An hour after the banners were put up, campus police took down them down and put them in the trash, on the grounds that they were protecting state property. This is a blatant attack on the freedom of expression. PSU members will continue to exercise their rights on campus.

E.H Hereford was the former dean of UTA from 1949 to 1958 and was largely responsible for the pro-Confederate culture present on the campus at the time, as well as attempting to delay integration after Brown v. Board of Education was passed for as long as he was legally allowed to. This is a man that the UTA administration honors with a statue and a building named after him, while at the same time touting the racial diversity of the student body as a selling point to donors as well as incoming students. This hypocritical contradiction is one that PSU members have called to attention in the campaign to get Hereford’s name and statue removed from the University Center.

More than 1500 students have expressed the desire to remove Hereford’s statue, and with this growing support the students will not stop until their demands have been satisfied.

#ArlingtonTX #Antiracism #ProgressiveStudentUnion

The demands presented to Madden were the result of months of research, collaboration and consultation with other student organizations and community groups. They are as follows:

1. All buildings will have menstrual healthcare product dispensers, with quality menstrual healthcare products, purchased by the administration of Jennifer Evans Cowley directly, and have them properly installed prior to 2024.

2. UTA will expand menstrual product accessibility to all women's bathrooms, all gender-neutral bathrooms, and start rolling out in men's bathrooms via dispensers prior to 2024. In addition, UTA will increase, by threefold, the amount of gender-neutral bathrooms on campus.

3. The maintenance and restocking of these dispensers will be shouldered by the actual direct administration of UTA, and not mainly shouldered by the departments or volunteers directly as has been the case since fall 2021.

4. UTA will protect the rights of trans athletes on campus to be part of the teams that reflect their gender identity, and do more to make social transition easier on campus.

5. UTA will consistently secure funding and protect the DEI program and all related institutions involving diversity, e.g. student organizations, ethnic study programs, and LGBTQ+ inclusion programs, rather than cut or defund these programs in face of attacks.

The group's main objective was to secure the victory for free high quality menstrual products and to make trans and non-binary people safe on campus.

Madden agreed to the first three demands but was unable to make any promises or statements on the DEI programs currently under threat. The university is currently facing budget cuts, and the DEI programs are at risk of being reduced or eliminated.

The Progressive Student Union expressed disappointment with the administration's response but remained determined to continue their advocacy efforts. The group plans to escalate their actions and continue to mobilize support from the student body and the wider community.

In conclusion, the PSU's demands represent a crucial step in addressing the systemic inequalities and injustices that exist in higher education. The group's efforts are a testament to the power of student activism and the need for continued advocacy to create a more just and equitable society.

#ArlingtonTX #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Seattle, WA – On February 2, the Progressive Student Union (PSU) and Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán (MEChA) hosted a joint screening of the film Walkout.

Leading up to this event, MEChA and PSU spent weeks flyering and tabling together in order to spread the word. Forty people attended the film screening, held at the University of Washington’s Ethnic Cultural Center.

The film Walkout depicts the East Los Angeles blowouts of 1968 from the perspective of high school student Paula Crisostomo. Throughout the film, students organized against school bans on speaking Spanish, locking of restrooms, janitorial work as punishment, and the “pushing out” of Chicano students. By consistent and dedicated organizing, the students were able to mobilize 15,000 students in East LA to walk out of class in protest of inequality in the public school system. By the end of the film, the students won their demands, college enrollment among Chicanos dramatically increased, and charges that were placed against organizers were dropped.

Carlos Montes, a veteran Chicano activist who helped lead the 1968 walkouts, is portrayed in the film.

PSU and MEChA decided to show this film to a broader audience because knowing the history of past struggles is necessary to inform the fight for Chicano self-determination, as well as the ongoing student movement as a whole. After the film, PSU and MEChA facilitated a discussion on the role of police in suppressing student movements and the importance of the Chicano identity today.

Attendees had a lot to say about the film and its significance. “Nowadays the term Chicano is more of a cultural label, but as this film depicts it has its roots in political struggle. We need to bring back the political aspect, especially now in as time where Chicanos and Mexicans are facing heavy repression from the state,” said Adrián Manzano, a community member who attended the screening.

