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Students React to Pepper Spray, Funding Plan (VIDEO)

After convening a press conference on campus to talk about being pepper-sprayed by police, Santa Monica College students share their thoughts on the school's plan for two-tiered funding.

"I got pepper sprayed and all I got was this lousy t-shirt," was what Santa Monica College student Christina Deal wore to a press conference Wednesday.

She and other opponents of the college's new plan to offer classes at cost to students—at a price higher than the subsidized rate they currently pay—were among the 15-30 pepper-sprayed Tuesday night by a campus police officer.

They were sprayed as they overran a Board of Trustees meeting. The board chambers were overcapacity and students say they wanted their opinions to be heard. But college officials say the students “acted unlawfully.”

Students convened a press conference on the steps of the college library to share personal anecdotes from last night's events.

"The first thing that happened to me was that an officer grabbed me around the neck and placed me in a choke hold," Deal said. "I was doing nothing violent, I was just standing at the front when I was assaulted."

See her and other students' reactions to the new funding model, and to being pepper-sprayed, by watching the video above this article. 

READ MORE ABOUT THE INCIDENT:

Milan Moravec April 5, 2012 at 12:22 am
Let us not forget the students at the University of California berkeley. With the recommendation of UC Berkeley Chancellor Birgeneau, Provost Breslauer allowed campus police to use excessive force - rammed baton jabs - on students protesting Birgeneau‘s doubling of instate tuition. Opinions make a difference; email UC Board of Regents marsha.kelman@ucop.edu
maliagirl April 5, 2012 at 02:40 am
I am a mother of a student at SMC and he was there when the students were peppered sprayed. We are furious that this is going on. No they should not raise the fees again like they already did when schwartenegger was Govenator.
Take the $600 Billion spent on Defense, stop building roads in Afghanistan an killing innocent women, children and old men there so that our military comes back and commits suicide here because of what they are doing there to innocent civilians. Now The Campus police is pepper spraying our innocent Civilians, while sex offenders are running around free because of stupid plea bargains and are sitting in AA meetings looking for their next prey. Wake up everyone and lets all fight back. We have the funds. I am paying the taxes. They are using OUR MONEY for a war NONE of us believe in . Its our money. Lets take back our country. USE the $ 600 Billion to fund edcaution in America again.
proudrepub April 5, 2012 at 10:29 am
Ok you want to cut the Military and weeken our defence? Just so your little johny can go to school for free. To begin with it is in the constitution for the goverment to provide for the defence of the nation. NOT for the goverment to pay for your little Johny to go to school. Higher education is privalage not a right.
You want someone on the east coast to pay for your little boy to go to school. Be a parent and take responsibility for your childs education, and pony up the money. If your complainining about a $200.00 for a class? what a small little world you live in. I'm paying close to 5 times that per class. Without any help. Since you want everybody to pay for your sons education what do we get for your little johny's time at school. What is the return on my investment for your son going to school learning to sing Kumbiya. When you elect liberals and want all those social programs the money has to come from somewhere. When that money runs out what do you do? Raise taxes, or raise the costs of doing business.
Jared Morgan (Editor) April 5, 2012 at 12:01 pm
An educated society is a more prosperous society, no matter which class stratum you're in. I'm not saying that higher education for state residents or federal citizens should be more subsidized, but it certainly would be a good investment.
I'm the product of both state and federal education subsidies. I partially paid for college with the G.I. Bill, state grants and private grants, so you can't presume that just because someone is pro-subsidies, they are also pot-smoking, Kumbaya-singing, subsidy-wasting hippies. @proudrepub, why do you pay five times more in tuition?
John April 5, 2012 at 12:33 pm
Do people not read the plan? This is a summer program designed to get students the classes they need to transfer. They can wait till fall and pay the regular tuition. Smc students are paying more then this in the summer time king to ucla and Csun to take the classes. Stop comparing To uc Davis. The students at Smc were not engaged in a peaceful protest.
proudrepub April 5, 2012 at 12:34 pm
It should be the student responsiblity to Invest into their own education. No body elses. I do not dis-agree with you in that the better educated a society the better off we are. However, it should be the student to pay for it not me. As far as being 5 times the rate on tuition, each class I take is a $1000. The differance being is that is at a top Engineering school. Not a community collage. The better the education the more it costs.
Would you want a Doctor that went to Harvard Medical or one that went to Kumbiya Medical.? You get what you pay for.
Linda Rubin April 5, 2012 at 04:35 pm
I'm still not entirely sure who the $180/unit fee is for. Just keep in mind that a "unit" is not a class. Most classes are three units. When I attended SMC only 2 years ago, tuition was $26/unit.
Dee Cappelli April 5, 2012 at 05:07 pm
The fee hike is not the issue. The students were pepper-sprayed! It has become too easy for the powerful to immediately react to opposition with violence. No one was listening to the students so they made an effort to be heard by attending the meeting. By all accounts the students did not escalate in any way that justifies the violence of being pepper-sprayed. To meet words and descent with pepper spray is the brutal weapon of a group that knows it will not be held accountable.
JimmyJimmy April 6, 2012 at 04:11 am
Yes, more money for bombs and less for education. How can educating as many people who want it help an economy anyway?
Proudrepub, you sound smart!
JimmyJimmy April 6, 2012 at 04:17 am
Then you are short sighted. "Sure educating as many people as possible will strengthen our economy, and make us a stronger and healthier country, but I DON"T WANT TO PAY FOR IT".
Wow.
JimmyJimmy April 6, 2012 at 04:18 am
Agreed!
proudrepub April 6, 2012 at 01:32 pm
@ JimmyJimmy
If your going to to quote me at least make it correct. "better educated a society the better off we are. However, it should be the student to pay for it not me." We are already paying for the k-12 education. Beyond that it is the students own responsibility to get that advanced education. By the time they graduate high school they are adults, old enough to vote and go to war. The responsibility of the government to educate them should end at high school. How many students get the federal grants, free money just to go and party. Wasting hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars.
Mr. Beach Boy April 8, 2012 at 08:48 pm
Wow a choke hold? I've watched the video 15 times, if it was a choke hold, she would have been unconcious. Bunch of drama queens.

