{"componentChunkName":"component---src-templates-article-tsx","path":"/presidentbreeze","result":{"data":{"primeArticle":{"slug":"presidentbreeze","excerpt":"Undergraduate Students Association Council president Breeze Velazquez has rocked the boat, from her brazen Twitter presence to her bold campus advocacy.","headline":"#President","author":"Megan Fu","authorbio":"","authoremail":"","authortwitter":"","coverimg":"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.8-e972bd39bca465c5325c3de20c2596b7.jpg","covercred":"Ashley Kenney","coveralt":"Breeze sitting on couch smiling","articleType":"article","updated":"Editor’s note: The Daily Bruin originally removed a portion of this article in violation of its retraction policy; the original version has since been restored. However, this article kept out a reference to Breeze Velazquez’s Twitter account, which has since been made private, in keeping with The Bruin’s sensitivity policy.","content":[{"type":"text","value":"Freezing in my blazer, I anxiously waited for Undergraduate Students Association Council president Breeze Velazquez to meet me at the tables outside her office in Kerckhoff Hall. The image of a steely, intimidating commander in chief loomed in my mind."},{"type":"text","value":"Then she arrived."},{"type":"text","value":"Velazquez excitedly greeted me, adorned in a velour track jacket and matching red high top sneakers."},{"type":"text","value":"“Cute fit,” I thought, before shaking her hand."},{"type":"text","value":"Watching her fidget with her jacket zipper, I realized she was just as nervous as me. My apprehension and preconceived notions soon faded. I stifled a laugh as she tucked her hair behind her ears like Debby Ryan in “Radio Rebel” and spoke with the Gen Z TikTok vocabulary I knew all too well."},{"type":"text","value":"Now warmed by her sunny disposition, I asked her to start at the very beginning: the night she won the presidency."},{"type":"text","value":"It was a chilly Friday night – May 7, to be exact."},{"type":"text","value":"Sitting on the porch with her mom back home in La Puente, California, she restlessly awaited the spring 2021 Undergraduate Students Association Council election results. Months of tireless campaigning had led up to this moment."},{"type":"text","value":"Instead of her phone, Velazquez held a steaming cup of Mexican coffee her mom had just brewed. Plagued by nerves and the emotional toll of the campaign, she didn’t have it in her to watch the live results."},{"type":"text","value":"“I prayed – you’re going to win,” her mom said to reassure her."},{"type":"text","value":"“Yo no pienso,” Velazquez replied – “I don’t think so.”"},{"type":"text","value":"But after hours of waiting, her chiefs of staff called to relay the news: she’d won."},{"type":"text","value":"Velazquez recalled what her mom said after she heard the outcome."},{"type":"text","value":"“She was like, ‘Your grandpa always envisioned that one of his grandkids would have the opportunity to go to college, and you’re really going to be the president of UCLA,” Velazquez said. “‘He’s so proud of you. He’s looking down on you tonight.’”"},{"type":"text","value":"Tears streamed from her eyes as she recalled the sentimental moment – and I couldn’t help but feel my eyes well up too. Hearing the tremor in her voice, I was touched by her vulnerability."},{"type":"text","value":"“More than just being president, I feel like it’s just very beautiful for me to set that example for my nieces and nephews and really show other students that something like that is possible,” she said."},{"type":"image","value":"{\"alt\":\"Breeze sitting on couch smiling\",\"url\":\"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.5-12232b1cc56f5ed9bac6565193088a71.jpg\",\"credit\":\"Ashley Kenney\",\"caption\":\"\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"In her work as president, the fourth-year Chicana and Chicano studies and public affairs student heads the ship of 14 other elected student officers, working closely with them to make policies that affect the entire student body. She prioritizes taking individual student issues and advocating for them on a larger scale."},{"type":"pull","value":"{\"caption\":\"She told me about it and she was like, ‘Your grandpa always envisioned that one of his grandkids would have the opportunity to go to college, and you're really going to be the president of UCLA.’”\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"As a low-income student of color, she said she centers her platform around helping students from similar backgrounds. She added that she sympathizes with full-time student workers as somebody who’s been juggling jobs with classes since high school."