Universities play a critical role in increasing access to essential medicines. As major contributors to drug research and development, universities have the power to influence the way these technologies are disseminated around the world. Universities own patenting rights for various life-saving drugs. Once these university-produced drugs are licensed to a major pharmaceutical company, they have a 20-year right to exclusively produce that drug, giving them a monopoly that increases prices. UAEM wants universities to adopt language in their licensing practices that would reserve the right for generic and nonprofit organizations to produce the drug regardless of the licensee. As a result, generic competition would drop to an affordable price in developing countries, making the drug more accessible to the people who need it.

During our existence at UF, our organization has passed a resolution in Student Government supporting humanitarian licensing; hosted major speakers, such as Stephen Lewis (former United Nations special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa); and held numerous film screenings, awareness events, rallies and drives to push for UF action on increasing access to medicines. Currently, we are campaigning for UF to sign onto a new access-focused initiative sponsored by the Association of University Technology Managers, working with UF’s Technology Transfer Officer to adopt the Global Access Licensing Framework and registering UF researchers with Scientists Without Borders. We are also recruiting new members to join us in our efforts to make humanitarian licensing a reality at UF.

If you are interested in getting involved, you can start by attending a weekly meeting on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Rolfs Hall room 209, signing up for our listserv by emailing Laura (lhelmk@ufl.edu), signing on to support access to life saving medicines at www.essentialmedicine.org/cs, making a donation to support national UAEM at

The Queer Activist Coalition came together last October after attending the National Equality March for LGBTQ rights in Washington, D.C. We are a community- and campus-based organization with a non-hierarchical structure, and we want to work with anyone who is interested in joining the fight for equality. Our cause is only part of a larger struggle to liberate the oppressed and protect minorities from exploitation.

The QAC believes that the first and most immediate step toward social equality is to end legal inequality faced by LGBTQ people living in America. We believe that civil rights for all minority groups should be protected by the government and not determined by religious or social prejudices. The 14th Amendment to the Constitution guarantees the equal protection of all citizens under the law, and LGBTQ citizens are being denied these protections every day. The Defense of Marriage Act currently deprives LGBTQ citizens of 1,138 civil rights that are taken for granted by married heterosexual couples. In the words of Frederick Douglass, “power concedes nothing without demand.” It’s time for all of us to demand that LGBTQ citizens be given equal rights and guaranteed equal protection under the law.

We are dedicated to raising awareness in the community about these issues. We recently held a fundraiser on Feb. 4 in conjunction with the National Prayer Breakfast. The goal of the event was to show the community the influence of the religious right in our government and the role it plays in lobbying against LGBTQ rights. Our next event will be the Equality Across America (EAA) Southeast Regional Conference. EAA is the group that planned the National Equality March in Washington, D.C. last October. The conference is planned for March 19-21, times and locations TBA. For more information about how to get involved with QAC, e-mail queeractivistcoalition@gmail.com.

Genocide, war crimes, social abuses, displaced refugees, rape: unfortunately these tragedies continue, and Human Rights Awareness on Campus strives to educate the public on the human rights violations that are caused by negligence, ignorance and the disconnection between resources and the means of acquiring them.

Concerning domestic issues, we’re raising awareness about the atrocities of the Afghan war and the current health care discourse.

Our theme this year is “Think Globally, Act Locally,” so we are kicking off a campaign to fight sweatshops. We are working closely with UF Amnesty International to initiate a Sweatshop Free Gators campaign that would demand UF acquire merchandise from factories that comply with workers’ rights. We are also involved with Project Downtown, fundraising to provide food to the less fortunate. Recently we have expanded our horizons by developing a committee centered on the National American Cancer Society’s event Relay for Life.

Human Rights Awareness on Campus makes great strides to inform students of human rights violations and what they can do about them. We have gathered and are gathering support to serve humanity, but it is by no means the end of the struggle. We, as members and human beings, must achieve piece globally. Everyone must take part. Speak out!

