May 24, 2021 at 11:00 am by Atmika Iyer
This May, vaccination numbers have continued to go up, the county and university are easing COVID-19 restrictions and some aspects of Isla Vista and UC Santa Barbara are slowly resembling their pre-pandemic state.
This graphic shows pivotal COVID-19 moments during each quarter between Winter 2020 and Spring 2021. (Kelly Yan / Daily Nexus)
But back in March 2020, any hope of a return to normal life was far away. The following timeline is a compilation of how I.V. and UCSB weathered a year and two months through the COVID-19 pandemic.Â
This graph shows the 7-day-average and new cases of COVID-19 in Isla Vista from March 2020 to April 2021. (Alex Rudolph / Daily Nexus)
May 12, 2021 at 10:00 am by Daily Nexus Photography
A march demanding distribution of $900 checks to the UC Santa Barbara student body was held on the afternoon of May 8, organized by the Young Democratic Socialists of America, a UC Santa Barbara student organization. The protesters began marching from the Storke Tower to Chancellor Yangâs residence in the southeastern corner of campus at around 2:30 p.m., weaving banners and chanting slogans along the way. As the crowd arrived at Yangâs house, several speakers expressed their frustrations over the lack of university-provided support for students during the pandemic. The protest ended with the protestors chalking the driveway to the residence with slogans such as, âPower to the Studentsâ and â$900 now.â
May 11, 2021 at 10:00 am by Daily Nexus Photography
COVID-19 vaccinations have been shown to serve as a safe and effective method to prevent the spread of the virus. As all people ages 16 or older are eligible for vaccinations, the campaign to vaccinate residents of Santa Barbara County has grown into a coordinated effort involving the county public health department and local health care providers. Over the past few weeks, the Nexus has visited and captured the scene at several vaccination sites. May 4 was the first day that the vaccination clinic at the Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital started to provide walk-up vaccinations, for which no prior reservation is needed. The clinic also began to operate with extended hours until 7 p.m. (Sicheng Wang / Daily Nexus)
On the evening of May 2, a group of around 40 UC Santa Barbara students led a march from Storke Tower to Sea Lookout Park to honor victims of police brutality.
The march was organized by fourth-year sociology and linguistics double major Lillian Cheeks and fourth-year sociology major Kaela Bowens.Â
Cheeks said that the march had been planned over the past few weeks and was a result of emotions she and Bowens had been feeling over the lives lost to police brutality, as well as the recent conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd.
âIt took complete unrest within the country and almost 365 days to confirm something we already knew to be true because we had seen it with our own eyes over and over and over again,â Cheeks said. âWeâd reached a point ⦠past anger, and we wanted to do something that would be more fulfilling and actually incite change.â
April 24, 2021 at 9:00 am by Opinion Editor
April 23 marked this yearâs Day of Silence. Held every April since 1996, the Day of Silence involves participants taking a vow of silence for the duration of the day, some opting to place tape over their mouths or Xs on their hands, to highlight the systemic silencing of LGBTQ youth.Â
Significant steps continue to be made in addressing the discrimination and harassment faced by members of the LGBTQ community. From kids cartoons like âShe-Ra and the Princesses of Powerâ to box-office hits like âBooksmart,â diverse and queer-inclusive media representation has significantly risen in recent years. Promising legislation echoes this growing public consciousness. The Equality Act, which would protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, was passed by the House in 2019 and will finally be brought to the Senate floor in coming months. The exciting prospect of this legislation