Breaking News! - Pupil's Protest in Dublin today!

by Joeboy - GR Tue Mar 12, 2002 18:47

Some of the pupils protests last year were blaming teachers for striking, however. Not every protest is progressive, especially one's encouraged by a right wing government and media eager to blame strikers for the disasters in our run down education or health systems. A lot of militant teachers were really fucked off with the right wing anti-strike, anti-worker tone, and as a result, are withdrawing their involvement in many of the extra cirricular activities that they gave for free- anything from music societies, drama, debating etc to sports.

Our nurses will go on a highly political strike in the accident and emergency units this Wednesday. I'm sure the government would love hundreds of patients and their families to fling eggs and abuse at them, telling them to drop their strike and get back to work. However, a majority of people can see through this kind of Sunday Independent bullshit and will be supporting our nurses who are fighting for an adequately funded health service. Indymedia heads should get down to the Mater and take pictures of people in casualty being treated on mattresses on the floor by these overworked, underpaid, highly stressed women.

As Urban Warrior used to say-
Blame the Government, Goodnight!

by Paul Kinsella - Globalise Resistance Tue Mar 12, 2002 23:11 paulkinsella53 at yahoo dot com 53 Lorcan Grove, Santry, Dublin 9, Eire 087-9748511

Support Our Nurses Tomorrow

Workers and Students UNITE!

You're dead right Joeboy! Some of the Pupils Protests last year were blaming Teachers for Striking and not every Protest is Progressive, especially those encouraged by an extremely right wing government and media eager to blame Strikers for the disasters in OUR run down Education or Health Systems amongst other Sectors.

Yes, unfortunately a small but very vocal and reasonably sized Minority of Secondary School Students last year were viciously and vehemently Anti-Teacher/Anti-ASTI/Anti-Any Trade Union/Anti-Strike. I well remember the disgraceful placards and chants such as "ASTI=NASTY" for example. However from my own personal experience as I do know a lot of Teenagers and Secondary Pupils personally myself that a Large Majority of Secondary Students Fully Supported, and Still Fully Support the Teachers Fight for Justice, Fair Play and Proper Recognition. That's why the Union of Secondary Students (USS) was formed in University College Dublin (UCD) Belfield last year with the assistance of, and direct help from the Union of Students of Ireland (USI) to fight the vicious lies, smears and black propaganda of the Small Minority of Anti-ASTI Students and to stage Solidarity Actions in Support of the Teachers' Just Cause.

The Union of Secondary Students were just gearing up to Full Steam Ahead when the Government, partly because they were scared and fearful of the Mass Protests and also because Fianna Failure/Regressive Democrats are such cute hoors that they needed something to very urgently neutralize the USS, that the Government announced those shams of talks that the very reactionary and conservative secton of the ASTI led by that infamous Charlie Lennon swallowed. So just when the Union of Secondary Students were going at Full Speed they were brought to a sudden and grinding halt. Thats why we need to very urgently reinvigorate the USS ASAP! Joeboy, you're also right about the absolutely disgraceful role of the right-wing, capitalist media eager to blame strikers for the disasters in OUR run down Education or Health Systems amongst other Sectors.

For example when the Nurses first announced their campaign of Rolling Industrial several weeks ago the Evening Herald viciously attacked OUR nurses in their editorial and basically said how dare they (the Nurses) go on on Strike and how dare the Nurses spoil the party for their (Fianna Failure Herald's) beloved Bertie Ahern in the upcoming election! I, and many other people wrote Rights of Reply to the Bertie Herald, but they NEVER printed ANY of our Replies in their Letters Page. Thats what we're up against in the capitalist media. So thats why we need indymedia.ie and the rest of the IMCs internationally to tell us the uncensored truth of whats going on here in Ireland and internationally.

