Leeds
Socialist Students organised campaign stalls for three days, visited the picket lines of striking workers in Unison union, and hosted our first meeting of term.
Our petition to show support for the Unison strike proved popular among students, as did our call to kick the shambolic Liz Truss government out of power. We raised £45 for our own campaigning, and £40 for the Unison strike fund.
At our meeting, Sheffield Socialist Students member Noah Eden gave a rousing introduction on the ideas of socialism and the issues facing us. Lots of brilliant questions came up from the floor, many from people attending their first political meeting; what about the mental health crisis under capitalism? And against huge companies like Amazon and British Gas, how can ordinary people fight back and win?
Our success at freshers’ week shows that socialist solutions to the crises of capitalism are becoming more attractive to young people. Our next meeting will be on what the working class can do to fight back against the cost-of-living crisis. And we are organising more student visits to picket lines to show our solidarity.
Oisin Duncan
Birmingham
We invited new members to the CWU and RMT strikes and the protest at the Tory conference. For most of them, it was their first time attending a picket.
It was a very positive experience, they learned about the workers’ struggle firsthand. So far, many students have only seen this strike wave from the sidelines.
The students gave our leaflets to striking workers, and asked them about buying the Socialist paper. These might seem like small actions, but for many students, it is their first time feeling they are making an active contribution to fixing the issues of today, and the beginning of their commitment towards campaigning for socialist change.
Lluís Bertolín, UCU member
Southampton
For five hours at the freshers fair, we had a continuous stream of students discussing the unfolding crisis. The Tory society stood opposite us, glum faced and largely ignored.
We asked students if they were worried about money, one joked: “I’m having to save up for my Pot Noodles, they’re £1.45 FFS!”
Many were attracted by our ‘£15-an-hour’ poster, and talked about the strikes. Many agreed Keir Starmer and Labour offered no alternative and no hope.
At our first meeting the discussion was wide-ranging and internationalist. Chinese students joined the discussion, outlining the crisis and inequality there, and supporting the need for real democratic socialism.
Next we’re holding a Socialist Students campaign stall, and visiting the local RMT pickets.
Nick Chaffey
King’s College London
Many working-class students work 35 to 40 hours a week to pay their bills. Some students take out the entire weekend to work.
Socialist Students always plays a role of educating, organising and fighting on student demands, such as;
- Cheap, good-quality accommodation
- Scrap tuition fees and student debt
- Kick private companies out of education, instead it should be publicly funded
- Provide living grants to students
And lots of students agreed with us. The freshers’ fair acquired special significance due to the cost-of-living crisis and strike wave. We also campaigned among students to build solidarity for the UCU and Unison strikes, emphasising the shared suffering of students and staff.
Arun
