Though individuals touting the cause of public education rioted Friday morning, organizers of the upcoming day of statewide action said the March 4 demonstrations will not be defined by further violence.
Rioting broke out Friday morning on the south side of the UC Berkeley campus where 200 people gathered to dance, clashed with police and vandalized public property. With days remaining until the statewide protests planned for March 4, student and faculty organizers said advocating for public education is the best way for the campus community to move forward.
UC Berkeley senior Marika Goodrich, 28, was arrested at the intersection of Durant and Telegraph avenues and booked for assault on a police officer, inciting a riot and resisting arrest, according to Berkeley police Officer Andrew Frankel. Zachary Miller, 26, a UC Berkeley alumnus and an organizer for the "Rolling University," was also arrested at the intersection and was booked for inciting a riot, resisting arrest and obstructing a police officer.
Both are being held at Berkeley City Jail and will be arraigned Monday. Two officers suffered minor injuries but did not require medical attention, according to a BPD statement.
Activists from all sectors of public education are expected to rally for increased state investment on March 4.
But some organizers of the upcoming protests said the student movement is decentralized. Whether more rioting, building occupations or confrontations with law enforcement ensues is a matter of what individual activists decide, said graduate student Callie Maidhof, an organizer and spokesperson for the Durant Hall occupiers.
"The riot seems likes a very clear example of what happens when the state has abused its power for so long," she said. "We're not a centralized movement. If (the riot) is not what people want to see happen on March 4, that's not what they'll do. Nobody is forcing
