On April 22, the Coalition large de l’Association pour une solidarité syndicale etudiante unanimously voted to denounce deliberate acts of violence by student protesters and was allowed to enter negotiations.
However, tentative talks between student groups and the province fell apart after Education Minister Line Beauchamp banned the CLASSE once again from joining the discussion.
The minister’s decision came on April 25 in response to a violent student demonstration that took place the previous night. Though the CLASSE stated they did not organize the protest, Beauchamp said they were responsible in part for announcing the demonstration on their website.
As a result, the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec and the Fédération étudiante collègiale du Québec have abandoned negotiations with the government unless the CLASSE is re-admitted.
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On Tuesday, the Concordia Student Union voted on a symbolic motion to support the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec’s decision to stand in solidarity with another student group, during a special CSU meeting regarding negotiations with the government.
Education Minister Line Beauchamp offered to speak with the FEUQ and the Fédération étudiante collègiale du Québec on Sunday, after the FEUQ requested an independent government commission to investigate university management.
Beauchamp made it clear that there would be no discussion of the incoming tuition hike at the meeting, and that the Coalition large de l’Association pour une solidarité syndicale etudiante would not be invited.
The CSU decided in a unanimous motion that it will only support negotiations between the provincial government and the student leaders if all student associations are invited.
Following a presentation by CSU President Lex Gill, the special council meeting was quickly voted into a committee of the whole, allowing for more informal dialogue and an open discussion for those present at the meeting.
Gill emphasized that at the last FEUQ meeting it was clear they were not willing to engage in negotiations without the CLASSE, who has been very active throughout the year in the fight against tuition increases.
“There is a consensus at the CSU that the CLASSE should be at that table as well,” said Gill.
Beauchamp stated earlier in the week that she would only extend an invitation to the CLASSE if the student association agreed to condemn acts of violence and vandalism as means of protest. CLASSE spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois said at a press conference held April 16 that while the association does not associate itself with these acts, it cannot condemn them. Nadeau-Dubois said the CLASSE would not change its position without consulting its members first.
“We find it unacceptable that our coalition, which represents 47 per cent of the people on strike right now, is being rejected from the negotiation process,” said Nadeau-Dubois on Monday. “If our coalition is not part of the solution, there won’t be any actual solution to the student strike.”
More protests are underway this week. On April 19, a morning demonstration is planned for the downtown core. That same day in Gatineau, students will be protesting the injunctions ordered against striking students at L’Université du Québec en Outaouais. On Sunday April 22, students will join in what is expected to be a large march coinciding with Earth Day.
With files from Sarah Deshaies and Marilla Steuter-Martin.
President Lowy (right) receives an official request for academic amnesty.
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Tensions ran high at a ‘town hall’ meeting held on Tuesday between a crowd of approximately 150 students and some of Concordia’s senior administrators, including interim President Frederick Lowy.
Lowy, along with VP services Roger Côté and VP institutional relations Bram Freedman, addressed students’ questions regarding the administration’s response to the ongoing strike against impending tuition fee hikes put in place by the provincial government.
One of the main concerns brought up by students was the privatization of higher education in Quebec. Many stated that they felt the tuition fee increase was unfair, unnecessary and uncalled for.
“I’m sick and tired of the commercialization of every aspect of our lives,” said one woman. “Education is not up for grabs.”
Lowy insisted that Quebec universities must be funded along the same lines as other Canadian universities in order to provide the same education.
“If you feel Quebec universities could somehow manage on less, then that’s something you must justify,” Lowy said.
The right to strike as a form of protest, the heightened presence of security at the university and the mismanagement of funds were also addressed by both the administration and the students.
Trevor Smith, VP finance of the Geography Undergraduate Student Society asked why it took Lowy six weeks to hold this meeting and criticized how the administration had handled the student strike so far.
“I’m really ashamed of it,” Smith said. “This is our first strike and probably not our last strike,” he added to a round of applause from students.
