On Tuesday there was a student-led strike to protest fee hikes (mostly), culminating in students occupying Mrak Hall, the main administrative building. They were kicked out on Thursday, so protesters moved to camp out on the quad. Chancellor Katehi allowed them to pitch their tents and stay there... until she changed her mind, and on Friday afternoon, when she told the police to clear the protesters out. Instead, the students sat down, the police felt threatened, then Lt. Pike pepper sprayed the students sitting on the ground as they tried to shield themselves. Five people were arrested, and some complain they weren't treated for their wounds. On Saturday, Katehi gave a very brief press conference defending her own leadership, and then she left, and everyone stared at her in silence to avoid any appearance of violence.
We're in the technology age, so everyone was filming and photographing. I heard about it by the end of the day, despite being at work in another city all day. The internet has even turned the picture of Lt. Pike pepper spraying students as casually as one sprays Raid onto bugs into a meme. And these pictures brought the blinding light of the media down on the violence of the UC Davis police.
But let's be clear: The student body at UC Davis has been spoiling for a fight for years, and it's only increased after police in Berkeley were filmed beating students with night sticks at a protest. The students have been demonstrating peacefully, but they've been toeing the line, trying to see when the police will push back and they can get media attention.
Protesters keep calling for dialogue, but whenever Katehi stands up to talk, the protesters dismiss her as inept, corrupt, or a mouthpiece. They don't actually want a real dialogue -- they just want the administration to shut up and listen. I know the feeling; I'm working hard to get two degrees in four years, I've worked since I started college, and I'm disgusted by the large payrolls of administrators.
But I'm not going to say I'm on the side of protesters. By sticking their fingers in their ears whenever administrators try to talk, they're ignoring basic facts. Some protesters demand "education should be free," an impossibility in a state as large as California. Others demand the resignation of Katehi, even though this would cost thousands and thousands of dollars in the long-run, because UC Davis would have to hire another chancellor mid-year, and offer a large and enticing moving bonus (Katehi got a 27 percent pay increase over Larry Vanderhoef, the previous chancellor, plus benefits). To bring Katehi here, UC Davis offered a "generous compensation package that includes a $100,000 relocation allowance, free housing, a $9,000 annual automobile allowance, a generous health and pension package, a low-interest home loan and a faculty position when she ends her service as chancellor" according to Oliver Richards. The university is going to face even further cuts (especially with the eventual sequestration at the national and state level), and the last thing we need is to add more costs to the university.
Students are calling for a strike on Monday, and I don't think I'll be joining them — my education costs way too much, and I need my paycheck. Hopefully they won't repeat their past and march through the library yelling, pulling fire alarms in lecture halls, and shouting at fellow students, trying to force them to join the strike. Because I refuse to be forced to believe anything, even if it's for my supposed benefit.
Here's a collection of good stories I've read about the protests, the pepper spraying, and the Occupy movement in general from people who know way more than I do:
- Ten Things You Should Know About Friday's UC Davis Police Violence by Angus Johnston at Student Activism.net.
- Why I walked Chancellor Katehi out of Surge II by Kristin Stoneking, a minister at a student fellowship
- National Public Radio/The Associated Press report is here.
- Chancellor Katehi's interview with AggieTV is here.
Oh, and for the record, the title of this post ("Say it, don't spray it") comes from a protester's sign I saw on the quad today.
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