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stewart resmer June 18, 2013 at 02:35 pm
Vice President Joe Biden tried Tuesday to rally Congress to act on gun control legislation, sayingRead More that "the country has changed and [politicians] will pay a political price for not getting engaged and dealing with gun safety." "As proud as the president and I am of the progress we have made, we need Congress to act," Biden said in a speech delivered at the White House. "The American people are demanding it. We need to make sure that the voices of the ones we lost are the loudest ones we here in this fight." Specifically, Biden was referring to politicians like Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), who saw her approval rating plummet after she voted against legislation that would expand background checks. Sen. Jeff Flake's (R-AZ) and Sen. Mark Begich's (D-AK) ratings also took a nosedive. On the otherside, Democrats in red states, like Sens. Mary Landrieu (LA) and Kay Hagan (NC), got a slight boost in their approval ratings after they voted in favor of the gun control legislation. The vice president also released a set of federal guidelines Tuesday for developing high quality emergency operations for schools, higher education institutions and places of worship. "We made sure the guide reflects all the lessons we've learned over the years," he said.
Joanne June 14, 2013 at 12:34 pm
Read it! Agree! Let's go!!!
Joanne June 14, 2013 at 12:39 pm
Also, check out the Santa Monica Mirror coverage of the Chamber of Commerce Installation, where itRead More was held and who was present!!!
Joanne June 14, 2013 at 12:41 pm
Talk about "sleeping with the enemy".....just sayin'
Fran Beeler June 7, 2013 at 07:28 am
They opened a new store upstairs at the corner of Sawtelle/Olympic Blvds. (Marshall's, Starbucks)
V.P.A. June 9, 2013 at 06:28 am
Was the question was about a STORE or a question about the Restaurant 'Michaels'?
Michelle June 18, 2013 at 06:33 am
The store. Thanks!