[Update: 2:26 pm ET]
Occupy Wall Street protesters in California are planning to shut down University of California campuses on Monday.
According to a post on the Occupy Wall Street website, the UC Board of Regents on Monday will propose “drastic” budget reductions and a massive increase of fees. And the protesters are calling for action.
But UC spokesperson Dianne Klein tells TPM there’s no vote on Monday on budget issues or fee increases.
“There’s not a shred of truth in that,” she said. I don’t know where they got that.”
The “Occupy” proposal comes from protesters at UC Davis, where a shocking pepper spraying incident unfolded on Friday. The incident has sparked a national outcry, and students are using the opportunity to protest skyrocketing tuition within the UC system.
“In the midst of the economic crisis, the Regents have intensified their pursuit of the project of privatization and de-funding that diminish the quality of education and quality of life for those across the UC, while consigning students’ futures to greater and greater sums of debt.”
Klein said the university system will have security at the meetings, as it always does. But the time for public comment at the meeting has been extended to one hour, she said. A spokeswoman at UC Davis said the campus had not been informed yet on how to specifically prepare for the strike, which will attempt to block the regents’ vote in addition to shutting down UC campuses.
“This will entail total campus participation in shutting down the operations of the university on the 28th, including teaching, working, learning, and transportation, as we will collectively divert our efforts to blocking their vote[s],” the proposal reads. “In doing so, students, faculty and workers assert the power–and the will–to effectively represent and manage ourselves.”
The UC system did not immediately return TPM’s request for comment.
Read the full proposal here.
