Price Gouging of COVID Vaccines Prioritizes Corporate Greed over Public Health
Capitalist greed strikes again. As both President Biden and Governor Newsom plan to end their respective state of emergencies for the COVID-19 pandemic on May 11 and Feb. 28, Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will nearly quadruple in cost as the shots transition to the commercial…
University, Pay Us More Than Fifteen-Fifty
Santa Cruz’s current minimum wage is $15.50. That’s $11.94 short of the minimum amount needed to cover living expenses for a resident of the country’s second most expensive place to live. Although California’s minimum wage was raised 50 cents to $15.50 as of Jan. 21,…
How Do We Learn Past the Letter?
At UC Santa Cruz, grades matter — but the process doesn’t. Universities seek to inspire change and educate the bright minds of the future by challenging young people to think critically. UCSC was founded with that mission in mind, offering a unique grade-less pedagogy. Students…
Traffic Jam on Heller Drive: How UC Santa Cruz is Failing Commuters
Between unpredictable buses, the infuriating parking pass lottery, and the limited number of ParkMobile spaces available around campus, the current transportation situation makes everyone’s lives harder. It’s only going to get worse if UC Santa Cruz carries out its expansion plan while not providing adequate…
Words Fail. Santa Cruz Needs More Than Presidential Acknowledgement.
For those struggling on the frontlines of natural disaster, the arrival of the nation’s president should mean that everything is going to be alright. But following President Joe Biden’s visit to the county on Jan. 19, few were left with an improved sense of support…
Slug Points Are Flawed. Here’s How We Can Fix Them.
First-year Beyoncé Retana says she’s a picky eater. It’s one of the reasons why she doesn’t go to the dining hall as often as her peers. As a dorm resident, she is required to buy a Slug Points meal plan from the university. With a…
Santa Cruz: Beautiful, Hill-filled, and Highly Inaccessible
Walking up Cardiac Hill seems manageable — for the first ten seconds. The next ten seconds drive fatigue through tired legs. The following ten seconds strain the lungs as the heart pumps more blood throughout your body. Navigating the hills and valleys of the UC…
Support City Labor. It Affects Us Too.
UC Santa Cruz students are no strangers to strikes and unions fighting for fair pay. In backing workers, we can signal our support of our university colleagues. We’re inclined to support these strikes because they affect us as students. They’re inherently intertwined with the quality…
Not Just Acknowledging, But Protecting Our Iranian Students
“Azadi, azadi, azadi.” Freedom, freedom, freedom. These words echo through city streets across Iran. The weight of injustice and inequality rests on the shoulders of the young, the “radical,” and the revolutionaries. Zhina “Mahsa” Amini was detained by Iran’s morality police on Sept. 13 for…
UC, Pay Academic Student Workers a Living Wage Now
The University of California (UC) system receives national recognition as a beacon of higher education, diversity, and progress. The UC’s mission page proudly proclaims its “pervasive mission of discovering and advancing knowledge,” but the backbone of the countless awards and accolades proudly accepted by the…