May Day Strike for Immigrant Rights at UC Santa Cruz

Mon, May 1, 2006 10:32PM

On Monday, May 1st, International Workers Day, students and workers at UC Santa Cruz walked picket lines at the base of campus and west entrance to support the rights of immigrants and all people. In the United States, grassroots organizers of May Day 2006 called for a day of, "No Work, No School, No Buying, No Selling" to help illustrate the critical role that migrants play in the United States and global economy.

As I came up Bay Street in the early morning, I noticed that new signs were placed along the road advising people to have their papers and identification ready as they approached at the border. The border, guarded by hundreds of students and workers, was at times very difficult to cross in a bus, truck or automobile. Bicycles and coyotes on police motorcycles had the easiest time crossing over to the other side.

The border-crossers got really sneaky, proving that they will do anything to cross, and began to re-route their original plans. Using coyotes, also known as UC Police, the border crossers used the west entrance to gain access to the campus.

Coyotes (UC Police) and the Mexican Mafia (UC Administration) were hard at work to disrupt the actions of the border patrol students and workers. At the west entrance, B. Hughes and several other coyotes encircled a student and extracted personal information from him.

I knew my chances of getting across the border were quite slim, so I headed down to the Beach Flats...

§Border

by ~Bradley (bradley [at] riseup.net)

Mon, May 1, 2006 10:32PM