The student strike in Quebec is in its third month and has gained international recognition. Back here in the homeland it is being discussed a great deal.
Having universal access to education is a great ideal, and is it possible anymore in these economic times? Students in Quebec pay the lowest tuition in the country already. The increase proposed would see $254/year for seven years, and it would still be the lowest in the country.
We all know that tough decisions have to be made about where to spend the tax dollars; universal day care is another great idea for all of us, so is health care, education services, etc. Pay a little and we all benefit.
My family on my father’s side comes from a long line of French Canadians. The Blais family were some of the first farmers in Canada, coming here in the 1500s. My dad was proud of being a French Canadian and we grew up in Ontario for a variety of reasons, most of them economic.
Other Canadian students have had to manage tuition hikes and will in the future.
Rioting, risking a school term, perhaps a full year, causing thousands of dollars in damage, significant law enforcement costs, seems an expensive price to pay over what I see as not a huge jump. Although it could be a 75 per cent increase, which sounds like a tough pill, but it is only $254/year. This doesn’t seem reasonable to me. I understand the initial objection, I respect the right to peaceful protest, I still believe it has gone past the point of being possible.
These young people are our future leaders, and what I see is a failure to see the reality of the world and national economic crisis and how that affects their wants and it is concerning. Learning to reason, isn’t that one of the reasons why I went to university?
Does the sense of entitlement ring loudly here? Why is it that all other Canadian students will have to pay more. This brings up the resentment many feel about subsidizing Quebec more than others. I heard the comments “why is it OK to accept the transfer fees from the government of Canada, which come from all the other provinces, and then not be willing to pay more of a share of costs?”
Does this behavior make sense in the economic realities of 2012? Are those students living in a bubble?
If I were 21, I wonder if I would support this and join the protest; but no, I would have been annoyed, same as I was when one of my siblings got something big that I didn’t.
I wonder about the students who want to be going to class, who feel they made their point weeks ago, who don’t want to lose a term and want to carry on -— what are they really thinking? I wonder how decisive this must be in some of the classes or programs. Is there a line between some Quebecois and the other students? Will this serve to be meaningful in years to come? Will a peaceful objection still be possible or has it gone too far?
I may have simplified it but this is how I see it. Is this the beginning of the separation discussion coming more to the forefront again? I think many Canadians are frustrated. This raises the issue of the transfer payments and it can be seen as arrogant acceptance of the transfer payments, and then a refusal to make any adjustments.
There are lots of lessons here and one of them may be how to slice up the pie.
Michele Blais is a longtime columnist for The Morning Star, whose column runs every other Wednesday.
