Friday 12 November 2010

Statement about 10/11/10 student demonstration


A statement has been issued supporting Wednesday's student protests
We need unity to defend education and break the Con Dems’ attacks. Stand with protesters against victimisation.

• Stand with the protestors against victimisation

• Hands off our students, our colleges and our universities
• Broken windows cannot compare to the broken hearts and dreams of a generation denied education and jobs
Sign the Unity statement
We need unity to break the Con Dems’ attacks
Stand with protesters against victimisation
Wednesday’s national NUS/UCU 50,000 strong national demonstration was a magnificent show of strength against the Con Dems’ savage attacks on education. The Tories want to make swinging cuts, introduce £9,000 tuition fees and cut EMA. These attacks will close the doors to higher education and further education for a generation of young people.

During the demonstration over 5,000 students showed their determination to defend the future of education by occupying the Tory party HQ and its courtyards for several hours. The mood was good-spirited, with chants, singing and flares.

Yet at least 32 people have now been arrested, and the police and media appear to be launching a witch-hunt condemning peaceful protesters as “criminals” and violent. A great deal is being made of a few windows smashed during the protest, but the real vandals are those waging a war on our education system.
We reject any attempt to characterise the Millbank protest as small, “extremist” or unrepresentative of our movement. We celebrate the fact that thousands of students were willing to send a message to the Tories that we will fight to win. Occupations are a long established tradition in the student movement that should be defended. It is this kind of action in France and Greece that has been an inspiration many workers and students in Britain faced with such a huge assault on jobs, housing and the public sector.
We stand with the protesters, and anyone who is victimised as a result of the protest.

Initial signatories include:
Mark Bergfeld, NUS NEC
Sean Rillo Raczka, Birkbeck SU Chair and NUS NEC (Mature Students’ Rep)
Vicki Baars, NUS LGBT Officer (Women’s Place)
Alan Bailey, NUS LGBT Officer (Open Place)
Kanjay Sesay, NUS Black Students’ Officer
Matt Bond, NUS Disabled Ctte (Open Place rep)
Michael Chessum, Education and Campaigns Officer UCL SU
Jade Baker, Education Officer Westminster Uni SU
Cameron Tait, University of Sussex Students' Union President
Nathan Bolton, Campaigns Officer Essex University Students’ Union
Clare Solomon, ULU President
Jim Wolfreys, UCU NEC
Dr Marion Hersh, UCU NEC and Scottish Executive
Alex Gordon, President, National Union of Rail, Maritime & Transport Workers (RMT)
Lee Hall, playwright ‘Billy Elliot’
Hilary Wainwright, Transnational Institute
Alex Callinicos, Professor of European Studies King’s College London

Billy Bragg
Songwriter
Noami Klein
Author and Activist All in a personal capacity

  http://www.petitiononline.com/st53231/petition.html

The next meeting of our local anti-cuts campaign is on Wednesday 24th November at 7:00pm in Oxford House.

This is the day after council unions meet with the Chief Executive so we may have some picture of what the budget looks like in Tower Hamlets.

We should take the example of the students and bring some of that feeling to every campaign that fight and cuts.

The TUC has named Saturday March 26th as the day for the national demonstration and we need to make sure that this is huge, but there will be a lot of campaigning and activity before then.

Hope to see you on Wednesday 24th.

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