#SeattleWA #ChicanoLatino #MovimientoEstudiantilChicanoDeAztlánMEChA #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Arlington, TX – On November 10, at the University of Texas at Arlington, over 100 students gathered in front of College Hall shouting “Transphobes go home!” and “This is what community looks like,” showing their outrage at the platforming of the transphobic bigot Jeff Younger.  Younger had been invited to speak by Turning Point USA (TPUSA) following his primary defeat in the Texas House of Representatives race. Jeff Younger’s entire campaign was built on attempting to further criminalize trans healthcare for youth in the United States.

The Progressive Student Union (PSU) organized the rally and united with other groups from the community such as the Gender and Sexuality Alliance, the Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Young Democratic Socialists of America, the John Brown Gun Club and others.

In the days leading up to the event, the university had sent alerts to students reiterating that the university was “committed to free speech,” yet on the day of the event had erected police camera towers directly where the rally was to be held. UTA administrators showed their commitment to protecting the bigot while stripping away the rights of students speaking out against them.

While TPUSA had invited reactionaries from around the area, such as Kelly Neidert and Ali Jmal, in an attempt to intimidate those who sought to protest Yonger’s speech, the people clearly outnumbered them on the day of the rally and their feeble attempts to disrupt the rally were shouted down by  rally participants. It is abundantly clear that the support of the community lay with PSU and that TPUSA has no support in this community, having to really on shipping in out-of-towners to bolster their meager numbers.

Speakers included lawyer Dan Sullivan of FRSO and several PSU members, who went on to say we need to support the trans community when it is under attack by violent rhetoric from those who say “trans people don’t exist.” A member of GSA spoke on how UTA’s diversity talking points feel hollow when they continue to prop up and defend both transphobes and transphobic organizations like TPUSA.

The event culminated in the occupying of the space of the front door of the building and PSU President Mark Napieralski banging on the door, leading the over 100 students in chants of “Jeff Younger, go home.” The rally was a resounding success, and the hope is that the university administration will think twice before approving hate speech on our campus.

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #ProgressiveStudentUnion #UniversityOfTexasArlington

Arlington, TX – On October 31, the Progressive Student Union held a silent protest at the University of Texas at Arlington's presidential open forum and Q and A with newly inducted President Jennifer Cowley. The students arrived with signs in hand and with a large banner boldly stating “E.H. Hereford was a segregationist! UTA should not honor this!” The Progressive Student Union demands UTA rename the University Center, presently named the E.H. Hereford University Center; take down Herefords bust in the same building, and rename the neighboring Woolf Hall.

The two buildings are named in honor of former university presidents who fought integration efforts of the Civil Rights Act and promoted white supremacy on campus. PSU felt that as one of the newest leaders at UTA, President Cowley needed to be directly asked about the issue.

At first, Cowley praised former President Woolf, an infamous segregationist, for integrating UTA back in 1962 – and after repeated questioning and revealing the racist nature of Woolf and Hereford she partially backtracked on the praise.

When it came down to the question of her agreeing to a binding referendum on the University Center’s name, Cowley continually refused to take any responsibility on the issue. When Justin Bent, PSU’s vice president, directly asked her if she would do her part in the process – she again refused to take any ownership on confronting the white supremacist segregationists that are currently being honored and platformed on campus.

This action was to show that while UTA may try to whitewash and ignore what has been brewing on campus, nearly 700 students have signed a petition to remove Woolf and Hereford’s names on their current buildings and move the bust from its current place. Like the saying, “The long memory is the most radical idea,” PSU is forcing UTA to grapple with its defense of white supremacists sooner rather than later.

#ArlingtonTX #ProgressiveStudentUnion #UniversityOfTexasArlington

Arlington, TX – In the many decades since the University of Texas at Arlington ended segregation, students have fought long and hard to end the university’s practice of glorifying white supremacy.

From protests against the university’s previous Confederate rebel mascot, to the more recent renaming of the E.E. David administration building, UTA students are continuing the struggle for equality by insisting the school stop honoring two past presidents and blatant white supremacists, Jack R. Woolf and E.H. Hereford.

Over a dozen students from the UTA Progressive Student Union (PSU) were involved in a demonstration on October 19, calling for the removal of Hereford’s name and statue from the EH Hereford University Center, bringing to attention Hereford’s racist policies as UTA’s first president. A large banner, which blocked Hereford’s statue from view, read “Hereford was a segregationist, UTA shouldn’t honor that.”