Everyone should go down to the Nurses' Picket Lines tomorrow in a Mass Show of Solidarity with OUR totally overworked, underpaid, highly stressed Nurses. In my case that means that I shall be at the Picket Line outside Beaumont Hospital which is only a 10 minute walk from where I live.

by james redmond Wed Mar 13, 2002 00:29

USSI are still in existence, they have a site its www.ussionline.ie. If you take a look at their press releases you'll see that they are in no way setting out to counter the medias view that all students are anti ASTI. Unfortunately USSI is run by some of the most anti asti reactionaries around. I did the leaving cert last year and went up to the demo at the dail last year, remember the one where the media said 15000 secondary students would turn out? Well, judging from the mood at the demo, and the reception our 'we blame the government not the teachers' leaflett got, the mood is split down the middle. The majority of students won't take a position either way, they just want the issue sorted on any terms, which i guess is a stance. In my own secondary school those that engaged in walkouts were just looking for an excuse to bunk off school and smoke dope, the vast majority stayed in schools. It was interesting to see the level of anger among my teachers. At the height of their work to rule last year, when tensions were most higfh the average class turned into a political discussion, everything was on the agenda, from GATS to why the fuck should we wear uniforms. My teachers sent me to Genoa more or less through their sponsership.
The student actions are regressive, the most vocal protesters are anti asti and the media picks up on this because it serves their purpose. When i say the majority of poeople that take part in these demos are doing it for the laugh, speaking to mates around the country it was the same elsewhere. Its a pity they dont realise the damage they are doing. Students naturally view teachers as the enemy, pity they cant question the nature and flaws of a system like the leaving and junior cert, an education system where pupils collect shopping receipts to fund their pc classes.
The Asti should make some attempt to reach out to students and seek their support, that attempt was made by individual teachers in my school and it worked.

by Ocean Wed Mar 13, 2002 11:12 thefridgedoor at hotmail dot com

simply judging from my own experience i would suggest that secondary students are not very politically aware and when they are it is funneled into "safe" channels like "OH MY GOD, someone really ought to save the fucking wales!" or "rubbish is BAD, lets recycle!" instead of class war.

if you accept that statement then you will realise that secondary school students have no real idea about how trade unions function. without that knowledge it is impposible to see the polarisation of us Vs. them that lies behind the surface propaganda. i'd be surprised if a sizeable body of secondary students will ever be able to see the ASTI situation in any way other than a narrow self interested "what about our exams!" way.

it's possible that the ASTI action will spark a question in the minds of this countries secondary student population, but i doubt it.

by Finghin - Socialist Youth Wed Mar 13, 2002 16:04

By th way the USS website is www.ussonline.net

Secondary students are by far the most radical group among young people in Ireland at the momnet, particularly those in working class schools. They are far more radical than 3rd level students. This can be put down to a number of factors I think one of them being a certain degree of politisation around the ASTI dispute. School students that are willing to take to the streets should be welcomed, it is a great development, could anyone imagine this 10-15 years ago?

I think James's assesment of the USS is the more accurate, the USS was never a radical group, they have been reasonably conservative from the outset and have been dominated by careerist types that are sucking up to their paymasters in Marlbourough St. I wouldn't rule the USS totally out, it could have a longer term future and it does have great potential. We on the left must organise within it, argue for the ASTI claim and solidarity action with the teachers, we must also organiase against privitisations cut backs and racism in schools.

by Paul Kinsella - Globalise Resistance Wed Mar 13, 2002 19:07 paulkinsella53 at yahoo dot com 53 Lorcan Grove, Santry, Dublin 9, Eire 087 - 9748511

Finghin, I think you've described the situation very much as I find it on the ground myself. You've also raised many good points. Isn't amazing that any time that any talk comes up about Young People the amount of knockers you have who say that Young People have no Radicalism or Idealism and that all Young People are apathetic? Sure some young people are apathetic, but you've always had that, and you'll always have that and that's always the way it's gonna be! Even in the 1960's and 70's there were still many apathetic and conservative Students. As Finghin says "Secondary students are by far the most radical group among young people in Ireland at the momnet, particularly those in working class schools. They are far more radical than 3rd level students." This is certainly my experience on the ground up my way in Santry/Coolock/Beaumont/Artane. It's definitely true that has been a certain degree of politisation around the ASTI dispute. Finghin you're dead right when you say that "School students that are willing to take to the streets should be welcomed, it is a great development, could anyone imagine this 10-15 years ago?" Finally you're right about trying to make the USS more Radical. The USS shouldn't be ruled out as a vehicle for Radicalising Young People and it's much better to organise within it. It does cetainly have great potential and as Finghin says "We on the left must organise within it, argue for the ASTI claim and solidarity action with the teachers, we must also organiase against privitisations cut backs and racism in schools." That's what's happening in Europe with Schoolchildren, Secondary Students and Third Level Students already uniting together in Solidarity Protests and Campaigns. There are several groups already organising around this including the International Pupil and Student Network among others.