},{"type":"text","value":"Having personally listened to students’ stories, Velazquez said she aims to bridge the gap between students and the resources available to them."},{"type":"text","value":"“A lot of those passions and wants for the improvement of students of color at this university (are on) the basis that the university doesn’t do enough,” she said."},{"type":"text","value":"As part of her efforts, Velazquez advocates for student workers accused of academic dishonesty because she understands how the compounded stress of financial responsibilities and academic deadlines might lead someone to cheat, she said."},{"type":"text","value":"So far, she has helped establish the six-member Student Advocate Board but aims to fully implement an office that assists students accused of cheating at the university. Such an office, she explained, would inform students of their resources and let them know how to avoid suspension."},{"type":"text","value":"Unafraid to wield her power and connections, Velazquez often helps students access support systems in other ways as well."},{"type":"text","value":"Recently, one of her friends who works full time was dropped from all her classes because she was unable to submit paperwork to the Financial Aid Office, Velazquez said. After her friend contacted the office and received no response, Velazquez stepped in to get her connected immediately."},{"type":"text","value":"“There’s so many students out there who ... don’t know where their resources are,” she said. “I definitely want to use my platform to ... guarantee that as many students that reach out to me, I’m able to assist them.”"},{"type":"image","value":"{\"alt\":\"Picture of Breeze looking out window\",\"url\":\"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.10-2e1edb9c1dc81295bf240ba8a0aadc21.jpg\",\"credit\":\"Ashley Kenney\",\"caption\":\"\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"On top of the USAC presidency, Velazquez balances a 30-hour workweek as a programming intern and a tutoring gig on the side. Sometimes, her days start at 6 a.m. and don’t end until 10 p.m. An early morning shift at work is followed by six hours of classes, and then she finishes off her night with seven hours of meetings."},{"type":"text","value":"The heavy workload can take its toll, she said. But Velazquez is no stranger to hard work."},{"type":"text","value":"Growing up in a single-parent household, she and her older siblings held jobs to support themselves and their mother. First employed at 16, she said work has become second nature. Velazquez recalled a particularly stressful time when her Subway manager consistently scheduled her to work 30 hours a week during college application season."},{"type":"text","value":"But Velazquez credits her mom for bestowing her with the resilience and headstrong nature needed to preside over USAC while handling her other responsibilities."},{"type":"text","value":"“My mom didn’t have access to an education, but she’s such an intelligent woman, and she was really well-informed and always taught me right from wrong,” she said."},{"type":"text","value":"Velazquez never imagined she’d be USAC president when she started at UCLA, she said. As a first-generation student, she struggled to navigate the transition from high school to college and experienced intense imposter syndrome."},{"type":"text","value":"When applying to colleges, she searched online for the average GPA of students admitted to UCLA. Her own GPA fell to the bottom of the distribution, and she worried she had no chance of getting in. Even after opening her acceptance letter, she said there was still a long journey ahead before she finally started to feel like she belonged."},{"type":"text","value":"Pointing to the Kerckhoff steps next to us, she recalled how, during her orientation week, she had sobbed on the phone with her mom while sitting on those very stairs. While in a discussion group, Velazquez explained, she quickly began to feel out of place as she listened to her male classmates boast about their high school accomplishments."},{"type":"text","value":"“They were sharing AP exam scores, ... and I was like, ‘Fuck, I’m so dumb,’” she said. “I never scored nearly as high as any of them on any of these exams, and I remember that I felt really overwhelmed.”"},{"type":"text","value":"Such feelings continued to weigh on her. During her second quarter on campus, she came close to dropping out."