What we’re seeing is a return of struggle
The election of Malia Bouattia as President of the National Union of Students was a stunning victory for the left. Matt Collins interviews Sai Englert a member of Malia’s campaign team, a NUS national executive member and a long-time stalwart of the student left on the politics of the student movement, and the new opportunities for the […]
French movement escalates to resist new labour law: report from Paris protests
Ian Crosson reports from last weekend’s protests in Paris Imagine thousands of people occupying Trafalgar Square, every night, for days on end, to discuss how to resist austerity and raising radical issues. Imagine this occupation spreads to every town and city in Britain in just a few days. Well , this is what has happened […]
Unison and UCU strike together in FE over fair pay
Jessica Redman, a Unison member at a college in London, reports from Wednesday’s FE strike Wednesday 24 February saw Unison and UCU members in Further Education colleges across England strike together over pay for the first time in a decade. The strike was over an ongoing dispute with the Association of Colleges (AoC). The FE Joint […]
“£1 extra an hour for all” – UNISON and UCU national FE Strike
Tomorrow (24 February), for the first time in over a decade, UNISON and UCU in Further Education will be striking together for more pay. Mark, an FE lecturer in London discusses why they are taking action. Why we are striking Lecturers, admin and support staff working in Further Education colleges in England are to take […]
On framing JNU for an imaginary crime
rs21 is pleased to republish Aditya Sarkar‘s article on the vicious attacks of the far right Indian government on students and academics at Jawahalal Nehru University in New Delhi. These attacks have met with growing protests by students and academics. This article was originally published on kafila.org. Some editorial explanations have been added to the original text. […]
‘Becoming a shop steward transformed my political life.’ – IS in the 1970s
May ’68 and the struggles of the late sixties radicalised tens of thousands of students, some became revolutionaries and joined revolutionary groups. Norman MacLean became a member of the International Socialists (IS) and started working in factories, organising and agitating with his fellow workers during the heightened period of class struggle known as the ‘upturn’. […]
The other NHS strike – why bursaries for student nurses matter
While attention has largely been focused on the series of industrial actions planned by Junior Doctors, they are not the only NHS workers threatened by proposed government reforms. Mario A, a student nurse, explains why he and his colleagues are planning a walkout, and what it means for the future of the NHS.
‘These cuts will not heal’ – student nurses march for bursaries
On Saturday 9 January, thousands of student nurses and their supporters marched on Downing Street to protest the government’s proposal to replace current bursaries with loans.
#bursaryorbust: student nurses fight to defend the NHS
Today thousands of student nurses will march through London demanding that the NHS bursary should not be scrapped. Emma RC discusses the campaign she’s been part of at King’s College London and argues the #bursaryorbust campaign is part of a wider fight in defence of the NHS. Like most years since its birth, it has […]
Autumn statement: Tories retreat under pressure, prepare new offensives – and show signs of weakness
The Tories have backed down over tax credits, junior doctors and workfare, writes Colin Wilson. Meanwhile they are on the attack over benefits, education and health – but they have real weaknesses that campaigns can target. The autumn statement showed us two things. First, the Tories retreated on several fronts where campaigning has put them under pressure. […]
Lecturers to strike over pay and in defence of access to education
Mark Harding, a lecturer and UCU member in London, looks at the uncertain future of the further education sector and the Tuesday 10 November strike in colleges in England. Lecturers working in further education colleges in England are to strike on Tuesday 10 November for their UCU union’s demand of £1 an hour extra pay […]
New deal for junior doctors: still #notfairnotsafe
Medical student Sophie W explains that the much trumpeted new offer to junior doctors still means a big pay cut and unsafe hours. Jeremy Hunt’s offer to junior doctors is spin, and doesn’t address the initial concerns about the fairness or safety of the contracts. The new offer includes: An 11 % pay rise on […]
SOAS is shut down in protest at union rep’s suspension, cuts and marketisation
Nilüfer Erdem and Will Searby report from SOAS where students and workers have shut down the campus in central London in response to management suspending Unison rep Sandy Nicoll and £6.5million of cuts. Valerie Amos, former advisor to Tony Blair and current interim director at SOAS, has accused students and staff of bullying and intimidating […]
South African students win on fees: an “extraordinary moment”, but the movement may go still further
After widespread student protests against rises in tuition fees, South African president Jacob Zuma announced on Friday afternoon that the government is backing down – there will be no rise in fees next year. Voices are now being raised to continue the movement, with demands for free education – free both financially and in terms of ideas. […]
South Africa: an “amazing country-wide revolt” is fighting student fee increases
Not enough has changed since the end of apartheid, say South African students, as fee increases threaten to stop many black students from going to university. Protests continue across South African universities against plans to raise tuition fees by up to 11 percent. The protests began last week in Johannesburg, and have spread around the country. […]
Ideology drives maintenance grant cut
Amy Gilligan argues that neoliberal ideology is at the heart of the Tories’ cutting of student maintenance grants A report this week from the Institute of Fiscal Studies shows that the government’s plan to scrap maintenance grants for students from the poorest households will mean that 40% of students will graduate with debts of over £53,000. […]
London Pride 2015: a snapshot of struggles past, present and to come
The Pride march in London was a snapshot of the strides LGBT politics have made over the years, writes Colin Wilson. And despite the huge corporate presence, it showed signs of a growing left. Photographs by Steve Eason. I went on my first Pride march in 1980. A few thousand people took part. I was 19, […]
London FE colleges hit by six strikes
UCU members in Further Education report on strikes that took place across London yesterday Seven London Further Education colleges took coordinated strike action yesterday against course closures and massive job cuts. Members of the University and Colleges Union (UCU) have been campaigning since the election in May against draconian cuts to college budgets, most notably […]
New Faces, New Voices – left politics after the election
Eleven young people address the question, “after the election, what do you hope will be the response and what to you intend to do going forward?”
