80 Arrested at UCLA in Protest of Affirmative Action Ban
More than 80 demonstrators protesting Proposition 209 were arrested at UCLA on Tuesday night after occupying Royce Hall on the campus for most of the day.
About 500 people, members of a student group called the Affirmative Action Coalition, marched through the campus and peacefully entered Royce Hall at about 12:30 p.m. After allowing students and faculty to leave, about 150 of the protesters remained to occupy the building, said Jeff Snyder, a spokesman for UCLA. Many of those students later left.
UCLA Chancellor Albert Carnesale met with the students, who demanded that he denounce Proposition 209 publicly, that UCLA refuse to comply and that UCLA launch a campaign to repeal the proposition.
Carnesale said in a statement that the university values diversity but that it must abide by the law, and Proposition 209 is the law.
More than 100 campus and Los Angeles police in riot gear were called in to arrest the demonstrators. They were taken into custody without incident.
The proposition ended affirmative action in state hiring and contracting and in admissions to state universities.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
