“Keep it local, keep it safe”—it’s the tagline we hear every October and April to promote safe partying in Isla Vista during the weekends that parties have historically gotten out of hand. But how exactly should we define “local”? Which students qualify as local enough to participate in Isla Vista’s party scene?
Living in the freshmen dorms last year, it was clear that at least some UCSB students believe that Isla Vista parties should be exclusive to Gauchos. My floormates would come home on Friday and Saturday nights complaining about overcrowded parties that allowed Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) students in. Someone even suggested that “bouncers” at parties should require anyone who enters to show their UCSB access card to verify that no “outsiders” slip inside. In general, I always sensed that certain Gauchos had a superiority complex over students from other nearby colleges.
In some ways, perhaps their concerns about overcrowding are justified. When too many people pack into a house, backyard, or balcony, there can be major safety violations. Just last April, a 25-year-old UCSB alumnus passed away after falling from the bluffs along Del Playa Drive. Experts say that cliff erosion and overcrowded parties will only contribute to more tragedies—balconies and fences will collapse, students will jostle each other and lose their balance, etc. If Gauchos were the only ones partying in Isla Vista, parties would be far less crowded, and it’s possible that some of these disasters could be avoided.Furthermore, many of the crimes committed during Isla Vista’s major party weekends are blamed on students visiting from other colleges and universities. Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs, Margaret Klawunn, announced that “most house violations” that occurred during Deltopia weekend of 2021 “were not UCSB students.” Katya Armistead, Dean of Student Life, reasoned that students visiting from other schools don’t take care of Isla Vista as much as local residents do because they can return home without having to face the negative consequences of their actions. This may even be true for SBCC students who can return to their dorms or apartments closer to downtown Santa Barbara after a night of partying in Isla Vista.
On the other hand, plenty of SBCC students intend to transfer to UCSB and many actually reside in Isla Vista, making them a part of the local Isla Vista community. In fact, the Tropicana Del Norte housing complex is actually available to SBCC students. One Reddit user states, “I think as long as your path and goal is to eventually attend UCSB, it’s fine to live in IV and become accustomed to and integrated into the community you’re going to end up in.”
Perhaps the territoriality that some UCSB students have over their local community is unwarranted. While Isla Vista is next to UCSB, it is a community filled with families, recent graduates, workers, and students from many different schools. In some ways, I believe that the Isla Vista party scene would not be as active and celebrated without the contributions of SBCC students and students visiting from other universities. Furthermore, SBCC students are connected enough to the Isla Vista community to understand how Isla Vista functions and how to keep it safe for themselves and those around them.
Ultimately, everyone will have a different definition of what it means to be a “local” participant in Isla Vista’s party scene. When we all jam into a crowded backyard together, there’s typically nothing to distinguish Gauchos from Vaqueros or any other students. As long as we keep parties safe by preventing overcrowding, avoiding dangerous areas, and respecting one another and their homes, Isla Vista can remain the legendary community it’s always been.