Occupations for homeless rights and education in Manchester
Ian Allinson reports from a lively, if soggy, day in Manchester for the occupations in the city centre for homeless rights and at Manchester University for free education. The homeless rights camp had been in St Peter’s Square, outside the Town Hall, for some weeks while Manchester’s Labour council paid money to drag homeless people […]
Angry central London protest attacked by police
The first full day of the Tory government has seen inspiring resistance – but also police attacks on the right to protest. The protest was defiant from the beginning, as Neil Rogall reports. “In the wake of the election demoralisation and depression the last thing I expected when I got off the bus by Westminster Cathedral […]
“FE means Free Education Further Education For Everyone”
Mark Winter reports 1200 lecturers and students marched on Saturday 25th against the 24% cut in adult education, on a national demonstration called by the UCU (University and Colleges Union). The cuts are massive – UCU estimates that they could lead to a loss of more than 400,000 places for adult students in 2015/16 alone. […]
Students protest against LeSoCo cuts – photo report
Colin Revolting and Ian Crosson report 200 jobs are at risk at Lewisham and Southwark College. Yesterday lunchtime around 50 students from the college took part with others in a protest against these cuts. Shakira Martin, who is SU President in the college has just been elected Vice President for Further Eduction at the NUS […]
Report from the Free University of Lahore
The Free University of Lahore reports on the continued censorship about the thousands of Baloch who have gone missing or been brutally murdered in southwest Pakistan. Recently, the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) in Pakistan came under immense state pressure to suppress free speech. The School of Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) at LUMS organized a […]
Report from the LSE occupation
Matt Myers reports from the ongoing occupation at the London School of Economics, and considers what it tells us about the modern university. It was a very odd way to start an occupation, being presented with edible offerings and an ironic solidarity fist salute by LSE’s Vice Chancellor (VC), Craig Calhoun, the highest paid individual […]
Laboratories of struggle: Occupations, alternatives and strategy
Recent weeks have seen a new wave of campus struggles, with occupations in London and Amsterdam, and strikes in North America. Tabitha Spence analyses the significance of these struggles and where they might go next. Time and again history has witnessed student activists rising to the challenge of playing instrumental roles in building and strengthening social […]
Lively LeSoCo lobby against FE cuts
Ian Crosson reports: Last Tuesday (24 March) there was a lively lobby of the governing body of Lewisham and Southwark College outside the Lewisham Way site. The lobby was called to protest against a £7m cut to the staff budget, which is largely the result of the massive national funding cuts to adult education. […]
Dear Maagdenhuis, can we please get our shit together?
Donya Alinejad, a member of the Dutch group Internationale Socialisten, reflects on the occupation at the University of Amsterdam. She argues that if the movement is to win, it must not just formulate answers, but also struggle for the power to implement them. This article was originally published on roarmag.org I confess, from the first time I […]
Action against the 24% cut in Adult funding
Mark Winter, a lecturer at Tower Hamlets college, reports 200 lecturers and students marched on Downing Street on Wednesday (25 March) as part of a protest organised by UCU against a 24% cut to funding for adult education. As a result of the cuts 400,000 places will be lost, and these cuts could be a deathblow to […]
On decolonizing education and the perils of speaking good english
Racism is both material and ideological, reaching even into the heart of language, thought and memory. Annie Teriba asks how education and minds can be decolonized. This piece was originally published on blackgirlspeak.wordpress.com When asked about the legacy of colonialism, I point out that we must still speak a colonial language in order to be […]