A student protest organized by Students Fight Back brought people together at the Friendship Walk on Tuesday afternoon.
The approximate 50 students marched through Cal State Long Beach to spread the word about budget cuts, with some students coming and going.
“Education should be free — no cuts, no fees!” the people chanted as they made their way through the campus. Students on their break looked at the group curiously, while some chanted along.
Because of the state budget cuts, student fees have gone up by a total of $978 this year for undergraduate students. Staff and faculty have had to take furlough days twice a month.
“Some people might see the furlough days as a day off, but I don’t think that way,” said Brian Wood, a junior psychology major.
Students have also felt a strong impact from the budget cuts.
“I haven’t bought any books new; I am buying only used books or using my friends’ books, and I am working 37 hours a week to be able to pay for all my stuff,” said John Salgado, a junior business major. “I feel sorry for the younger people; the budget cuts are affecting them more than the people graduating now.”
Police kept an eye on the group as it made its way across campus. According to Doug Kauffman, CSULB student and Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER) L.A. activist, the police were looking after administration personnel and making sure the protesters did not go inside the buildings.
Kauffman was pleased with how the protest turned out.
“We started off small, but we grew as we went, and many students found out about the Students Fight Back [organization],” he said.
The people from ANSWER L.A. and the Party for Socialism and Liberation led the group to Maxson Plaza, where they gave protesters the chance to take over the megaphone and express their opinions on the effects of the budget cuts.
Nicholas Dibs, a 37th congressional district Independent candidate and teacher in Long Beach Unified School District, said he can relate to how students are feeling.
“I am a former student of CSULB, and when I was a student here, the tuition fee was $400 per semester,” he said at the rally.
As a teacher, Dibs said he recognizes the cuts in education.
“It is ridiculous to cut education,” he said. “Why is it that we spend a billion dollars an hour on war, destruction and death, and yet we don’t have enough money for health care, jobs and education?”
Dibs said the budget cuts are working against the interest of the American people.
“By cutting back and raising tuition fee on the campuses across the state, we’re making it more difficult for students to attend college. That means less students attend college,” Dibs said. “We need more educated workforce, not less educated workforce.”
He added, “We are sabotaging our own economy and the future of our nation by being penny-foolish.”