, according to UC Berkeley spokesperson Janet Gilmore.

5:05 p.m.

According to Freeman, he — along with other ASUC Senators, Loomba and Navab — met with Vice Chancellor for Equity and Inclusion Gibor Basri, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Harry Le Grande and UCPD Chief Mitch Celaya to discuss concerns about encampment. The administration will get back to Loomba and Freeman at 5:30 with a compromise on the encampment, which the ASUC representatives will then bring to the Occupy Cal general assembly.

At the assembly, organizers are passing out water and collecting donations to get dinner while they wait for the administration response.

5:00 p.m.

The general assembly is underway, with ASUC President Vishalli Loomba and ASUC External Affairs Vice President Joey Freeman in attendance. Freeman, CalSERVE Senator Andrew Albright and Graduate Assembly President Bahar Navab, among others, recently met with senior campus administrators to discuss the encampment and how to handle it.

4:40 p.m.

Police are moving in towards protesters again after giving another announcement to disperse.

4:22 p.m.

UC Berkeley student Erick Uribe said he was jabbed continuously with a police baton when attacked in the bushes next to Sproul Hall.

Jasmine Mausner/Staff

Police are returning to where the protesters are standing. The protesters are chanting, “Protect the tents.”

4:08 p.m.

The protesters are trying to organize another general assembly, which will take place on the grass next to the Sproul steps where the tents are currently set up.

Sean Goebel/Staff

4:04 p.m.

UC Berkeley spokesperson Janet Gilmore confirms six protesters arrested. Five were arrested during the clash near the Sproul steps, and one was arrested earlier in the day.

3:57 p.m.

Police have retreated from the protesters, disregarding the tents still standing as protesters cheer.

3:55 p.m.

Ashley Pinkerton, a UC Berkeley senior, reported getting hit with a baton by police.

“We were linked arms, peacefully, when they were stabbing and beating people as hard as they could, it hurt really bad when they got me in the stomach,” she said, visibly sweating.

3:48 p.m.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSat-nRefXY]

Police are taking down several tents, but some are still set up. Police are skirmishing with protesters, and at least one protester has been detained.

Amruta Trivedi/Staff

3:42 p.m.

Protesters have linked arms and are resisting police attempts to break into their group towards the tents. Police are using their batons to attempt to break through the protesters’ line. Police are being pushed back by the protesters and are almost surrounded by protesters.

Sean Goebel/Staff

3:38 p.m.

Police have announced in their dispersal order that camping is unlawful while protesters chant, “We’re just standing,” “The whole word is watching” and “What law are we breaking?”

Read our recap of the UC Berkeley Occupy Cal general assembly here.

3:33 p.m.

Police have issued a second dispersal notice to the protesters. If the protesters do not disperse, they risk arrest.

3:30 p.m.

Approximately 150 to 200 people are at the Sproul steps right now. Police officers are standing on the grass and on the north side of Sproul Hall.

Tony Zhou/Staff

3:11 p.m.

Police officers at the encampment have riot helmets, batons and zip tie handcuffs. UCPD has just issued a dispersal order to the protesters.

2:56 p.m.

Protesters are making a line to guard the grass next to the Sproul steps where the tents have been put, singing, “We shall not be moved.”

2:51 p.m.

UCPD officers are trying to prevent the setting up of the encampment. Occupy Cal protesters are joining hands around the tents in an attempt to get police from getting to the tents.

Tony Zhou/Staff

2:45 p.m.

The vote overwhelmingly approved of establishing the Occupy Cal encampment, with 456 votes in favor, 12 abstaining votes and 1 vote against. The camp will be established on the steps of Sproul Plaza and the surrounding area.

Tony Zhou/Staff

2:39 p.m.

Protesters have voted to occupy. Organizers are taking a formal count of the votes, but it looks close to unanimous, according to reporters in Sproul Plaza.

2:27 p.m.

According to UCPD Lt. Alex Yao, there hasn’t been any violence so far today, but there are extra officers on campus from the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office and other UC campus’ police departments to bolster the UCPD force.

Read a recap of the day from the first teach-outs to the noon rally and march to Bank of America here.

2:16 p.m.

Read a copy of the draft proposal here. Some people have expressed concern with putting the phrase, “We will have fun,” in the statement.

2:05 p.m.

The general assembly will meet every day at 6 p.m. According to organizers, the assembly will need 80 percent approval for decisions and will remain peaceful and nonviolent. The assembly is now breaking into groups of 5 to 10 people to discuss the proposal to establish the encampment.

2:03 p.m.

The UC Berkeley general assembly presented a proposal to be voted on to establish an encampment on campus. Student organizer Marco Amaral is reading a statement to the assembly:

“We the UC Berkeley general assembly hereby establish an encampment on the UC Berkeley campus in order to … help the university become what it always should have been: open and free to all … We disagree with the idea that this university and this land are the property of the UC Regents, the vast majority of whom hail from the 1 percent.”

