Day X education protest special
Day X: young people show how to fight back W ednesday was a day of revolt—and it was right to revolt. Across Britain, from Dundee to Bournemouth, young people rose up against the attacks on education. Day X was a revolt against £9,000 university fees, the closing off of universities to all but the rich, and the abolition of the EMA allowance that 16-18 year olds rely on to go to college. But it was also about the way the Tories are ripping up people’s futures. It showed that the angry march and the occupation of Tory headquarters on 10 November was not a one-off event. There were as many if not more people involved this time than last time. And it wasn’t just in London. T h e r e we r e m a j o r p r o t e s t s i n Leeds, Bristol, Glasgow, Manchester, Oxford, Liverpool, Sheffield, Brighton, Newcastle and many others. Tens of thousands of students, especially school students, took to the streets. These school students know universities are being closed off to them by soaring fees. They know the cuts mean that only a few will get more than low-paid jobs. What does the government expect them to do—wave dole cards in joyous celebration of the royal wedding? Working class young people are getting hammered—and that’s why they’re fighting back. We know of at least 15 colleges where there have been student occupations. This is a great way to carry forward the fight. The anger we have seen in Europe—in Greece, France and Portugal—has now come to London twice in a month. There will be much more protest in the future. Wednesday’s fightback was the right
Further Education students on the march
response to a government for the rich by the rich. The vicious budget rammed through in Ireland at the same time as the student protests gives a sense of the future here unless there is resistance. Wednesday’s protest must be a launchpad for further resistance. We need to make Tory education secretary Michael Gove choke on his words that this government isn’t going to listen to street protests. There need to be occupations and further big protests before Christmas. These will be discussed at a national co-ordination meeting of students this Sunday, 28 November (see page 4). But the resistance can’t be left to students and school students. Everyone needs to join the fightback. Trade union leaders have made speeches against the government. We need action to stop the hurricane of attacks on working people. The Tories and their lackey Lib Dem allies have launched class war. It’s time for us all to fight back.
Read Socialist Worker www.socialistworker.co.uk
Picture: Guy Smallman
Protest across Europe On Wednesday other workers and students were also fighting back. A general strike shook Portugal, where the government wants to slash public sector wages. Joao Proenca, head of the UGT union federation said, “If the fight against the deficit sinks the country, we have achieved nothing.” In Italy some students stormed the senate after a march through Rome against education cuts. One declared, “Today we are taking back our future.” In Ireland, the government unveiled a brutal package of cuts to pay for its latest IMF bailout. This will slash welfare by £2.5 billion, increase student fees and cut the public sector pay bill by £1 billion—yet corporation tax remains a low 12.5 percent. Protesters in Dublin forced the Merrion Hotel, where IMF representatives are staying, to close. A huge demonstration is planned for this Saturday.
Join the socialists phone 020 7819 1171
Occupations
‘Fight, fight, fight’ The picture postcard view of Oxford University’s Radcliffe Camera was shattered on Wednesday as 300 students occupied it. Chanting, “Education is a right, let’s kick em out and fight, fight, fight,” the students marched into the historic building and hung banners from the top windows. It was one of several university occupations in protest at Tory attacks on education. Some 700 occupied the Rupert Beckett lecture theatre in Leeds University and another 500 held an occupation at Leeds Metropolitan University down the road. Around 300 students briefly occupied Bristol City college. More than 100 occupied at Sheffield University. In London, students occupied at University College London, the University of East London and Southbank University. School students at Hornsey School for Girls staged a sit-down protest in their playground, after their school gates were locked. In Glasgow, 700 students fought police and security to get to the vice-chancellor’s office—and then laid siege to it. Hundreds more occupied at Glasgow Art School, Strathclyde University and Dundee University. Students occupied Newcastle University. Seventy people occupied Warwick University Arts Centre in Coventry, and others occupied for a time at Birmingham University. More than 200 sat-in at Cardiff University and 100 at Essex University. Edinburgh university ocupied later in the day. Occupations that began earlier in the week continued at the School of Oriental and African Studies (Soas), Royal Holloway College, and the University of West England in Bristol.
