The west entrance was closed before the Coolidge and Hagar intersection was blocked. There were up to 100 protesters at the west entrance in the afternoon.
About 30 student protesters gathered at the Coolidge and Hagar intersection near the east entrance. Instead of blocking the base of campus, they formed a diagonal line across the intersection because it blocked any car entering from High Street or Bay Street, and also blocked the UC police department and faculty housing.
Undergraduate student Barucha Peller was one of the “strike captains,” who are student organizers who repeatedly said, “We are not the boss of the picket line, we will all be making decisions together.” Any protester was welcome to use the megaphone to make an announcement or express their support and encouragement.
Workers arrived to campus around 7 a.m. in attempt to get to their respective job sites, but weren’t granted access to campus. The only people the protesters would open the picket line for were Student Health Center workers, day care providers, researchers with time-sensitive projects and Family Student Housing residents, or emergency vehicles. Public Affairs emails and a CruzAlert were sent advising people to avoid campus.
While police presence was high, UCSC News and Media Relations Director Scott Hernandez-Jason said it was decided just before 6 a.m. that police would be on hand just to ensure the protest remained peaceful, but would make no effort to stop the strike.
Occasionally faculty would come out of their houses and voice frustration with the students, but the protesters were once met with support from George McCombie, a union worker living in faculty housing who brought out coffee for the protesters and let students into his house to use the restroom.
Students painted this “Expel the Regents” sign before dawn and used the paint for other banners and signs. Many protesters voiced their frustration with the university’s decision to suspend the six UCSC students arrested during the Highway 17 blockage on March 3. The six students are placed on a two-week interim suspension, potentially endangering their ability to pass classes this quarter.The strike captains were trained on how to talk to people trying to cross the picket line. The captains agreed on making decisions democratically, and unless the driver was previously decided by the strike organizers that he or she would be permitted to cross, the protesters would vote if cars would be let through under certain circumstances.Only two dining halls were open on March 5, causing long lines throughout the day.The west entrance was closed before the Coolidge and Hagar intersection was blocked. There were up to 100 protesters at the west entrance in the afternoon.
The west entrance was closed before the Coolidge and Hagar intersection was blocked. There were up to 100 protesters at the west entrance in the afternoon.
On top of condemning the recent UC tuition increase, part of the “96 Hours of Action Movement” was to “shut down the racist, classist, corporate, militarized police state.” The protest argues California is unjustifiably and unproportionately investing in police and prisons instead of public education.
Around 5 p.m., about 50 protesters marched from the west entrance to meet the students from the Coolidge and Hagar intersection to the base of campus. Traffic piled up behind the students as they marched down High Street.
The student protesters from the Coolidge and Hagar intersection block the Bay and High intersection while they wait for the students marching down High from the west entrance.
After the 5 p.m. march, about 75 students blocked the Bay and High intersection and watched the Congress Ladies’ performance. Soon after, both entrances were opened and Metro buses were running on campus.