1:58 p.m.

The assembly participants are discussing how to structure the Occupy Cal encampment. After discussion, they will vote on a statement and then set up the encampment. However, setting up an encampment goes directly against campus policy, according to UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, who said in an email to the campus community Monday night that setting up tents on campus would not be tolerated.

1:54 p.m.

As demonstrators discuss the historical significance of past free speech movements, the assembly — which one speaker termed a “form of direct democracy” — is using the human megaphone method, where the crowd repeats everything to ensure that all participants can hear.

1:44 p.m.

Protesters, having returned from their march to Bank of America, are now circling for a general assembly in Sproul Plaza.

1:40 p.m.

The demonstrators are now heading back to Sproul Plaza for the general assembly.

Eugene W. Lau/Staff

1:36 p.m.

The protesters, having now taped around the bank, are standing in the intersection of Telegraph and Durant Avenues. They have also put up signs on the bank’s ATMs.

1:28 p.m.

Protesters are stringing caution tape over the entrance to the Bank of America. They are trying to put tape around the entire bank, moving from Telegraph Avenue onto the Durant Avenue side of the bank.

Tony Zhou/Staff

1:24 p.m.

Nancy Reiko Kato, assistant registrar at the UC Berkeley School of Law and a member UPTE-CWA 9119, said the crowd reflected the diversity of the Occupy movement.

“Numerically it’s a great crowd, but more importantly, it’s a diverse crowd,” she says. “We all recognize we’re the 99 percent.”

Emma Lantos/Senior Staff

Protesters are now starting to march towards Telegraph Avenue and the Bank of America, chanting, “We won’t let you privatize, shut it down, occupy.” Police on motorcycles have stopped traffic so the protesters — who are also chanting, “We got sold out, banks got bailed out” — can march.

Randy Adam Romero/Staff

12:59 p.m.

Organizers are now saying that the protest will march down Telegraph Avenue to Bank of America and then return to Sproul Plaza for the general assembly.

12:57 p.m.

ASUC SQUELCH! Senator Noah Ickowitz says this is the largest protest UC Berkeley has seen since 2009.

“It has molded the two movements — Occupy Oakland and the anti-fee increase,” he says.

12:36 p.m.

The protesters in Sproul Plaza are drawing on each other for confidence.

“It makes me feel good to see that I’m not alone,” said UC Berkeley senior Kacey Carter. “A lot of people feel this way.”

Emma Lantos/Senior Staff

12:27 p.m.

ASUC External Affairs Vice President Joey Freeman is now speaking on the Sproul steps.

“I am here in solidarity with you,” he says. “It’s time to wake up and realize that the California dream is really a nightmare.”

Freeman adds that the state’s problems lie with revenue collection.

“First and foremost, everyone needs to pay their share,” he says. “We need to support a progressive tax measure to make wealthier Californians pay more for our education.”

Emma Lantos/Senior Staff

12:22 p.m.

“Last week student debt surpassed $1 trillion,” Raiford says. “We owe more in loans than we do in credit card debt. Much of that debt is held by the big banks.”

12:21 p.m.

Approximately 1,000 demonstrators and observers are in Sproul Plaza now for the rally.

Emma Lantos/Senior Staff

12:20 p.m.

Leigh Raiford, associate professor of African American studies, starts the speeches.

“As California goes, so goes the country,” she says to a packed Sproul Plaza.

12:00 p.m.

As the rally is set to start, about 300 people are in Sproul Plaza. Students with megaphones are standing on the Sproul steps as about 40 other protesters march through the plaza carrying signs and chanting, “No cuts, no fees, education must be free.” News helicopters are now circling overhead.

Taryn Erhardt/Senior Staff

11:37 a.m.

A Rhetoric R1B class of about 27 students has just arrived at Sproul Plaza.

“We think that it’s important that we continue to pay attention to the ways in which the public university is being treated,” said Matt Bonal, a co-teacher of the class.

11:33 a.m.

Intro to Sociology graduate student instructor Sarah Anne Minkin said the teach-out was a perfect opportunity for students to learn about the class’ subject matter in the real world — social inequality.

“I would have taught out in any class, I think fighting for public education is very important as our right,” she said. “It’s very important to be a part of this movement, for me, as a human being it’s also important, and it’s also important as a teacher for the students to be a part of it as well.”

There are now approximately 120 students participating in teach-outs in Sproul Plaza.

11:17 a.m.

Organizers are preparing for the noon rally in Sproul Plaza. Tables are being set up and megaphones brought out as organizers rip pieces of red fabric to distribute to demonstrators.

10:50 a.m.

Amaral’s prediction that Occupy Oakland demonstrators would come to UC Berkeley is coming true.

Sara Charanne, an Occupy Oakland protester, came to campus to stand side-by-side with Occupy Cal protesters and expects thousands of people at the noon rally.

“I love seeing all the movements working together in solidarity, because it really is the same issues everywhere,” she said.

10:45 a.m.