‘Make the bankers pay’
Wednesday’s student protests saw towns and cities across the country echo to the sound of militant protest. Here, Socialist Worker publishes a selection of updates, reports and interviews from “Day X”. 10:20am
Students are gathering at Westminster Kingsway College. Darius told Socialist Worker: “I’m on the demo because of the rise in tuition fees. The government is trying to take from the poor to feed the rich— it’s out of order.”
11:05am Over 1,100 students have walked out of Chiswick Community School, west London. Arnie told Socialist Worker: “Effectively the whole school has walked out. There has been no confrontation with teachers— they support us. We are on our way to Trafalgar Square and then to march on parliament.” Some 300 students from Gower College Swansea gathered with placards and banners. School students from Haberdashers’ Aske’s in south east London joined university students outside Goldsmiths College to march into central London. A school student told Socialist Worker, “Only half of our year is at school today. Lots of people are really pissed off that they are being put down by the coalition government.”
11:20am Around 100 students walked out of Parkside school and Long Road sixth form colleges in Cambridge.
11:45am Some 100 students are gathering outside City and Islington sixth form college in north London. One student, Danny, told Socialist Worker, “I don’t want to live in a country where only the rich get an education. We need to keep protesting in the coming
On the march in Leeds
Picture: Charlotte Groves
months.” Hackney sixth form college in east London has walked out as did Acland Burghley in Tufnell Park, north London.
and colleges including Notre Dame and Park Lane Colleges and Primrose Hill school and a march from Allerton Grange school.
11:56am
12:48pm
Over 500 students gathered at ULU in central London. Greg, a new graduate joined the protest saying, “I scraped through university with help from my parents, the government, a loan and a hardship fund from my university. Now they are saying that none of this will be available and people will have to rely on the wealth of their parents. This is a crime against young people.”
Several thousand students blockaded the roads around Liverpool’s Lime Street station. Over 5,000 students from Manchester Metropolitan university and Manchester university have been joined by hundreds of FE and school students.
12:37pm Up to 5,000 school, college and university students, and education workers, are marching to Leeds city centre. There have been walkouts from schools
12:59pm Hundreds of students gathered outside Sheffield town hall chanting, “Give us back our EMA, make the fucking bankers pay”.
1.01pm Around 300 students are rallying outside Cardiff
reads “Tory scum” “Fuck the police” and “revolution.” Just past that a group of students are sitting round a bonfire. Overlooking them are students dancing on a bus stop. Graffiti reading, “Smash the state” and “Revolution” has been painted on buildings near the Treasury.
3:12pm Around 200 students from the University of Kent at Canterbury marched from campus into the town centre, joining with around 100 Canterbury College students. Protesters occupied the roundabout of the main arterial road into Canterbury before marching on to the Tory HQ.
3:51pm A student from High Storrs School in Sheffield told Socialist Worker, “Around 500 of us walked out of classes to the front of the school. Teachers tried to blockade the exit and stop us from leaving but around 300 of us broke through.” Some 600 students marched in Bournemouth, led by sixth form students. Students broke through police barriers at the town hall.
