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No War No Warming Protest at Richmond Chevron Refinery

Published on March 15, 2008 in Environment, Globalization, Video

Hundreds of people protested in Richmond on March 15th, 2008, to demand that Chevron stop stealing oil around the world while polluting our communities. The actions were in solidarity with the peoples, plants and animals of Ecuador, Nigeria, Burma, Iraq, Alberta and every other community exploited and poisoned by Chevron (Texaco, Unocal, etc!) Read More with Photos and Video

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Cruz Molina’s Judicial Review Canceled at Last Minute by UCSC

Published on March 13, 2008 in Education, Environment, Police

On March 13th, UC Santa Cruz canceled their judicial review hearing against Cruz Molina just before it was set to begin, off-campus, at the UCSC Inn. Cruz and David Benterou are UCSC freshman targeted for allegedly having the tree-sitters as their “guests” on the morning of November 7th, 2007. Supporters of Cruz and David organized a “Student Justice Teach-In” on March 6th. They assert that UCSC is trying to scapegoat Cruz and David by holding them responsible for all past, present and future actions of the tree-sit on Science Hill.

Students and other community members arrived at the UCSC Inn to discover that demonstrations are not allowed there because it is private property and that Cruz’s hearing was canceled. No official explanation was given for the cancellation, though some people asserted that Doug Zuidema, UCSC’s Director of Judicial Affairs, wanted to hear Cruz’s version of the events before holding a hearing. The announced demonstration and media exposure of UCSC’s off-campus, behind closed doors, judicial review process may have influenced them more than a last minute altruistic decision to inquire about Cruz’s version of events. Read More and View Photos

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Campus Earth Summit: Sustainabilty Focus or Farce?

Published on January 31, 2008 in Education, Environment

The 7th annual Campus Earth Summit was held on January 31st at the College 9/10 Multipurpose Room at UC Santa Cruz. The well-attended event was organized by the Student Environmental Center and the Sustainability Office at UCSC and featured local speakers, a ‘low carbon’ lunch sourced from local organic farms, workshops on reducing ‘carbon footprints’ and conversations about environmental sustainability at UCSC. The summit was held in conjunction with Focus the Nation, a nationwide climate change teach-in happening simultaneously at over 1,000 colleges and universities across the USA.

There was so much excitement and talk about the future, but actions of the past were hardly discussed at all. None of the keynote speakers mentioned that on December 21st, 1991, the Coalition to Move Colleges Nine and Ten issued a press release about the destruction of “Elfland” through the logging of approximately 100 redwood trees where the College 9/10 Multipurpose Room stands today. The press release stated, “Elfland, as the area is called, is unique to the UCSC campus. Huge ferns grow in the valleys next to giant trees; tiny highland meadows support deer and endangered native grasses. It is a wildlife corridor and biologically diverse area on campus. Giant sinkholes pock the area, which overlies limestone caverns and has an important and poorly understood connection to the campus underground hydrology.” Read More and View Photos

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$50,000 Sunday Stroll on the Westside Railroad Tracks

Published on January 27, 2008 in Community Building, Environment

On January 27th, People Power, an advocate for human-powered transportation in Santa Cruz County, hosted a walk along the rail corridor in Santa Cruz in response to recent threats by Union Pacific to fine “trespassers” up to $2,000. The walk in the rain, which brought out more than two dozen people, featured local historian Ross Gibson who included information on the past and possible future of rail transportation in Santa Cruz County. The Sunday stroll began at Swift Street on the Westside of Santa Cruz and ended at Bay Street. Read More and View Photos

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Police Officers Pepper Spray People on Science Hill

Published on January 12, 2008 in Education, Environment, Police

On January 12th, two University of California police officers used pepper spray to disperse about 15 people gathered below an occupied redwood tree on Science Hill at UC Santa Cruz. The officers got out of their car, which was parked in the parking lot, and then followed the people dressed in black and wearing bandannas across their faces. One of the officers proclaimed that the group was trespassing and then both officers began pepper spraying people in their faces.

No one was apprehended by the two officers and more police quickly arrived on the scene. Two bags, which appeared to contain food items, were left below the tree until an officer took them to the backseat of a police car. Several police cars rapidly drove away from Science Hill and may have been pursuing the group which they accused of assisting trespassers. Read More and View Photos

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