Approximately 100 students and graduate student instructors are now on Sproul Plaza.

10:44 a.m.

The general assembly to determine when and where to begin the Occupy Cal encampment will likely be held on Sproul Plaza after the post-rally march, according to Tanya Smith, a member of the Union of Professional and Technical Employees. However, the assembly’s exact location has not yet been given because organizers have noticed a police presence, Smith said.

10:34 a.m.

There are now nine separate teach-outs being held on Sproul.

Student organizer and UC Berkeley junior Marco Amaral said he expects more people at this rally because of the increase in publicity generated by the Occupy Oakland movement.

“Because of the political climate surrounding the Occupy Oakland movement, I think people will make the connection with privatization of the UC,” he said. “The movements are in support of each other, and I think Occupy Oakland people will head over to Occupy Cal … The Regents are part of the 1 percent and the problem.”

10:22 a.m.

Javiera Barandiaran, a graduate student instructor in the department of environmental science, policy and management, said she decided to teach her bioethics class outside to highlight the importance of public education.

“I have about 50 students and they feel the publicness of Berkeley was an important reason they came here,” she said. “They are disappointed. This financial burden (of tuition and fee hikes) conditions people and shapes peoples’ career choices. This university belongs to the people of California, not the super rich.”

Meanwhile, a group of about 10 protesters is at the edge of Sproul Plaza on Bancroft Street and Telegraph Avenue chanting “No cuts, no fees, education must be free,” and “The people, united, will never be divided,” while holding signs bearing slogans such as “Defend public education now.”

10:00 a.m.

Teach-outs are also happening around the Valley Life Sciences Building, where two groups of about 15 students each are wrapping up.

9:25 a.m.

The number of teach-outs has grown. There are now three happening outside Dwinelle Hall and six more on Sproul Plaza.

9:13 a.m.

Junior Danielle Nahal said the purpose of the day of action goes beyond just teaching a class in Sproul Plaza.

“People need to realize it’s not just about the humanities — it’s about students, it’s about tuition,” she said after her art history section adjourned on the plaza. “If we let this keep happening, it’s going to get worse.”

9:10 a.m.

One student’s teach-out session has convinced him to participate further in the day of action.

“During class we were kind of feeling the events surrounding today,” said Ryan Petigura of his experience at his sociology section on Sproul Plaza. “I wasn’t sure before, but now I’m pretty sure I’m going to partake in at least two of today’s events.”

9:06 a.m.

The first teach-out sessions of the day are breaking up in Sproul Plaza.

On graduate student instructor, Shishir Agrawal, decided to take his Math 1A section to the plaza in support of the day of action.

“It seemed like a good cause and (my students) were enthusiastic about it,” he said. Agrawal had given his students an online survey to determine if they wanted to have class on Sproul, and students voted nearly unanimously “yes.”

He plans to take his other Math 1A section to Sproul Plaza later in the day.

8:30 a.m.

Approximately 50 students are participating in four distinct teach-outs on Sproul Plaza.

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Archived Comments (150)

  1. AndrewB says:

    As of September 2011, Fresno has a seasonally adjusted U3 unemployment rate of 17.3%, which is way above both the national and state averages. And you don’t need a PhD in Geography to figure that out. You just have to not be an asshole named Frank.

  2. Ckb11987 says:

    I went college, not to Cal, but to an equally expensive school. I am blessed enough to have been adopted into a family that could afford such a luxury. While in school, I learned a lot about conflict resolution and debate. It was a Quaker college with a strong focus in productive debate. It was civilized. The real world is clearly not so civilized, since I’ve read through every conversation on this page and the thing that stuck out the most in my mind was the word “fuck”. Stop assuming that you know where others are coming from and stop swearing at each other and using violent language. It doesn’t help, it only enrages the other person further. 

    None of you are correct, you’re all wrong, and it’s because of one simple thing: every post has made a sweeping generalization based on an incredibly small amount of knowledge that they’ve gleaned from a “wall post”. How much could one sentence or paragraph possibly tell you about someone? Not all Cal kids are elitist, self-righteous people, just like not all white people are rich (as someone mentioned in a post). 

    You CANNOT expect someone to follow your beliefs, or even respect them, if you’re going to make assumptions of their character and insult them with rude language. 

    Calm down, breathe deep, and don’t get so angry over a comment from someone you don’t even know.

  3. Hchapot says:

    The banning of sleeping and sleeping bags is a laugh. There are a number of resident folks sleeping under the bridges along Strawberry Creek every night.

    • Horatiocaineruleofcool says:

      But it’s fine, because those people residing under the bridge are part of the *sunglasses* ONE PERCENT.

      YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

  4. Amanda says:

    MEDIA: why won’t the media show the real people of the occupy movement? Let’s demand for them to represent the students, professors, moms, working class that also support Occupy!

