Regents aren’t to blame

SUBMITTED BY: Andrew Dushkes

Over the past week, I have read a lot of articles, columns and reader submissions in the Daily Bruin regarding the UC Regents meeting. Most of these stories seemed to either center on the issues the Regents were voting on or were a call to arms to join in the protests and stop the fee hikes.

Like many of my peers who stood outside Covel Commons, I am very upset by what has occurred these last three days. However, unlike those who squared off with the police for a chance to speak their minds, what upsets me is not the fee increase but the protests themselves.

So much attention has been paid to showing the Regents we mean business that the purpose of the fight and the cause of the problem have been all but forgotten.

Is our generation so eager to follow in our parents’ rebellious footsteps that it will fight the very people working to protect its needs? In this cold November week, Malcolm X’s slogan “by any means necessary” has gone from a statement of last resort to an excuse to disrupt, disturb and disrespect the very place and people that need the protesters’ support the most.

Start by looking at the Regents themselves and asking yourself, “Are they really the ones to blame for the fee increase?” The answer is “No,” and any thoughts that suggest otherwise show an ignorance of the true reality of the situation. The Regents’ hand has been forced by the state of California’s refusal to prioritize education in this time of financial crisis.

The Regents’ options are to either provide their own funding or cut the quality of our education to the point where the degree is no longer worth the cost. When UC President Mark Yudof stands in front of the protesters and invites them to join in the UC-wide march in Sacramento this Spring, it should be clear that the Regents are on our side.

The true culprits are the politicians in Sacramento, and this is where student and faculty angst should be focused. Until state legislators decide to start re-investing in higher education, tuition will continue to increase against the will of both students and Regents alike.

And what of the protesters themselves? I support their right to voice their anger and share many of their feelings toward the current state of college education. However, do they realize the damage they are doing to this community by protesting here and not at the state capitol? Covel Commons is in the middle of UCLA’s campus housing, which is home to thousands of students.

Three days of noise, delays and building closures is a strain no student should have to endure. Or the sit-in that occurred in Campbell Hall on Thursday: Classes in that building were cancelled as a result, meaning that paying students were deprived of their education even more than they already have been.

All of that doesn’t even include the constant helicopter presence, increased campus congestion or the hundreds of thousands of dollars necessary to pay police officers and repair damages, plunging the university even further into debt. The actions of protesters this week could very well have been necessary to secure the funding we deserve, but unfortunately they were wasted in a misguided attempt at social justice.

While I am by no means happy with the constant fee increases or budget cuts, I understand their necessity given the current economic climate. This is why I echo President Yudof’s plea and urge everyone who came out this week to refocus his or her efforts on Sacramento.

The fight for funding is our fight, but we cannot shoot the messenger with every new setback. We must take the battle to those who are really to blame so that the value of a UC education is not lost for good.

Dushkes is a third-year global studies student.