Reference no: EM133399701
Case Study: Hundreds of striking UC academic workers - whose massive five-week walkout has disrupted finals week and stirred angst among students and faculty about term grades - converged on the UCLA campus Wednesday shouting for better pay and benefits and a swift end to the contract dispute.
A small group of picketers delayed the meeting of the UC regents for hours by refusing to leave the room. Later, another group interrupted a committee meeting, said UC spokesperson Ryan King. About 15 were cited by university police and were peacefully escorted from the room, he said.
When the meeting originally scheduled for 10 a.m. at UCLA's Luskin Center finally convened after 1 p.m., a member of the striking unions took the microphone during public comment.
"Your role as regents is to advocate for the improvement of the university, this includes the financial and physical well-being of those who make the university run," said Wesleigh Gates, a doctoral candidate at UCLA.
Gates then, with a fist in the air, led about two dozen in attendance into "Shut it down" chants. When regents later allowed for phone comments, someone named Denyz called in from the rally and had cries of "Shut it down!" and "Whose university? Our university!" fill the line.
Adu Vengal, a third-year math doctoral student at UC San Diego, said he was among a group of protesters who occupied the conference room early Wednesday and were handcuffed and cited for trespassing and unlawful assembly.
The UCLA Police Department did not immediately respond to questions about the citations.
"We want to go back to work with dignified wages and working conditions, but we can't do that until the Regents ensure fair contracts," Vengal said. "So we came to make sure that they do."
About 36,000 academic employees, like Vengal, remain on strike, including student researchers and teaching assistants, the latter of whom grade papers, run discussion classes and proctor exams, playing key roles in the education of undergraduates. Last week, the two units of the United Auto Workers who represent those workers agreed to voluntary mediation as negotiations stalled over compensation.
Morgaine Mandigo-Stoba, a third-year doctoral student in the physics department at UCLA, was among the workers who showed up to the rally Wednesday. She said she was energized by the demonstration and by what she feels are insufficient contract proposals from UC.
"We are not ready to go home," she said. "Their proposals - their refusal to give us a serious offer - has definitely lit a fire under people."
At the rally, Tom Morello, former guitarist with Rage Against the Machine, stood on the flatbed of a truck and led the workers in songs that included lines like, "Sí, se puede!" and "Hold the line!"
QUESTIONS
1. List the elements of the following crimes:
2. How does the mens rea of unlawful assembly differ from that of a riot?
3. What facts from the Los Angeles Times article indicate that the protestors and their behavior met the standard for unlawful assembly?
4. Indicate how you, as an UCLA police officer, would approach managing the protestors. Indicate whether you would try to use tear gas, rubber bullets, or other means -- or if you would not intervene at all -- and why