Fearing “rogue elements intent on violence” at a meeting of the UC Regents, former Paramount Studios cheif Sherry Lansing, chair of the UC board, cancelled the Bay Area session, which was scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.

Now the ReFund California protesters, allied with the Occupy movement, have a new focus — the meeting of Cal State trustees at CSU Long Beach, today and tomorrow.

Here's what Lansing and fellow top UC leaders stated jointly:

Late last week University of California law enforcement officials came to us with concerns about credible intelligence they had collected in advance of the Board of Regents meeting, scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday (Nov. 16 and 17) at the UC San Francisco Mission Bay campus.

From various sources they had received information indicating that rogue elements intent on violence and confrontation with UC public safety officers were planning to attach themselves to peaceful demonstrations expected to occur at the meeting.

They believe that, as a result, there is a real danger of significant violence and vandalism.

Of course the Bay Area, namely Oakland, has been ground zero for clashes between authorities and Occupy protesters. And ReFund has made its own inroads via civil disobedience here in L.A.

But ReFund, in a statement issued yesterday, calls the cancellation a cop-out that denies regular folk a chance to chime in:

The UC Regents' decision to cancel their meeting wastes a huge opportunity for the UC community to engage in dialogue about how to make the 1% pay to re-fund public education and all Californians instead of more cuts. With more tuition increases and budget cuts on the table, it is urgent that the UC community unite around specific proposals to make banks and the 1% pay to ensure sustainable long-term funding for all colleges and universities in California. Today's decision raises serious questions about the commitment to an open, accountable decision-making process by the Regents – many who are the 1%.

The cancellation seems to have opened the door for more focus on Long Beach and the CSU trustees meeting there today:

The thousands of students, teachers, and others who planned to go to the Regents meeting will gather at another location to take their protest to UC's Wall Street regents. That location will be announced as soon as possible. Students in southern California will also proceed with the planned convergence at the CSU Trustees meeting in Long Beach.

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