Several speakers from the organization detailed the egregious actions of the Hereford and Woolf administrations, condemning Hereford’s idealization of the Confederacy, Woolf’s mock slave auctions, and both of their vehement opposition to integration.

“The fact Hereford’s been honored for 60 years is a disgrace,” said Jay Rodriguez, the secretary of PSU. “A man who would have done everything to prevent me and my little brother from attending this school is being honored? That’s disrespectful and despicable.”

Justin Bent, the vice president of PSU, emphasized UTA’s hypocrisy, “UTA talks a lot about diversity, but has two buildings named after ardent segregationists. Is that right?” The crowd passionate answered “No!” Another speaker, Mark Napieralski, detailed how Hereford laid the racist foundations that the Woolf administration would continue to expand. “You can’t have ‘Old South Day’ without the Confederate theme.”

The UTA Progressive Student Union has garnered over 560 signatures in an ongoing petition supporting the movement, and the resolution to bring this issue as a referendum on the next student election ballot is still alive and well.

The message is clear, UTA students want Hereford and Woolf gone, along with any ties to the university’s reactionary past. The names Hereford and Woolf invoke thoughts of a bygone and bigoted era.

#ArlingtonTX #PeoplesStruggles #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Arlington, TX – On September 7, the Progressive Student Union held a rally here to speak out against the reversal of Roe v. Wade, as part of a wider national day of action called by Students for a Democratic Society.

Texas is one of the few states that has nearly banned abortion outright via its “trigger law” from 2019, but there are exceptions for the mother’s life being in danger. Given this reality PSU organized the rally to call upon new University of Texas at Arlington President Jennifer Evans-Cowley to protect abortion on the UTA campus. This sentiment was echoed by many students over the course of planning and building up for the rally, and PSU invited community organizations to speak on abortion rights, such as the Afiya Center. Over 70 students came to protest the reversal of Roe v. Wade, and demanded that UTA provide legal abortions on campus, be more transparent about pill access on campus, and make a public statement concerning the enshrining the protection of abortion rights on campus.

As students rallied, there was an attempted disruption by the local “pro-life” organization on campus as well as the local Turning Point USA – fresh from their controversy involving bigots being in student government. They attempted to harass and prevent PSU members from speaking on why abortion rights are healthcare rights – but the crowd shut them down by demanding “Let them speak!” Once again, the student body at UTA showed that bigotry or right-wing reactionaries have no place on campus.

Maria Pettites spoke on behalf of the Afiya Center and the work they do to continue to both help provide for abortions in Texas, as well as continue to defend the right to abortion in Dallas. Another PSU speaker spoke specifically on how their own sibling had to get an abortion in order to continue their college career, and that these latest restrictions on abortion rights will have a compounding effect on students as well as women in general.

Students especially identified with the message that the Supreme Court – an institution that very rarely suffers from the reversal of rights it imposes – has rolled us back to an era we will not go back to, and that the only way forward, truly, is to build a movement to fight for our rights.

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #PeoplesStruggles #RoeVWade #ProgressiveStudentUnion #AbortionRights

This all began in 2019 when the Texas State legislature allowed UTA to raise the student union fee, which is a fee associated with the University Center (UC) on campus which most students have to pay. In January of 2022 the administration had presented a proposal to student government for them to adopt a resolution that would help make this happen. This resolution called for a referendum to raise student union fees under the auspices of “making a New UC” alongside having necessary renovations due to failing infrastructure. This quickly transformed from attempting to make necessary renovations to completing rebuilding the UC and adding an additional 50,000 square feet to the west of the building.

This fee increase would be a four-fold increase, from $39 per semester to $150, making it more expensive than most of the UT system schools student union fees. The caveat was that this fee increase would not take place until “significant construction” had been completed on the New UC.

What had not been properly conveyed is that the UT Systems Board and UTA administration reached an agreement whereby the UT Systems would grant a loan to help construct this ‘New UC’ which would approximately cost $100 million – but with the collateral that the student union fee increase be tied to it via a referendum in order to begin paying back the New UC the moment of its technical completion.

For months the administration, using the current student union fees, pushed forth attempts to galvanize support for their plans via townhall meetings, ads in the local student newspaper The Shorthorn, and having their workers constantly promote it. The administration used 2019 commissioned art pieces that were mock ideas on what the UC might look like, without saying the building would not look like what was shown.

