In an email sent to "the campus community" today, Executive Vice Chancellor George W. Breslauer and Vice Chancellor-Administration and Provost Nathan Brostrom said, "This morning a temporary barrier was placed around the trees that are currently occupied by protesters. Based on the UC Police Department's analysis and recommendations we decided that this would be a necessary and prudent step to ensure the safety of game-day fans and the protesters."
"We must emphasize that this is not in any way part of an effort to forcibly remove protesters from the grove. We have reluctantly accepted their unauthorized presence since last December, and while we will continue to evaluate that policy of tolerance we expect it to continue until the lawsuits are resolved."
As the fence was being erected this morning, an indeterminate number of protesters remained in the trees. Several at the event guesstimated the current number of sitters, but none of the estimates agreed.
The new fence surrounds all the trees occupied by sitters but is somewhat inset from each of the various perimeters (sidewalks and pathways) so it will not affect normal foot traffic in the area. Due to its location, the fence will have to be removed before any construction of the High Performance Center begins (the whole area will have to be excavated to accomodate the largely underground facility), so clearly the fence does not "constitute a start of the project" as some protesters asserted today. (Protestors refer to the project in disparaging terms, referring to it as a "gym")
The fence appears to be a tall chain link fence (10 feet?) but since only poles were installed at the time the accompanying pictures were taken, whatever additional deterrents might be mounted on the top rail remain unknown.
University spokespersons insisted that the fence is temporary even if it is evidently sturdy. One commented that the fence would be taken down as soon as the lawsuit now before the Alameda County Superior court was resolved; another said it would remain in place through the football season if deemed necessary for public safety.
Assistant Chief (of UC Police) Mitch Celaya said that the purpose of the fence was to protect public safety, both for the tree protestors and the public, particularly given the multitude of fans who will be attending the football game this Saturday.
Judge Barbara Miller of the Alameda County Superior Court imposed an injunction on February 10, 2007 enjoining the University from taking any action to implement their construction plans for the area - if those actions would result in changes to the physical environment. While the new fence certainly qualifies as a physical change, the University may have good legal grounds for the steps taken.
As reported at this web site on February 19th in an article titled "Cal Wins Important Victory in Court",
The judge appeared to accept Cal's argument that the court order should not interfere with Campus police' ability to enforce campus law, and at one point said that whatever the campus police wanted to do with the protestors was entirely up to them. During these discussions, the judge noted that "free speech" issues were not a part of the trial - and that she had no jurisdiction to order either tree-sitter removal or their continued presence. "If you want to litigate free speech issues, take those up in federal court," she said. As previoulsy noted, the trial is about environmental issues, so her injunction was directed at preventing changes in the environment; the protesters and free speech issues are not involved in the trial. The attorneys for the plaintiffs did not object to these comments by the Judge.
In response to a journalist's question this morning, one university spokesperson said that the fence was being built using Athletic Department funds, that "no taxpayer funds were involved."
As expected, protestors saw the event differently than did university spokespersons. They claimed that the fence was an effort to "starve out the tree-sitters," while Chief Celaya said there would be no effort made to prevent outsiders from passing food or water over the barrier. Celaya calmly answered questions from several protestors and media representatives (see photos here), even when the tone of the questions turned confrontational. When he later turned to walk away from the group, shouts of "Criminals!" were directed at him.
An Editorial:
University officials I have spoken to are hopeful that Cal fans attending the game Saturday will refrain from interacting with the protestors in any manner whatsoever.
It would be best for Cal, for Cal fans, and for the football program if no ugly or unfortunate incidents happen. The tolerance that Berkeley and Cal are famous for needs to be showcased on Saturday.
No taunts please, and certainly no throwing of any objects. Don't forget, this game will be televised nationally, and it is a near dead certainty that one or more TV cameramen will be roaming out there hoping for some notorious pictures that can be broadcast nationwide. In time-honored tradition in Berkeley as elsewhere, protestors may try to provoke news-making responses.
So you can help, too, if you see a Cal fan - one who hasn't heard this message - behaving inappropriately. If you think it appropriate, a kind soft word about restraint might help. Let's make this a community effort.
At a time when Cal Athletics are striving for a prominent place on the national stage, as the University has long done in academics, Cal fans have the opportunity to make a classy statement here too. Let's be sure that's the message the world takes from this event.
A Photo Gallery:
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Bear Insider Photo
Asst Chief Celaya and Running Wolf |
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Guarding the Fence Project |
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A Long Row of Fence Poles |
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Police and "Habitat" |
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Rotohammer Installing Pole |
For the last photo an audio file is attached; for those who wish, you can hear the sound of the rotohammer this morning. Click Here to listen.
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