DAILY LOBO new mexico
Apathetic about apathy see page 7
friday
The Independent Voice of UNM since 1895
March 9, 2012
(un)Occupy protester faces misconduct probe by Jeffrey Hertz
hertzjeffrey@yahoo.com (un)Occupy Albuquerque protester Brittany Arneson could face a disorderly conduct charge for “mic checking” author and lecturer Nonie Darwish two weeks ago. During the Feb. 23 event, members of (un)Occupy interrupted the speaker and began chanting, “Nonie Darwish speaks for Israeli apartheid and genocide at the hands of the (Israel Defense Forces).” While about a dozen protesters participated in the mic check, Arneson said she is the only protester who is currently under investigation. The group claimed the lecture given by Darwish, a pro-Israel ex-Muslim who speaks on the dangers of Sharia law, was anti-Muslim. Supporters of the UNM Israel Alliance rushed toward the protesters and started pushing them toward the exit. Protesters resisted, but were eventually pushed out of the lecture hall. Rob Burford, student conduct officer from the office of the Dean of Students, will conduct an investigation on behalf of the University to see if the protesters violated the student code of conduct prohibiting disruption of University-sponsored activities. Burford was unavailable for comment, but Arneson, who is being charged with violating section 2.18 of the Student Code of Conduct, spoke with the Daily Lobo about the investigation. “I think it’s absurd that, in a university that welcomes community involvement, we face utter discrimination against individuals that work for the betterment of our university as a whole,” she said. Section 2.18 of the UNM Student Code of Conduct prohibits “Any other acts or omissions which affect adversely University functions or University-sponsored activities, disrupt community living on campus, interfere with the rights of others to the pursuit of their education, or otherwise affect adversely the processes of the University.”
Jeffrey Hertz/ Daily Lobo Brittany Arneson protests alongside members of Raza Graduate Student Association as part of a march around campus in honor of International Women’s Day Thursday. UNM is investigating Arneson concerning a Feb. 23rd incident. Donald Gluck, president of the UNM Israel Alliance, said the investigation of Arneson is appropriate. No audience members have been charged with any misconduct, despite violent conduct by members of the audience recorded in a video released by (un)Occupy following the lecture, Gluck said. In the video, a group of protesters, Arneson included, began chanting at the back of the lecture hall while Darwish was in the middle of delivering her talk.
(un)Occupy protester Henry Edwards said they were worried the audience was going to chase them out, because they had done it in the past. “Saying that we were ‘kicked out’ is a bit of a euphemism,” he said. Marilu Ugalde, one of the protesters at the Darwish lecture, suffered a concussion as a result of the incident, Edwards said. In response to the lecture, members of (un)Occupy marched in solidarity with UNM’s Raza Graduate
Student Association (RGSA), which protested against the mistreatment of Ugalde. About 30 people participated in the protest march on Thursday, which began at the Bookstore. Protesters spent the afternoon marching around campus. Edwards said RGSA decided to get involved in the protest because its members have seen more and more human rights violations occurring on campus. (un)Occupy members attempted
to reoccupy UNM’s Yale Park the day after the lecture, but about a dozen UNM police officers forced the group to move out of the park. Officers denied protesters the ability to protest because they lacked a permit. After leaving the park peaceably on Feb. 24, some protesters returned to the park on Sunday. Shortly before 3 p.m., four members of the group were arrested. The group has been struggling to protest on campus since September.
by Avicra Luckey
have kept Student Publications’ budget the same despite the feel increase was amended following a presentation from Daily Lobo representatives. During the meeting, representatives from the Daily Lobo, including Editor-in-Chief Chris Quintana and news editor Luke Holmen, argued against a section of the original bill which would have lowered, from 8.5 to 6.4, the percentage of the ASUNM student fee that Student Publications receives. The percentage decrease would have been offset by the increase in the overall fee, and the dollar amount of funding for Student Publications would have remained the same. Student Publications was the only organization that ASUNM recommended receive a lower fee percentage. During a presentation, Quintana said the student newspaper would not be the only student publication to
benefit from the increase in funding that would result if the percentage was kept the same. Best Student Essays and Conceptions Southwest, which are also part of Student Publications, allow students to be published and get realworld experience, he said. Holmen said many at the Daily Lobo work for less than the hourly minimum wage, and that the funding could possibly go towards hiring more reporters in an effort to improve campus coverage. The last time the ASUNM fee was raised was in 2002, from $14 to $20. Numbers from previous years aren’t available, but ASUNM representatives believe before 2002 the last increase was during the ‘80s. The number of requesting student organizations has been on the rise in recent years. This year, 147 student groups are requesting $745,711 in funding. Last year, organizations only requested $719,798.
ASUNM passes resolution to raise student fee aluckey@unm.edu
Ruby Santos / Daily Lobo ASUNM Sen. Tyler Crawley looks on Wednesday night as Sen. Sunny Liu discusses raising the ASUNM student fee in the SUB. Senate Bill 9, which would raise the fee from $20 to $25, passed in the Senate. It will go before the undergraduate body for approval in April, and then must be approved by the regents.
Inside the
Daily Lobo volume 116
issue 117
Women’s health See page 4
Student Fee Increase A bill that recommended raising the ASUNM student fee from $20 to $25 passed the ASUNM Senate Wednesday, and will go before a vote of the student body in the April elections. Senate Bill 9, proposed by Sens. Brandyn Jordan, Tyler Crawley and Anthony Santistevan, originally called for a $7 dollar increase in the fee, from $20 to $27, but after an amendment proposed by Sen. Isaac Romero, the Senate quickly came to a 16-1-1 decision, passing the bill. Crawley said the bill, although amended, will increase available funding for student organizations. “We’re looking at about a $150,000 increase,” he said. “It would have been about $180,000 with $27 (per student).” A portion of the bill that would
On to the next one See page 5
see Senate PAGE 2
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