LESSONS OF THE COUP WHICH WAY TO WORKERS POWER?
Torio Al Gerry Hedly 30p (including pop)
Students at Swansea University, HOW TO SMASH IT INTERNATIIMAL MARXIST GROU 15p (including p&p) from RED BOOKS, 97 Caledonian Road, London N.1.
The AUEW has however given a etionary awards. is the mass support which has been generated. What do you put chat down to?
first which sparked it all off the drop in student bing standards. heen hit hard by inflation and the cuts in inistration purs up prices and rents in four and half months of negotiations, the picat white liberal Vice-Chancellor Asa Hriges granted as nothing He left us with no option, much to the annoyance of the Broad Left esecutive who thought visits to the benevolent Briggs would solve our problems start of the tetan. the exocutive arpued minds. fifteen weeks of wheeling and dealing in ever smaller circles finally convincol even them.
Having decided to occupy, how lessons to dite have been the tactics we IF THE LEADERSHIP of the National Union of Students had had their way, the present student Week of Action' would have died a quick and painless death.
Thankfully students in the colleges do not sce it in quite the same light. They cannot escape from the reality of inflation, higher prices and rents, and diserPetitions and token occupations will win scudents kind words, but kind words don't help if your rent is going up by 30%. Students up and down the country have ignored the polite requests of their lenders and taken action into their own hands. Instead of five-a-side football and eating in other colleges canteens, they have organised area demonstrations, pickets, full scale occupations, and days of action on issues like the discriminatWhat is striking about this occupation Well, there aru several reason. The was the obstinacy of the authorities in tho face of Sussex students, like all students, have education spending, which mean the adm When we proposed airoct action at the wanted apsiast it. A wock later they changed their jon against women.
the real lead this term.
of the grants campnign and against the cutbacks.
One of the daily mass meetings in the Sussex University occupation nepotiate with Ass or to go to explair our case to trade unionists, they have to give * full report back to the best mpeting. If the meeting don't lice what they hcar. then you can be saro they won't go asin.
The striking Scottish teachers have ased the same sort of democracy. Thes ane examples not just to students or Joachers but for the whole trade union and stadent moremen.
Why do you think you have received such great trade union support?
ASTMS and NALGO, Have boch had wape agreements brokon by the collepe author sties recently. But relations between stedents and workers live always been pood here. In the past the students have siven dustmen. miners, haspilal workers, nurses and the Strachan workers any suppert they You only get working class solidarity of you are preparod to do sometlung when they bood it. Only the otber day the NUPH branch meeting pledycit us support and their co-openition. Because of this we cun take up the high refoctary prices in a practical way. We will set up our an tills and charge the old prices In that way we will make sure that prices don t go up.
We have also boon trying to contact local transport drivers so that then we Our Fund Drive received a magnificent boost last Fridày. Nearly 800 people packed out Conway Hall at the Red Weekly Rally organised by London IMG to mark the 57th anniversary of the Russian Revolution; and our Fund Drive profited by more than E400 as a result.
So now we're well on the way to reaching that magic fig ure of £2,000. Indeed, if the rest of the country can match London's effort, we should go well over the top. Let's see just how far we can push it - rush donations to: RED WEEKLY FUND DRIVE, 97 Caledonian Rd., London N.1.
From Newcastle to Newport, where homeless student are squatting empty property, from Swansea to Susses. students have responded with direct action against the curs and victimisation. It is these colleges - along with * the other filty which have taken action like refectory boycotts, rents strikes and occupations - that have given If the Week of Action' is to be a success, it must be as a springboard for a future campaign on the demands By demanding the dropping of price and rent increases, the students of Sussex University have most recently shown the way to fight, Below Red Weekly interviews REDMOND O'NEILL, chairperson of the Sussex occupation, on the actions and lessons of theit grants campaign can theon a pieker line across the naiv crity cattances. Now more then ever trade union support is crucial for students.
The authorities have doculed to stand and Tight: they have no other choice We cannot win alone - that is the mompe that concs over loud and eiper from thi teri's strugalos.
Why huve you called a national conf erence for 23-24 November?
The date is a week bctor the NUS confesence. The NES 130oulive have been found sody lcking this term. The Susses conference of rank-and-ble deto pales can wark out a plan of action to take to lic NtS to maxe sue they are committed to a lighting policy a it we ect real leadership We feed that the lessons of our struggle can contrihute substantially to this. The authorities will be back ncat lent of next your with similar proposals. The conference offers this opportunity for the student body to start laying plans for a national, ce-ordinated response, 1035 essentiat that next lane we don't have 55 colleges fighting in their own way, bot 55 colleges fighting the some was.
So I would urge all student unions that are serious about fighting the outs in education ta send delegales to the
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