  5. candidviews says:

    yeah wow. Protect the tents. Does this movement have to prove its lack of  focus and vision every day. Protect our REI tents. Hey that is deep…

  6. UC faculty says:

    Birgeneau is a coward hiding behind the police to suppress freedom of assembly. Time to take the fight to the buildings and streets, and to directly confront the administration.

  7. Problemgaiz says:

    Heart of the Swarm updates for Zerg are OP. That is the true issue at hand for students throughout the entire campus.

    :3

  8. Bummed says:

    There’s a lot of ugly and useless “discussion” transpiring in this comment thread.  I do not understand how people who support or oppose this movement expect to win “the other side” over if they continue to mutually agree to hate each other.

    I imagine this comment will be lost in a sea of vitriol, but I thought it worth saying nonetheless.

  9. anon says:

    The 1960s called… They want their hairstyles and body odor back.

  10. Lolumad says:

    MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE MEGANE 

  11. Barney says:

    I wonder how much the police response to this illegal encampment cost…

    I wonder if student fees will have to go up even more in order to cover the overtime for the police who had to respond to this illegal protest…

    Wouldn’t it be funny if these students ended up raising their own fees because they are incapable of waging a legal protest?

    • 1x234 says:

      Careful, these guys may protest against the cops, because they’re now part of the 1%

    • Guest says:

      We have the right to freedom of speech and to protest peacefully therefore it is NOT illegal you ignorant pathetic excuse of a human being. Student fees would not go up to pay the police involved in this. The city pays and as far as I know Berkeley is not just made up of students. Get your shit straight before you speak.

  12. Jerry Brown is a shill for the CCPOA, prison guard’s union and we need to take him out of power so that arresting people isn’t a source of job creation for those who feed off the human bondage industry. Please support the campaign Liberals To Recall Jerry Brown, http://www.facebook.com/LiberalsToRecallJerryBrown   We are paying for this police state, paying billions and billions of education and human services dollars. This will continue as long as we allow Jerry Brown to sit in power. Do something real about it, help us to recall him and let’s put in a pro-education progressive.

  13. Some person says:

    And pulling the fire alarm when there’s no fire is a crime, dumb ass. If I was a rich Californian, I would look at this mess and think, let these silly children find their own money because I’m not going to fund their madness.

    Congratulations. You’re achieving the opposite of your goal.

  14. Some person says:

    From the way these childish “occupiers” behave, thinking they can do whatever they want with no consequences, the public of California could reasonably decide that we don’t deserve any more funding because we’re immature idiots who stamp our feet and whine all the time rather than making a coherent argument.

    They are hurting their fellow students more than they are helping. They don’t speak for me.

  15. Guest says:

    I am guessing none of these protestors have ever done anything constructive in their life.  Professional agitators, with no futures.

    They should head to Silicon Valley.  Meet with Zuckerberg and other young 20 somethings who are actually building real, meaningful stuff.  Facebook played a bigger role in the Arab Spring than any BS protest at Berkeley ever has.

    And shame on Berkeley for admitting students like this in the first place.  They’re the ones who vandalize the bathrooms, badmouth the University, and will never pay so much as a dime in alumni donations….yet they’re coddled here!

  16. The Bottom 50% says:

    To those of you saying: “Believe it or not, you “99%” protesters are the privileged fighting to stay privileged. Take a look out of your middle class windows and grow the fuck up.”You have no idea how much money my family or I make. You do not know how much I pay in tuition, nor how much financial aid I get. You do not know my class status, you do not know my background. You do not know where I come from, nor how I got here. You don’t even know if I have a “middle class window” to look out of. I will tell you that I do not, in fact, have a middle class window to look out of. I will also tell you that I am an out-of-state student, and, while I receive more financial aid (mostly federal) than most middle-class students here, I still end up paying more out-of-pocket than you. It’s that ridiculous system where people end up paying more, just because they lived on the wrong side of the state line at some point. For your information, although I doubt your ignorant ass will use it, I pay $55K (give or take) a semester. Now, I’m a liberal arts major, so I’ll leave you to do the math. I have not been approved for any private loans yet, so that I can register for next semester, and I have no idea how I’m going to get another cosigner. That thing that you didn’t have to learn about first-hand? The debt-income ratio? Well, to be approved for a student loan, you need a 50% debt-income ratio. This means that you need to make twice as much in a year as you have in debt. My entire family makes less in a year than one year of out-of-state tuition at Cal. So YOU look out of your middle class window and think of someone else for a fucking change.

    • Guest says:

      Maybe you should have majored in something that makes money.

      • anon says:

        Who says my major won’t make money? There’s nothing wrong with being a liberal arts major. Please do me a favour and do some research about liberal arts majors and how much money they make before you tell me to major in something I hate with a passion, and therefore wouldn’t put as much effort into. It’s a trade-off.

    • Frank says:

      Major in something that can make you enough money to pay back what you’re spending on your degree, or shut the fuck up and stop whining.

      Nobody forced you to get a degree in an irrelevant topic with no job prospects. You did that all on your own. So why the fuck should you get to force someone else to pay for you to do something stupid?

