Hundreds of students across Ontario are expected to walk out of class this upcoming Friday, Sept. 27, to participate in the worldwide Climate Strike, an anti-climate change movement led by Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg.
In response to this, dozens of schools have released statements emphasizing their support for students participating in the protests, including Carleton.
Earlier in the week, Carleton administration sent out a memo to faculty members, encouraging instructors to give students reasonable accommodations for any assessments missed on Friday due to the march. Some instructors cancelled their classes in response to this.
It is a good thing that the university is supporting students in their right to protest, especially considering the weight many students feel the issue of climate change is putting on their shoulders.
However, engaging in protest has always involved accepting the risk of any consequences that may come with standing up for something you believe in. Across the decades, protest has often involved some level of nonviolent civil disobedience.
If this is an important issue to students, they should be prepared to protest, whether the school grants their permission or not. Instead of calling on schools to cancel classes, students should focus on preparing for a day of meaningful, impactful strike action.
If the university wants to support the strike action, they should openly declare that classes are cancelled. Inviting professors to cancel classes removes the individual agency of the students. It undermines those who are prepared to strike regardless of the consequences.
The university should not have to support students in engaging in a protest, for students to still participate in a protest scheduled during their class time. You can’t walk out of class if there are no classes to walk out of.
