Radical campus: take charge of your education
Sean Hibbitts
Oh where, oh where have the radicals gone, and where, oh where can they be?
When I read Member Services Officer Glyn Lewis’s article a couple months ago [“Un-radical campus,” May 29, 2006] I thought to myself, “Gee, where have all the radicals gone?” Where are the mass protests? The last one I can remember that comes to mind was in 2004 and I didn’t even go. Is the student movement in Canada losing steam? Well, if you ask me I’d say hell no, because my definition of a student radical is a student who believes that they and others students have a right to an education, and that’s all it really takes. Over the past four years I’ve gone from apathetic student to one that cares passionately about his campus. I’ve seen the results of the Campbell government first hand, and while I am not worried about paying my own tuition fees, none of my friends from high school have yet to experience post-secondary education, and they are on the verge of turning 22. They have a choice: work and get by (barely) or be a student and get poor — that seems like a pretty unfair trade. And with student debt in Canada in the $100s of millions range, who would want to go to school anyway? I think many campuses have made it clear they only want you if you have money — even our own campus, which recently opened its doors to a private college to recruit international students, which are cash cows for many universities and colleges. They must pay a higher amount of tuition because they are not subsidised by the government. But don’t take it from me, just look around you — this is your education and the person next to you’s education. There are many ways to get involved. Take charge!