As the one-year anniversary of the Isla Vista killings approaches, various groups are finalizing a series of events to remember the six UCSB students who lost their lives on May 23, 2014.
Seeking to replicate the candlelit vigil that took place less than 24 hours after the horrific night, UCSB art students working under Professor Kim Yasuda are leading an effort to light up Isla Vista with inexpensive, blue LED tea lights; it's also a tribute to UCSB professor and Nobel laureate Shuji Nakamura, who won the award last year for his invention of blue LEDs.
The Associate Students Pardall Center and a number of businesses located in the heart of Isla Vista are already lit up. “It’s so clear that there needs to be something to galvanize around,” said Yasuda, calling the Bluenite project “hopeful and simple.” If you have a dollar in your pocket, added art major Maddie Berger, you can show “solidarity with your community.”