When questioned about the heightened security measures taken by the university lately, Lowy
said it was a necessary step.
“We have a responsibility for the safety of everyone in this room and everyone at this university. A lot of security is not to suggest that people will behave badly,” said Lowy. “Essentially it’s preventive work.”
At one point during the discussion, two representatives from the Fine Arts Student Alliance, including president Paisley V. Sim, presented Lowy and the other administrators with a formal request for academic amnesty shaped like a giant cheque. FASA has been on strike since the beginning of March and is in the process of holding a referendum to decide whether or not to continue through exam period.
The town hall meeting ended at approximately 1:15 p.m. much to some students’ displeasure. Many did not have the chance to speak in the time allotted by the university and had to leave without getting their turn.
The event was organized in response to the student occupation of the 14th floor of the MB building on April 2. Around 70 students sat outside the door of Lowy’s office for nearly an hour demanding to speak with the president. Lowy met with the students and agreed to host a formal ‘town hall’ where they could express their opinions openly on the strike.
Although the meeting was called in order to facilitate an open discourse with concerned students nearing the end of their semester, Lowy emphasized early on that it was not a “decision making meeting.”
Over 5,000 students and citizens attended a demonstration on Wednesday in Quebec Premier Jean Charest’s home riding of Sherbrooke.
Students bused in from across the province representing high schools, CEGEPs and universities which have been protesting the province’s tuition increases.
The Concordia contingent, which was organized by student union VP external Chad Walcott, lost a large number of supporters before the bus even left the Hall building.
Earlier in the day, about 60 students were arrested during a protest which occurred at the Eaton Centre shopping mall as well as the Queen Elizabeth Hotel. Police say that those arrested were involved in “mischief” though it is not completely clear what the students have been charged with.
Walcott confirmed that a number of those arrested were Concordia students who were supposed to be on the bus, which departed at 11 a.m. Ultimately the group leaving from campus was quite small, with only six people travelling to Sherbrooke for the march.
The protesters congregated at the University of Sherbrooke and met up with an even larger group before walking all the way to the premier’s local office. Once there, students continued to cheer and chant as leaders of the movement made speeches.
Over 200,000 people took to the streets March 22 to protest tuition increases, many of whom were students from universities across Quebec.
The Concordia delegation, which led the way for the better part of the three-hour event, congregated near the Hall building around 12 p.m. Over 500 students then began to proceed down Ste-Catherine Street lead by Concordia Student Union VP external Chad Walcott, and President Lex Gill.
The scene at Berri and Ontario at Thursday’s tuition hike protest where an estimated 200,000 people took to Montreal’s streets.
The march began officially at Canada Place, where buses full of students from outside the city started arriving earlier in the day. The approximate length of the route was 5 km, with protesters marching down both Sherbrooke and Ste-Catherine Streets to their ultimate destination, Jacques-Cartier Place in the Old Port.
Protesters held signs denouncing Premier Jean Charest’s Liberal government, the leadership of Education Minister Line Beauchamp, and the idea that accessible education is not a priority.
The historic nature of the march had some people in the Twittersphere saying that a “Printemps erable” (Maple Spring) — clearly a play on Arab Spring — had arrived in Quebec.
Despite the massive turnout, the protest was extremely peaceful and the SPVM reported no major incidents during or after the march. Police presence was very light in comparison with other demonstrations that have taken place over the past few weeks.
“This sends an incredibly strong message to the government,” said Gill of the protest. “If anything else, the Liberal party has lost 200,000 voters for life.”
She went on to say that the march was the “largest mass demonstration over a public issue […] in years. It’s twice what they had in 2005,” she said of the last major student strike in Quebec.
The participation far exceeded the predictions made earlier in the day, proving that there is more public support for the student movement than estimated. Despite the success of the demonstration, Gill explained that protesters still have much work to do.
“The fight is not over,” she said. “There will be massive actions in the coming weeks until the government backs down.”
