UC Students March to Protest Cuts

A group of students made their way to Lower Sproul Plaza yesterday, herding dozens of UC Berkeley students and supporters to a circular sit-down rally after trekking 90 miles across 14 Bay Area college campuses to protest what they call the slip in the quality of California's public education system.

In the wake of the fourth straight year of state budget cuts to the UC system, seven marchers journeyed from San Jose State University last Monday to build solidarity with other student leaders and outreach programs at rallies and meetings.

"We need to continue getting off the defensive and start demanding a dialogue about what our values are as a people," said march organizer Will Parrish, a student at UC Santa Cruz. "California's current legislative priorities represent not only a disinvestment in the future, but also an assault on the idea that an alternative future is even possible."

Parrish is one of seven students who chartered the grassroots "Education Rising" campaign.

Parrish said the state has enough resources to fund its higher education system, despite the deep cuts to UC's budget. Receding state funding can be remedied by the state government and residents giving higher priority to higher education, Parrish said.

The demonstrators pointed to the state's construction of 23 new prisons in the past two decades while only one new UC campus opened as an example of what they called the skewed priorities of the state's policy makers.

"California can afford to provide a decent education for all," Parish said. "The budget cuts in education are the natural outcomes of conscious decisions made over the years by state policy makers."

The march drew support from UC Berkeley organizations, including the Peace Studies Student Association and the UC Berkeley Labor Coalition.

"I wanted to meet the people who hit the pavement and put their feet where their beliefs are," said UC Berkeley junior Chelsea Collonge. "I can't even imagine walking for an hour, much less five days."

The seven students logged nearly 50 hours walking in the last week, taking breaks every five to six miles. A car followed the students to provide water and food when they neared the point of collapse.

At night, they camped out or stayed in co-ops. A UC Berkeley co-op hosted the group yesterday night.

"We found walking to be a really good way of getting our message out," said UC Santa Cruz student Leah Marchenko. "I think it's going to get a good response at Santa Cruz and everywhere else."

Marching is an effective way to mobilize other young people, Marchenko said.

It's been a long time since students went out of their way and made sacrifices for a cause, said Yvette Felarca, director of BAMN, who rallied with the walkers.

The state's political priorities are skewed, and that's why students are being overlooked, he said.

"Unless we come together to form a statewide movement we are going to continue to be exploited," Parish added.

The long-term goal of Education Rising is to create a student union or statewide political organization to voice concerns about education and student rights.

The group is working to place referenda on California college campuses where students would vote to pay $10 a year to fund the creation of a statewide student union.

The student union will be a center of political empowerment for youth, because students will decide how to allocate its funds, Parrish said.

The walkers will hike to UCSF to rally at the UC Regents meeting today.

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