Furthermore, the administration attempted to use progressive language to win over student activists, claiming that this new UC would allow UTA to truly “celebrate” its diverse past.

Progressive Student Union (PSU) kept an eye on the issue, and resolved to be the bulwark of the ‘No’ vote when the referendum came. During one of the townhalls PSU Chief Organizer Mark Napieralski, asked if the administration would provide a tuition freeze so that costs would be lower if the fee would actually take effect. John Hall, the administrator over the UC, said that was not an option. During the election, PSU members leafleted and told students to vote ‘No’ in order to maintain the affordability of the school. As an example of rising costs, for international and out-of-state students, tuition rose approximately $8000 dollars per year, from $22,000 to $30,000, just between 2018 to 2021.

Through these initiatives, the students voted and managed to come back with a narrow but significant victory – 733 students voted against the hike and 730 students voted for the hike.

Kolin Kilpatrick, a member of Progressive Student Union, stated, “If the university really wanted to improve student life they would fix the aging buildings we attend class in, and keeping the restaurants we already have open when students need them – as an example the current food court already has terrible hours for students, with the majority of restaurants closed before 11:00 and on weekends. The administration should focus on making things better for students while maintaining the affordability of the college, not raking up prices to build unnecessary new buildings.”

This was one of the many victories that students at UTA got during this semester, especially as the economic life in the country and for students especially gets worse as time goes on.

#ArlingtonTX #ProgressiveStudentUnion #UniversityOfTexasAtArlington

Arlington, TX – On September 1, the Progressive Student Union rallied 50 people to protest the recent attacks launched by Governor Greg Abbott and the GOP against women’s rights, and democracy. The most egregious of these attacks came in the form of an anti-abortion bill that sought to restrict the access to abortion in Texas to only the first six weeks of pregnancy, and made it a liable offense to offer aid in a woman getting an abortion in any way if it was beyond the first six weeks.

Mark Napieralski, chief organizer of PSU, spoke to the long history of Texas’s attempts to restrict and defund abortion providers in the state, dating all the way back to the early 2000s when Texas sought to specifically defund Planned Parenthood. He also spoke about the tragic reality of women seeking abortions when they were illegal, like Geraldine Santoro. “If abortions aren’t regulated and safe, we’re going to see more and more women dying painfully like Santoro,” he said.

Ebonee Richards, another chief organizer for PSU, helped lead in chants with the crowd such as “When women’s rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!” and “Abortion is a right!” She echoed that the attacks on abortion are fundamentally an attack on women’s rights, as they are the first steppingstone in attempting to push women back further into the background.

Syamon, a speaker and member of PSU, spoke of the two-pronged attack Abbott is waging against Texans as a whole. She recalled that attacking abortion rights are an instinctual fear of women becoming bolder, more independent, and having to not live in the background anymore. She spoke to the fact the GOP are using the same tools and institutions to attack democratic rights and women’s rights in one fell swoop.

She ended off the protest by saying, “We had a good turnout. I’m so glad to see so many new faces to UTA who were not just brave enough to believe in access to abortion, but fight for it as well. We can move mountains so long as we remain organized, mobilized, and ready to win!”

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #Healthcare #PeoplesStruggles #AbortionBan #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Arlington, TX – On February 10, the Progressive Student Union held a rally for accountability at the University of Texas at Arlington. PSU held the rally to determine the current status of the commitments made by the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) administration over six months ago.

One of the commitments from UTA was scholarships for Black and brown students. Upon further inspection it is seen that the dispersal of the scholarships meant to benefit students doesn’t begin until the fall of 2021. Given the current economic crisis, working families would find it extremely difficult to continue with schoolwork while still providing themselves with the basic necessities of daily life. Students going to UTA require the funds immediately and do not have the luxury to wait one whole year for these scholarships to be dispersed. Many regular students did not re-register for classes during the pandemic because of economic hardships.

At the rally PSU demanded answers on the promises made by the UTA administration. They demanded that the university committees present the minutes of their meetings so that the student body would be aware of the exact developments taking place. Updates regarding the hiring of Black and brown faculty have not reached the students as well.

The members of PSU say that UTA has not dealt with the issue of police crimes effectively – simply training cops to not be racist will not go far enough to stop police terror. Issuing complaints regarding police crimes have to be effective as well, because simply going to the police to complain against the police will achieve very little. One of the suggestions by PSU was to have the newly formed Committee for Diversity and Inclusion independently review police crimes.

