A Change in Consciousness = A Fighting Spirit

Recently students at Cal State Los Angeles have begun to come together to discuss how we will mount a fight against the attacks on education. What is particularly interesting and important about these discussions is the heightened level of class consciousness the students at CSULA have displayed. I have been an activist for about six years now. I, like many youth in the United States, received my political schooling on a college campus outside of the class room. Never have I seen such anger and class consciousness among students as the one I saw at the student coalition meeting last week. It has become impossible for students to discuss the school budget cuts without adding how this is just another layer of cuts piled on top of those they are already experiencing out side of school. Students and professors alike spoke about the burdens they bared from the cuts in health care, the loss of jobs and some even spoke about the fact they have had to chose between living at home and quiting school or living in their car and continuing with school because they can not afford both. The students have spoken and it is very clear that "this is an attack, not only on our education but on our class, the working class!" At the last student coalition meeting there was a consensus that the budget cuts will not be accepted whatsoever and that we can not ignore that these cuts are taking place because we are being made to pay for the bailout. The second coalition meeting tripled in size and anger from the first one. I have a feeling that we will continue on this trajectory. There has definitely been a qualitative change in consciousness, that has been propelled by the attacks we are facing, a fighting spirit has been ignited among the students at CSULA. We will be taking the first step in this fight come Wednesday when we march to financial aid to say No Budget Cuts, Not One!