      • anon says:

        Who says my major won’t make money? There’s nothing wrong with being a liberal arts major. Please do me a favour and do some research about liberal arts majors and how much money they make before you tell me to major in something I hate with a passion, and therefore wouldn’t put as much effort into. It’s a trade-off.

    • Andrew says:

      You do realize, no one forced you to come to Cal. My family got to where we are on my parent’s hard work from nothing but the clothe’s on their Polpot refugee backs. Does it mean we’re entitled to a service? And neither do you, just because you’re an out of state student wanting the luxury of a liberal arts degree at Cal- a privilege in its own.

      • anon says:

        And I’m from a low-income family. The education in my state is crap. I came to Cal so that I can afford, one day, to help educate the next generation. Our parents got that privilege, and now they’re taking it away from us. No one forced me to come to Cal, except the dream of having an education. No one forced me to come to Cal except society, one that, if you recall, yells at us all the time “get an education! Go to a good college!” And no, I didn’t HAVE to answer to that call, I could have gone to a crappy no-name college in my state and got an education. Yeah, I have have the privilege to go to Cal, but I have a RIGHT to a good education. It would be the same at any other ‘good’ college, be it another UC, a CSU, or Stanford. I came to Berkeley because, in my opinion, it was the best.

    • guest says:

      You mad, bro?

    • AH says:

      You’re paying $55k a semester?  How is that even possible?  Even my college, the very pricey (possibly overpriced) SCU is “only” $50k a year.

  17. Kooo1988 says:

    Berkeley police beating Cal students before retreating
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buovLQ9qyWQ

  18. Anonymous says:

       I have done criminal defense and civil rights litigation for over 30 years.

  19. Anonymous says:

    Did he get the badge numbers and names of the police officer(s) who beat Josh0 Stevens and anyone else? Get photos and get xrays. Tell him not to talk to the police ort the District Attorney or investigators. Get a lawyer for him IMMEDIATELY!!! Find one that knows something about civil rights. I would recommend John Burris in Oakland.

  20. rz says:

    And this will accomplish nothing. Sure it will raise awareness but that means nothing unless a well designed plan or proposal is developed. What a waste of time   

  21. Andrew says:

    Believe it or not, you “99%” protesters are the privileged fighting to stay privileged. Take a look out of your quaint middle class windows and grow the fuck up.

  22. Andrew says:

    Believe it or not, you “99%” protesters are the privileged fighting to stay privileged. Take a look out of your middle class windows and grow the fuck up.

  23. Anonymous says:

    Perhaps one of you can explain to me why anyone would get a PhD in Geography? 

    A grad student in this field was quoted in the SF Chronicle about this event and I don’t understand what one does with a PhD in geography.  Sounds like a total waste of money to me.  Am I wrong???

  24. Andrew says:

    The Occupy protesters and succeeding with their protests in the literal sense. They’re occupying; standing around with no specific objective but an air of discontent. Ask the average protester why he/she is here and his/her answer will be as ill-advised as the infrastructure they detest. “Be the change you want to see”, I kept hearing over and over, though no one could contract a specific, holistically feasible and meticulous plan for the future.

    Sure, I believe in social equality and educational infrastructure as much as the next lower middle classed  guy. And yes, the freedom to speak is the most useful tool in catalyzing change. But these protesters aren’t doing more than complaining and causing trouble for those utilizing the school facilities they’re paying for. This protest has been doomed ever since it has become more about exercising voices than what those voices say.  Do more than emulate a damn Levi’s commercial.

  25. oakgln says:

    That photo ot the guy jabbed with the baton is silly. Look at the photos of the folks at Occupy Oakland, That is what police abuse looks like.

    • VoidChampionsAwwwwYeah says:

      He’s like a Tryndamere in LoL that gets hit once by an Ashe or a Caitlyn and runs away from his lane “because he’s going to die.”

      Bet five bucks that nobody’s a Cho’Gath in that crowd.

      WOULD YOU LIKE SOME CHEESE WITH YOUR WINE????

  26. Juanfer says:

    Polarizing comments. Agitating the masses against each other while you-know-who is sipping wine over piles of government IOUs. We should not be playing cat and mouse with police (poorly) equipped with biking gloves and running shoes (while the top bosses flaunt yatches and million-dollar art). We should demand our money from the banks, all at once, to drive them to dust-bankrupcy, then wake up of this terrible nightmare, and use the best (not the sleaziest) minds to develop currency that does not enslave us to the whims of royalty, plutocracy and the super-rich. 
    We should demand accountability to each Warren Buffet and Rupert Murdoch, and we should take what belongs to us back.
    Plundering the (future of the) nation while the cops beat long hairs with borrowed batons.

  27. Anonymous says:

    How to handle the encampment?  LEAVE!!

  28. Some person says:

    You were warned in the Chancellor’s e-mail that erecting tents on university property is unlawful and would not be permitted.