Walcott agreed with her saying that “it’s not a done deal,” and student groups need to “keep the pressure on. He said that the organizers’ willingness to communicate with the SPVM really made a significant difference in the tone of the day’s activities.
Participants in the March 22 demonstration represented every age demographic, from toddlers with their parents to cheering grandparents. Grade 10 student Terra Leger-Goodes of Paul-Gerin-Lajoie School in Outremont was at the march with a large group of students from her class.
“We heard that the cost of going to university is going up by a large amount, so we’re here to protest that. Society can only advance if people can go to school and gain knowledge,” she said, mentioning that by the time she enters university four to five years from now, the government’s tuition hikes will have almost reached their maximum. The Charest Liberals are planning to increase tuition by $325 a year between 2012 and 2017.
For grandmother Danielle Genereux, accessible education is an issue that affects everyone in Quebec, and should be at the top of the government’s priority list.
“Major investments in education should be an absolute priority. There should be no further discussion on that,” said Genereux, a grandmother of seven. “[The government] says opposition against tuition increases is not representative of the whole population. But today, they will see that it is representative.”
At the end of the march, Coalition large de l’Association pour une solidarite syndicale etudiante spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois told students to return to their schools and to keep the student movement going. By 6 p.m., most of the protesters had dispersed, crowding into the nearest metro stations.
CLASSE, one of the main organizers of the day’s march, is planning a series of protests next week in an effort to cause an “economic disturbance” in the city, which they say will only end when the government retracts its decision to up tuition. The first “manif-action” takes place Monday, March 26 at 11 a.m. at Henri-Julien Park.
Concordia’s next general assembly where students will vote whether or not to remain on strike is scheduled for Monday, March 26 at 2 p.m. on the Reggie’s terrace. The university has already made clear that as of Monday, students who continue to block access to classrooms or buildings will face charges.
Opposition parties join students
Earlier in the morning, a press conference was held at Palais des Congres by the Federation etudiante universitaire du Quebec and the Federation etudiante collegiale du Quebec, and included representatives from groups such as the Centrale des syndicats du Quebec and the Confederation des syndicats nationaux, as well as opposition political parties, the Parti Quebecois, Quebec Solidaire and Option Nationale.
At the conference, PQ leader Pauline Marois reiterated that a PQ-elected government would not proceed with the tuition hikes, and would call for a provincial summit on post-secondary education. “The Charest government must stop considering students as enemies of the state,” she said.
QS spokesperson Francoise David, for her part, emphasized that the government could increase taxes on larger corporations in order to bring in more revenue, rather than asking for more money from students.
After the conference, PQ post-secondary education critic Marie Malavoy spoke to The Concordian about the issue of mismanagement of public funds in Quebec universities that has often been brought up in the debate on tuition increases.
Speaking on Education Minister Line Beauchamp’s recent decision to impose a $2 million fine on Concordia for handing out severance packages totalling $3.1 million, Malavoy said “there is no reason to have targeted one university. We must look at the salaries, the benefits and the severance packages at all universities. It’s foolish to think it’s just Concordia,” she said.
Malavoy mentioned that an idea has been floating among PQ ranks to institute a “commission” to look more closely at the management of public funds in Quebec universities.
Reaction from the government to the March 22 protest became more severe as the days passed. On the morning of March 22, Charest told reporters at the National Assembly in Quebec City that his government would “never stop listening to students.”
By Friday, his education minister was telling the Canadian Press that students needed to get back to class, or else they would face consequences. Line Beauchamp reiterated that the government would not back down from its decision, and said that should students continue to boycott classes, they risk having their semesters extended or classes scheduled at night. Concordia already indicated in a previous statement that it has no intention of prolonging the winter term.
Police officers on horses were at the tail end of the march.
An online declaration calling for support from Concordia’s faculty in the fight against tuition hikes has already gathered more than 160 signatures in less than three weeks.
