UMass Amherst Community Solidarity with Workers – Participates in National Teach-In
By UMass SLAP
Inspired by the recent activity by citizens in Wisconsin, the UMass Amherst community gathered on Tuesday April 5th in solidarity along, with over 222 campuses, in a national teach-in. These students and other community members came together in order to learn about issues that are relevant to them, and how to organize, fight back, and take back their rights.
Issues that were addressed included the recent economic crisis, the targeting of workers unions by politicians, and the ever increasing tuition and fees that students are facing. Local celebrities, such as Communications professor Sut Jhally, Michael Thelwell, who is the founding chair of the Afro-American department, Dan Clawson from the Sociology department, Gerald Friedman and David Kotz from the economics department, and former SGA president Malcolm Chu, among others, came out to address these issues and inform the student body. Melissa Urban, a senior at UMass and an organizer with CEPA, spoke about a very salient issue for her, student debt. “[Many students] are leaving school with mortgage-sized student loans but no hope of finding a job…We need to have our voices heard”.
Students walked away with increased knowledge on the issue, and a renewed sense of how dire and personal the politic climate today is to us as students. Many of the issues addressed, particularly the job market in light of the economic crisis, and rising costs of tuition and fees, are very salient to students. Close to 800 students showed up, and their passion was seen and heard in the crowd, as students chanted slogans such as “Tax the rich” and “We can afford it”. The event was supported by various academic departments and student groups, including the Center for Education Policy and Advocacy (CEPA), The Graduate Employees Organization (GEO), the Public Higher Education Network of Massachusetts s (PHENOM), and AFSCME 1776.
Politicians should not be targeting the working class, immigrants, students, or our health care in order to “stimulate” our economy. They should target corporations and Wall Street giants, who often have tax breaks and other accommodations that the average working class American does not receive. If you want to get involved with the fight against a corporate takeover of this nation, or are sick of your health benefits being taken away, or your rising costs of tuition, then join local groups such as SLAP (Student Labor Action Project), CEPA (Center for Education Policy Advocacy), USSA, or another organization with similar goals. We need to organize around and advocate for the issues that matter to us. We need to have our voices heard. Now is the time!