    The police told you to get rid of the tents for the same reason.

    If you whine about the police taking action to get rid of the encampment after that, you’re not intelligent enough to be in college. Being peaceful and non-violent does not make it OK for you to do something that is clearly forbidden. It’s not a free pass to do what you want. The world doesn’t work like that.

  29. Point of clarification: a “dispersal order” is a specific thing; an ominous intimation is not a dispersal order. I wasn’t within earshot at 3:33, but the 3:11 proclamation described above as a “dispersal order” was merely a statement that camping on UC property was illegal, and a request to “please remove the tents.” The police did not even order anybody to leave. 

  30. Guest says:

    Joey Freeman: “We need to support a progressive tax measure to make wealthier Californians pay more for our education.”

    Wait, why should anyone else have to pay for you?
    If you want to talk about fairness, how is it fair for you to be able to force someone else to pay for you to go to college?

    • Juanfer says:

      It’s not force dumb-ass. It is an agreement. A national contract to educate future generations so they can serve and better their communities. In contrast to a Wall Street jungle of debtors, speculators and every fool stupid enough to fall in the luring trap of happiness through material wealth.

      • Lasse says:

        So is there a specific plan to catalyze this education? 

      • jennifer says:

        how does having a humanities degree serve your community, dumbass

        • guest says:

          for one thing, it enables people to have dialogues without needing constant invectives.

        • guest says:

          for another, it helps ensure that we don’t repeat the worst mistakes from history — that we recognize the signs of a Hitler or Stalin coming to power — and that we can develop values that will enable us to raise decent and rational human beings when we become parents. Science and math are useless and potentially dangerous without the knowledge we acquired from literature, art and ethics.

          • anonymousrex says:

            In that case, its clearly failed in recognizing the current level of unilateral governance.

          • Pikapikaproblem says:

            Performing Arts & Music Majors OP.

          • Dom says:

            ROTFLMAO!!! If that were the case, then these moron protesters would know that civil disobedience  is no longer effective in the modern world.

            Unfortunately they don’t actually learn anything in their classes other than that white people are evil and all non-wites are oppressed.

          • Guest says:

            Hey, I dunno if you meant to be right. But you are just now.

          • HittingNailsWivHammersOP says:

            Hit it right on the nail.

          • Juanfer says:

            White people are not evil; many economic powers are run by white people. That is different. Corporations (one of the many forms of economic power and many of them run by white people) are designed to make money for their shareholders regardless of the consequences. Period. If making money means hurting/killing people, so be it. 
            That is evil.
            Non-whites are oppressed, indeed. Just look at “post-racial” America. First black in power, yes; proportion of blacks in population?; proportion of blacks in jail?; proportion of foreclosed property belonging to blacks?
            Obama is what Malcolm X would call a (White) house negro for his Wall Street masters (who runs Treasury and the Fed and where did they work before?).

            GBTSYRP!!!!!

          • Cheri says:

            It doesn’t take a degree to achieve that. It requires basic, common sense undefiled by radical progressives. It also requires turning off the T.V. and doing your own research instead of parroting everything the lamestream media and union teachers (wonder why tuition keeps going up, hmmm?) spoon-feed you.

      • Guest says:

        How is it an agreement if I’m not allowed to say NO?

        If one can’t decide NOT to do something, then they’re being FORCED to do it, dumb-ass.

        • anon says:

          You DO have a choice, though. You can either live in America and obey the laws here, or, if you don’t like them, you can move. I hear Somalia is nice at this time of year…

          • Frank says:

            Hey fucknut, YOU’RE THE ONE TRYING TO CHANGE THE LAWS.

            If you don’t like the current laws, then take your own advice and GET THE FUCK OUT OF AMERICA.

          • anon says:

            Sorry, but the MAJORITY changes the laws. Go back to elementary school government. You either agree to be ruled by the majority, or you move.

          • Frank says:

            Are they letting retarded kids into Cal now? You protesting nincompoops make up less than 3% of the Cal population. The number of Americans who support your idiotic series of Occupy protests is falling daily.

            You don’t get to say “If you don’t like the laws get the fuck out” and then turn around and whine about the laws yourself.

            The laws we have now are there because the majority decided they should be. The majority isn’t interested in changing them, and your pathetic tempter tantrums on campus won’t change that.

          • anon says:

            Who says that the only people that support the protests are the ones that show up?

          • Juanfer says:

            How retarded Chauvinistic Frank. Did you hear one of the latest Supreme Court pearls? Money elects legislators; legislators make laws. Money, not people (in any distribution), makes laws.

          • Juanfer says:

            I won’t, having in mind that America goes from Alaska to Chile, chauvinist Frank.
            I am staying here to educate you.

          • ___ says:

            You must be very young.  Or, at least living in the conservative bubble.  There are more choices than the take-it-or-leave-it BS you’re peddling.  You can also organize and fight to change, what did you call them, “laws here.”  As a matter of fact, that is how it works “here.”  State constitutions, amendments, initiatives and bills are all an ongoing process.  The “laws” you speak of were not handed down on from sky on tablets.  They are part of a living document of codes. 

