Sarah Garnham, National Union of Students Education Officer & - TopicsExpress

Sarah Garnham, National Union of Students Education Officer & Socialist Alternatives National Student Organiser, looking back at a great year for the student movement. A year when weve had the Liberals on the back foot over attacks on our education & the National Union of Students rebuilt some its lost profile & relevance to students by putting itself at the front of a national fightback against the budget: Reposting this to remember the amazing campaign we have had this year against Pyne and his plans to de-regulate uni fees. I am not going to join the chorus of pundits saying we are definitely going to win but, its all going to be settled in a few short weeks and I think its fair to say that we are closer than ever now that Palmer has said hes firm. We have got this far because of the STUDENT campaign against de-reg. Its great that the ALP and the Greens are on the bandwagon but, without the many demonstrations and creative actions by students throughout the year, there wouldnt be a bandwagon. When the budget first came out in May, only 43% of people opposed de-reg (one of the least opposed measures in the budget) and today the figure is around 70% (the most opposed budget measure). This turn around is a massive credit to everyone who has marched, occupied and disrupted throughout the year. The strength of our campaign has been in its multiplicity of tactics: not only have we seen the biggest student demos in almost 10 years but there has also been an ongoing supply of direct actions, particularly against Liberal ministers. The Q&A protest against Pyne was the creme de la creme of the direct actions weve seen this year- it received national media attention for over a week, provoked the ire of Annabel Crabbe and other stuffy losers, and gained the support of thousands across Australia. But there have been so many more actions since that Ive lost count! Bishop, Hockey, Abbott have been met with angry mobs of student protesters pretty much wherever they go. Students should be proud of what we have achieved. Whether or not we win, we have put student protest back into the frame- which is fortunate because were going to need a lot more of it under the Abbott government.