From Jan. 12 to 20, SSMU hosted (Reclaim Your) Education Week, a seven-day series of workshops, discussions, and presentations that sought to raise awareness about a number of issues on the McGill campus, including tuition hikes and the struggles of marginalized groups on campus. 

Education Week was made possible by collaboration between SSMU, the Quebec Public Interest Research Group at McGill (QPIRG), the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS), and the November 10th Community Alliance. 

Education Week was a completely student-based initiative, inspired by questions that arose in the context of recent events, such as the MUNACA strike, Nov. 10, and Dean Jutras’ report on the events of Nov. 10. 

“Students hear a lot of things, have many questions, but get little answers,” PGSS VP External Mariève Isabel said. “They wanted to share their concerns and their hopes for the future of McGill … while reclaiming that they also should be part of the decision-making process.”

“Education Week was also inspired by a similar week of events at University of California Davis,” SSMU VP External Joël Pedneault said. “We thought it would be a very useful type of thing to organize at McGill.”

According to Pedneault, the primary goals of Education Week were to spread awareness, and to “re-energize mobilization.”

Workshops covered a large variety of issues relevant to McGill students, ranging from racism and street tactics to social equity and neo-liberalism. 

Among the many workshops offered, one in particular offered a chance to discuss colonialism, decolonization, and solidarity concerning indigenous communities and their struggles.  

Facilitators Cleve Higgins and Dan Lazarus, both former McGill students, led a discussion on the ongoing legacy of colonialism and the many conflicts with the Canadian government in which indigenous communities find themselves. 

Many indigenous populations in Quebec and throughout Canada continue to be disenfranchised for the purpose of resource extraction, an issue especially prevalent today with regard to the proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline in British Columbia. 

The thorny issue of tuition hikes received considerable spotlight throughout Education Week. The week served as preparation for the “ongoing and upcoming fight again tuition hikes,” according to the event’s website.  

The proposed tuition hikes, which consist of a $325 increase per year, over a period of five years, will affect all students.  

“All students pay a basic amount of tuition, which is what is charged to Quebec residents,” Pedneault said. “Since this base amount is being raised, everyone will be affected by tuition hikes.”

While many student groups face a number of challenges in the context of tuition hikes, increased tuition for graduate students poses extra financial stress, which helps explain PGSS’s active participation in spreading awareness.  

“Graduate students often have more responsibilities and more expenses [than undergraduate students],” Isabel said. “A huge proportion of students do not complete their degree.”

Isabel suggested that this may be the result of financial obstacles. 

The workshops that addressed tuition hikes aimed to educate students about the facts and consequences of the proposed increases, as well as the logistics of student strikes, a topic that has recently been addressed more intently. 

SSMU Arts Councillor and U2 economics and women’s studies student Jamie Burnett facilitated  a workshop called “Demystifying Student Strikes—History and Practice.”

“Student strikes are a tactic—[they] come out of people deciding that they’re concerned about something,” Burnett said. “If you look at the major student strikes in Quebec, they’re mainly about student fees and financial aid.”

The workshop also addressed the different forms of strikes as well as the effectiveness of each.  

“There exist one-day strikes, which can be pretty effective … in getting the message across,” Burnett explained. “But looking at major victories in the history of student strikes in Quebec, the more successful ones are the general unlimited strikes.”

However, a lot of thought, planning, and effort are necessary for the successful implementation of a student strike. 

“It does take work to look at the policy, look at the budget and have students understand that a strike is worth it,” Burnett said. “Strikes need to involve the active participation of a lot of students. It is not enough to say you’re on strike.”

Another large-scale demonstration against tuition hikes in Montreal is planned for March 22.  

Despite having been organized in only a matter of weeks, Education Week attracted considerable attention.  

“I don’t think that the McGill community has seen such a level of activism on campus since the 1990s,” Isabel said. “It was quite impressive to see the students … building on each other’s knowledge [about these issues].” 

“With a bit of luck, this event series might become an annual fixture of the SSMU calendar, similar to Culture Shock or Social Justice Days,” Pedneault said.