Thursday, January 22, 2015
Diversity at Santa Clara
Rethinking Hashtag Activism #ThisDoesn’tHelpAtAll
Q&A with MCC director
OPINION, PAGE 6
SCENE, PAGE 4
Since 1922
www.thesantaclara.org
@thesantaclara
One free copy
@thesantaclara
Rally Fights Racial Injustice Class Takes on Legalization Law students contribute to future recreational marijuana legislation Collin Baker
The Santa Clara
day’s namesake through a rousing reading of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Originally delivered in 1963, King’s words still resonated with Monday’s audience, who applauded as Billingslea recited, “America has given the Negro people a bad check.” The slogan for the rally was “Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter, Justice Matters.” However, not all responses to the inclusive slogan were positive. Criticisms were brought up at last week’s Difficult Dialogues session, a weekly event hosted by the Office for Multicultural Learning with the intention of providing an open space for the discussion of controversial issues. During the session, which was titled “Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter,” a very “charged conversation” occurred over the expansion of the original viral hashtag, according to Denise Castillo Chavez, assistant director of Undergraduate Admissions. “People were frustrated with the watering down of the Black Lives Matter movement,” said Jade Agua, program director of the Office for Multicultural Learning.
The Santa Clara Law School is now offering its students the chance to change the course of state public policy. A class on the legalization of recreational marijuana in California, spearheaded by Assistant Professor W. David Ball, gives students an opportunity to make a legitimate impact on future legislation. “The fact that the work we’re doing isn’t just in a vacuum but is something that could be applied pretty directly and pretty soon is a huge part of it for each of us,” said Kendra Livingston, a J.D. candidate and student in the class. “We like to know that our work is going to be utilized.” Ball is a member of the ACLU Blue Ribbon Commission on Marijuana Law and Policy, chaired by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, which is tasked with discussing the best way to structure a legally regulated recreational cannabis market in California. Ball’s 13 students will contribute to the committee by doing research and brainstorming solutions that will be read by members of the commission. Currently, Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have legalized recreational marijuana use. Ball said many members of the law community, himself included, see recreational cannabis legalization will pass in California, and that its inevitability drives his participation in the subject area. “I’m less concerned with whether or not it’s a good idea because I think that it’s happening,” he said. “My main interest is in making sure that it’s done right.” Ball stresses that drug legalization does not mean boundary-free drug production, sale and use. He cited taxation, license requirements for producers and the criminal justice system as possible regulatory methods. Ball and Livingston said they are both concerned about the possible diversion of drugs to minors, which could be curbed by mandatory onsite consumption laws that would prevent buyers from taking the product “to go” and distributing it to underage users. “The legal framework in which we’re operating is ever-changing and very, very unsettled,” Ball said, noting that issues like these are rare in the world of law. “In law, you can generally only make incremental changes. Going from prohibition to legalization is a giant change.” Bradley Joondeph, associate dean of academic affairs for the School of Law, said that the class was well-received among the administration and faculty, since it allows students to both learn and influence the public sphere. “(The class) is one way to get students to write on topics that people in the legal community want to read about,” Ball said. “I want them to have
See MLK, Page 3
See STUDENTS, Page 3
DANIELLE VELASCO — THE SANTA CLARA
Monday’s audience at the Jesuit Call to Justice participate in a “die-in” protest. They lay on the ground for four and a half minutes, representing the four and a half hours Michael Brown’s body was left in the streets of Ferguson, Mo. The nearly three-hour rally and march spoke out against systemic racism.
Jesuit Call to Justice protests discrimination and police violence Vishakha Joshi
The Santa Clara Amid shrill whistles and honking horns, hundreds of students clad in black marched through campus, chanting in unison, “Black lives matter.” Santa Clara joined the nation on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in protest against police brutality. The rally, called the “Jesuit Call to Justice,” included personal stories about discrimination and violence, a walk through America’s history of oppressing people of color and a “die-in” protest in front of Santa Clara’s iconic bronze Bronco statue. Associate Professor of Law Margalynne Armstrong and Santa Clara alumnus Symone Jackson spoke on the historical and legal context of discrimination, as well as law enforcement and state violence. “Let’s be clear,” said Jackson. “Police brutality is an issue of genocide.”
Jackson cited the “eight stages of genocide,” noting how “blaming victims and denying that crimes have been committed” falls in line with the eighth stage: denial. Guest speaker Denise Johnson shared the story of her son Gregory, a black man who died at San Jose State University. Gregory Johnson Jr. was found hanging in the basement of a Sigma Chi fraternity house in 2008. Denise Johnson said the evidence did not indicate that her son had committed suicide, but instead pointed toward a murder and a hate crime. She said the case currently sits with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. “This was a university,” said Johnson. “I sent him there for a degree. They sent him back in a coffin.” Ely Flores shared the story of his best friend, Alex Nieto, who was shot and killed by members of the San Francisco Police Department while Laurie Valdez, talked about her personal ties with Antonio Lopez Guzman who was shot and killed by San Jose State University police. Both claimed that excessive force had been used. Closing out the speakers, Professor Aldo Billingslea, associate provost for diversity and inclusion, embodied the spirit of the
Rugby Fights Back Men’s team wins non-league match SPORTS, PAGE 7
WHAT’S INSIDE
News.................................. 1 – 3 Scene................................ 4 – 5 Opinion....................................6 Sports............................... 7 – 8