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Students who support compulsory activity fees urged to write their uni a cheque for $250

21 August 2009 | Joe Stella, State National Day of Action Co-Convenor

Read more background from Australian Associated Press.

In 2005, campus life in Australia was destroyed thanks to a vindictive political campaign by a handful of ultra-right-wing hundred thousand university students.

These culture warriors had been planning the end of student unions for many years. And, in open mockery of our country’s democratic traditions, they each individually chose not to contribute a measly couple of hundred bucks to their union.

Labor’s plan, to bring back the upfront university fees that so neatly symbolise our vision of a free education for all, cannot come soon enough. Yet in open mockery of the people who elected them, Liberal senators seem hell-bent on maintaining their Liberal voting pattern.

So we are proposing a national day of action to bring together students from all backgrounds: be they white, black, in possession of a lazy $250, or simply able to borrow it from their parents.

We will show the politicians that although they may close our wallets in our pockets, they cannot close the wallets in our minds.

Let us each call on our most powerful allies: the John Monash twins and David Unaipon. Let us each find the two hundies and a fifty inside ourselves.

We urge all students who support compulsory student unions to immediately write their Vice-Chancellor a cheque for $250. Sure, if one or two of us hand over the cash, the Liberals will easily be able to process refunds.

But if thousands of us stand together, handing over their $250 at the same time, just imagine. T-shirts with fists on them? A new lacrosse shed? A humourless goateed third-year to co-ordinate a “Racism is not for sale” campaign?

It makes us incur unusually high administrative costs just thinking about it.

And so we ask each of you to seriously consider taking part in our national day of action. We also ask you to seriously consider spotting Jeff $250 for this because he is flat chat at the moment.

This message will have been paid for by your student fees.