by james redmond Wed Mar 13, 2002 20:16 antrophe at hotmail dot com

Secondary students are far more radicalised than third level students, a number of people in college have commented about how radical and open to protest this years first years are. Secondary students are a group that have seen the effectiveness of mass protest, school will never be the same again, voicing an opinion is an option secondary students now have where as in the past it was a matter of being stifled and kept silent. there was an interesting article in the times last year about a previous effort to set up a secondary union in the 70s, it fell on its ass. The problem with secondary schools is that communication between them is non-existent on the ground...but thats changing. One of the sickening things i saw last year was how manipulative parent and anti strike groups are. A parents group in Carlow organised a demo against the strike last year and invited students along, thank fuck no one showed up, but you know what im getting at. Seemingly asti are using students as pawns, but its the government that are. The problem with USSI is that its dublin based, representing middle class schools and ran by a bunch of careerist reactionary fuckwits and in no way reflects the opinions of the mass of students, yet the media always look to it to gauge the students mood. It doesnt take much to win students over to the asti, a few well placed questions about cold, under furnished, over crowded schools, dependency on charity for facilities and new equipment, an explanation of how the leaving works as a rationing system for an uderfunded third level system...then if theyre gonna be among the lucky few to get to college tell them what its like to live in a shoe box with a shit grant that just about covers your bus fare and fuck all else...
I dont think mass student protest is gonna ignite this year..its too late. But if it does, we should head down to it, hand out leafletts and point out who the real fuckers in this dispute are, the same ass holes negotiating the sale of our education and abolition of the grant in Spain for access to some market...that modern day aristocratic elite in Dail Eireann and the system they prop up..

by Paul Kinsella - Globalise Resistance Thu Mar 14, 2002 02:12 paulkinsella53 at yahoo dot com 53 Lorcan Grove, Santry, Dublin 9, Eire 087-9748511

Hi,

Just to let ya all know about the TeacherFightback group at Yahoo! Groups, a free,
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Here's a description of the group:
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Teacher Fightback is a mailing list designed to promote the interests of Irish teachers. Given that the official leadership of the ASTI,TUI and INTO do not represent those interests it is necessary to replace them with a leadership that expresses the common class interests of teachers
as members of the working class.

The mailing list is designed to promote discussion on this and related issues. There is a web site that promotes this aim. Its address is
as follows: http://homepage.eircom.net/~milesanger/

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by ciara Thu Mar 14, 2002 18:42

This may be a futile comment, but it seems that the countries support for the teachers has been dwindling dramatically since the outset of the asti strike last year. All this talk about students is very well, however, as a former teacher myself; my sympathies lie with them. If any of those teacher bashing parent groups (many of whom can't manage their own kids, let alone anyone else's, a room full of 30 of them!) had the first clue about the difficulties in teaching, they may be the ones supporting the teachers. Teachers are the last people who are going to jeopardise their student's education. For god's sake, it's their bloody job to educate; does the government really think that they would go out of their way to disrupt the exam process? If these parents could see that teachers have been reduced to taking these drastic measures in order to push the government over the edge, they would be more supportive. If the government continue to push the blame back onto the teachers then nothing will get done….

by Paul Kinsella - Globalise Resistance Thu Mar 14, 2002 20:23 paulkinsella53 at yahoo dot com 53 Lorcan Grove, Santry, Dublin 9, Eire 087-9748511

Well said ciara! Its a shame but no suprise really that support for the teachers has been dwindling dramatically since the outset of the ASTI Strike last year considering all the vicious black propaganda and lies that have been dished out by the Government and their friends in the capitalist media. As for those teacher bashing parent groups, well the less said about them the better! Suffice to say that they're all ultra right-wing Fianna Failure fronts. The worst of the lot is that Catholic Secondary School Parents Association who would be quite happy to establish a Franco type ultra-conservative, arch-catholic, fundamentalist dictatorship here in Ireland. There's certainly been nothing Christian about their behaviour or their comments since the start of the ASTI Dispute last year!