By Raymond Matthews
When UC Santa Barbara history major Michael Sanders saw a video of George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police he, like many other Black students, felt outraged and compelled to speak out against Floyd’s murder. He then reached out on social media to fellow students and within days organized the “Justice for George Floyd: Solidarity March” on May 30, the first Saturday after the killing. Hundreds came to campus for the first time in nearly three months for a socially-distanced gathering at Storke Tower, with many also marching through Isla Vista.
Michael Sanders addressing students on the UCSB campus May 30 at the “Justice for George Floyd: Solidarity March.” Image by KEYT - KCOY - KKFX News.
Sanders organized this march for UCSB and Isla Vista community members to support the Black Lives Matter movement by peacefully protesting against police brutality. He also used this protest to give Black students a platform to speak on how systemic racism — specifically police brutality — has disproportionately impacted and traumatized the Black community.
Sanders recently sat down for an interview to describe how he organized the protest, its impact on the UC Santa Barbara community, and the future of Black activism on campus.
Q: You took the initiative to organize this protest very quickly. Was it a solo effort or did you work with any campus organizations to put it together?
Image by KEYT - KCOY - KKFX News
A: So, the demonstration and protest was just a spontaneous idea I had because it seemed as if the UCSB community was not ready to just keep on pushing forward without properly acknowledging or commenting on what had happened to George Floyd. As we can see, what had happened to Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery are very similar and happened shortly before George Floyd’s murder, so the need for this type of event was already there. But yeah, it was just an idea that I had and it was not tied to any organization. It was really just the community coming together. And the Black voices that spoke were definitely the highlight of the movement, because it was meant to be a platform for Black voices to finally be heard in the community.
Q: Overall, how would you say that the campus community responded to this event?
A: The turnout we got was honestly very overwhelming. It was such a surprise to see how many people on such a short notice were able to rally and show some allyship. Black students in particular were able to voice what they had been feeling about this community for about two hours, and it was just nice looking over the crowd and seeing that people were actually listening and finally heard Black voices — particularly from the Black women and members of the Black queer community who were in attendance. They’re like the marginalized community within the marginalized community, and hearing them speak was really powerful because it brought more unity and dimension to the demonstration.
Student protestors marching from campus to Isla Vista as part of the “Justice for George Floyd” solidarity demonstration. Photo byFelix Dong.
Q: Did you meet any resistance from students or community members during the demonstration?
A: We just saw a couple of people who were looking and laughing, or just looking at the demonstration with disgust. But that’s to be expected in a place like Santa Barbara where white supremacy is such an integral part of this whole cultural community that we got going on here.
Q: Many recent Black Lives Matter protests have been met with heavy police presences and subsequent violence. Did you experience this during the march?
A: The cool thing about this demonstration and protest was that before it had even happened, I reached out to just a couple of members of the community who encouraged me to notify the UC Santa Barbara police department of what was going on and the demonstration that we had planned and we told them what was going to happen. I was assured by the UCPD that they would just stay out of the way and they did. And I think it just shows how if the police kind of just stay out of the way and let people air their grievances without intimidation or agitation it definitely makes it a lot easier to remain peaceful.
Q: As a Black student activist, do you feel well supported by the UCSB community? Or are there still some improvements that need to be made?
A: UCSB and Isla Vista in general need to become safer spaces for all Black people, including Black women and the Black LGBTQ community, because some of the things that I saw as we were protesting and the way that some of the members of our community were looked at honestly enraged me at times. I just think that all Black voices need to be uplifted because there are only a few of us here on this campus and no one person can voice the grievances of the whole Black community. I think that the university needs to open a lot more outlets for all types of Black people to speak, which is something that I hope comes as a result of this demonstration.
Students protestors marching from campus into Isla Vista. Photo by Felix Dong.
Raymond Matthews is a third year Political Science major at UC Santa Barbara. He is a Web and Social Media Intern for the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts.
The Center for Black Studies Research along with other UCSB departments is inviting students and faculty to a Town Hall on State Violence, Anti-Blackness and the Black Student Experience, which will be held on Zoom this Friday at noon.
When: June 12, 2020. Time: 12-2 p.m. Register at: ZOOM .