I’m happy to assist journalists, particularly student journalists, with their work, and I’m available to conduct interviews in writing, by phone, or — if you’re in New York City — in person. I may be reached by email at angus@fecko.com.
Some recent clips:
“College Students Rally Over Tuition, Education Quality,” USA Today, March 4, 2010.
“Education Protests On Tap This Week in California,” Sacramento Bee, February 28, 2010.
KPFA Evening News, February 28, 2010.
“A Violent Shift,” Inside Higher Ed, December 14, 2009.
“UC Vandalism Complicates Protests,” Contra Costa Times, December 14, 2009.
“Students Fight to Make College More Affordable,” Medill News Service, December 4, 2009.
“New Wave of Student Activism,” Inside Higher Ed, December 3, 2009.
“The Revolution Will Be Google-Mapped,” The Nation (online only), December 1, 2009.
“Student Reaction to Cuts Differs from State to State,” Iowa State Daily, November 30, 2009.
“Back to the USSA,” The Nation, November 23, 2009.
3 comments
Comments feed for this article
March 4, 2010 at 10:17 am
Petra LaForest
I just saw a clip about the student activism on CNN. I have a son myself who is currently in college in Maryland. We decided on a community college for the first two years because it was so much cheaper than a university. I fully support your cause. College education cost has gotten out of hand.
March 4, 2010 at 7:23 pm
Ronald Morrison
I enjoyed being part of one of the first anti-tuition hike protests at the state capitol in Sacramento back when Ronny Raygun was Gov. There were a hell of a lot more of us than 2,000. The Bee said 20,000 and the Union said there were about 5,000 so there were about 10,000 of us on the lawn when he came out and started his speil with: Ladies and Gentlemen-if there ARE any ladies and gentlemen here!” It went down hill from that point on.
Semper Fi, kids! I wish I was there with you tonight.
March 7, 2010 at 2:27 am
Joe
Here’s a link to info from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
http://www.iresist.org
YouTube video:
Local IMC story available at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nekFATS72nM
On March 4th, 2010 several organizations on the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus and people across the country gathered to “march forth” in a National Day of Action to Defend Public Education. At UIUC, more than 300 came together for a spirited rally on what turned out to be the first sunny day of the new Spring.
The march began at the Alma Mater statue with a dedication to the Native American peoples who “granted” the land on which this land grant university was built. Miriam Larson led a modern-day adaptation of the classic Woody Guthrie song: “This land is your land, This land is my land, From Illinois to California, From Minnesota to Arizona, Land grants were made for you and me!”
Since the Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO) won its two-day strike in November 2009, the numbers of those who have seen the usefulness of mass action has grown significantly. A group calling itself the UC United Coalition has formed to address the current assault on public education. The crowd of people they were able to turn out included graduate students from the GEO, professors from the Campus Faculty Association (CFA), students from La Collectiva, students from the Undergraduate-Graduate Alliance, and union members from SEIU and AFSCME. As they walked around the quad, the marchers chanted slogans: “One, Two, Three, Four. We Know What We’re Out Here For! Five, Six, Seven, Eight. Pay Up Springfield, We Can’t Wait.” “Money for Education, Not Administration!” “They Say Furlough, We Say Hell No!”
When they arrived at the Swanlund Administration Building, where the Chancellor’s office is located, the marchers held a large rally on the front steps. Among speakers was Margaret Lewis from AFSCME , who criticized the failure of the UIUC administration, “It isn’t just the current financial problem. It is the mentality of the administration and the corporatization of the university.” Pointing up at Swanlund, she said, “If there is an ivory tower on this campus, this is where it’s located.”
The SEIU’s Gloria Van Buren (CHECK) of SEIU, a second generation service worker on campus, pointed out that the rising costs of tuition have not been used to pay workers. “You guys paid the rate hikes,” she said, “but we haven’t seen that money in over four years.”
Susan Davis, CFA Executive Committee member and Professor in the Department of Communication, said that the University of Illinois administration’s policy “places the burden of the current budget shortfall on personnel and students.”
Addressing the crowd, Peter Campbell, communications officer for the GEO, cited Southern Illinois University’s President Glenn Poshard who told the student newspaper, “financial troubles have been on the backs of middle to low income families too long.”
The UC United Coalition is planning to go to Springfield on April 21 to lobby state officials to avoid further cuts and save the future of public education. BD