This past Tuesday March 15, 2016 our campus made history. Since 2011, we filled up the General Student’s Assembly with more than 3,000 registered students (by 1:50pm there were 3,500 announced) and by 1:52pm the General Student Council announced that through Prensa CGE YouTube channel 1,656 viewers were watching the assembly live. Many amphitheaters had to be opened up to the public because our Teatro filled up earlier than usual. Students were tuned in to the assembly from all over campus with amphitheaters in Education, Generales, Natural Sciences, Humanities, Architecture, Law School, both amphitheaters in Social Sciences, two classrooms, and an amphitheater in the Public Communication School and the Academic Senate.
Many things were in the agenda for this assembly and many things were spoken about. Students from every faculty were able to expose their postures regarding topics on sexual harassment, with Victor Torres from the Humanities Faculty, talking about the incidents regarding the LGBT community. In a resolution presented to the assembly were the demands of: better documentation of the incidents (sexual and non-sexual) regarding the LGBT community, more education on gender perspective, that the administration become responsible of the incidents and the strengthening of the Gender Studies program through the granting of funds towards the program. In the end, what the community seeks is more sensibilization towards the LGBT community, the incidents involved with the community and more action from our part.
When talking about our financial status as UPR system, the assembly grew tense and quiet. After the General Student Council President, Guillermo Guasp, gave an excellent presentation about our current situation, many motions and stands were taken. One of the most iconic resolutions from the assembly was the one brought on by Nicole Martínez, President of the Association of Economy (students). This motion proposed the creation of an internal audit committee made up of students and professors from any faculty but set to the Faculty of Business Administration and Social Sciences that will promote research on campus, and keep up to date the information about the fiscal situation of the university. This initiative will also promote transparency in the process. Someone asked about how such audit committee will be financed. Nicole, student who proposed said motion, made clear that the students seeking serious research know this will expand their resumés and knowledge and that they will not be paid.
After said resolution was voted on, a member of CAEL, presented their resolution regarding the fiscal and politically induced situation our UPR system is in. Said resolution was amended by the assembly adding motions from members of the Education and Labor Relations Faculty. The assembly, after a debate of more than five hours, decided that there will be a paro (with 1,968 votes in favor and 513 against) that will last from Tuesday (at 6:00pm) until Friday on these grounds.
UPRRP Students: we made history. We have the power to do many things. It is our job to decide what to do with that power and how we’re going to execute that power. The General Student Council covered the event through YouTube with the help of Pulso Estudiantil on Social Media coverage and many other outlets also covered this assembly. We demonstrated that we conquered the communications frontier and maintained our students informed (way more than what some Puerto Rican media outlets can say about today).
Photos were taken out of Her Campus UPR Twitter Page
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General Student Council Facebook Page