\| As a social activist | have lain dormant for a number of years. | used to march, hold signs, shout stuff and generally act like | was pretty darn angry about something or other. But | wasn’t a terribly good activist, eventually my cynicism caught up and | quickly adapted the umbrella excuse of all socially responsible sluggards : “I burned out.” Actually, “I tuned in” would be a more accurate explanation, to television. It was so much easier to watch television, to watch the news and be incensed than to do any- thing about it. American interference (in any given Latin American country ) would have me perched on the end of my couch firing out ignovomic warcries and irrefutable arguments at the television screen. Famine in the world ? Simple, just scream “Feed the poor you putrescent government ( whichever was, or rather, wasn't involved.)” until your voice is hoarse and your guilty conscience soothed. It’s easy, isn’t it ? Television is a huge electronic pillow, a moral blotter. But | digress. The point is, my priorities had been in a tailspin and it was time for me to wake up. | went to the University Of Victoria rally against the post secondary tuition increase, to represent my school, to express my displeasure and of course, to hear the guest band. I’m not a good activist, but | know that if a cause can gather even two thousand people to shout one slogan , a definite crisis is looming some- where. There were five thousand angry people out that day, the energy was incredible, and | was swept up. Rallies are an easy fix; The day was hot and bright, the band was in fine form, | shook my fist until my knuckles rattled, so | must have been doing something, right? So far, | must really read like a negative pring, but there is a reason. | am not disputing that rallies and marches are worthwhile, they are, but they are also useless if not channelled. Five thousand people focused themselves into an orderly unit of voice, a powerful thing, and then went home. The event made the newspapers, probably dominated the coffee table conversations across Victoria for a day. A beautiful thing, don’t get me wrong, but transitory. Let me push on and I'll demonstrate my position. After the rally | joined the other Vancouver post secondary and CFS delegates on the ferry. We returned to Vancouver, moving straight on to the Simon Fraser board of governors meeting where they were deciding to push through a 5.6 % increase in tuition. The arguments put forth by the students to the board were nothing short of brilliant, especially those of a graduate student from Britain named Charlie. The board thought the polemic was brilliant, organized, and that the points raised should be put into effect as soon as possible (We're all in this together after all, right ?). But they felt that the provincial government was giving them the first few, meagre crumbs in years and they didn’t think it wise to bite that ever so generous hand. So for lack of courage and a long range, holistic view of the educa- tional system the B.O.G. wriggled their sweaty fingers and spindly necks in way of a vote to pass through the increase. At this point one student, Brad Hornick | believe his name was stood up and said he was sick of being ignored, would we all join him in storming the members of the board, taking over the administration building and staging a sit-in? The committee vacated before the wedge of two hundred students rolled across the room and stole the comfy. seats. Deprived of their cushions the B.O.G. saw no reason to stay, leaving to find furniture elsewhere. So there we sat for two days eating nothing but egg salad sandwiches and fingernails ( To tell the truth, we lived quite well, thank you very much. The SFU food services, bless their souls, supplied us with fruit, coffee, juice, muffins. We even managed to sneak in a VCR to watch “The Secret Of Nimh”. Personally | felt a little guilty that though we were supposed to be suffering all these hardships in the name of educa- tion, yet we were enjoying ourselves with the antics of mice, rats, and crows on moving day. | wanted to at least turn the T.V. upside down so we’d all get sore necks watching. A little painful ordeal to allevi- ate the guilt. ). But oh ! how we worked ! The discus- sions, debates, and emotional tension went on for hours at a stretch, trying to decide what our de- mands would be. Late the second evening a high ranking government Official snuck in with a satchel under his arm. After checking several times to ensure there were no administration nearby, he pulled out a file on the government’s new Access 2000 program. A review commission had been set up to inspect the plan and their findings were subsequently shelved out of fear of their implications. The official talked briefly about the program and then snuck off, leaving us to use this weapon as we wished. I’ve been made privy to information that many B.C. faculty aren’t even aware exists, and that’s scary. | don't think the group of us students