FEE needs your help!

Monday January 26, 2009 10:30

by Emma Beckett - Free Education for Everyone

Crucial national demonstration on 4 February - FEE needs your help to build for it!

It is now crystal clear that the government will attempt to bring in some form of student fees (quite possibly from Sept 09). Batt O'Keeffe has indicated that he will bring such a proposal to the cabinet towards the start of April. Therefore, the building of a movement of students, linking up with college workers and school students, is essential if we want to defeat this plan and maintain a right to free fees.

be there or bejaysus

The Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has called a national demonstration for Wednesday week (4 February) at 1.30pm at the Garden of Remembrance. This is an absolutely crucial protest in the building of a movement to defeat fees. A turnout of over 20,000, plus a strategy of building a movement flowing from that in the local colleges can begin the process of knocking the government back.

FEE (Free Education for Everyone) in UCD, and across the country, has decided to put a lot of effort into really building for this demonstration - both to ensure the biggest attendance possible, and to make the crucial points of the need to go beyond this demonstration, and build a real movement across the country that can genuinely defeat fees. We have produced 20,000 full colour leaflets and other material with the arguments against fees and the reasons why people should protest.

Next week and the start of the week after are very important if we are to be successful in getting our arguments across. FEE in UCD will be engaged in the most hectic time of activity we have ever been - which is absolutely appropriate given the severity of the threat against fees. Therefore, we are asking you to help out!

FEE will be active on a daily basis next week and the week after - the activities you can help at are:
* Meet 8.30am at the 46A bus stop on Monday to leaflet students coming in to college - something like this will take place every morning, the entrance targeted might change - contact FEE (details below) to find out where we are on any morning.
* Doing leafleting and a stall to sign people up to FEE and the buses every day at lunchtime from 12pm - 2pm. Can you help for some of this? We will meet at 12pm every day in front of the Arts Block. If you can't make 12 - give us a ring and find out where we are.
* Attend the FEE public meeting on Wednesday at 1pm - venue to be confirmed - look out for the posters!

If you can't slot in to any of these activities for whatever reason, there are still things you can do to help! Get leaflets from FEE and use them to persuade your friends to come to the protest. Can you address some of your tutorial classes, or even your lecture? Text all of your friends about the demonstration - there will be buses organised by UCD Students' Union into the protest. Let all your friends on facebook / bebo etc know.

Fees can only be defeated by an active movement of students across the country. You can play a vital role in building that. Contact Julian on 085 7189621 or Paul on 086 1688050 to find out the details of what FEE is doing on any day, to get leaflets or to get involved!