UC Davis-s

DAVIS, Calif. – The UC Davis administration was greeted by a multitude of over 400 students, faculty and staff on Thursday afternoon demanding action in the wake of several racialized confrontations occurring on campus.

The teach-in and protest took place on the north steps of Mrak Hall – UC Davis’ administration building. Lead organizers, the Council for Asian Pacific American Affairs, said they “hope to challenge members of the university to recognize campus climate problems and to work together as part of the solution.”

CAPAA – an organization comprised of UC Davis students, faculty and staff – used this forum to “demonstrate our deep concern over the recent racial violence and tensions against Asian Americans.”

Representatives from on- and off-campus spoke to the crowd, addressing the state of resources and funding for the Asian American community and underrepresented communities on campus.

Victor Hwang, managing attorney of the Asian Law Caucus, drove from San Francisco to speak at the event and expressed his concern and support for the students.

“They’re (administration) telling you that it’s an isolated incident,” said Hwang. “Alcohol, a couple of bad apples, it’s not really a problem. That’s bulls—t.

“This is happening because People of Color are growing not only in numbers, but in terms of power, on campuses.”

Currently, Asians and Pacific Islanders represent 38 percent of the student population at UC Davis.

Hwang reiterated the importance of coalition building due to the fact that hate crimes do not affect just one specific group.

“We need to organize and stand together on this.”

Ines Hernandez – representing the Native American Studies Department – spoke about the solidarity between Native American and APA students as well as the need for expanding resources for Native American studies.

“It’s very ironic to me that Asian American studies got a half-time position for Student Affairs Officer when they are the largest number of students of color on this campus,” said Hernandez. “There’s something very wrong about that.”

CAPAA formulated a list of demands for the administration to consider in addressing the current state of the campus. Some of the demands include mandatory diversity training for incoming students, creating a hate crime victims liaison position, increased staffing for APA student programs, expansion of the Cross Cultural Center, and more API language and cultural classes.

A Series of Incidents
According to the CAPAA, the series of racialized incidents began last October as members of a California State University, Sacramento Asian sorority were berated with racial slurs by members of a predominantly white UC Davis fraternity as they were creating a message with rocks at the Yolo Causeway levee – a traditional activity for greek organizations.

During the same month, a melee inside an apartment between a group of Korean Americans affiliated with a fraternity and a group of white males in another UC Davis fraternity resulted in the arrest of two white males.

In December, law enforcement officials diffused a brawl at the Yolo Causeway levee between more than 70 members of a white fraternity and three UC Davis Asian fraternities.

There are numerous other recent, less substantiated incidents of hostilities, including racial slurs during intramural games and local bars, according to CAPAA.

Another notable hate crime incident at UC Davis occurred on Mar. 1997.

The California Aggie, the campus newspaper, reported that vandals defaced nine of 14 student murals and specifically targeted two of the murals – the Young Black Scholars club and Delta Lambda Phi, the UC Davis gay fraternity. The two murals were found with explicit hate language and swastikas.

Victim Speaks
The audience began cheering as John Park, one of the hate crime victims from last October, was announced as a surprise speaker.

“I love you all,” Park told the audience during a very short lull between the yelling and applause. “I’ve never thought about hate crimes before until it actually happened to myself.”

Park, ecstatic over the reception, explained that neither the police nor administration had offered assistance or supportive resources after the incident occurred.

“No one informed us of groups such as DARE, the Davis Asians for Racial Equality,” said Park.

The audience erupted in applause after Park finished his speech.

Park took some time afterwards to talk to Nichi Bei Times and discuss the incident.

According to Park, on Oct. 13, he and his friends were driving up to a friend’s house in the Arlington Farms apartment complex at around 1 a.m. just as the police had broken up a fraternity party. As they were trying to find parking, a parked, but still-running car occupied by white fraternity members, halted any forward progress.

The first of two meetings that night occurred when the car driver – which Park was a passenger of – honked. Words were exchanged and both drivers and all passengers stepped out of their vehicles. But Park said that immediately after exited they their cars, the police diffused the situation and asked everyone to go home.

The second meeting happened inside the apartment of Park’s friend.

“There was a knock at the door and I went to go answer it,” said Park. “He said he was a neighbor and inviting us to a party the next day.

“The next thing I heard is the door get kicked open and someone saying ‘Who f—ked with my brother?’”

According to Park, the apartment turned into utter chaos.

Park recalled being totally out numbered and having at least three people on top of him while they repeatedly punched and kicked him.

“I don’t remember how it ended. I just started swinging back.”

The melee ended with one of Park’s fraternity brothers brandishing a bat for self-defense.

Park escaped with bruises and a cracked wisdom tooth – which required emergency oral surgery because the swelling was affecting his breathing. He also mentioned that his academics took a dive – he dropped several courses – after the attack.

More than three months later, Park struggles to keep positive, making his appearance at the protest a part of the healing process.

Administration Reacts
Prior to the protest, UC Davis Chancellor Larry N. Vanderhoef and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Carol Wall co-wrote a statement on Jan. 29 in regards to the racialized incidents.

“We share concern over any racially-motivated incidents involving our students,” wrote Vanderhoef and Wall. “We are also concerned that our students – and young people generally – are increasingly treating each other disrespectfully, often turning to physical confrontation rather than discussing differences in a civil and respectful manner.

This behavior is simply not acceptable.

“Campus administrators will continue to work with local law enforcement and judicial officials and to provide counseling and mediation efforts in order to reduce tensions and further altercations among the groups involved in recently reported incidents,” the university officials continued. “Several campus departments, the Associated Students of UC Davis and the City of Davis have already created forums for dialogue and problem solving. And a Student Affairs-created task force has been charged with recommending educational and intervention measures to help students develop skills in conflict resolution and multicultural awareness.

“We also encourage those who are the victims of acts of hate to come forward and seek intervention through such ‘safe’ places as the Counseling Center, Student Judicial Affairs, the Violence Prevention Program or ASUCD,” continues the letter. “We will then be best able to employ an effective variety of measures and to pursue appropriate action through Student Judicial Affairs if our policies of student conduct have been violasted.”

Wall met with the student leaders Thursday evening to hear their demands.

“Everybody has been very concerned and taking this seriously,” said university spokesperson Lisa Lapin to the Associated Press. “This really isn’t an adversarial thing with the administration. This is really raising awareness.”

“We stand ready to help the university to address these incidents,” said a CAPAA spokesperson. “We have volunteer resources that can provide racially sensitive approaches to dealing with these problems, but we need a commitment from the university to support the API students and community at UC Davis.”