who formed to discuss this file entirely understand it , which is the only reason | don’t start spouting what | do remember here. When we finally met with Bruce Strachan we had to play this informa- tion down because it was so touchy it could be used to debate either way. I’d love another chance to read it, because | know, somehow, it is very important. A government official, as high ranking as the one who visited us, does not do so without great risk to his job. And he does not tell you a government is nervous about a piece of information unless it really is. |am a hypocritical doomsayer, granted, but if what | think that file was saying is true, the educa- tional system in British Columbia is in bigger trouble than we know. But | digress. Meanwhile the fifty five of us who elected to stay in the administration room were crowded around the television set waiting to view the media fruits of our labour. We,d let ourselves be known to the T.V. stations, the newspapers, the radio broadcasters, surely this is the sort of thing the media loves to pick up and run with. This was the first sit-in in B.C in twenty years by students, there was no way we would be ignored. The first item of news to come on was international, totally understandable, relatively speaking, this wasn’t such a big thing.... yet. Then the national coverage, which we all agreed was to be expected. Provincial news was where we were at, right after the commercials. Okay... weather, weather is important, no one wants to see anyone get hurt out on the road because they hadn’t heard it was snowing on television. Immediately following the provincial news was a human interest story about a new program aimed at eliminating the habit of smoking before it has a chance to start. Moral plummeted like a flying sheep as we watched a class of about thirty grade one students wearing “No Smoking” emblems shaking their heads confusedly at a teacher holding a picture of a scowling cartoon cigarette. “Would you want to smoke this ?” the teacher de- manded. “No.” the six year olds bobbled, “We wouldn't smoke that !” The final story of the evening was of a mounting crisis in Delta, or Richmond, or somewhere. Appar- ently the community board there was very con- cerned about the extensive public damage being caused by owl vomit. Yes, those pesky hooters of the bird world are just puking their guts all over people’s fences and yards, causing a general disrup- tion of civilized life and something has to be done. It struck me as odd that no one tried to look at it from the bird’s point of view; If your diet consisted solely of bugs, mice, and alley cats, wouldn't you feel a little ill too ? | would be remiss if | didn’t say a few things here briefly. 1.) The six 0’ clock news is programmed in the morning of that day, making it difficult for the — news to stay topical. 2.) There had been a reporter there when we had taken the administration building but as she had insisted on trying to interview our organizational leaders while they were struggling to keep everyone rational during what was a very emotional, potentially explosive time, we had asked her to leave. She probably did so miffed, which might. explain why we not picked up sooner by the news services. 3.) If you’ve ever seen an owl lose it’s lunch you can empathise much more easily with those who have to suffer having it strewn across their porch steps. The next day a fellow from Kwantlen college and | left the fortress to spread the word that there would be a rally outside the administration building, show- ing support for those inside. Actually there were a As a social activist | have lain dormant for a number of years. | used to march, hold signs, shout stuff and ‘generally act like | was pretty dam angry about something or other. But | wasn’ a terribly good activist, eventually my cynicism caught up and | quickly adapted the umbrella excuse of all socially responsible sluggards : "I burned out.” Actually, “! tuned in” would be a more accurate explanation, to television. It was so much easier to watch television, towatch the news and be incensed than to do any- thing about it. American interference (in any given. Latin American country ) would have me perched on the end of my couch firing out ignovomic warcries and irrefutable arguments at the television screen. Famine in the world ? Simple, just scream "Feed the poor you putrescent government ( whichever was, or rather, wasn’ involved.)” until your voice is hoarse and your guilty conscience soothed. I's easy, isn't it 2 Television is a huge electronic pillow, a moral blotter. But | digress. The point is, my priorities had been in a tallspin and itwas time for me to wake up. | went to the University Of Victoria rally against the post secondary tution inorease, to represent my school, to express my displeasure and of course, to hear the guest band. 