4:10pm Over 100 students marched in Truro, Cornwall. Two students, part of the thousands still kettled in Whitehall, London, spoke to Socialist Worker about why they were there. Casey, a school student in North London said, “If they get rid of the Education Maintenance Allowance I won’t be able to go to college. I don’t Students in Trafalgar Square and police in Whitehall Pictures: Socialist Worker and Guy Smallman think it’s wrong to smash up a few things. When voting doesn’t university. They have been Whitehall, playing music, In Bristol, up to 5,000 students work, what are we supposed to joined by a delegation of 50 chanting and dancing. Some have surrounded the university’s do?” from the nearby Caerleon FE who are furious with the police Wills Memorial building and are 4:10pm college. Some 250 students blockade stopping them from being met with a heavy police from Gorseinon FE college, near reaching parliament, are rocking presence. Protesters’ numbers Over 1,200 students rallied in Swansea, are also rallying. a police van. have been bolstered by a school George Square. Trade unionists students’ feeder march. Over 500 joined the rally and speakers 1.10pm 1.28pm students have marched through included STUC deputy general In Brighton school students Hannah Patel, a student Exeter city centre. secretary Dave Moxham. have walked out from Dorothy at Leeds College of Art and 2.29pm 5.40pm Stringer high school and sixth Design said, “We all walked form students walked out out together,” she told Socialist A limping school student in Students remain kettled by Worker. “Even the teachers his uniform says police injured police in Whitehall while others from BHASVIC sixth form college, Varndean College and came. We need to make a him while he was protesting in are now blockading Westminster stand—this is our future.” Northbrook College. central London. He told Socialist bridge. Worker, “The police have created Helen, 14, came to the protest 1.26pm 1.34pm panic. They’re not letting people in Whitehall from a school in Some 200 students have Students from Colchester out. The police stopped me and West London. Her friend, who gathered at Edinburgh University Royal Grammar school, one hit me over and over on my is 15, was arrested. Helen said, and are getting ready to march Colchester Institute College leg with a truncheon.” Two of the “They’re arresting people for and join with other school and and Colchester sixth form have boy’s friends carried him from doing absolutely nothing. If we college students outside the marched to the town centre. the crowd. hurt the police we would go to Bank of Scotland. They then prison, but I’ve seen them hitting 1.57pm 2.45pm plan to march on the Lib Dem and lashing out and it’s us that Thousands of students have At the centre of the Whitehall get arrested. Its not fair.” HQ in Scotland. In London more than 5,000 taken over the central square in protest in London sits a smashed lThanks to everyone who sent in their students have taken over police van. The graffiti on it reports and pictures Newcastle.
it’s about class
Join the fight for socialism Tory education minister Michael Gove claims that the Socialist Workers Party was behind the protests. We are glad to have played our part in the fightback. But the reality is that up and down the country thousands of students protested because they are furious at the government’s attacks—not because anyone “instructed” them to. However, there is a link between the student struggles and the battle to create a truly democratic and just society. The Tories have deliberately set out to hammer the living standards of workers and the poor in order to fatten profits and enrich the bankers and the bosses. By fighting against the government’s plans we can sow the seeds of the very different world we need. The rich love George Osborne’s cuts. The chief executives who live in obscene luxury will smile at the news that the unemployed will be pressed even further into poverty while workers will see their meagre wages squeezed harder. The police hiding behind riot shields and wading in with truncheons are there to make sure that those who make the profits— and the politicians who look after their interests—are protected. We’ve seen the level of anger. Now let’s get organised to link up our fights and win. This wave of resistance has to continue—or the Eton boys will trample on our class. And that’s also why we need a different type of society. Join us in the fight for socialism. Phone 020 7819 1170 or text 07986 936094 to join the Socialist Workers Party.
Education Activist Network lNational co-ordination meeting of students Sunday 28 November, 12 noon - 5pm, Birbeck College, Malet Street, London. lEducation for the people, not the market. A national teach-in on Sunday 5 December. Go to http://educationactivistnetwork. wordpress.com for more information
Unity with workers is vital to beating Tories M illions of people who live in fear of what the Tory spending cuts will do to their families and communities cheered Wednesday’s protests. The demonstrations show the depth of anger that many working class people feel, and point to the kind of militant action necessary to beat the government. Students can be the detonators for a much wider revolt. We need the spirit of rebellion seen on the streets of Britain this week to spread. It needs to be found in the workplaces where thousands worry that their jobs are on the line, and to communities were public services are going to be decimated. If our trade unions were to take up the Tory’s challenge in the same way as the students, the government’s days would be numbered. Crisis Capitalism depends on workers to make its profits and run all the services that it depends on. Strikes by workers under attack, co-ordinated action and, best of all, a general strike would paralyse the country and create a political crisis. David Cameron and his lying Lib Dem mates would be shaken to the core. Making such action a reality is not easy. It depends on students joining every protest against cuts and supporting every strike,
Protesting in Whitehall
taking their bravery and radicalism with them. And trade unionists should invite students to address meetings to help inspire their colleagues. In every workplace, activists need to call for union leaders to be starting the fight now. It was this kind
Picture: Guy Smallman
of unity that helped spread the 1968 student revolt in France to the factories leading to the biggest general strike in European history. That’s a lesson that millionaire Tories hoped we’d forgotten, but one that it is vital that we recall.