The Concordia Declaration was drafted by the Concordia Student Union, the Graduate Students’ Association and a number of faculty members consulted in the process. It was posted online on Feb. 17, asking university professors, research assistants and teaching assistants to accommodate students who may miss class or assignments due to their involvement in a potential general strike.
“The declaration was a response to faculty talking to [the CSU] and saying they wanted a way of making sure students know that they support them,” said CSU President Lex Gill. “Since we put the declaration online, signatures have been growing really fast. It’s really exciting, we did not expect so many signatures.”
Gill explained that the declaration could play a crucial role in influencing the provost’s decision to grant an amnesty as “it shows faculty members on Senate that [a general strike] is something faculty, research and teaching assistants clearly support.”
Gill added that there were more signatures pending approval on the website’s account.
Concordia spokesperson Chris Mota, however, pointed out that an academic amnesty could not be granted by the provost, nor the Senate, “because no one and nobody has the authority to require that [faculty] abide by one.”
“When I spoke with [Graham] last week, he was of the same opinion that he was in the time of Nov. 10, even after knowing about the declaration,” said Mota. “The situation is very clear: faculty are expected to teach and professors are expected to come in and do their jobs. We need to keep providing services for those who choose to continue studying.”
Graham could not be reached to comment directly on the declaration.
Mota added that for those who choose to “boycott” classes, some individual accommodations could be made “for a day or two,” but something at the level of an academic amnesty is not being considered right now.
The Concordia Declaration, which can be found on http://concordiadeclaration.wordpress.com, asks for every signatory to leave name, position and comments if desired.
Teaching assistant and GSA President Robert Sonin said he signed because he did not want to see Concordia turn into a university “in name only, a for-profit diploma mill with no academic integrity or legitimacy.”
“The strike against tuition fee increases is not merely about money,” Sonin said. “It is a struggle against a trend that is cheapening what we do, that is undermining the seriousness and value of higher education and academic research, and that can only value things — including human beings — in terms of money.”
CLARIFICATION: In a previous version of this article, Concordia spokesperson Chris Mota indicated that the decision for imposing academic amnesty was solely up to Provost David Graham. After following up with Graham, Mota later told The Concordian that no one has the authority to grant a ‘blanket’ amnesty. Instead, faculty members, as long as they are abiding by regulations set by Senate, can deal with individual cases in their class themselves.
A resolution proposing accepted terms between student associations to improve common action against tuition hikes triggered a heated debate during the Concordia Student Union council meeting last Wednesday.
After CSU VP external Chad Walcott and councillor Irmak Bahar went off on a lengthy exchange of arguments about the pros and cons of what is known as the “minimum agreement,” the motion to support it failed to pass, with 11 councilors voting against, three in favour and one abstention.
The minimum agreement was a proposition brought up during a national conference in May 2011 and consists of three clauses: solidarity, non-recommendation and non-denunciation.
The minimum agreement would have required, among other things, that the union not negotiate with the government unless all umbrella student groups were present, and that it not criticize the actions of other student associations in the fight against tuition hikes.
At the beginning of last week’s council meeting, Walcott read a recommendation to the council pointing out the inability to reach consensus over the three clauses and the outdated aspect of the resolution.
“Since the Nov. 10 protest, national student movements have developed parallel campaigns, and collaboration on a single campaign is no longer needed,” said Walcott. “There is a conflict in the goals of national associations and the minimum agreement is no longer an issue in the student movement.”
On the other hand, Bahar insisted the resolution would help student associations coordinate their efforts on a national level without necessarily hindering each association’s goals.
“I think we have different perceptions of the level of autonomy stated in the minimum agreement,” said Bahar about Walcott’s point of view. “The resolution is an act of good faith to show solidarity, to stand united in the movement and avoid denouncing each other’s actions in the media.”
The Association pour une Solidarité Sociale Étudiante is in line with Bahar’s point of view, saying the three clauses would help students all go in the same direction.
