HUNDREDS of thousands of university, college and school students demonstrated in towns and cities all over Britain on Wednesday.
They were protesting against the Tory-LibDem Coalition government’s plans to increase tuition fees to £9,000 per year, withdraw funding for many subjects and abolish Education Maintenance Allowance.
In London, police stopped the huge march from proceeding to Parliament Square and ‘kettled’ around 6,000 marchers in a cordon for several hours, from 2pm onwards until the evening.
Eventually, from 6pm onwards, small groups of students were held until 8.30pm.
Occupations took place at many universities, including Oxford University’s Bodleian Library, Royal Holloway, Plymouth, Warwick, Birmingham, London South Bank, UCL, Essex and UWE Bristol.
There were more than 3,000 marchers in Manchester, Liverpool, Brighton, Leeds and Bristol.
In Oxford, thousands of students and school pupils protested in the town centre, and the famous Bodleian Library was occupied.
In Cambridge, more than 200 students scaled scaffolding to erect banners at the Senate House.
In Sheffield, more than 2,000 students and secondary school pupils marched to the town hall.
Many students in the London demonstration spoke to News Line.
Keiran Andrew, an economics student at LSE, said: ‘I like the fact that there are lots of young faces here and that they are back getting involved in politics. This is essentially a good thing.’
Jack Chapman, from the Mossbourne City Academy in Hackney, was carrying a ‘Burn Eton’ placard.
He said: ‘They’re pushing people too far and this movement is growing. Today there are so many students here from my school.
‘On 10th November there were only 15 students on the demo from my school, but anger is growing and today the whole 6th form is here.
‘I don’t think there should be any private schools. Let David Cameron’s children go to my school. Hopefully, we’ll see a revolution.’
Stephen, Zoe Mikkelsen, Lucas Bugelis, Amelia and Tom from the Performing Arts College, said: ‘The cuts are ruining our future. It’s impossible to live with these cuts. We don’t want to come out of university with £50,000 debt.’
Students chanted: ‘What do we want? Free education!, When do we want it? Now!’
Sophia Danicic from William Ellis School in Camden, said: ‘I get £30 a week EMA and they’re planning to take it away from me next year.
‘I won’t be able to get to school. I’m so angry and so are all my friends. There are 12 with me today. This is a great demonstration. I feel this is how things start to change.’
Khyati Patel, aged 17 from Westminster Kingsbury College, said: ‘Those cuts are really unfair. People really need their EMA. It’s essential for people to buy their travel with, their lunch and also their school books.
‘I also want to go to university and I can’t afford the fees.
‘This movement is going to become huge. It’s a revolutionary movement. This young generation knows it has to fight for its future.’
Shabaz Khan, from Brook House 6th Form College in Hackney, said: ‘Why should we pay for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding? Who are they? They are nothing to us. They are not our cousins.
‘Cameron wanted to hug a hoodie. Well, this is his best chance. He should come, but if he did come down here now, I’d spit in his face.’
Isira Rasool, from Brook House, said: ‘It’s not right they’re taking away our chances. A lot of people are suffering poverty. They should give everyone equality.
‘I’m surviving on my EMA. It’s important. I can’t let them take it away.’
Fateha Ullah from Brook House said: ‘This protest is right because what this government is doing is limiting our chances. We’ve got to defeat them. If they keep going on like this the protests are going to get even bigger.’
Munira Mohamed, an Essex graduate, said: ‘They talk about crime, and they will depict what happens here as crime, but what they’re doing is criminal.
‘They’re penning us in. Young students, 15 and 16-year-olds, who’ve never been on a protest before.’
At University College London, around 1,000 students marched in and occupied the Jeremy Bentham Room.
Luke Heanue, an urban planning student at UCL, said: ‘The point today is mostly the increase in fees and the cutbacks in education.
‘But personally, I’m here to protest against the mechanics within capitalism that create a situation in which cutbacks are deemed necessary.
‘I thought the demo on the 10th was a great first step. But it’s what comes after that counts. I’m a member of the NUS and I’m disgusted with the attitude of the people at the top.
‘For generations they’ve consistently failed to match the mood of the members. Their rhetoric is tame, they accept tuition fees in the first place, so they can’t fight them.
‘The ruling class has declared war on the working class and they’re taking away basic rights, like the right to a council house for life, the right to unemployment benefit, the right to university education.
‘We need a leadership who adequately represent the needs and spirit of ordinary students and workers.’
Timesh Pillay, UCL medicine student, said: ‘I think that things are really changing now, there is an awakening of the student masses.’
Lia Alba, UCL, language and culture student, said: ‘I’m really upset and angry at how university is being treated like a business.
‘Everyone at school is made to feel it’s an obligation to go to university and be educated. But once they get there they find they are treated purely as a source of income.
‘What is wonderful about this protest movement is that it’s not just students, but also their professors, who are an inspiration to them, coming together to defend our education and what it should stand for.’
Hugh Foley, English UCL, said: ‘I oppose the privatisation of education and the taking the obligation to fund education away from the state.
‘It represents a market ideology. I don’t support it. It shouldn’t be left to business to decide what courses deserve funding.’
He added: ‘By disowning today’s action, the NUS leadership shows they’re out of touch with those they are meant to represent.’
George Potts, studying English at UCL, said: ‘I thought the demo on the 10th was fantastic.
‘The sheer scale of it, the number of people who came out, the amount of media attention it received, showed it was really effective.’