},{"type":"text","value":"“I just couldn’t figure it out at all, and I just felt like I was navigating this university completely alone,” she said."},{"type":"text","value":"It was only when she leaned on her support system of female mentors – or “femtors,” as she calls them – that Velazquez was able to find her footing. Since finishing her first year, she has consistently earned high marks in her classes, she said."},{"type":"text","value":"Although Velazquez now feels she belongs at UCLA, her run for president was not free of criticism."},{"type":"text","value":"Anonymous internet users have mocked the sound of Velazquez’s voice and claimed she had nothing substantial to say. Some have also taken issue with Velazquez’s “radical” political affiliations as part of the For The People slate."},{"type":"pull","value":"{\"caption\":\"I just felt like I was navigating this university completely alone.”\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"Jazmin Rivera, Velazquez’s sorority sister in Lambda Theta Nu, recalled the emotional and physical toll the campaign process took on Velazquez. Because the entire process was held online, Rivera said people on Reddit and other platforms were quick to judge Velazquez."},{"type":"text","value":"“The campaign was hard for me to witness as her friend, as her big, just as someone who loves her so much,” said the fourth-year labor studies and political science student. “Because campaigns do get kind of ugly, in a way that I honestly never knew was possible.”"},{"type":"text","value":"While Rivera acknowledged that students are entitled to their opinions, she felt they were attacking Velazquez’s character rather than her platform."},{"type":"text","value":"“I remember reading something, feeling like, ‘That seemed like coded language to me,’” Rivera said. “Would you be saying this if Breeze wasn’t a first-gen Latina woman trying to hold this office?”"},{"type":"image","value":"{\"alt\":\"Photograph of Breeze Velazquez\",\"url\":\"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.4-979bb5b22565f2c31bbd84874a65e954.jpg\",\"credit\":\"Ashley Kenney\",\"caption\":\"\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"Grappling with the criticism, Velazquez weighed her options: either end her bid for presidency or work through the negativity and run a “badass campaign.”"},{"type":"text","value":"She chose the latter."},{"type":"text","value":"Former USAC President Naomi Riley has helped Velazquez weather the criticism. The two worked together in the 2020-2021 school year during Riley’s presidency and Velazquez’s time as academic affairs commissioner. Riley is no stranger to judgment herself, she said, so she took Velazquez under her wing."},{"type":"text","value":"“It always comes back to just reminding yourself ... that you were elected to serve 30,000 people at one of the largest public schools in the nation,” Riley said. “The naysayers and the people who tell you that you don’t belong there kind of don’t matter.”"},{"type":"pull","value":"{\"caption\":\"Grappling with the criticism, Velazquez weighed her options: either end her bid for presidency or work through the negativity and run a “badass campaign.”\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"Velazquez credits watching Riley, also a woman of color, take on the role with much tenacity as a source of motivation. Serving as Riley’s chief of staff during Riley’s time as academic affairs commissioner, Velazquez was able to watch her thrive in a space dominated by men and apply that experience to her own time in office, she said."},{"type":"text","value":"“Even in my role as president, sometimes men who are in my office will mansplain things to me and I’m like, ‘Sir, you don’t think I know this?’” Velazquez said."},{"type":"text","value":"Criticism of Velazquez has also extended into her time in office – her unfiltered social media presence has come particularly under fire."},{"type":"text","value":"Admitting she does not adopt the most presidential persona, she has been open about politics and criticism of UCLA on her online platforms – especially Twitter."},{"type":"text","value":"Refusing to subscribe to the inauthentic, squeaky clean image of a typical politician, her tweets are candid, brazen and unapologetically herself."},{"type":"pull","value":"{\"caption\":\"Even in my role as president, sometimes men who are in my office will mansplain things to me and I'm like, ‘Sir, you don't think I know this?’”\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"Some days, she’s calling out the men in her life."