Student protestors shut down the campus at the University of California, Santa Cruz on Thursday, resulting in injury to students and damage to vehicles when students rallied against UC-wide tuition raises as part of a national day of action to fight against the financial practices of universities.
During Thursday’s National Day of Action for Public Education students at universities across the nation, including Syracuse University, protested tuition hikes in solidarity with the UC students.
The UCSC campus was effectively shut down by students protesting the 32 percent tuition raise at UC schools that was announced in October. By 6 a.m., the main and west entrances were closed by protesters, according to the university’s Web site. Students demanded the UC system reverse its tuition hike and that the state of California reform some of its financial policies that affect the UC system.
Erin Ellison, a graduate psychology student at UCSC who served as the media contact for the Strike Committee of the UCSC Student Organizing Committee, said the protest was a success because it was well attended, with hundreds of students forming picket lines in the morning and thousands of people rallying at noon.
“Classes were canceled and workers were relieved of their duties. Business as usual was prevented, sending the message that we won't put up with it,” Ellison said. “There were many protesters for whom this was their first direct action or demonstration of any kind. This was a major victory.”
A vehicle windshield was reported smashed at 7 a.m. Thursday in the vicinity of the strike, according to a safety update on the UCSC Web site. The update also said a teacher felt intimidated by protesters taking pictures of his vehicle when trying to enter campus. No arrests were reported.
One female student was hit by a non-protester’s car, and another student’s foot was run over by the same car during the strike at around 7:40 a.m., according to a news release on the UCSC Student Organizing Committee
