In recent months, as the Occupy movement spread across the nation and world, thousands of people have become supporters or participants of protests and marches against corporate greed. SF State criminal and justice major, Lalo Gonzalez, became involved with the Occupy movement in San Francisco shortly after it all began in late September.

A long time social activist, Gonzalez saw the opportunity to be part of the movement and quickly decided to start participating with Occupy in San Francisco.

Later, with the support of others student activists, he helped start SF State’s own branch of Occupy. After several weeks of general assemblies, reaching out to other students and a lot of planning, a student walkout on Nov. 15, led to SF State’s own encampment on Dec. 1, 2011.

The Occupy at SF State, better known as Occupy SFSU, has grown from about six tents the first night to over 20 tents only two weeks later. Among the demands of Occupy SFSU is to reverse CSU’s 283% tuition hikes since 2002, the reduction of class sizes and restoring canceled classes.

Gonzalez says he believes in free education, the ability of everyone to have access to education, and that is what the encampment stands for.