“The question of autonomy has never been an issue for us, as we understand each association’s autonomy in the strike,” said ASSÉ press officer Mathilde Létourneau. “It was a resolution created to establish a sense of harmony in the movement.”
During Wednesday’s meeting, Walcott used the example of a group of students who, two weeks ago, used a UQÀM student association’s name and logo to jokingly promote kidnapping and infrastructural damage. Walcott explained that the CSU and other student associations should be able, in a similar situation, to have the ability to speak out against such practices, something the minimum agreement would prevent them from doing in his opinion.
“It’s not meant to censor anyone,” replied Bahar. “It’s not a binding contract to stay quiet about other student associations’ actions but its purpose is to show we’re on the same page.”
At last May’s national meeting, the three clauses received a majority support by the associations present. Three out of the four associations that represent Quebec students on a national level still support the minimum agreement. Concordia is affiliated to the fourth one, the Fédération etudiante universitaire du Québec.
The FEUQ, a group representing 15 student associations, declined to comment or to take position on the minimum agreement resolution. They said they wanted to respect each student organization’s sovereignty as the decision came within the competence of local associations.
“We will take position whenever we get the final word of each association,” said FEUQ press officer Mathieu Le Blanc.
French and English CEGEPs and universities protest to show solidarity in the fight against tuition hikes
French and English CEGEPs and universities protest to show solidarity in the fight against tuition hikes - Photo by Navneet Paul
Hundreds of students yelled and chanted their way across downtown Montreal on Feb. 2 to protest against tuition hikes — and when they did, they made sure their voices were heard in both official languages.
In an effort to show unity between French and English schools in the fight against the proposed $1,625 increase in tuition fees announced by the Liberal government last March, more than 300 students from various Montreal CEGEPs and universities gathered at Concordia’s Hall building. From there, they started marching towards the Université de Québec a Montréal, shouting their way through McGill University and the Vieux-Montréal CEGEP.
“This protest is the outcome of several inter-university meetings we held at the end of last year,” said Rushdia Mehreen, formerly of the Graduate Students’ Association and member of the Mob Squad, a student group that has given itself the mandate of staging protest and demonstrations against tuition hikes. “In these meetings, we wanted to find out a way to build more ties between francophone and anglophone universities and CEGEPs.”
The idea of demonstrating French and English came shortly after the incident that took place at McGill University last Nov. 10, when several students faced police brutality after the massive rally that saw 30,000 students against tuition hikes flood the streets of Montreal. The group of protesters was attacked by anti-riot police and sought refuge in McGill premises where the police followed them and continued to fight them back.
The incident sparked the movement “We are all McGill,” inspired by the Egyptian movement “We are all Khaled Said,” a movement created in Jan. 2011 condemning police brutality.
Students from various schools in Montreal felt the need to express their support furthermore and decided to meet last December in order to find an effective way to demonstrate unity and to solve a potential miscommunication between francophone and anglophone schools.
“On s’en calisse [we don’t give a damn] about which language we speak,” exclaimed Frank Lévesque-Nicol, one of the event organizers and member of the Comité sur la lutte sociale of the UQÀM student union. “We have to put aside these futile language quarrels and go beyond these usual divisions. We are subjected to the same threat and we are fighting the same struggle.”
The slogan of Thursday’s protest symbolically alternated between French and English, with flyers reading: “Don’t fuck with notre éducation.”
When marching through the McGill campus, protesters honoured those affected by last year’s police brutality by chanting: “Who’s McGill? It’s our McGill!”
Some organizers joked by informally calling the group who organized the protest the “Anglo-Franco committee,” but Levesque insisted that the protest was organized by concerned students and was not to be affiliated to any group or association.
However, the wish to remain a grass-rooted movement slightly backfired for Concordia organizers as only a few Concordia students showed up to the protest, with the Concordia Student Union making no publicity of the event.
