Budget battle at the Capitol 'No More Cuts'

A steady rain poured down on the students, teachers, and advocates who marched to the state Capitol on March 14 to protest budget cuts to higher education.

Plastic buckets, used as drums, were pounded in a constant beat as the crowd of 15,000 people chanted in unison, "Students united will never be divided!"

"This is going to work," American River College student Tiffany Peoples said about the protest. "It has to."

Higher education in California is currently facing budget cuts that could forever alter how college students are educated in the Golden State. This year's "March in March" protest focused on encouraging legislators to vote in favor of Gov. Jerry Brown's plan of putting tax extensions on a special-election ballot in June to help close the $26.6 billion budget deficit. If the taxes make the ballot, it would then be up to the people of California to approve or reject them.

Even if the extensions do pass, community colleges will still experience close to $400 million in funding reduction in the next year. Student tuition is also going to increase from $26 a unit to $36. State school and universities in California will experience a reduction of $500 million.

If the tax extensions fail to make the ballot or do not meet voter approval, the cuts will be far deeper. Many California colleges could be forced to close and hundreds of thousands of students would be denied enrollment.

But on the day of the rally, students were still hopeful they could affect change. More than 150 ARC students gathered on campus at 8:30 a.m. to head over to the Capitol, filling the buses waiting in the parking lot.

"I'm so very excited!" said Kassie Rivera, a theater major at ARC. Rivera played "Fight for Your Right" by Green Day and "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga on her cell phone, heightening the mood. Many others on the bus joined Rivera in singing the songs. The rain outside did little to dampen the moods of students, as laughter and excitement was evident on the bus.

But others like Peoples, a psychology major at ARC and a single mother, were feeling the severity of the situation. She said that the impending budget cuts and tuition increase will make it much more difficult for her to afford school.

Shaine Johnson, ARC's Associate Student Body president, also participated in the march. "This is California's best investment," Johnson said when asked about his message to legislators. "It's shortsighted to cut the system because it's not a long-term fix. It's a short-term patch that really causes more problems in the long run."

Students and advisors traveled as far as from San Diego, University of Santa Monica and San Jose State University to attend the march. Los Rios Community Colleges in attendance included ARC, Cosumnes River College, Folsom College, and Sacramento City College.

The buses took students to parking lots near the California Auto Museum close to Old Sacramento. Thousands of people then marched together down Front Street and continued up to 10th Street, finally reaching Capitol Mall. Loud cheers roared and echoed through the streets. Employees from businesses along the mall came out of their buildings to witness the massive crowd.

After reaching the Capitol around 11 a.m., demonstrators listened to a series of speakers, including Student Senate for California Community Colleges President Alex Pader, and California State Assembly members Warren Furutani and Marty Block.

"It's a fundamental right that every Californian should have access to an affordable and quality higher education," Pader said. "Today we ask the state legislature to give the people of California the opportunity to vote on tax extensions and thus, the level of services that the state provides. Let the people vote!"

"You are the people that are going to help inform people of earthquakes and tsunamis. You are the ones," Furutani said.

"Today, California's higher-education students literally shook the Capitol," Block said. "Their voices, thousands strong, demanded that we let the people vote in order to stop the cuts to our public colleges and universities. It was a privilege to speak to so many passionate young people, and I hope that their efforts resonated with my Republican colleagues, who are reluctant to send the ballot measure to the voters."

As the march concluded, the rain stopped and the clouds broke. Sunshine blanketed the crowd. On the way back to campus, many students felt their spirits lift, certain that the people in power at the Capitol heard their message.

"I think we made a big impact on the legislators," Rivera said. "I'm going to pull out some Gandhi and say, ‘Be the change you want to be in the world.'"

rogersmn@imail.losrios.edu