PSU’s final demand was for UTA to regularly provide email updates regarding any developments they made in terms of diversity and equity.

These demands from PSU were put forward over the course of 2019 and 2020. PSU had several actions primarily demanding the university build a DREAM center for undocumented DACA students at the university. The DREAM Center would assist undocumented students seeking assistance with legal or citizenship issues.

In 2020 DACA recipients were under attack by the Trump administration and PSU felt the need to address this situation at UTA. PSU wanted significant investment of up to $5 million in scholarships for traditionally underrepresented oppressed nationalities. Additionally, PSU wanted the hiring of more Black and brown faculty and a commitment to actively retain these new faculty members by not underpaying these desperately needed members of the community. PSU also demanded UTA officially and publicly declare that it will pursue and uphold a non-compliance policy with Immigration Customs Enforcement. This means that they should actively refuse any warrants by ICE that are not signed by a judge, and not allow any ICE agents on to campus.

Despite several meetings and conversations with university officials, the administration at UTA failed to address this situation.

In the wake of the George Floyd and Black lives matter protests as well as PSU’s call-in campaigns, UTA finally responded to the demands on July 9, 2020. UTA made eight commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion with the appointment of a vice president-level office; reconstituting a Diversity and Inclusion Committee; developing a university-wide plan to enhance the recruiting, retention and promotion of underrepresented faculty and staff; creating more scholarships for low-income, first-generation and first-time-in-college students; developing and implementing diversity and inclusion training for all faculty and staff; incorporating diversity content into a required course for all new students; engaging directly with the UTA Police Department to ensure its approaches to community policing and adding staff and programming in the Office of Multicultural Affairs to enhance the services provided to our students.

Even though these were positive developments from the side of the university, the student body has only received one update from the president as to how these promises and commitments will be fulfilled. On August 19, the UTA administration sent out an email saying that a committee to recruit a new vice president was formed; a Committee on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion was formed and convened their first meeting; they enhanced the recruiting, retention, and promotion of underrepresented faculty and staff; designating an additional $25 million dollars to address student diversity and especially the financial concerns of first-generation college students as well as reviewing UTA Police Department’s policies.

The administration at UTA must fulfil the commitments they had promised. Bold words will do precious little to uplift the lives of the diverse students and faculty at UTA.

#ArlingtonTX #PeoplesStruggles #ProgressiveStudentUnion

In response to these recent victories, PSU has issued the following statement.

“The UTA Progressive Student Union has been carrying a campaign for change at the UTA campus from those in charge. Our campaign was based on the Black lives matter policies we wanted UTA to adopt into their system, as well as providing and expanding scholarships for minorities, and following through with the idea of investing in our diversity school. UTA has one of the highest percentages when it comes to diversity, but yet there were no services for their diverse population.”

The statement continued, “In our campaign we did call-ins and mass emailed now interim-President Teik Lim asking for support, action, and change for UTA. The Administration has now upheld our demands and will do the following: UTA will create a Vice President level office focusing on matters of diversity; The Diversity and Inclusion Committee will be reconstituted this fall; there will be more recruitment of underrepresented faculty and staff; adding $5 million dollars every year for the next 5 years for scholarships specifically for students with low incomes and 1st generation college students, as well as conceding on issues we did not put forward specifically but the movement to confront police brutality has brought to light such as doing internal reviews and investigations of UTAPD. We the UTA Progressive Student Union see this as a victory but it is only the first step in truly making sure that Black Lives Matter at UTA.”

This is a victory that will be repeated throughout all campus, as students around the country will not accept anything less than actual change in our time. We dared to struggle, and we dared to win – and the people are going to keep winning.

#ArlingtonTX #InJusticeSystem #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Arlington, TX – The Progressive Student Union (PSU) rallied 30 students and community members, June 18, demanding community control and defunding of the Arlington Police Department. “We need to remember why we are doing this,” said Arlington resident Adara Arrie. “This is not something to post on social media for a trend. Change has not happened,”

This rally is one of the many across this country calling for community control of the police and less over-policing in our communities.

“The Arlington Police Department receives $66 million,” said PSU organizer Mark Napieralski, “we could use that money to fund our communities, our health care, our education.”

Speakers recounted the Arlington Police Department’s history of brutality. The APD has murdered at least 13 people in the past seven years alone.

