"If you want higher grants clap your hands" - there is a clap of thunderous applause, the skies open, and pounds pour forth.
If only it was that simple. The erosion in student's living standards will not be stopped by students simply parading their poverty:
This demonstration of 30,000 in London last Friday could have been a real springboard for a militant campaign in the colleges. Actions earlier in the week by students in Coventry BROSTOL POLY POOH STUCENT UNDO and Leeds who occupied their town hall showed just one possibility. Unfortunately it was only isolated groups of students like those above who posed the need to build a fighting alliance with sections of the Kent University is in the Litoes of a isations"
SPONTANEOUS WEEKLY The relative calm of the NUS "Week of Action in Leeds last week was rudely shattered by a large demonstration and picket of the meeting of the Leeds Council education con mittee, which was discussing the latest round of education rationalMost of the demonstrators were from Further Education Colleges and the local Polytechnic. At these institutions facilities are non-existent or completely inadequate. most students still have to rely on their parents for financial support; discipline is reminiscent of a primary school and. to cap it all.at the F.E. colleges Student Union activity is strongly discouraged by the authorities.
To drive home their point. an entirely spontancous occupation look place of the Education Department central office. Once inside a call was made to the Education Committee chairman, Councilior King, demanding his appearance at the occupation to explain why his committee was intent on cutting an already inadequate budget. This he refused, and, when a delegation was sent to the committee, he again declined to even discuss the issuc.
In response, the occupiers dec ided to continue the action for the rest of the afternoon, to discuss the strategy for the coming months.
IMG member Mark Turnbull spoke stressing the need for a demand that could unite all sectors of students in further and higher ed ucation. The sliding scale of grants wus such a demand if it is linked with a campaign against the cuts. On this he outlined plans which are underway to call a conference of students and all other workers Subscribe to Red in TaLi, ATTI, NALGO, ASIMS NUT, etc. who are also hit by the general reduction in social exp enditure.
An excellent discussion followed Another speaker Chris Pratt criticised the NUS Executive's whole appruach - the refusal of the council to even listen to the delegation was ample demonstration of the uselessness of the "pressure polities tactic. Direct action was the only way, he snid ENTERTAINING Meanwhile, back at the council a bruss band trom the local Music College was entertaining the meeting, just outside the nearest window, at full volume! The band then led those students who had not been able to get into the occupation back to the Education Depariment, where as a united body the students then marched back to the Polytechnic for a meetingIMG member Rick Hatcher called for a strike of students and campus workers to coincide witl the next Committee meeting — which was enthusiastically accepted. He also drew attention to the Prebbles decision on non-industrial picketing *Are we going to let this stop us picketing in our thousands for the next council meeting?" NO? roared the meeting.
Limited though this action was, it provides a platform for extending and developing the campaign against the cuts and for higher and son-discretіолату grants. The 400 students who took part can act as a hattering ram into the rest of Leeds students, to hammer home the urgency of opposItion to the education rationalisations - precedents established in the next few months will cost us dearly in the years to come.
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YARDSIDENT'S FACE A EDUCATION CLOSING DOOR TO
TOUNDNELL TECH-allege CUTS AFFECTALL IS OUR FUTURES