“I know very little about what’s going on today,” said CSU VP external Chad Walcott, former head of the Mob Squad, who was not participating in the protest. Walcott said the CSU was not entirely informed about the protest and that it was “purely a Mob Squad initiative,” adding that he still supported the protest.
Mehreen explained that the Mob Squad was an entity made out of concerned students and that it was autonomous from any unions.
Thursday’s protest came only a day after the UQAM Faculty of Arts and Science voted in favour of an unlimited general strike set to take place next March. A similar vote will take place at Concordia during a general assembly on March 7 where undergraduate students will decide whether or not they want to go on a general strike.
Concordia’s administration has issued a very clear position on any potential student strike in March, saying that the university will continue to operate as usual and students will still be expected to attend class and hand in their assignments on time.
Concordia’s Provost David Graham released an open letter to students, faculty and staff outlining the university’s stance last Wednesday.
“Regardless of the outcome of the March 7th vote, Concordia intends to continue operating as usual,” it reads. “All instructional activities, including classes, tutorials, labs and studio sessions, will be held as scheduled.”
The document explains that students who choose to miss class or refuse to take their exams will be subject to the standard academic consequences. Graham goes on to list possible negative outcomes for students, such as the risk of being de-registered by not paying tuition, losing visa status or health insurance for international students and failing to meet graduation requirements.
Concordia Student Union President Lex Gill called the letter “fear mongering” and stated that “the dangers [Graham] expressed are worst case and highly unlikely.”
Gill said that the CSU felt “blind-sided” by the timing of the Provost’s letter. VP external Chad Walcott arranged a meeting with the administration which was pushed back for unrelated reasons, she explained.
Gill went on to say that the letter also failed to mention that historical precedent was on the student’s side. “Since the 1960s, there have been eight major general strikes and universities have never cancelled sessions before. They just aren’t equipped to handle it,” she said.
Following the letter’s public circulation, Gill and Graham exchanged a number of tweets. Gill called the Provost’s actions “disingenuous” and stated that she was “deeply unimpressed.”
Graham voiced complaint that he had only heard about the strike vote through the media, to which Gill replied, “nevertheless, you know my extension and it would’ve made a massive difference to talk about that email together.”
Members of the CSU are scheduled to meet with senior administrators in the next two weeks, and Gill is hopeful they will be open to talking. “I would like [the administration] to accommodate the democratic will of students, should this strike happen,” she said.
Graham explained that he chose to write the letter in order to “be pro-active and reach out to faculty and staff.”
His goal was to emphasize that should there be a strike, faculty are still expected to provide the same services. “The most important point at the moment is that we do have a duty to teach for students who choose to attend classes.”
“[The faculty] can exercise leniency if they wish to do so,” he continued. “It’s their decision.”
When asked about the possibility of giving amnesty to students participating in the strike, Graham stated that “there hasn’t been any request for amnesty that I’m aware of.”
Robert Sonin, the bargaining officer of Teaching and Research Assistants at Concordia (TRAC), explained that a student strike would put students employed by the university in a difficult position.
“Members of TRAC need to remember they have a role as an employee which is different from their role as student,” he said. “We support the idea of a strike as a whole, [but] we don’t have the right to go on strike.”
Members can strike as students and not attend classes if they wish, but they are expected to continue with their other duties, he explained.
FECQ president Léo Bureau-Blouin and FEUQ president Martine Desjardins reaffirmed the intent to strike on March 22.
MONTREAL (CUP) — After a day-long meeting on Jan. 21 in Quebec City, the Fédération étudiante universitaire du Québec (FEUQ) and the Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec (FECQ) have reaffirmed the intention to strike on March 22 to protest rising university tuition fees.
But first, the individual member groups need to seek approval from their constituents.
“We have the mandate to ask our associations to go on strike, but first they need to ask their members if they want to, and then we will be able to say the FEUQ is on strike,” said president Martine Desjardins, who made the announcement with FECQ president Léo Bureau-Blouin in Montreal on Jan. 23.
