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Increase in racist incidents at UC campuses

March 3, 2010

UC campuses across the state have experienced an increase in racist incidents during the early months of 2010. [Associated Press]

At UC San Diego, a KKK-style hood was found on campus, the most recent in a series of incidents targeting black students. A noose was also discovered on the UC Santa Cruz campus.

Last month, a Jewish student at UC Davis had a swastika carved on her door.

The work is most likely the work of students using offensive and outrageous behavior to gain notoriety, according to Brian Levin, director of California State University Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism.

Students at UCLA are calling for a required ethnic studies course to increase awareness of other cultures. Protests are also being held at UC San Diego and UC Irvine to denounce racism on campus.


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I guess we can all ‘guess’ why these things are happening… but there are some real underlying tensions that seem to be sparking a rebellious streak in the UC’s… and it is being met with censorship, much of it illegal.


Funny how so many of the Berkeley ‘free speech’ advocates of the 60’s and 70’s slammed the academic door closed once they entered academia. Try to find anyone who doesn’t speak ‘their’ language… even at ‘Cal Poly’. They believe that ‘tolerance’ is for the ‘other guy’ and not for them.


There’s more to this than appears.


Roger freberg


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Having said that, not all of these incidents have been borne from youthful stupidity some are very real representations of a very ugly underbelly of our society that is liove and well.


Well, ososkid i’d have to say YOUR President represents the worst in Racism that i can remember.It’s too bad.Not a day seems to go by that he doesn’t accuse someone else of what HE actually reflects.I won’t even bother mentioning the First Ho and racism.


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I think Mr Levin is right some of these incidents are kids making very poor choices in an attempt to be outrageous. In the early days of punk rock kids wouldwear swastikas to piss off adults. Most of those kids didnt have a facist bone in their body nor did they have a real understanding of what that symbol stood for, it was merley the most extreme way they could think of to be provacative.


Having said that, not all of these incidents have been borne from youthful stupidity some are very real representations of a very ugly underbelly of our society that is liove and well.


The danger with this kind of hate and ignorance on our campuses and in society as a whole is that these are the cracks the brown shirts slip in through. These are the accidental movements that give momentum to the hate groups and create scenarios for them to operte recruitment.


Earlier I mentioned the early days of the punk movement and stupid kids wearing stupid symbols this indeed allowed the brown shirts to come in and take advantage of the ignorance and begin recruiting. By the time in the 80’s I was old enough to start going to show the scene had given a place for the Nazis to operate and had in many places polarized audiences. Skinheads who originaly were not racists had formed into sub groups of white pride and nazi skins and things got very very violent and very hateful.


I only bring this up because I have seen for myself what dangerous thing these youthful acts of provocation can lead to


I really hope this thing can be turned in t a learning expierence rather than a movement


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I see people are marking this comment with negatives. Im curious what people find about that post as being negative. Not to say there arent other valid opnions IM just not seeing it. I think this is one of those topics that deserves a conversation. If you disagree with what I posted please explain. Id really like to understand where other people are coming from on this issue


Justin


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Very good points. I’m surprised that this article hasn’t raised more discussion. I agree that young people often don’t necessarily have a clue about what the symbols they are sporting mean. I recall when I wanted to have a “revolution” back in the late 60’s, I didn’t have a clue about what I was talking about.


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While I agree that students often use offensive symbols to provoke a reaction, you can’t say they don’t know what a swastika is. These are UC students, not dunces. They’re might not support mass genocide of the Jews, but they at least believe in strong nationalism, closed borders, and other “softer” forms of racism. They use the symbol to make minorities feel unwelcome and afraid.


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lol Are you sure their not dunces?Amazing if all you have to do is enroll in College to become a genius.Their young and not too bright in my opinion.When daddy finally shuts off their money that’s when hopefully some maturity will fester.Until then life is just a bowl full of cherries.


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nrpowell


I hear your point and understand the uneasiness you might fell to cutting these kids some slack. I dont think we should cut them any slack but I disagree that they necessarily know what a swatstika or a noose really actually represents. I was born in the 70’s and grew up in the 80’s I never saw JIm Crow I never new what the back of the bus represented. You could tell me all about it but I had no frame of reference. It wasnt until years later after gaining real life expierence that i could put things like that into some sort context. We have come a long way since Johnson signed the civil rights act and by no means do I think weve come anywhere near all the way but today kids grow up around other races. I grew up in california and went to school with other races and never thought of them as anything but my peers my fathers generationcan not say the same thing. Perhaps the average kid could tell you what a noose is and what it is used for but I dont think that ability gives them an inate understanding of what a noose is metaphoricly.


Dont get me wrong Im not making excuses and among these kids are other kids who grew up in racist households and wether they understand what a noose is or not they wouldnt give a damn how it made other people feel. I just think that we need to see the problem for what it is as a whole and seperate out the real hatred from the the knuckleheads who do dumb things. Ity just strikes me as the best way to resolve the very real issue at hand. There is a difference between the ntional front and our nation coddled/micrmanaged children who seem to seldom think of others


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