A man by the name of Bayard Rustin was an integral part of the nonviolent civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s, directly working with Martin Luther King Jr. to organize nonviolent marches, sit-ins, and boycotts. He should be celebrated by all alongside the names of Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks but was unfairly forced out of our history books simply because of his sexuality. “Martin Luther King, with whom I worked very closely, became very distressed when a number of ministers working for him wanted him to dismiss me from his staff because of my homosexuality," said Rustin. Born March 17, 1912, in West Chester, Pennsylvania, Bayard Rustin grew up in a society full of … [Read more...] about The civil rights activist forced into the shadows
activism
Opinion: Reflecting on 2020 as a year of change
2020 has been one strange year. We are currently in a pandemic, the United States has elected a new president, and we witnessed people in America fight alongside the Black Lives Matter movement. Black Live Matter has become a global movement against racism and police brutality. Thousands of people from multiple different countries gathered to protest racism and police brutality after the killing of George Floyd by the Minneapolis police. The Black Lives Matter movement began to rise in July of 2013, 17 months after the death of Trayvon Martin. However, the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter did not become nationally recognized until 2014, when Michael Brown died by police hands. This … [Read more...] about Opinion: Reflecting on 2020 as a year of change
Dr. Texeira comments on Black Lives Matter movement
Dr. Mary Texeira has been a sociology professor at CSUSB for nearly 19 years. In the 1970s, she went into law enforcement at 21 years old. As a professor, she specializes in social inequality, race and ethnicity, class, and gender and sexuality. Q: How was your experience in law enforcement when you first started? A: I thought it was really exciting. But there's always the sexism and racism that you deal with, not from the people on the streets, but from your fellow officers. My role to getting into law enforcement had to do with a court order. The court ordered police fitnesses in the 1970s, and courts were ordering police departments to diversify their departments, not just racially … [Read more...] about Dr. Texeira comments on Black Lives Matter movement
Into the mind of a student activist
Kameron Pyant, a fifth year English major, has been working for the Cross Cultural Center (CCC) since the fall of 2016, which was his freshman year. He has hosted a plethora of events for the CCC such as "Speak yo Truth” and “Unapologetically Black." Pyant has also organized a couple protests this past summer in the wake of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor's deaths. Q: What got you interested in activism? A: The abundance of social injustices inflicted upon Black, Indigenous, and people of color is what drives me to be a persistent activist, being that we still are and always have been fighting for freedom, equity, and equality. We must stay adamant regarding this fight because … [Read more...] about Into the mind of a student activist
Editorial: Let’s go beyond the labels and standard statements
[tweet 1266040838628560898 align='center'] Everyone deserves to feel safe and protected and to know that the law is on their side. So why are there innocent black people being killed by the very people who are supposed to protect them? George Floyd is a man who the system failed to protect. Needless to remind that this is the system that was created to protect all from harm. In a video that dominated millions of screens within a few hours, we can see that despite people recording, begging, and pleading for the officer to stop, he refused to. The man tells the officer repeatedly he can’t breathe. They do not listen even as he begs for his mother. He dies with a police … [Read more...] about Editorial: Let’s go beyond the labels and standard statements
Activism solves some social issues, not all
By Cherae Hunt | Asst. News Editor | I think that activism and protesting does cause social change as long as the cause is absent of violence. As of June 26, The LGBT community has the right to be married legally in the United States. There have been protests for gay rights since 1924 with “the earliest gay rights organization The Society of Human rights in Chicago,” according to infoplease.com For 89 years the LGBT community has been fighting for the same rights as any heterosexual couple. New York City’s Stonewall Inn police raid in 1969 was probably one of the most influential gay rights protests in history. When the mafia-owned bar that offered a safe place for gay men and … [Read more...] about Activism solves some social issues, not all
College student starts petition against Sallie Mae
By Tom Stillwagon |Staff Writer| A growing online petition has student loan giant Sallie Mae re-examining the $50 forbearance fee it charges private borrowers. On Tuesday, Feb. 7 college student Stef Gray held a press conference on starting a petition against Sallie Mae on a website called change.org. The petition has grown to more than 110,000 names in the last two weeks. Gray is in opposition to a $50 forbearance fee charged to borrowers, a fee Sallie Mae charges to postpone repayment until the borrower can afford to resume. The monies collected were referred to by Sallie Mae as “good faith deposits” even though none of the money was refundable or being applied to borrower's … [Read more...] about College student starts petition against Sallie Mae
Occupy Riverside: the protest around the corner
By Norberto Perez |Staff Writer| While Occupation movements on the East Coast are about to test their resolve against freezing temperatures and Occupation Oakland supporters have recently tasted tear gas the newly created Occupy Riverside supporters are just getting their shoes broken in. After camping out all night on Main street in tents a group of about 40 marched up Magnolia and 14th to the front of Bank of America. Some carried protest signs; One carried a bullhorn. Lisa, who amplified her message toward the brisk Saturday morning traffic was greeted by passers-by with their car horns. While the protest group walks in an elongated path from University Ave. to 14th St. … [Read more...] about Occupy Riverside: the protest around the corner
Occupy Wall Street Protests reach Riverside
By Monica Gallegos |Staff Writer| The protests of Occupy Wall Street have inspired similar “occupations” in local areas such as Riverside, which have become known as Occupy Riverside. Occupy Riverside is a part of the leaderless resistance movement, that consists of protesters staying at Main Street Mall on Main and University Streets in Riverside. “We’re occupying our lives here, it’s not an invasion,” said protester James Williams. “We’re acting out against our government.” This occupation is a branch of Occupy Wall Street, which began Sept. 17. It’s protesting social and economic inequality in America. Their slogan is “We are the 99 percent,” referring to the difference of … [Read more...] about Occupy Wall Street Protests reach Riverside
CSUSB encourages embracing sexuality
By Norberto Perez |Staff Writer| October is National Coming-Out Series presented by the Santos Manuel Student Union (SMSU) Pride Center. The week-long event allows for a window of opportunity to come out rather than the single international coming out day that fell on Oct. 11. But coming out doesn’t necessarily occur to planned events. Megan Rush, graduate assistant, worked the counter at the CSUSB Pride Center helped anybody that comes into the Safe Zone. The mission statement aims to respect “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning and intersex students and their allies (LGBTQQAI) but “greater campus community” to include “people of all races, ethnicity, socio-economic … [Read more...] about CSUSB encourages embracing sexuality