The date was chosen earlier in December to coincide with the timing of the release of the finance minister’s budget. Desjardins said that FEUQ, the student lobby group that is often a government negotiator, has not been invited to sit in on the pre-budget consultation meetings that are now taking place.
FECQ president Léo Bureau-Blouin and FEUQ president Martine Desjardins reaffirmed the intent to strike on March 22.
After walking out of the same meetings in December 2010, she said their calls have not been answered by the finance department: “We asked them to talk with us. But they won’t do it.”
Several associations are planning longer strikes at different times, confirmed Desjardins.
“We talked a little about the different waves of strikes that are going to be happening,” said Chad Walcott, VP external for the Concordia Student Union (CSU), which is a FEUQ member. “Whereas some schools are going to strike earlier in February, and others later in March, [there’s] a wave of pressure that’s moving toward March 22 and the end of the academic year for that last push.”
On its own, the CSU is planning a school strike for March 26 to 29, a city-wide Montreal protest on March 1 and a sleep-in at one of Concordia University’s 24-hour libraries in February.
“I don’t think anyone’s officially ready to go on strike, but some departments are starting to talk about it,” said Walcott, who is working on a booklet for Concordia students who are considering strike action.
Desjardins added that a protest is also planned for Feb. 14, when the National Assembly returns from a break, and stunts will be staged at different campuses on a weekly basis up until March 22.
“There [are] a few things that we have to do, and it won’t be easy, and we know that,” said Desjardins. “But people are willing to do this and are very optimistic.
“We can make history [with this]. We held the second-biggest protest [in Quebec] on the 10th of November,” she added, recalling last semester’s day of action, when about 20,000 students marched to Premier Jean Charest’s downtown Montreal office. The day culminated with a handful of arrests and a confrontation between riot police and students on McGill University’s campus.
Charest has said the government will go through with gradual tuition hikes, beginning in fall 2012, to culminate in a total rise of $1,625.
Quebec permanent residents currently pay the lowest tuition fees in Canada, but FEUQ and FECQ, which represent about 200,000 students in universities and CÉGEPs across the province, assert that further tuition hikes could harm students’ finances.
The education ministry could not be reached for comment.
March 7 will be the day that undergraduate students decide on Concordia’s role in the province-wide battle against tuition fee hikes in Quebec.
The Concordia Student Union has passed a motion setting March 7 as a date for a general assembly for a strike mandate expected to last from March 26 to 29.
“This is pretty much, the only card left that the students have in their hands in Quebec,” said CSU president Lex Gill at at last Wednesday’s council meeting. While Gill admitted that a strike will not be easy, she described it as a necessary step against tuition fee increases in the province.
This week, the CSU will renew their campaign against the hikes, launching an information campaign leading up to the assembly in March about the pros and cons of going forth with a strike, including flyers, posters, booklets and speeches.
“It’s really important to us that moving towards March 7, each student is fully aware of what they are going to be voting on and what impacts it will have on them,” said VP external Chad Walcott at the meeting.
Other events in the campaign include a one week sleep-in at the library to raise awareness about the tuition increases, fax and phone jams and F#ck Tuition Tuesdays at Reggie’s Bar in the Hall Building.
“To talk about a strike at this point, frankly if we weren’t I would be really worried,” said Gill, who reminded council that there are other student unions in Quebec planning strikes as early as February.
Walcott said strikes are proven to be effective in putting pressure on the government.
“We’re in a position to have a serious impact on our province,” he added in an interview.
During the meeting, some concerns were raised with regards to international students, and the potential consequences of their participation in long-term demonstrations. The CSU, however, insisted that international students who choose to strike will not run risk of being deported.
Concordia’s Mob Squad is also planning for future demonstrations, and teamed up with McGill to hold a winter training camp for interested activists last weekend.
