Student union’s board opts instead for a day of action to protest government’s fee reforms
The Ryerson Students’ Union will not endorse the planned, Socialist Fightback-led student strike against OSAP cuts on Nov. 6.
At an RSU board meeting on Oct. 22, members voted against the strike, but agreed to hold a day of action on Nov. 6, instead. The strike will still take place, though separately from the RSU.
Two weeks ago, the RSU released an online survey to find out from students what the day of action should entail, said RSU’s executive vice-president of education Kwaku Agyemang.
“At the moment, we found from our survey that (students are) leaning toward a soft picket. We are committed, after Nov. 6, to holding a general meeting to determine whether to hold a strike in the new year,” Agyemang said.
The motion to strike was put forward by Ryerson Student Strike and passed at a general assembly of over 200 students held in the SLC on Sept. 27. The call to strike followed the March 20 Ontario student walkout, said Ryerson Student Strike spokesperson and former Socialist Fightback president Hermes Azam.
“By shutting down the institutions, it will send a clear message that this is not acceptable,” said Azam.
The RSU previously passed the student strike motion at its semi-annual general meeting in April. Though, at the time, no details had been confirmed, such as the date or nature of the strike. After the Sept. 27 meeting in the SLC, the RSU decided to hold this week’s revote.
Before the student union endorses a strike, RSU president Vanessa Henry said there needs to be more conversation around the logistics. Henry also said that all students’ opinions should be taken into consideration, as a strike will not benefit everyone, such as international students who are ineligible for OSAP funding.
“Students who miss class will have to take that upon themselves,” said Henry. “If they are auditory learners, that’s really going to prevent them from learning. We also have to remember that protesting is a privilege and not everyone is granted the opportunity. I’d rather see students engaged and understand why they are fighting rather than getting them rattled to fight.”
But not all members agree, as the final voting results at the board meeting showed.
“If we pass something, we don’t vote on (it) again,” said RSU student groups representative James Fotak. “We as a board kind of failed to implement it and the student group is picking up to do the work for us.”
Both McMaster University and York University will also be hosting student strikes on Nov. 6, according to Azam.
June Jang is a second-year master's of journalism student and an education reporter at the Ryersonian.