By Blare Parke
On Dec. 4, Associated Students Inc. board members approved two new resolutions, including one condemning state and federal discriminatory laws and policies targeted at the LGBTQ+ community.
ASI Executive Vice President Matt Melendrez highlighted issues, including restrictions on gender-affirming surgeries for transgender individuals and discriminatory bathroom policies gaining traction nationwide.
“Those [laws and policies] are discriminatory, and even though it’s at a National level now, it sets a precedent for local and state laws,” Melendrez said. “With the new federal administration coming in, a lot of our worries and precautions are working around protecting the rights of students.
The resolution passed by a vote of 18-1.
The second approved resolution was an opposition of policies promoting oppressive systems, specifically the Philippine Enhancement Resilience Act in the U.S. Senate. The resolution passed unanimously.
PERA, a Senate bill proposed by Tennessee Republican Senator Bill Hagerty would grant the Philippine military a total of $2.5 billion in order to “modernize the defense capabilities of the Philippines, and for other purposes.”
“One of the highest undocumented populations on our campus and in our community is Filipino, and they rely on programs like Assistance to Nationals that the Philippine government offers through the embassy,” Melendrez said. “A lot of those programs are getting slashed because they are going to the military.”
Melendrez criticized the bill, saying “U.S. taxpayer money [is] going toward human rights violations when it could be used here to re-emphasize the strength of higher education funding.”
After passing the new resolutions, the board opened the floor to Director of Commercial Business and Service Operations at CSULB, Iraida Venegas, who gave an update on the upcoming University Student Union renovations.
With the USU closing down for multiple years, plans for temporary food services and the relocation of services, including the esports lounge, were discussed.
Construction will begin in the Summer of 2025 with the renovation of the Friendship Walk Stairs and plans for the newly renovated Student Union to be completed by August 2028.
The board meeting ended by swearing in its newest ASI Senator, At-Large, Anna Kang.
“When I was just a student outside of the student government, I had no idea how much went on behind the scenes,” Kang said. “All the discussions behind the scenes and how much they care about it, I’m just excited that I can contribute to making school life better for all the students.”