'm not a good activist, but! know that i 2 cause can gather even two thousand people to shout one slogan , a definite crisis is looming some- where. There were five thousand angry people out that day, the energy was incredible, and | was swept up. Rallies are an easy fix; The day was hot and bright, the band was in fine form, | shook my fist until my knuckles rattled, so | must have been doing something, right ? So far, | must really read lke a negative pring, but there is a reason. | am not disputing that rallies and marches are worthwhile, they are, but they are also useless if not channelled. Five thousand people focused themselves into an orderly unit of voice, a Powerful thing, and then went home. The event made the newspapers, probably dominated the coffee table conversations across Victoria for a day. AA beautiful thing, don't get me wrong, but transitory. Let me push on and I'l demonstrate my position. After the rally | joined the other Vancouver post secondary and CFS delegates on the ferry. We returned to Vancouver, moving straight on to the ‘Simon Fraser board of governors meeting where they were deciding to push through a 5.6 % increase in tution. The arguments put forth by the students to the board were nothing short of briliant, especially those of a graduate student from Britain named Charlie. The board thought the polemic was brilliant, organized, and that the points raised should be put (0 effect as soon as possible (We're all in this i e a ar as to bite that ever so generous hand. So for lack of ae tional system the B.0.G. wriggled their sweaty healers eet ears ee pepe ate eb fen ae administration building and staging a sit-in? The Se ee es aE ohne ee or te ate the guilt. ). But oh ! how we worked ! The discus- hours at a stretch, trying to decide what our de- Le government's new Access 2000 program. A review: ae Sees their findings were subsequently shelved out of fear sat rag ee reser Cr en ee ee eee ee ee seaee eleasceaeae eases aaa Bee eee eaten eee eee eit sears Fe ee secant ese ane Hag ra MMs asc a eee ae oe ena ae ea ees job. And he does not tell you a government is pea ace lazer es ee eee: what | think that file was saying is true, the educa- tional system in British Columbia is in bigger trouble than we know. But I digress. Meanwhile the fifty five of us who elected to stay in the administration room were crowded around the television set waiting to view the media fruits of our labour. We,d let ourselves be known to the T.V. stations, the newspapers, the radio broadcasters, surely this is the sort of thing the media loves to pick up and run with. This was the firs sit-in in B.C in twenty years by students, there was no way we ‘would be ignored. The first item of news to come on was international, totally understandable, relatively speaking, this wasn't such a big thing.... yet. Then the national coverage, which we all agreed was to be expected. Provincial news was where we were at, Tight after the commercials. Okay... weather, weather is important, no one wants to see anyone get hurt out on the road because they hadn't heard it was snowing on television. Immediately following the provincial news was a human interest story about a ew program aimed at eliminating the habit of smoking before it has a chance to start. Moral plummeted lke a flying sheep as we watched a class ‘of about thirty grade one students wearing "No ‘Smoking’ emblems shaking their heads confusedly at a teacher holding a picture of a scowling cartoon cigarette “Would you want to smoke this ? manded. “No.” the six year olds bobbled, “We wouldn't smoke that The final story of the evening was of a mounting crisis in Detta, or Richmond, or somewhere. Appar- ently the community board there was very con- ‘cerned about the extensive public damage being ‘caused by owl vomit. Yes, those pesky hooters of the bird world are just puking their guts all over people's fences and yards, causing a general disrup- tion of civilized ite and something has to be done. It struck me as odd that no one tried to look att from. the bire's point of view; If our diet consisted solely of bugs, mice, and alley cats, wouldn't you feel a litle iltoo ? | would be remiss it| didn’t say a few things here brielly. 1.) The six o' clock news is programmed in the morning of that day, making it dtficult for the news to stay topical. 2.) There had been a reporter there when we had taken the administration building but as she had insisted on. trying to interview our organizational leaders while they were struggling to keep everyone rational during what was a very ‘emotional, potentially explosive time, we had asked her to leave. She probably did so miffed, which migh explain why we not picked up sooner by the news services. 3.) If you've ever seen an ow! lose it’s lunch you can empathise much more easily with those who have to suffer having it strewn aoross their porch. steps. The next day a fellow from Kwantlen college and | left the fortress to spread the word that there would be a rally outside the administration building, show- ing support for those inside. Actually there were a the teacher de-