“Education is a right, we will not give up our fight.”
This chant and many others were heard across Ottawa universities on Nov. 2, as the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) led a nation-wide Day of Action against tuition costs.
Carleton students met in the University Centre atrium in the morning, before gathering outside due to a fire alarm being set off.
Jenna Amirault, vice-president (external) of Carleton’s Graduate Students’ Association (GSA), said free education is possible, as seen in primary and high schools.
“Let’s be the generation that’s remembered for bringing free education to all students, including international students,” she said.
This year’s Day of Action has been endorsed by the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA). Fahd Alhattab, president of CUSA, said tuition costs are an important issue.
“It’s important because [tuition] is one issue which is not divisive in any way, everyone agrees that education should be more affordable,” Alhattab said.
Amirault said the costs of education are sometimes prohibitive for people who want to go to university.
“The Day of Action marks an important day for student action across the country. . . Students, workers, and community members can change the face of post-secondary education if we work together,” Amirault said.
Susan Spronk, an associate professor in international development at the University of Ottawa (U of O), spoke to the crowd at a rally at the university.
“The problem I face is that students who are already working 40 hours to pay for their tuition feel like they can’t take my classes because it’s too much work,” she said.
School buses brought people from Carleton to U of O, many of them carrying signs. After gathering on Tabaret Lawn, protestors marched in the streets towards Parliament Hill, where speakers such as Algonquin Elder Annie Smith St. George and Canadian Labour Congress executive vice-president Donald Lafleur voiced their stance towards free education.
The demonstration marched up Laurier Avenue and turned up Metcalfe Street to get to Parliament Hill. In total, around 300 people turned out in Ottawa for the Day of Action.
According to Bilan Arte, CFS national chairperson, students of this generation collectively owe more than $28 billion in public student debt, and international students often pay over three and a half times that of domestic fees.
Debbie Owusu-Akyeeah, president of the GSA, highlighted misconceptions regarding graduate students, who are often perceived as not having to pay tuition.
“We are workers, we are often parents, we are older, we often have to pay full-time tuition [despite] not going to class,” she said.
Shannon Angnakak, a fourth-year religion student at Carleton, expressed her frustration with the funding available to Aboriginal peoples:
“I am having my own funding issues, there have been times when I received funding way later in the semester such as in November,” she said.
Indigenous issues were a central part of the discussion on Parliament Hill. Ashley Courchene, CUSA vice-president (student services), said that funding for Indigenous people has not increased since 1992, despite inflation.
While the Day of Action represents direct action on behalf of students and professors across Canada, Alhattab said the event needs to be followed up to engender change.
“We need the direct action but at the same time we [need to do] our homework . . . we just want to be diverse in our approach,” he said.
