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Letter to the editorThird party of Westwood

Editor:I am writing with regard to all the attention in the past weeks on the

affirmative action walk out and rally, and the response it has drawn from

students, professors and others. I am a student who wholly advocates

grassroots organization and student involvement. I also believe in the

statement that "the extreme always has an affect."

Apathy cannot be an excuse for not getting involved and voicing one's

opinions. I applaud the bravery of all the students and faculty that have

been in support of affirmative action. However, I do have a problem with

the walk out that occurred last week in Westwood. I didn't participate in

the event because I did not want to miss my classes. I'm already a

struggling student lost in the damn UC system, why would I make it worse

than it already is?

One might think this is a lame excuse, however, my personal ideology

precludes me from taking part in these kinds of actions. I supported the

walk out, but I don't agree with marching into Westwood, causing civil

unrest in the city and blocking traffic for an hour just to prove a

point.

Now I wonder if the people in the march really thought about this. Did

they think how much trouble they were causing marching in the streets? Not

to mention the enormous traffic jams and civil disturbances from the event.

Most of the people affected by the march did not have a part in affirmative

action being abolished from UC campuses.

Just think about it: people trying to have a normal day shopping, eating

out, running errands, meeting clients, going to appointments. The

difference between us and them is that they play no part in affirmative

action being thrown out. But 3,000 students at UCLA felt it was their

responsibility to force themselves and our UC grievances onto the innocent

"third party of Westwood."

My friend had to sit in traffic for an hour just to get to Westside

Pavilion to buy a birthday gift for an important friend of ours. Most

people don't like to sit in traffic, especially if it's caused by a group

of angry students rallying for something that may never even affect

them.

Another question I have is: What ever happened to basing hiring and

admissions on merit? Are we saying throw out the intelligence/ability

factor and hire and admit students only because of their biological

background? What's wrong with hiring a worker because that person is the

best person for the job in terms of intelligence or ability?

Personally, I don't have an opinion on affirmative action. I might be

spineless and evading responsibility for my opinions. What I do understand

is the importance of the issue everyone is talking about. I'm just one of

those people who hasn't been totally convinced by one side or another. I

haven't formulated a solid opinion on the matter because I am still

thinking about the issue.

But while I am thinking, I am also looking at the flip side of

everything. Being a good person is to think about the whole picture and not

just one narrow piece of the pie. I would hope I was admitted to UCLA

because of my ability to work hard and the accomplishments from my high

school years, not just because they were filling a quota of some sort.

So in the end, I say: Can we just take a moment and think about the

ramifications of our actions? Are we just going to force our opinions on

innocent third parties that have no involvement with our issues or

problems? Or are we going to be able to have a lasting effect on people who

are important and relevant to the issues we are fighting for?

Why give the UC Regents and anti-affirmative action supporters the

chance to laugh at us for our actions, like they have probably already

done?Cliff C. Jin

Second-year

East Asian studies-Chinese/

Pre-medical studies