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BERKELEY,
Calif.—California’s deep funding cuts in this
year’s education and social programs have not been taken as quietly as
the state administration had hoped. Universities, community colleges,
and K-12 schools are fighting back.
On
Sept. 24, some 5000 University of California at Berkeley students, faculty, and
campus workers mobilized as part of a system-wide strike. They were
joined by thousands more across all 10 UC campuses. That evening,
a mass assembly at UC Berkeley voted to hold a statewide conference to
coordinate the struggle to defend public education.
The
resulting conference, held Oct. 24 at Berkeley’s Pauley Ballroom,
attracted 800 participants from schools, community colleges, California
State Universities, and University of California campuses. For the first
time, students, faculty, and campus workers organized a statewide open
and democratic assembly to plan and prepare a concerted and long-term fightback.
After
hours of discussion, the meeting set March 4 for a day of strikes,
marches, occupations, teach-ins, and other forms of mass action. The
date was chosen in anticipation of March 15, the official deadline
after which state law prohibits public-school teacher layoffs.
In
addition, Nov. 18-20 was selected for an action to shut down the
scheduled meeting of the University of California Board of Regents at
UCLA. Thousands are expected to converge on Los Angeles that day as well as hold
demonstrations at other campuses. The Regents are scheduled to vote
then to increase UC student fees 32% for next year, bringing fees up to
$10,302 per year. Already fees have been increased 9.3% for this year,
or 250% in the last decade.
Dozens
of custodians, physical plant workers, librarians, professors and
others face layoffs and furloughs at UC. Meanwhile, UC President Mark Yudof gets paid $828,000, plus a free mansion.
The
body voted to allow each sector to organize its own constituency in the
manner it thought appropriate. “It is one thing for students to strike
for a day or more,” said one UC Berkeley student activist, “it is quite
another to organize the state’s 1100 school district union teachers and
workers to do the same. We are just at the beginning of this fight and
how we achieve the unity to win is the critical question.”
The
Oct. 24 assembly showed that many students and education workers are
well aware of the nation’s skewed priorities. “Bail out working people
and public education,” said one student at an open microphone, “not the
corporations and banks.” Another added to loud applause, “Fund
education not wars!”
What
was most impressive was the spirit of open discussion and debate that
permeated the day’s deliberations. Everyone was welcomed, heard, and
respected. A unanimous motion was approved to organize a follow-up
statewide meeting in early 2010 to continue the struggle and to plan
for March 4.
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