To ignore world suffering is to become its accomplice, and that is our motto.

For more information on Human Rights Awareness on Campus, join the Facebook group or e-mail us at hrac.uf@gmail.com.

-Edward Everett

After semesters of relative inactivity, UF Amnesty International is back! Amnesty International is a nonprofit, non-affiliated human rights advocacy and action organization that works both internationally and locally to promote humanitarian efforts. Meetings are structured to maximize the number of humanitarian issues discussed by having members present on topics they feel most passionate about, including women’s rights, immigrant rights and LGBT rights.

The group will be hosting a three-night Genocide Awareness film screening Oct. 20-22 at 7:20 p.m. in NPB 1101 in an effort to bring overdue attention to egregious crimes of genocide all over the world. The event will allow students to take action through letter-writing and petitioning.

UF Amnesty International Day of Action will be Nov. 4 in Plaza of the Americas from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be different tables set up, each representing different Amnesty International priorities. Students can learn more about international human rights crises and take action by signing petitions or writing letters.

Along with Human Rights Awareness and The Fine Print, UF Amnesty International is also working on a Sweat Shop Free Gators campaign demanding that all UF apparel come from factories that adhere to workers’ rights laws.

UF Amnesty International is volunteering with Project Downtown Gainesville to serve Saturday lunch to those in need.

For more information on UF Amnesty International, check out the Facebook page. E-mail the group at ufamnesty@gmail.com, or follow them on Twitter.

The Democratic Party, much like the Republicans, acts in the interests of Corporate America and the privileged few at the top. Therefore, we do not support their candidates.
We see our task as building an independent socialist organization with members organizing in our workplaces, our schools and our neighborhoods to bring socialist ideas to the struggles we are involved in today and the vision of a socialist world in the future.

If you’re interested, send us an email at , find us on Facebook, or look regularly for our literature table on the Plaza of the Americas.

With President Obama promising the removal of combat troops from Iraq by 2010, we might wonder what place a peace organization has on UF campus. Yet with 17,000 troops preparing to go to Afghanistan, we must ask ourselves why our government is continuing to finance wars that have destroyed our international image while needlessly putting our courageous soldiers in harm’s way.

Campus CodePink hopes to inspire students interested in peaceful policies and human rights to raise their voices through creative and direct tactics. Campus CodePink also focuses on many issues that affect us nationally and locally. Campus CodePink marched with the No on Amendment 1 campaign to prevent discrimination and sponsored activism for social change workshops at UF through the Backbone Campaign Tour. The group hopes to provide a fun atmosphere for student activists while reminding President Obama that we hold him accountable for the promises for peace he has given to our generation.

Our upcoming events include a reading of “How We Got into Iraq” from “Dissent: Voices of Conscience,” a movie series that focuses on the realities and consequences of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; a War Is NOT Green campaign for Earth Day; and a rally to demand that the Bush administration is held accountable for its actions of illegal wiretapping and torture.

If you are frustrated about these endless wars, saddened by humanitarian atrocities committed worldwide, appreciative of our brave soldiers that protect us at all costs, and astounded by the trillions of dollars being funneled into wars when our education and health care are in need, rise up, speak out and demand peace.

Campus CodePink meets the first Monday of every month. For more information and meeting details, check out www.codepinkgators.weebly.com or find us on Facebook and MySpace. If you’d like to get involved, please contact campuscodepink4peace@yahoo.com.

Public education in Florida has been put at risk by draconian budget cuts that have put entire departments and even universities in jeopardy throughout the state. Students are not sitting idly by and have determined to voice our concerns and interests as participants in the process of deciding the future of our education. To this end, a new coalition, Save Our Schools, has brought together thousands of students and numerous organizations that are deeply concerned about the future of Florida higher education and willing to take a stand to save it.

