On October 1, Memorial University students gathered to march through the downpour to the Confederation building for MUNSU’s ‘Day of Action’ protest.
It was cold and rainy day, but student protestors and union representatives brought the heat, opposing what they see as the dismissal of student issues by the provincial government.
The annual ‘Day of Action’ protest advocated for reinstated government funding amidst tuition hikes and difficult economic realities for students.
This year’s protest specifically called for paid work terms as well, citing the unpaid placements that nursing students, social work students, education students, pharmacy students, and medical students have to take in order to receive their degrees.
Student issues in politics & union solidarity
This years Day of Action takes place in the midst of a provincial election. The theme of the event references the tuition freeze that was acquired following protests pre-election in 1999.
The clocktower rally included speeches from MUNSU, CFS, MUNFA, and NLTA representatives.
Educators attending on behalf of MUNFA and NLTA highlighted the what they saw as the importance of standing in solidarity with their students and keeping education accessible.
Students then marched to the Confederation building in a spirited display of solidarity, communicating their frustrations to the provincial government.
Provincial party leaders meet with MUNSU
The couple of months leading up to the protest saw MUNSU executives meeting with provincial party leaders to discuss their demands and raise concerns.
Per MUNSU’s posts on Instagram, NDP leader Jim Dinn committed to: freezing tuition, with a plan to gradually restore 2018 rates; prioritizing “non-market” housing that isn’t exploitative to students; ending all non-paid work terms; implementing a bottom-up structure of university governance to ensure students’ needs are met; and considering putting deteriorated buildings out of commission over time.
Dinn stated that he views the university as a “public good,” which seemingly informs his willingness to prioritize students’ concerns.
PC leader Tony Wakeham also met with MUNSU.
Wakeham is committed to freezing the current tuition, exploring potential solutions to address food insecurity among students, and addressing the infrastructural maintenance deficit.
The party leader also expressed great concern with the financial state of the university, calling it an “economic engine” for the province.
He agreed that there has been clear detriment from budget cuts and significant mismanagement of funds on the administration’s part.
Education Minister Bernard Davis attended a Town Hall on funding to post secondary education, additionally met with MUNSU to discuss their asks.
Student testimonies
In an article published at the Independent, MUNSU Executive Director of Campaigns, Rana Abuidris, drew a distinction between “student life” and “student survival” – highlighting how students are being deprived of necessities due to unaffordability, unable to buy groceries, focus on their studies, or even enjoy the typical facets of student life like recreation and community.
The Muse attended this year’s ‘Day of Action’ to ask students why they were marching, and it quickly became clear that some students are struggling to survive.
“I’m getting screwed by tuition,” said one student.
“It’s f*cked up that they don’t pay students for work terms. My sister is a nurse, and… majority of her graduating class had to drop out because they were parents and stuff like that… It’s messed up that they’re pretty much screwing up the people we need most in the province.”
“I’m marching because I’m trying to get our work terms paid,” MUNSU Centre for Nursing Studies representative Nathan Ehigie emphasized, explaining that the workload is too heavy and hours too long to work elsewhere during work terms, never mind the fact that nursing students have to pay tuition to do their unpaid clinical placements.
“Nurses put in so much hard work… I think it’s unfair if we’re not paid right from the start,” he said.
“I think it’s important that we get the fees down, pay work terms, and stop giving money to Israel,” a MUN Students for Palestine representative added.
Many people have also pointed out that unpaid work terms are more common in stereotypically “feminized” fields.
Business and engineering work terms are compensated quite handsomely, while social work, teaching, and nursing are not. To some, this suggests that there may be a larger issue of gender inequality at play.
With both provincial and municipal elections looming, many students are counting on both political figures and everyday voters to keep 1999’s objectives in mind by supporting young people in our province seeking higher education.
