The Brantford Connection

Today, a small gang from the Student Solidarity Group went down to Brantford to inform the Brantford students who have been left extremely in the dark on the occasion. The Cord picked up a little bit on this action with a mention in todays update on the strike. I have got to say the experience was a very positive one and all three of us really enjoyed both the Brantford CAS and the Brantford students. All of us, on both campuses, students and CAS alike, share many of the same concerns with each other and it was great to hear some ideas and thoughts exchanged between the groups. Catherine, the creator of the "Students Trying to Piece Together the CAS Strike," was especially great in terms of her openness about the topic. I have nothing but high esteem for them down there.

We picked up some copies of their "The Sputnik" and brought it up to the strike office in Waterloo. An anonymous Brantford instructor wrote in a remarkable letter that summarizes some of our passion at the Student Solidarity Group. I'll quote it in full below:

"There has been some confusion around what students can do to interfere in the current labour negotiation process, the Sputnik should produce a special issue informing and educating students of what they can do.

You can do A LOT, but first you have to understand your stakeholder position, articulate your own interests clearly, and ruthlessly exercise the leverage your position gives you. Because it gives you A LOT of leverage.

If you paid your tuition, you contracted the university to provide you with a complete suite of educational resources: these include library privileges, computer access, AND INSTRUCTIONAL RESOURCES. The university then is expected to provide those services. If the computers went down, you would hold the university accountable. If the library went down, you would hold the university accountable. You have no contractual relationship with your instructors. Instructors only have a contractual obligation to you through the contract they signed with the university, and the university has allowed that instructional contract to expire. It does not exist anymore and should a strike or lockout occur, even the ghost of that old contract is done away with.

If they cannot provide you with the services you have paid for, your response should be: "Don't tell me your problems, and don't give me excuses: just as you demand that I fulfill my contractual obligations by paying you and not committing academic fraud (or else you will kick me out) I demand that you fulfill your obligations to me and get your damn house in order, and if you can't I demand my money back on a pro rata basis and we collectively will potentially hold you liable against damages: i.e. lost income caused by having a start summer work late."

The fact that they are contractually obligated to provide you with instruction, but they have been so incompetent as to be unable to do so is not your fault, and you should not have to suffer for their incompetence.

YOU HAVE BOUGHT AND PAID FOR YOUR INSTRUCTION. THE UNIVERSITY IS NOT PROVIDING YOU WITH WHAT YOU CONTRACTED IT TO PROVIDE. YOU SHOULD DEMAND, LOUD, LONG AND INSISTENTLY IN EVERY LOCAL MEDIA FORUM AVAILABLE THAT IT MET IT LEGAL OBLIGATIONS TO YOU, AND DEAL WITH ITS INTERNAL BUSINESS WITHOUT ALLOWING ITS INCOMPETENCE TO DO SO TO HARM YOU, ITS CLIENTS.

Before you publish anything like this, you will of course do due diligence and check these facts with the union and the administration, but I think if you can cut through the university's bullshit (it has a huge interest in you NOT educating your fellow students, paradoxically enough) I trust that you will find that they are absolutely correct.

Signed,

An instructor, who cannot reveal his or her name for fear of retribution."