CFA pickets Reed at LINKS conference

Marijo Burg and Maria Shenc, both members of the Local 49 branch of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union, joined with striking CSU faculty members last Thursday to protest the presence of Chancellor Charles Reed at the seventh annual LINKS conference. Katherine Lewis/State Hornet

Over 200 picketers crashed the opening ceremonies of the seventh annual LINKS conference in Sacramento last Thursday.

The protest was organized by members of the California Faculty Association as part of a strike that has been ongoing since the CSU Board of Trustees and Chancellor Reed imposed a contract on the faculty on March 17.

Faculty members from over half a dozen California State University campuses joined together with members of the California State Employees Association and the Service Employee International Union to protest the appearance of CSU Chancellor Charles Reed at the four-day conference.

The picketers carried signs reading “No More Merit Pay” and “Charles Reed Has Got To Go” during three hours of protests outside the Hyatt Regency Hotel, host of the conference.

Elizabeth Moulds, CSUS chief of staff and organizer of the LINKS conference, had mixed emotions about the presence of the protesters.

“I am certainly happy to see the faculty practicing their first amendment rights, but I am also disappointed that it had to happen at such an important event,” said Moulds.

Last Thursday’s demonstration marks the first time since the onset of the strike that multiple campuses have participated together in a single event.

Faculty from as far south as CSU Fresno and CSU San Bernardino joined faculty from several northern California campuses, including CSU Chico, Humboldt State University, CSUS and San Francisco State University.

A wide variety of topics were scheduled for discussion and debate at the LINKS conference, which brings together elected officials, policy specialists and campus administrators in order to discuss the strengthening of ties between state government and public universities.

“The reason why we are out here tonight is due to the fact that Charles Reed has not done a sufficient job at strengthening the ties between the campuses and their faculties,” said Meisenhelder.

“We plan to keep rolling right over Chancellor Reed,” said Meisenhelder.

“We intend to accomplish that by having more events of this magnitude in the near future in the hopes of raising awareness of the crisis in the CSU system.”