UC Chancellor Birgeneau's Resigns, Occupy Activists Claim Victory

The announcement that UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau will resign at the end of 2012 has prompted mixed reactions. Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner is praising Birgeneau's "dedication and service," while student activists are celebrating victory.

Skinner said in a statement Tuesday afternoon: "At a time when it is increasingly difficult for students to meet the financial burden, Chancellor Birgeneau has been an eloquent voice advancing the debate on higher education funding." She added that Birgeneau "has worked hard to give access to all students independent of income, race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation."

Meanwhile, members of the activist organization BAMN are announcing victory at Birgeneau's resignation, claiming that he "had to go" following at . 

In a statement on BAMN's website, the group announced a press conference Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. outside Tully's Cafe by the MLK Student Union.

Yvette Felarca, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit brought against UC-Berkeley for police brutality, said that Birgeneau’s resignation "has been one of the top demands of the movement ever since he authorized police to beat me and countless other protesters who were standing up for public education on November 9, 2011... No chancellor can survive after doing what he did to his own students.”

The group is demanding that Birgeneau drop all criminal charges stemming from the Occupy Cal protests.