We are a coalition of students committed to maintaining the quality of education in the state of Florida. Taking into account the constraints in Florida’s education budget, we are dedicated to working with staff, faculty, administration, and alumni to generate and advance a conversation on the issue. We hope to build the widest and largest possible cross-section of students, faculty and other interests in order to press for a solution to our budget crisis that protects Florida’s public education.

Acknowledging the diverse range of ideas surrounding the future of higher education, all students are invited and urged to get involved with the coalition. We believe as students we not only have a voice, but by coming together we can effectively produce a forward-thinking platform to save higher education in the state of Florida. Only through making our voice heard can we let our representatives and communities know that students care and will take a stand in defense of our higher education. We are open to any means possible to make sure that Florida’s education system provides students a quality experience.

Our first major event was a very successful rally in the Plaza of the Americas on April 7, which brought out hundreds of students, University of Florida faculty and community members in support of new ideas and a new direction for UF in the wake of budget cuts. We plan to capitalize on this success and press forward. Attention must be brought to this issue in the media, the University administration and in Tallahassee.

This rally is only the beginning of our efforts, as we will continue to pursue ways to protect our education system and make students’ voices heard on this vital issue. Meetings take place every Friday at 4 pm at Pugh Hall’s Second Floor Conference Room. Be a part of the effort to save our schools!

Join us on Facebook to keep up to date with our efforts and show your support: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=64601008763&ref=ts

Although there are many reasons why students choose to become vegetarian or vegan, enVeg focuses on how our diet actually affects our planet’s health more than our own. A 2006 report by the United Nations’ Food and Agricul-ture Organization revealed that meat, egg and dairy production contribute more greenhouse gas emissions than transportation. The industry is also a main contributor to deforestation, excessive water use, pollution and waste runoff, and food scarcity. In other words, the less meat you eat, the smaller your ecological footprint will be.

EnVeg is composed of a diverse group of students, allowing us to do various outreach and educational projects. One of the most well-known projects is Meatless Mondays. Every other Monday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Plaza of the Americas, enVeg urges students to pledge to give up meat at least one day a week to help curb climate change. We use this as an opportunity to give out free vegan treats and brochures and fact cards about eating sus-tainably. We also have outreach campaigns every semester to raise awareness. Hopefully, you stopped by our table last month for free Valentine’s Day vegan condoms!
We are even getting into classrooms, such as forestry, wildlife, sustainability and nutrition classes, to give short presentations about how vegetarianism is relevant to these fields. One of our most ambitious projects is getting a vegetarian nutrition course at UF.

An enVeg cookbook is also in the making, which will be sold or given as a reward to those who have committed to reducing their meat consumption. We fill our web site with recipes from our monthly potlucks. Other than living a sustainable lifestyle, there is another thread that holds the members of enVeg together: the love of food.

For more information on enVeg, visit our web site, enveg.org, or join our Facebook group. EnVeg meets every other Wednesday in Rinker Hall at 6:30 p.m. The next meeting will be held on March 18.

Our success is directly proportional to the strength of our membership. Becoming a member of GAU is easy: it costs 1% of your stipend, and active involvement is not required. And the benefits are great. In addition to new rights and privileges obtained each year through our contract, GAU membership also provides voting rights in the union, legal council and assistance for grievances, $1 million liability insurance, lots of local and national discounts, and a voice in our contract deliberations. Active participation provides even more benefits. Many graduate students plan careers in academia, and GAU is a perfect way to learn about academia’s institutional politics and mechanisms from the inside. GAU is also a social organization and provides a convenient way for graduate students to meet peers outside of their specific (and often cloistered) departments. GAU is the legal, professional, and social voice of graduate assistants.

For more information on GAU, visit our website: www.ufgau.org. For the details of our contract, review it here: www.ufgau.org/contract/. For more information on becoming involved, contact one of our officers: www.ufgau.org/contact.shtml.

