Student with no boundaries

  Ryan Smith   Smith is a second-year
undeclared student and a member of the African Student Union.
   

Like most incoming students who enter a university the size of a
small city, I felt completely and utterly alone when I came to
UCLA. But when I realized that I am one of only 320 black men out
of the 3,000 students who entered UCLA last year, I finally
understood what the fuss was about. All of the debates, flyers,
rallies and programs came down to one reality: the black presence
on campus was no longer just dwindling, but becoming
non-existent.

Last year, UCLA felt that only 320 African American high school
seniors in the state of California were qualified to attend. We
cannot allow the university to continue slamming the doors of
higher education in the faces of students of color, while
perpetuating the lie of a “diverse UCLA.”

Since the implementation of the UC Regents decision SP-1 and
Proposition 209, which ended the consideration of race in the
admissions process, the university environment has been hostile to
the needs of black students. As the campus resegregates (which is
evident on a daily basis), funds for African American studies are
being cut, causing African American studies courses to be dropped
from the schedule of classes. While the number of black students
has been decreasing, hate crimes have been rising. Clearly, racism
is alive and well on this campus.

At this critical junction in history, all must challenge the
university’s inability to meet the needs of underrepresented
students. The African Student Union has struggled for 30 years to
protect diversity and access to higher education on this campus.
Seeking to raise the levels of consciousness for all people, ASU
has historically organized around educational issues and brought
them to the forefront.

RODERICK ROXAS/Daily Bruin Through ASU programming, UCLA
students from all backgrounds have experienced a myriad of forums
connecting them to and beyond the issues affecting UCLA. Last year,
Hip Hop Xplosion 2000 brought in artists such as Fourth Avenue
Jones, Talib Kweili, Mos Def and KRS-One to bring awareness to
Proposition 21 (last year’s juvenile justice initiative).
This concert alone performed to a sellout crowd of 5,000 hip hop
heads of all ages, backgrounds, colors and nationalities for a
peaceful and worthy message.

Last February, Black History Month was extended by the idea of
Pan African Week, featuring performances and speakers throughout
the African Diaspora. History was made as people such as Amiri
Baraka, and the son of Steven Biko came and brought their struggles
alive to this campus. Students also participated in the African
Market Place, where items ranging from incense to literature were
met by the smells of Jamaican food and live dance.

The African Student Union even dedicated every other week to
open educational forums where any person was able to voice their
concerns or become educated on issues affecting students.
Teach-ins, cultural awareness, criminalization of youth, and access
to higher education were just some of the topics discussed last
year. Through all of this, ASU continues the goal of elevating
awareness for all people.

This year, though SP-1 has thinned our numbers at UCLA, our
voices will not be silenced. The African Student Union will
continue pressuring Chancellor Carnesale’s administration to
recognize that education is a right for all people, not just a
privileged few.

In the meantime, ASU will continue stepping up its own outreach
efforts through the student initiated program SHAPE (Students
Heightening Academic Performances through Education), which seeks
to increase the numbers of black students at UCLA. SHAPE raises
students’ academic competitiveness through peer advising,
tutoring, preparing them for the SAT’s, and informing them
and their parents about the requirements to enter all higher
education.

In addition, ASU works to ensure that black students who make it
to UCLA stay at UCLA through the Academic Supports Program (ASP).
Using student counselors, ASP guides students through their college
experience, both personal and academic. Through this holistic
approach, we intend that 100 percent of incoming black students
become black UCLA graduates.

As the African Student Union starts another year, we will
continue to struggle for educational awareness for all
students.

Can a public institution justify its existence if it’s not
mandated to truly represent the “public” that partially
funds it? It is up to all students to hold this university
accountable to the people and communities it serves!

Until this day comes, ASU will work to raise consciousness for
everyone so that equality becomes real, for the sake of UCLA.