Concordia students first protested the hikes on Nov.10, joining tens of thousands of students marching against the extra $1625 worth of tuition fees proposed by the Jean Charest government. The province currently plans to increase the cost of university tuition $325 yearly over the next five years.
The next province-wide demonstration is set for March 22.
THE FACTS: Come April, Concordia may have a final candidate to replace interim President Frederick Lowy as president and vice-chancellor of the university. The presidential search committee is scheduled to meet again before the end of January to review and finalize a short list of candidates. The committee’s work is confidential, so no names have been released. However, university spokesperson Chris Mota wrote in an email that “a recommendation will be ready for the Board of Governors for April 2012 with the candidate to take office, ideally, as of August 1, 2012.” The university hired consultant Laverne Smith & Associates Inc. to pre-interview candidates.
WHY IT MATTERS: Other than being the highest ranking position at the university, the president’s office has seen enough controversy in recent years to deserve a critical eye. Concordia’s previous president, Judith Woodsworth, was dismissed by the Board of Governors in 2010, while her predecessor Claude Lajeunesse left office halfway though his five-year contract due to conflicts with the administration.
A general student strike vote
THE FACTS: The Concordia Student Union plans on continuing where last semester left off, launching a new campaign to protest the Quebec government’s tuition hikes and addressing the possibility of preparing for a vote to strike sometime this semester. While last fall saw some student participation in protests and rallies against tuition fee increases, CSU VP external Chad Walcott said “a student strike could be the next step in a Quebec-wide protest.”Walcott added that before anything can be done, “the movement will have to regain momentum” lost over the winter break. A demonstration set for March 22 is already in the planning stages and members of the CSU have put together a document outlining tentative plans to be presented at council on Wednesday.
WHY IT MATTERS: Tuition in Quebec is set to raise $325 a year over five years for university undergrads, and whether or not you agree with the increase, it’s ultimately up to students to decide whether Concordia’s undergrads will be going on strike for more than just a day.
A whole lot of general elections
THE FACTS: Break out the posters and in-classroom speeches: Concordia’s student associations will be gearing up for another round of general elections this spring. The Concordia Student Union, the Arts and Science Federation of Associations, and others will all be holding elections to fill their executive positions.
WHY IT MATTERS: Spring general elections should be anything but uncomplicated if last semester’s byelections are anything to go by, between the accusations of electoral violations, mistakes caught at polling stations, and the firing of two separate chief electoral officers. Not to mention the fact that last year’s CSU general elections resulted in the CEO disqualifying both parties, only to have his decision later overturned by the judicial board and CSU council.
Though the Nov. 10 day of action has long since passed, the fight is far from over for the Mob Squad, a Concordia-based group mobilizing students against the Quebec government’s plan to raise university tuition.
Approximately 20 people met last Friday in the Graduate Students’ Association lounge on Mackay St., passing several motions which clarified the Mob Squad’s role in the future of the student movement at Concordia.
“It helps to have a mandate because it gives us a clear focus,” said Rushdia Mehreen, a graduate student who attended the meeting. “It allows us to start the important work, which is mobilizing.”
The squad voted to define itself as independent from the Concordia Student Union. Originally an ad hoc group created by the undergraduate union, the Mob Squad worked with the CSU in the province-wide Nov. 10 demonstrations against tuition increases.
That is not to say that union representatives are barred from taking part in the Mob Squad. A motion proposing that CSU and GSA executives be prohibited from participating at Mob Squad meetings was unanimously opposed. CSU VPs Morgan Pudwell and Chad Walcott, GSA president Robert Sonin, and several CSU councillors were in attendance.
It was also decided that the Mob Squad will have no public spokesperson. Political science student and undergraduate senator Gene Morrow attended the meeting and personally feels that the Mob Squad should have no central authority.
“I see it as a place to coordinate action with a variety of people,” said Morrow.
Student activist Alex Matak facilitated the meeting and says that the next Mob Squad gathering will be “more action-oriented,” focusing on the idea of calling for a general strike and the potential for direct action.
