SECS hosts climate strike, calls for UI to divest in fossil fuels

By Marta Narag News Editor

Dozens of people gathered around Alma Mater Sunday to protest the University’s investment in fossil fuels. The Students for Environmental Concerns hosted the climate march throughout Green Street and Main Quad.

By Jessie Wang Assistant News Editor

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2018, the college enrollment rate among 18-24-year-old Asian Americans was 59%, the highest when compared to other racial and ethnic groups.

Statistically and historically, because Asian Americans are “overrepresented” in higher education, they are an invisible minority, said Sharon Lee, assistant professor in Education.

Lee is a graduate of the College of Education and her book, “An Unseen Unheard Minority,” discusses the history of Asian American students at the University of Illinois.

According to Lee, colleges presume that Asian American students face no challenges because they examine “standard educational measures,” overlooking the racial and cultural needs of Asian American students.

“In the aggregate, Asian Americans do quite well, but there’s a lot of complexity because it’s so diverse,” Lee said. “There are still a lot of experiences happening on campus that were still very racialized and hostile to Asian American students.”

In the 1960s, as part of the Civil Rights Movement, many minority student service programs were developed, Lee explained.

The University of Illinois, similar to many other universities at the time, “did a lot of specific outreach for African American and Latinx students, because when they looked at admission rates, they were much lower than the representation in the state of Illinois,” Lee said.

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 saw an influx of Asian immigrants, most of whom were college educated. By the 1980s, Asian Americans were “removed from those minority protections because (of) the demographic growth of Asian American students” on campuses.

In the 1980s and 1990s at the University of Illinois, Asian American students sought each other out to form organizations such as the Asian American Association and other ethnic groups, Lee said.

“With the rise of multiculturalism, these groups started to come together to really start (engaging in) advocacy issues,” Lee said. “(They advocated) for resources outside of what currently existed.”

The students hoped to accomplish two things — the creation of Asian American studies classes and a cultural center.

The Asian Americans Studies program came first in 1997, and according to Lee, it has grown greatly since then.

The push for an Asian American Cultural Center at the University came later, and “after multiple iterations of stu-

She emphasized that such events demonstrate the necessity of Asian American studies programs in higher education. She believes education plays a key role in dispelling stereotypes and was a contributor to the Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History Act amended to the Illinois Student Code in 2021.

According to the Illinois State Board of Education, the act aims to “ensure that students in every public elementary and high school in Illinois learn about the contributions of Asian Americans to the economic, cultural, social and political development of the United States.”

The program launched first during the 2022-23 school year and developed “resources for teachers to make sure they include accurate representations of Asian American history,” Lee said.

Today, almost 40% of students at the University are of Asian descent, including Asian American and Asian international students, according to the Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations.

The Asian American Association still exists today. Lisa Kwan, AAA board member, said the RSO “seeks to foster meaningful relationships by organizing initiatives that facilitate connections.” jessiew4@dailyillini.com

“Through hosting diverse events, we strive to build a welcoming community, encourage cultural exploration, unite people toward a philanthropic goal and help others find their footing in the large Asian American community on campus,” Kwan said.

The crowd was dressed in orange clothing, symbolizing their unity toward the cause. Different painted signs scattered the ground for protesters to hold throughout their march.

According to Gabriel Kosmacher, president of SECS, the University has a total of around $230 million invested in fossil fuels. He said the strike’s goal was to raise awareness on this topic.

“Speaking with a lot of students on campus, people aren’t aware of these investments or the negative impacts they have,” Kosmacher said. “We would like for the chancellor to bring forward an official plan to divest from petroleum and natural gas.”

The climate strike ended a week’s worth of campus activities hosted by SECS.

Rudy LaFave, the action coordinator for SECS, organized the semi-annual strike. According to him, word of mouth played a key role in gathering support for the event.

“I believe this is an opportunity for the entire sustainability side of campus to come together,” LaFave said. “This is an issue that involves us all, and (the strike) is a great way to reach that.”

The semesterly strikes serve to make longterm progress, LaFave said. By repeatedly bringing energy, he hopes that a light will be shone on this movement on campus.

“We have made progress, and it’s largely because of a consistent community show out of support in something like this,” LaFave said.