Join us for a huge Casseroles (Pots and Pans) Night on Sunday July 22 at 8 pm, in solidarity with students in Quebec and Canadians throughout this country who have had enough.

WHY: Because the fight is about more than tuition, debt, and fundamental rights. It is about demanding a future where the rights of people and the health of the environment are MORE IMPORTANT than the health of the economy and the rights of the elite.

This is a demonstration first and foremost about community, joy, solidarity, togetherness, and creating a democratic space for people beyond the ballot box.

It's about building grassroots connections and meeting your neighbours. Building the revolution from the bottom up!

It's about voicing your rejection to the policies of the federal and provincial governments that have repeatedly made us the greatest embarrassment in the global community.

Hello everyone! In case you missed the Mega Casseroles pot bangin' protest on June 22nd, here are a few photos and some video footage of what went down.

To show solidarity with the Quebec student strike and opposition to Quebec's Law 78, as well as to show opposition to the federal government's Bill C-38 and the local Bill 29 (read more about Bill 29 here, here, or here), close to thirty people showed up at Harbourside Park to bang on pots and pans.

We marched down Water Street and made our way to George Street, waving red flags, carrying banners, and respecting most traffic laws and crossing streets safely for the entirety of the march.

We did block George Street, but please don't let that bit of civil disobedience discourage you from coming out and taking part. For some reason, we also found ourselves with a police escort. The police were parked across from Harbourside Park before we started, followed us down Water Street and George Street, and followed us back to Harbourside Park. This means that we were very safe, or perhaps one jay-walk away from being fined. It's hard to say, really.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

The Maple Spring is important to all Canadians, and not just Quebec. Here's why.

That's why Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, past student leader of CLASSE, has undertaken a cross-Canada speaking tour to help spread the message of resisting austerity and defeating the stranglehold of neoliberalism across this country.

Massive student protests have been ongoing in Montreal since March 22nd, when 200,000 protesters took part in a demonstration in downtown Montreal. Exactly a month later, on Earth Day, another 200,000 people took to the streets. And yet another month later, only picking up steam, a wave of people in red packed downtown Montreal on May 22nd, more than 300,000 strong.

June 22, as expected, was a massive show of solidarity across Canada (and of course massive amounts of people on the streets of Montreal and across Quebec).

Every month has a 22nd, so here's to ongoing shows of solidarity and support! Check out the global call to resistance on the 22nd of every month.

As of Sept 20th, after the inauguration of Pauline Marois' minority Parti Quebecois government (and the defeat of Jean Charest's government (he was also defeated in his own riding)), the tuition fee hikes have been repealed.  However, the Concordia Graduate Students Association, still fighting for a very realistic goal of free education in the province, along with other student groups such as CLASSE, will show that they are still organized and come out for a demo on Sept 22.

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Click here for a refresher on what this conflict is about: The Conflict: 101 
Here is a great explanation of the context for the current mobilisation of students in Quebec. Free education is not a new idea, neither is it impossible. In fact, "it was the state’s very own idea on the recommendation of a Royal Commission, a choice that was respected and prized for four decades."

Downtown Montreal on May 22, 2012

Great recap: Ten Things Everyone Should Know about the Quebec Student Movement.

In response to the emergency law passed, Law 78, people have this to say: Arrest me!

Concordia Student Union General Assembly operates using horizontal decision making like that used by the Occupy movement, and they spearheaded the student strike originating at Concordia. More info here about how this started. View this video on the 8 Myths of Tuition Hikes.

For up-to-date and reliable info on the Montreal student movement, check out the Montreal Media Co-op and Concordia University TV (CUTV) to watch the recap videos and livestream from the student protests.

Resources

You can also visit the Concordia Student Union site. And the McGill Student Union has a Student Strike FAQ up on their site.

Visit the CLASSE website for more info as well. CLASSE is a temporary national student organization that includes, across Quebec, more than 76,000 members in many student unions from both colleges and universities. 

Visit the MobSquad website for info on the campaign against tuition hikes.