“Do not wait until your loved ones is dead for your voice to be heard,” said PSU member Ebony Taylor, “we should not be killed for the color of our skin.”

PSU ended the rally with taking a knee for eight minutes and 46 seconds at the major intersection of Abrams and Center Streets, to honor George Floyd’s memory.

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #AfricanAmerican #ChicanoLatino #PoliceBrutality #Antiracism #ProgressiveStudentUnion #ArlingtonPoliceDepartment #CPACNow

Dallas, TX – On Saturday, June 6, about 5000 people rallied in 100-degree weather at Belo Garden Park across the street from the Earle Cabell Federal Building in downtown Dallas, to demand justice for victims of police violence, community control of the police, and the resignation of Renee Hall, the chief of the Dallas Police Department.

The protest was called by the Dallas Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (DAARPR), Progressive Student Union at the University of Texas at Arlington American Muslims for Palestine Dallas, Migrante Texas, and Black Youth Project 100-Dallas. First the crowd heard speeches, starting off with an introduction by Syd Loving, coordinator of DAARPR, demanding community control of the police. Next was Jennifer Miller, co-coordinator of DAARPR, calling for the resignation of Chief Renee Hall in response to violent police attacks on protesters.

Those attacks included the case of Brandon Saenz, who lost his eye while peacefully attending a DAARPR-organized May 30 protest after being shot in the face by projectiles fired by the police. Tear gas was used and rubber bullets were fired on crowds of protesters – including children. Miller also mentioned the mass arrest of hundreds of protestors on June 1 at Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge. “Chief Hall, you are complicit and guilty of crimes against the city of Dallas, and the people who visit it!” declared Miller, “You have the moral duty and obligation to resign!”

Drew Carter, president of the Black Student Union at Rice University, talked about the connection of the modern police to slave patrols, and called for the removal of police occupying Black and brown communities. Avee Herrera of the National Alliance for Filipino Concerns-Texas, called for solidarity between the Black and Filipino community and linked the struggle in the Philippines against police terror to the struggle against police terror in the United States, pointing out that American police train Filipino police.

Fadya Risheq of American Muslims for Palestine spoke and linked the struggle of Palestinians against the Israel apartheid government to the struggle against police terror in the United States, mentioning that the Minneapolis Police Department received assistance from the Israeli Defense Forces. Next the crowd heard from Indianna Taylor of Black Youth Project 100-Dallas, who announced the demands for the city to divest in the Dallas Police Department and invest more in community services, to free incarcerated prisoners locked up unjustly, whether wrongfully convicted or convicted of low-level crimes, and an end to police brutality against Black people.

The crowd then marched around downtown Dallas past City Hall. The crowds chanted the names of recent victims of police terror such as George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, as well as chants such as “I can't breathe,” “Fuck 12,” “ACAB” and “No justice, no peace.” On their way back the marchers stopped and kneeled for eight minutes in memory of George Floyd and other victims of police terror. The crowd then returned to Belo Garden Park to hearing closing statements from the Dallas Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

#DallasTX #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #ProgressiveStudentUnion #DallasAllianceAgainstRacistPoliticalRepressionDAARPR #CommunityControlOfThePolice

Arlington, TX – The Progressive Student Union commenced a call-in campaign April 13 to get the administration at the University of Texas at Arlington to formally establish a Dreamer Center on their campus. Dreamer Centers exist already on several campuses, including University of Utah, Mountain View College, as well as UTA’s sister school the UT San Antonio. The latter has existed since 2018 due to student concerns that the undocumented students did not have adequate resources or protections due to the constant attacks on immigrants by the Trump administration.

This campaign was commenced as the university, now led by Chief Administrator and Provost Teik C. Lim, did not adequately respond to the demands the student organization had given to the administrators – which included, but were not limited to, $5 million in scholarships for traditionally underrepresented students, hiring four immigration lawyers, and making a plan to hire two Black and brown faculty members each year over the course of five years.

Instead the administration has pushed back against PSU, and the answering desk of the Office of the Provost said they would call the police on students who were giving their concerns.

In February, PSU had just managed to overcome attempted repression by the administration responding to their Rally for Dreamers back in November. Student activists in PSU are calling on all allies, friends and individuals to support the struggle of undocumented students on campus and oppose repression of students who are trying to create a better environment for their peers on campus.

