THE HIGHLANDER
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE
FOR THE WEEK OF MONDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2020
VOL. 69, ISSUE 06
est. 1954
UCR student organizations partake in an action-packed Election Day
UCR STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS CONTINUED TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY ON ELECTION DAY. LAURA ANAYA-MORGA Senior Staff Writer
The 2020 presidential race between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden was the first time many UCR students were eligible to vote in a presidential election. UCR organizations and departments, such as the Civic Engagement Coalition, Student Life, the School of Public Policy (SPP) and CALPIRG, centered their programming on Election Day around educating the UCR community on how to make a plan to vote, answering questions students had and creating spaces where they could voice their concerns and worries in anticipation of the next president of the United States. The day was kicked off by the California Vote Project, a statewide collective
consisting of many organizations such as CALPIRG, the UC Student Association, Cal State Student Association and the Secretary of State’s Office. The California Vote Project has been hosting many events throughout fall quarter to educate California students and prepare them for the election. On Election Day, the collective hosted a Vote-A-Thon from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., where attendees participated in phone banking, text banking and were able to hear from multiple speakers such as State Senator Hannahbeth Jackson. Ria Mavinkurve, second-year economics major and CALPIRG representative, spoke to The Highlander about the success of the event and stated, “The event united people across the state through shared passion ► SEE STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS PAGE 4
New working group to find a solution for UCR Athletics’ budgetary issues Due to the onslaught of COVID-19 and the subsequent losses in revenue and funding, UCR’s Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) released recommendations over the summer of the best methods to keep the school’s budget balanced. There were a couple major areas of potential cuts, but the possible elimination of UCR Athletics has proved to be a point of contention for many. On Tuesday, Nov. 2, Chancellor Kim A. Wilcox sent out a mass email to students and faculty, announcing the formation of the Intercollegiate Athletics Working Group (IAWG), a committee dedicated to conducting research and advising on the long term sustainability of the athletics program, as well as redefining the role of intercollegiate competition at UCR. The group is comprised
LOOKING FORWARD, THE COUNTRY MUST FOCUS ON POLITICAL INVOLVEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY IF THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN REBUILDING A DIVIDED COUNTRY.
UCR CONSIDERS ELIMINATING ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT IN RESPONSE TO CORONAVIRUS BUDGET CUTS.
LAURA ANAYA-MORGA Senior Staff Writer
of 12 official members, all representing different backgrounds and relationships to the university as well as the UCR Athletics, in the interest of securing a holistic decision. Currently, they are scheduled to meet at least once every two weeks and are expected to have their recommendation report submitted by the beginning of February 2021. In an interview with The Highlander, IAWG Chair and Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Brian Haynes delved deeper into the reasoning behind the committee’s formation. He admitted that unlike other Division I programs, UCR’s ► SEE ATHLETICS PAGE 4
COURTESY OF UCR SCHOOL OF PUBLIC POLICY
COURTESY OF JOE BIDEN VIA FLICKR
Building Back Better
With the election over and won, the real challenge starts now THE HIGHLANDER Editorial Board
As this year’s tumultuous election comes to an end, so does the formidable Trump administration — paving the way for a new era of politics in America with president-elect Joe Biden. While Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ win shook the U.S. after a tensionfilled week of ballot counting, Democrats should not see this as
an opportunity to relax. Keeping the left unified and engaged while managing all the work that comes with a presidency will be an uphill battle. Holding the Biden administration accountable in a deeply divided American is extremely important if we are to avoid yet another disappointing presidency. The nation was on the edge of their seats for a week, constantly checking up on the status of battleground states that were going to determine the outcome of
the election. Mail-in ballots came in favor of the Biden campaign, and ultimately, changed the course of the election. This election has shown that if Democrats were just as unified and involved as Republicans are, they could easily overtake an election. Shamefully, it is highly unlikely that President Trump will concede graciously; he has already released a statement claiming that he will contest the ► SEE EDITORIAL PAGE 6
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