},{"type":"text","value":"“Mans has the whole audacity to tell me I was not girlfriend material… sir I’m literally student body president.”"},{"type":"image","value":"{\"alt\":\"Breeze walking out of her USAC President office\",\"url\":\"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.7-40d074f8402999768a8c4471c952422c.jpg\",\"credit\":\"Ashley Kenney\",\"caption\":\"\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"Other days, she chooses to challenge the university directly."},{"type":"text","value":"“The fact that this school continues to accuse students of academic dishonesty and is tarnishing the records of so many that are going through so much crap on the side is heartbreaking.”"},{"type":"text","value":"And occasionally, she’s open about her mental health."},{"type":"text","value":"“Instead of running for student body president I should have gone to therapy instead.”"},{"type":"text","value":"While Velazquez’s transparency online grants students a glimpse into her life outside the presidency, Associated Students UCLA and her chiefs of staff have often asked her to reconsider what she shares on Twitter."},{"type":"text","value":"“Some conflicts happened right when I came into office,” she said. “But I feel like since then, they’ve kind of seen that I’m still going to tweet what I want to tweet.”"},{"type":"text","value":"Given her outspoken social media presence and bubbly personality, I was surprised to hear that Velazquez considers herself an introvert."},{"type":"text","value":"“I always have found peace and comfort in being alone. … My social battery runs out a lot of days, and by the time I get back (home), I don’t want to talk to anyone, I don’t want anyone to look at me,” she said while laughing."},{"type":"text","value":"When in public, Velazquez said she actively avoids disclosing her position and has told her friends to do the same unless she’s already been recognized. She prioritizes separating her identity from her role as president and maintaining a work-life balance."},{"type":"text","value":"“When I arrive (at) social functions, sometimes people are like, ‘Oh my gosh, the president’s here,’ and it’s always super overwhelming,” she said. “Sometimes I could be having a bad day, but I’m going to smile, I’m going to act happy because I don’t want people to say, ‘I met the president; she’s a bitch.’”"},{"type":"text","value":"Fidgeting with the cord of her earphones, she revealed she might not have run for president if the campaign process had been held in person. Although virtual canvassing presented its own set of challenges, Velazquez found the confidence to speak to people from the safety blanket Zoom provided."},{"type":"image","value":"{\"alt\":\"Breeze working at a computer\",\"url\":\"https://assets3.dailybruin.com/images/presidentbreeze/web.prime.presidentbreeze.9-1ef943b865f7fca9f830d1198714330c.jpg\",\"credit\":\"Ashley Kenney\",\"caption\":\"\"}"},{"type":"text","value":"“I feel like imposter syndrome had a lot to do with, a lot of the time, me not speaking up or not vocalizing what I wanted, or feeling very insecure at this university,” she said. “The only good thing Zoom did for me is building up that confidence, where I could see myself as more than just this little timid, shy girl.”"},{"type":"text","value":"Despite her social anxiety and the pressures of the presidency, Velazquez said she perseveres with the strength of her support system – from Riley and Rivera to her mom back home in La Puente. Hoping to have a lasting impact once she graduates, she wants to pass the torch on to future first-generation students and students of color at UCLA."},{"type":"text","value":"“Having been in this role has opened so many doors of opportunity for me, and I really want every student of color to have those same resources and to feel like they’re empowered at this university, even though it’s hard,” she said."},{"type":"text","value":"Glancing at the time on my phone, I was shocked we had already exceeded the hour we had agreed to meet. I quickly thanked Velazquez and extended my freezing hand out to her."},{"type":"text","value":"Instead, she stood up to give me a hug. I was surprised – not by the kind gesture, but by the fact that I towered over her."},{"type":"text","value":"“Oh my God, I didn’t think I’d be taller than you,” I found my 5-foot-2 self saying."},{"type":"text","value":"“Yeah people don’t expect the president to be 4’11,” she said with a laugh."}]}},"pageContext":{"term":"fall21","slug":"presidentbreeze"}},"staticQueryHashes":[]}