#ArlingtonTX #ImmigrantRights #OppressedNationalities #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #ProgressiveStudentUnion #DreamerCenter #UniversityOfTexasArlington

Arlington, TX – The University of Texas at Arlington’s Progressive Student Union (PSU) held a rally for DACA recipients, November 14. The group, led by PSU President Mark Napieralski, delivered a list of ten demands to the administration, marching across the campus chanting, “No protection, no peace,” “Stand up, fight back,” “Black and brown immigrants matter,” and “Defend DACA.”

PSU delivered their demands to President Karbhari’s office, though he was available to receive them personally. Regardless, the office received the demands and promised to deliver them to Karbhari.

PSU’s demands included more representation for African Americans. Chicano/Latinos, Native Americans, and other oppressed nationalities in the school’s faculty, as well as a ‘DREAM Center’ on campus for immigrants. The organization believes that these groups are underrepresented at UTA. In addition, they requested more jobs on campus for students, DACA recipients or otherwise, as they believe it is important for all students to have more financial opportunities in order to combat the rising price of tuition at UTA.

The PSU also demanded that the school hire an immigration lawyer in order to ensure legal protection for immigrants, and that UTA should also allocate additional funds for scholarships that would go to students of color and undocumented immigrants who attend the school.

“DACA has been in place since Obama’s presidency, and the fact that the Trump administration is trying to take that away from them is something we are strongly against,” said Napieralski.

Financial aid for immigrants is also an important policy position for PSU, leading them to conclude that UTA should spend more time promoting TASFA, the Texas Application for State Financial Aid, as it is the primary method through which immigrants receive financial aid. TASFA allows foreign students living in Texas to apply for financial aid as a Texas resident.

Ebonee Richards Taylor, a PSU member, weighed in on TASFA, “Immigrant students deserve financial aid just as much as any other student, so promoting TASFA is essential,” she said.

Local news outlets, such as Channel 4 and the Star Telegram recorded the march.

After the protest, PSU members went to their weekly meeting, where they hosted special guest Tom Burke, who talked to them about the state of Venezuela, socialism and American influence in South America. Burke is a national leader of Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #PeoplesStruggles #DACA #ProgressiveStudentUnion

Arlington, TX – 60 people showed up at a protest organized by the Progressive Student Union (PSU) at the University of Texas at Arlington, September 4, against the Trump administration’s change to of policy on the detention of undocumented children.

Mark Napieralski, an organizer from the Progressive Student Union, spoke about how the Flores Agreement banned holding children indefinitely – and how the Trump administration is moving to keep children in indefinite detention in concentration camps along the southern border.

Speakers at the rally included Minister Katie Hays from the Galileo Church and Harold Chong from Intravarsity. Minister Hays focused on Jesus having been born to refugee parents and how the biblical narrative says that God’s place is with the marginalized. Chong spoke on the passage from Deuteronomy that states, “you must love the foreigner, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.”

The crowd grew with the passage of time, as the voices of the speakers reached students, administrative personnel and the members of various student organizations, who waited patiently in the oppressive summer heat to lend an ear to the cause that PSU was so determined to promote. Some of the crowd mentioned that they became quite emotional after they had learned about the atrocities that were happening in these concentration camps, saying that they would lend a hand in support for future protests.

Progressive Student Union member Arissa Moore spoke of the conditions these children face in the concentration camps, such as the lack of hygiene and little access to health related products, and the fact this has happened before, both to Japanese-Americans and Native Americans

Daniel Pichardo, PSU activist and local poet, shared the experiences of Mexican-Americans at the border and the United States. He pointed out that this is not a new occurrence, especially in a state that had once allowed the lynching of Mexicans in order to steal their property.

Students, faculty and community members stayed on to listen to the experiences, injustices and stories of hardship in this system of oppression by the Trump administration and closed the rally with one final chant, “No kids in cages! Close the camps!”

#ArlingtonTX #StudentMovement #OppressedNationalities #US #PeoplesStruggles #ChicanoLatino #immigrantRights #Antiracism #ProgressiveStudentUnion #DonaldTrump #concentrationCamps

Arlington, TX – University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) has a bust, and the University Center named, in honor of one of its first Presidents – Ernest H. Hereford. The bust was commissioned in October of 1958, a month before his death, and the center was renamed in his honor in February 1959 by the Texas A&M system. For almost 60 years the bust and center have stood at the University.