        • Juanfer says:

          Then start your own country monkey. Agreement means majority, not every single one.

      • Cheri says:

        Forcing “the rich” to pay for your “luring trap of happiness” which includes your college education, is in no way, shape or form an agreement or a contract. Slow down, read carefully the words “make wealthier Californians pay more”… that is force, Juanfer. 

      • AH says:

        Actually, to have a contract, both sides must willingly enter into the agreement. 

    • Guest says:

      Ask you’re parents, you probably forced them to pay for you’re college. Unless you’re just the youngest entrepreneur to ever go to Stanford.

  31. Guess says:

    You do not represent the 99% of the university. 1,000 ‘students’ where present while the total UCB population is 35,838 undergrad and grad students. Explain to me how you all represent the 99% of UC Berkley?

  32. Antoine says:

    Everyone at Cal is the 1%.

    Everyone in AMERICA who has the luxury of going to college is the 1% in terms of the world.

    You self entitled pieces of shit have no idea how difficult life is in the rest of the fucking world, or how god damned amazing your quality of life is compared to 99% of the globe.

    I hope you whiny brats eventually feel what real suffering is like so that you may some day understand how good you have it right now.

    • Juanfer says:

      When we are done here, it is going to be even better.

    • cool says:

      How the fuck do you know how much money everyone at Cal has? What a fucking MORON! Do you know how many people are going into serious DEBT trying to better themselves and get an education just to keep up with the cost of living in this country AND around the rest of the world? I think YOU are the self entitled piece of shit here. Get your lame, angry-for-no-good-reason ass off the internet and go do something productive instead of hiding behind a computer, acting like you know what you’re talking about. 

      For the record, not everyone at Cal has as much money as you *think* they have. And just because people are protesting does not mean that they are unaware of their “amazing quality of life”.
      Seriously.. get your head out of your ass and use it to think before you start making assumptions based on your own dumb ass opinions. Asshole.

      • juanfer says:

        you can get out of debt by having a degree that actually makes you money dumb shit.

      • Guest says:

        Even the poorest Americans have more than the vast majority of the world. You’ve clearly never been outside America and have no idea what the world is like outside the cozy womb of your taxpayer-subsidized school.
        Thanks for proving what entitled, arrogant, demanding pieces of shit you Cal students are.

        http://www.globalrichlist.com/

        • Guest says:

          That’s a lot of poor people. Sucks to be them.

        • cool says:

          Don’t for think for one second that I don’t BUST MY ASS on a daily basis trying to pay for my education and all of the other shit I have to pay for, yet still end up in so much debt that I will be paying it off for many, many years to come. On top of that, I have to keep putting up with fee hike after fee hike. Every other fucking Friday you get an email saying, “We hope your semester is going well.. oh and by the way, FEE HIKE!!!” 

          Motherfucker, I know what I have and I appreciate everything I fucking have because I’ve had to WORK MY ASS OFF FOR IT. I’ve never been handed SHIT.. oh! But just because I live in the U.S. and was fucking intelligent and driven enough to get accepted to a great university, I *must* be a spoiled piece of shit! And not only that, but because of the fact that I complain it’s too expensive, it “proves your point further”.. give me a fucking BREAK. Like you’ve never opened up your phone bill and said, “GODDAMN THAT’S A LOT OF MONEY……….” 

          And by the way, you fuck… I moved here from a communist country. Clearly, you’re the one who doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

          • Guest says:

            Your language is weak.  You cannot construct coherent arguments and hence rely on profanity to somehow add “oompth” to your lame points.

          • Frank says:

            Your responses prove that you are a spoiled piece of shit, not the fact that you are going to Cal.

            If you don’t like it, get the fuck out and go back to your home country dickface.

          • Juanfer says:

            You need to go back home so momma washes your mouth with soap.

          • Lolumad says:

            You still are easily able to get food, water, clothes, housing, and civil rights on a daily basis, without fail.

            And yet this individual of the 1% can’t for his life hope to hold a civil conversation because he wants to take his privilege and be hipster.

  33. anonymous says:

    My GSI forced our class to meet at Sproul in support of these protests. I should have gone to Stanford.

    Entitled pieces of shit, every one.

  34. Anonymous says:

    Do they know that these catchy phrases make them sound like a lot of teenage cheerleaders???  Also, when has a college education ever been free? 

    • Xander says:

       Not long ago, actually. The UC was free to students until later in the 20th century. The whole point of the University of California was to provide high-quality education at a major research institution as a service provided by the state, the same way that the state provides us with toll-free roads or parks from tax revenue. It’s part of what made Califonria so successful — it made us an international leader in technology, agriculture, entertainment, and industry.

    • MedicalmarijuanaOP says:

      WHAT DO WE WANT?

