Protesting: Is it worth shouting about? Student’s didn’t much like the government’s tuition fee reforms
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ovember 2011 marked the first anniversary of one of the biggest student demonstrations London has seen in the history of student protesting. At the time, the British public labeled these students a whole host of different things. Some students were intellectual and politically minded, some were just there for fun and others were violent anarchists, who didn’t know or care what they were actually rioting about. Writing as one of the 50,000 protestors who was present that day, I agree that I certainly didn’t know what I was shouting about. Don’t get me wrong, I believe the protest was for a good cause and I whole-heartedly disagree with the rise in the tuition fees. However, did I read up on the situation before I went? No. Did I know why tuition fees were rising? No. Did I see review magazine | march 2012
samantha moore
an opportunity to go to London for the day, free of charge, miss some university lectures, decorate a t-shirt, and let out my ‘rebellious’ side with what I thought was going to be a peaceful protest? Yes I did and I unashamedly grabbed this opportunity with both hands. Marching with thousands of others my age, chanting slogans (my favorite being “No ifs, No buts, No education cuts”), watching amazing drum demonstrations, and generally celebrating my youth, I felt a freedom I had never quite had before. Anyone who knows me knows I am a peaceful person, and I’m sure they would vouch that I didn’t throw any eggs or rotten fruit. Nor do I agree with how such a peaceful march changed into a tension fuelled standoff between student and police, especially as the mood within the group changed in simply a matter of minutes. Though I
must admit, it was exciting and intimidating. It gave me a unique adrenaline rush knowing that people all around the country would be talking about this march and I could say to everyone “I was there, I saw it, I was a part of it”. To be honest, I don’t see the point in protesting. I don’t think protests, peaceful or otherwise, accurately represent the number of people who care about the topic of protest, and I don’t believe that everyone who protests truly understands what they are talking about. But I do believe that if any student ever gets the chance to protest about something, they should miss those lectures, decorate that t-shirt, let out their ‘rebellious’ side and unashamedly grab the opportunity with both hands, because we do have freedom of speech in our country and we should take advantage of it, whilst having a little bit of fun on the way. 87