The group will have a display set up at the Reitz Union on Tuesday and at the Plaza of the Americas on Wednesday through Friday. The display will explain the history of the protest, the feminist critique of beauty standards and the work in which Campus NOW is currently engaged.

The Miss America protest of 1968 called attention to the fact that women were (are) tied down by unfair and unrealistic beauty standards that result in women being punished or rewarded based on looks alone (unlike men) and our self-worth completely wrapped up in our bodies. The protest was not against the women in the pageant. In fact, women’s liberation recognized that the women involved were simply working within the confines of a sexist system and making decisions based on their material realities. Indeed, the women in the pageant did not just become national icons for a year; they also racked up over $100,000 in scholarship and appearance fees.

The women’s liberation movement saw beauty standards as fitting in to the larger issue of women’s oppression. Women who are tied down to beauty standards are not free, in a similar way as women who cannot control their own lives through reproductive choices are not free. The Miss America protest was organized by the women’s liberation movement and was attended by women from all over the country, including Gainesville. The women threw bras, girdles, curling irons and more into a “Freedom Can.” The women were going to burn the can’s contents, but did not. Yet, this is where the term “bra-burners” came from. A New York Times article the day after the protest quoted Mall Dodson, the director of promotion for Atlantic City, as saying, “What kind of women would want to burn their bras?”  

Apparently a lot of women were just that type. About one hundred showed up for the protest, angry with the way women were treated, refusing to talk to male reporters because, “It’s impossible for men to understand.” The protestors also saw talking to female reporters only as a way to give female journalists jobs.  Protestors unfurled a large banner that read “Women’s Liberation” as the next Miss America was crowned Incidentally, 1968 was also the year of the first Miss Black America, a protest by black communities against the fact that since the pageant began in the 1920s there had never been a black contestant.

Campus NOW is currently involved in a campaign against sexist beauty standards, which is raising consciousness about how every day is still a beauty pageant for all women. Beauty standards are not about what the media and corporations are telling us to do, they are about how we are treated by men and society when we do or don’t do the very real work of making ourselves “beautiful.” True, standards of acceptable appearance exist for both women and men; however, for women, our entire self-worth – everything we have to offer society – is based on our looks. And when we don’t have that elusive perfect body, our families, friends, lovers and strangers ridicule us. Even if we attain the perfect look, we are still treated differently or not taken seriously – we become the ditz or the dumb blonde. 

The whole system benefits men at the expense of women’s sanity, health, money and equality in society. True, I’m sure there are guys out there who simply don’t care what women look like, and are able to love women based on who they are as people. But it makes it easier for those men to get away with other sexist behavior, like not sharing in cost for birth control, housework or just being chauvinist pigs – because we feel like we better do whatever it takes to keep them, because who knows when we will ever find another guy who doesn’t care that we are overweight, have saggy boobs, or whatever the new standard of beauty is.

Looking good is a skill and a time and money investment. When I was 13, I spent countless hours and dollars on beauty magazines and in the cosmetics aisle of the store, while my brother tinkered around with tools and mechanics. Today, I can get the perfect wave in my hair, but my brother’s an engineer. I wonder what I could have done with that time and mental space.

And when women are around while men are complaining about “fat” women, or “ugly” women, or how their girlfriend doesn’t wear enough/too much makeup, or shaves too much/not enough, she is subtly reminded that she better keep off the extra pounds and not slack on her beauty routine or she will be the one they are talking about next time.

Campus NOW will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Miss America protest while analyzing the lessons from that protest. Things have changed for women over the past 40 years, and it is important to remember that women’s liberation pushed those changes forward. If all people know and learn is that change happened, without learning the how and the why – the history – then people will forget the very real strength we have to make changes. As the Redstockings Archives Distribution Project says, “Building on what’s been won by knowing what’s been done.” Campus NOW wants women to join them in the fight for liberation and to see how much more change is possible when we get together and do something about it.  

To get involved with Campus NOW, call 321 427 0006 or email uf.cnow@gmail.com