Author:
My name is Derek Mazzeo, co-President of Oxy for Obama. I saw your article in the Occidental Weekly today about the lack of a Barack Obama appearance on campus. I appreciated your balanced approach to the topic, however I feel that some issues need to be addressed.
1. In late November, a Southern California rally was being planned, and Occidental College was one of the sights being considered. However, Oxy’s campus was deemed too small for the expected rally, and the trip was rescheduled to Northern California, where Senator Obama drew a crowd of over 9,000 people.
2. Barack Obama has never tried to distance himself from Occidental College. He has called Professor Roger Boesche one of his favorite professors and has never regretted his decision to attend Occidental (see the Jan. 5 LA Times article).
3. I have also heard unconfirmed reports of a future visit to Oxy, but I can not confirm nor deny their veracity. Should I hear anymore, I will let you know.
Lastly, I must take issue with your report that Occidental is not politically active. Though I can not speak for other groups, I can inform you that Oxy for Obama has tabled in the quad numerous times leading up to the Feb. 5 primaries, made over 2,000 phone calls to voters around the country, knocked on well over 300 doors in Northeast LA and Pasadena and registered nearly 150 new voters both at Occidental and around Eagle Rock.
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