But it has come to light, due to research done by Progressive Student Union, that Hereford had principally, intentionally and purposefully created an environment on campus where racism was welcomed and celebrated; where the K.K.K. was an officially recognized student organization; where mock-slave auctions were school-authorized events; and where the Confederacy’s symbols became synonymous with the school, due to Hereford’s sanctioning and drive to make it so.

The KKK, otherwise known as the “Davis Hall Klansmen” or “Kampus Kadet Klub,” was a student organization on campus that existed from 1946 to 1956 during Hereford’s administration. They were heavily featured on the social calendars at the time, calendars which needed approval from his administration. They hosted the ‘KKK Dance’ and ‘KKK Nite Club’ events, but also were in charge of the military balls and the annual homecoming bonfires that were put on by the larger school.

The fact for a large portion of its existence, the KKK co-existed around the Rebel theme developments and the mock-slave auctions. This shows the type of environment that Hereford sought to cultivate and propagate – one that welcomed the Klan’s ideology and the Klan as an institution. While the Klan student group eventually dissolved in 1956 due to uncertainty of continuing it for another semester, the Klan’s ideology would outlive it through the Rebel theme.

The Rebel theme came about when Hereford, personally, began to instigate the change, as he felt the school was not in support of the then football theme – the Blue Raiders. On Sept. 18, 1951 the student body voted in favor of the ‘Rebels’ as opposed to the ‘Cadets.’ But, Hereford began to push a full on adoption of Confederate attire, the Confederate Battle flag, and put the Confederacy on a pedestal of honor. Under him, the Shorthorn, the school newspaper, would post praises about the Confederacy and even boast that one of the school’s founders was a “real Rebel!”

The Rebel theme would far outlive Hereford himself, who died in 1958, by at least another ten years for the Beauregard Battle Flag and 13 years if we specifically talk about the Rebels mascot.

Finally, mock slave auctions were a common occurrence at homecoming under Hereford. They were tolerated, school sanctioned events that, after his death, would become their own events known as “Old South Days” in the 60s. The Shorthorn itself would actively promote these events, as they were official events put on by the school.

Progressive Student Union has been putting up a petition to get the Hereford statue removed, the University Center renamed, and to set up a memorial dedicated to the three men, Ernest Hooper, Jerry Hanes and Leaston Chase III, who forced UTA to desegregate in 1962, as well as those who fought against the Rebel theme in the 1960s and early 70s.

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Arlington, TX – About 20 students and supporters marched through the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) campus during the noon hour, Sept. 21, carrying signs and chanting slogans against police brutality. The march was organized by Progressive Student Union.

Mark Napieralski, president of PSU, said that although the march provided an important opportunity to speak out on the recent police killings of Keith Scott and Tyre King, the protest had actually been planned for some time and is part of a campaign against police brutality that PSU is conducting. “We will be working against police brutality all semester, with the specific goal of getting UTA to take a clear stance against police brutality,” Napieralski explained.

The campus was a busy place, with many students out and about going to class or lunch and a large number of student organizations operating tables. Onlookers mostly responded positively to the march, flashing peace signs, clapping, and in a couple of cases joining in the march briefly.

Slogans included “Indict, convict, send those killer cops to jail,” and “If we don’t get no justice, they don’t get no peace.” Signs mostly carried the phrase “Black lives matter,” others bore the names of Tyre King, Terence Crutcher and Keith Scott.

After the march, the protesters gathered to discuss future actions. Two members of the UTA police department came over to the group to introduce themselves, but quickly got in an argument with a criminal justice student. The student, who said she worked at a police academy, was explaining the very limited amount of training on racial profiling that Texas police officers received. One of the UTA officers expressed disbelief and insisted the fact needed checking. Another protester responded, “That’s typical of police. You might not kill anyone yourself, you might not beat anyone yourself. But you will never admit anything the police do is wrong.”

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Mark Napieralski, an organizer with Progressive Student Union, had this to say about the event: “People had great fun beating Trump's effigy, but it will not be as easy to destroy the racism and reactionary politics that he represents. Trump represents a nasty shift to the right in this country's politics, though most of the other candidates are not far behind him. This event today demonstrates that many people are ready and willing to resist the shift.”

This is the first event of the semester for the Progressive Student Union at UTA and organizers hope this trend of turnout for events will continue for PSU as the semester follows.

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