      BIGGER DOORS

      WHERE DO WE WANT THEM?

      WEED STORES

  35. joe says:

    As Freeman said, everyone needs to pay their fair share. Everyone INCLUDES their boomer parents who enjoyed Prop. 13 and the gradual erosion of state revenues.

    • Guess says:

      How do people “enjoyed prop. 13″ if it was their money they get to keep in the first place? 

      • Abe says:

        Prop. 13 destroyed the state budget, and the standard of living for the next generation. The vast majority of states have minor increases in home property taxes that reflect inflation. As it is, this generation will have to pay substantially more for property tax when they try to become homeowners while the previous generation is grandfathered in at obscenely low taxes.

        Politically you may advocate income vs. sales vs. property taxes as ways for a state to collect revenue, but Prop 13 is horrible invention that has left a generation without the ability to become homeowners.    Someone can own a three million dollar property they bought in 1978, but they will only pay maybe $100/month in property taxes. A young couple today will pay easily $700-$1000 /month in property taxes and fees alone to make up for the shortcomings of homeowners grandfathered into the system. That’s $1000 on top of an already outrageous mortgage payment for a 600,000 small california home in a metropolitan area.  

        On top of your student debt, you will need to make about 150,000 per year to qualify for a mortgage.  They should have only made an exception for senior citizens, but allowed inflationary increases of maybe 1% per year for ALL homeowners. Local municipalities try to make up for it with fees, but the state budget has been gutted by Prop 13 and the California education system with it.

        • Frank says:

          None of what you said is factual, at all.
          Property taxes in CA are still affordable even for new homeowners.

          You must have a pathetic position to have to lie so much.

          • Abe says:

            I guess some people can afford a $2500/month mortgage payment, plus PMI at around $300, and $900/mo. in property tax. You will need to gross about $12,000 a month(plus your monthly student loan payment) and have about $100,000 to put down to get a loan from Bank of America to do it. And you think $900 is affordable? I guess that is why the housing market is doing so well right now…not.

            http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/assignment_7&id=7464248

          • Frank says:

            If you can’t afford it, go live somewhere else. Nobody is forcing you to live in California.

            It isn’t even like that in most of California. If the Bay Area is too expensive for you go move to Fresno. Whining and being all sour grapes about it won’t get you anywhere kid.

          • Abe says:

            It is true that not all of California is like that…only the areas that actually have jobs.

            I don’t care if you call it whining. Stagnant real estate is a basic reason for the failing economy, and the unfair proportion of taxes levied on new purchases is a major contributor. Prop 13 didn’t just kill the state budget and education; it is also a major factor in our stalled economy.

          • Alan Gregory says:

            Move to Fresno if you don’t like it, shithead. There are jobs, and living is cheap.

            The fact is you’re a lifelong renter. You don’t own any property, so you want to force property owners to give you a free education. Typical “someone else should pay for me” leftist bullshit.

          • AndrewB says:

             As of September 2011, Fresno has a seasonally adjusted U3 unemployment rate of 17.3%, which is way above both the national and state averages. And you don’t need a PhD in Geography to figure that out. You just have to not be an asshole named Frank.

    • Guest2 says:

      The problem with Prop. 13 is not the single-home owning families who are able to keep their homes despite the State’s runaway spending. The problem with Prop. 13 is that it applies to buildings other than primary residencies (rental properties) and that it applies to corporate buildings.

  36. Guess says:

    Joey Freeman, why should tax payer pay for YOUR education? 

  37. Anonymous says:

    BOOOOOORINNNNNGGG

  38. joe says:

    As long as GSIs are willing to teach their section, it is fine if they temporarily co-locate with the protest. It is commendable that Agrawal polled his students and could teach the lesson outside. However, any GSI participating in the obstruction of learning by not teaching course material and merely protesting should be immediately dismissed.

    • Cal Grad says:

      FYI: Graduate students have a set of rights that allows them to choose to their actions in relations to protests such as today’s events. This is from an email sent to all GSIs on campus in case you are wondering about GSI rights:
      Your Rights As Grad Students and Strategies for GSIs

      As a GSI:

      - You can hold classes outside on Wednesday in support. This is called
      a “teach-out”.
      - You can also reschedule your class for another day/time.
      - You can also walk your class over to the protest and engage in
      dialogue about the purpose of the protest.
      - You may also cancel your class but we encourage you to speak to the
      course’s faculty and fellow GSIs in your department to act in unified
      action. The GSI union has promised to defend their members’ rights to
      freedom of assembly.

      As a graduate student:

      - It is your right to participate in peaceful protest and free speech
      exercises on this campus.
      - It is your right to express support or disagreement with the movements
      taking place on campus.

      • AH says:

        What nonsense.  I support their right to academic freedom 100%.  However, they should still be showing up for work.  Take a break three or six or nine hours a week to, you know, do your job. 

        I’m so glad we have no TAs at my university.

  39. Guest says:

    expel these ****ers