UC faculty senate members- The UC is proposing a number of policies that would escalate police power on campuses including a creation of a system wide SWAT style force. Details here https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf
The comment period ends TODAY. Email a comment to the chair of your senate

Here's more details from the Riverside Faculty Association.
"The proposed changes include an updated “Use of Force” policy; a new “Body Worn Audio” policy; a new “Systemwide Response Team” policy; and a new “Concealed Carry Weapons” policy."
https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf

UC faculty, read the proposed changes https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf
and comment TODAY by emailing the chair of your campus faculty senate.

The Riverside Faculty Association is calling on the proposed escalation of policing on UC campuses to be withdrawn immediately.
https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf
If you are a member of the UC Faculty senate, please please email the chair of your senate TODAY with a comment.

Here's the equipment the proposed University of California "System Wide Response Team" will carry. Equipment that they can use against the UC community-students, staff and faculty. Note: it includes chemical agents
https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf

Let's look at the justification of arming UC cops with chemical agents to use against students, staff, and faculty. Oh wait, there isn't really any justification for this.

Exactly. Long Range Acoustic Devices (LRADs) are sometimes known as sound cannons. They are regularly used against protestors, and are considered "sound weapons" by the ACLU. https://www.aclu.org/sites/default/files/field_document/acoustic_weapons.pdf https://twitter.com/__WhiPP__/status/1384918546849927169?s=20

The UC has a history of using their police force to enact violence against student protestors (2011), against striking graduate students at UC Santa Cruz in 2020.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UC_Davis_pepper_spray_incident https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2021/01/22/uc-santa-cruz-grad-student-sues-campus-police-alleging-brutality

There are going to be protests on UC campuses in the future. Instead of investing resources into addressing the root causes of the protests, the UC plans on heavily arming cops so they can crack heads and gas students, staff, and faculty. https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf

So if you are a member of the UC Faculty Senate please send a comment TODAY to the chair of faculty senate about the proposed changes to UC policing https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf

Yup https://twitter.com/mikamckinnon/status/1384926168051326976?s=20

The UC chronically underfunds UC Riverside & UC Merced as is outlined in this @latimes article https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-04-08/uc-grapples-allegations-funding-inequities-racism
Yet instead of addressing the inequities students face, they put $$ into policing with the express purpose of suppressing students https://twitter.com/AnneWHilborn/status/1384912549351669765?s=20

I missed this at the time but @ucftp has a thread on the proposed escalation of policing at the UC https://twitter.com/ucftp/status/1383152010845851655?s=20

Also the policy statement section on body cams emphasizes over and over again how the UC puts officer safety before public safety. I guess UC admin are making it clear that they are more concerned about cops than the safety of the UC community. https://senate.universityofcalifornia.edu/_files/underreview/gold-book-systemwide-review.pdf

Thanks Sara!! https://twitter.com/secanno/status/1384949697446617092?s=20

If you are UC affiliated and would like to email UC president Michael Drake with concerns about the proposed escalation of police powers on campus, @secanno has put up her letter as a guide. https://twitter.com/secanno/status/1384949697446617092