The UCLA Black Alumni Association (UBAA) condemns and deplores any and all actions that jeopardize the safety of students exercising their first amendment rights on the UCLA campus. Acts of violence in any form are contrary to UCLA’s mission to promote lively public debate conducted with mutual respect and free from intimidation. We urge the university to take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of all students and to make campus safety a top priority. 

 

UCLA has a long tradition of debate and protest by students who took stances that were not popular with the general public. UBAA has a proud legacy of student activists who rode buses into the Deep South to protest Jim Crow in the 1960’s. Our alumni participated in mass student demonstrations against the Vietnam War and were major leaders of the anti-apartheid sit ins on the UCLA campus during the mid 1980’s. UBAA supports the right of all students to demonstrate without fear on campus. Disagreement does not justify the use of force and we urge UCLA to take the necessary precautions to keep students safe when exercising their right to free speech.