By Peter Marin

Early on the student strike in Quebec adopted the slogan “it is a student strike, and a popular struggle” (in French, “la grève est étudiante, la lutte est populaire"). Over the course of this unprecedented strike, the slogan has become a reality, as people from all sectors of society have joined the students in opposition to the neoliberal government of Jean Charest and his Liberal party.

Republished from Ideas and Action:

Julio Rodriguez, a stalwart comrade of ours from Los Angeles, has been held in prison since Saturday under threat of immediate deportation. We will not let another one of our brothers be kidnapped from us by the racist state!

Julio is an anarchist youth organizer with the Youth Justice Coalition and RiseUp LA, radical groups that run out of Chuco’s Justice Center in Inglewood, CA. He is a student at Free LA High School at Chuco’s where he is studying to get his GED. Julio is prominent in the LA punk scene, organizing and promoting DIY shows, and encouraging the politicization and education of kids in the scene.

In this excellent May Day report from Montreal, video journalist Zach Ruiter comes away with some great footage (and great bruises) from his recent trip to Quebec. As the historic student strike stretches on into its third month, the police repression is intensifying.

Republished from The Dominion.

It’s a Student Strike, a People’s Struggle

Statement by CLASSE
Translated by Richard Fidler

Hike in tuition fees is part of “the cultural revolution”

For several weeks now a student revolt has shaken the neoliberal consensus imposed for many years by the Quebec and Canadian governments. It was sparked by the announcement of a new, 75 per cent increase in university tuition fees.

The following is a translation of the lead story in the Ultimatum, the newspaper of the Quebec student union CLASSE, the 80,000 strong and leading student union behind the current student strike in Quebec. In response to a Quebec government that continues to ignore the strike, it calls for a week of direct actions aimed at disrupting economic and government activity.

The original article in French was written by Julien Royal and can be read here

Translated by Linchpin.ca

March 22, the beginning of a long fight

March 22nd is often seen as the climax of our strike. With more than 300,000 strikers and a massive demonstration, we can for sure say that March 22 is of crucial importance. Nevertheless this day is not the last chapter in our struggle. On the contrary, March 22 is the catalyst of a long fight against the government.

As appeared in the anarchist journal Cause Commune, produced by the Quebec-based, Union Communiste Libertaire.

Translation by Maxime Gagnon-Gauthier

Original article can be read here in French

Since the advent of the nation-state, the ruling class has taken control of education to promote patriotism and national pride first, and second to train workers to gain skills enabling them to adjust to precarious living conditions and to workplaces gnawed by uncertainty.

Linchpin: Can you tell us what your role is in the anarchist and student movements in Quebec?

Rémi: At the moment, I'm a “supporter’’ of the Union Communiste Libertaire and I have been a member of the UCL for several years in the past. As for my role in the student movement, since I am not taking any courses in the current session, I'm not a member of any student union. But I am a student at UQAM (Université du Québec à Montréal) studying for a Masters degree in Political Science. I am also on the executive committee of my teaching and research assistants union, which is a Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) local.