Apple Town Free State
Since Thursday I've been spending most of my free time in and around a lecture theatre under occupation by students. It's been fantastic, but I don't really know how to put it into words properly. From the crazy hand signals used for collaborative decision-making, to the local mosque sending us solidarity curry, to the much-hyped dance-off against another student occupation in London - and everything else in between - it has been a fantastic experience that is nowhere near over yet. It doesn't seem to matter that I'm not a student, because they're open to anyone with time and energy to contribute, and most are genuinely interested in building links with protest groups outside of the university. The most surprising thing so far is that the university management are broadly supportive of the anti-fees cause, and don't seem to mind having 30 people camped out in one of their buildings as long as nobody smashes the place up or bothers the cleaners.
The whole thing is gathering momentum, and public opinion is starting to shift. It's an exciting time to be young and pissed off in this country. I might be getting addicted to this non-violent direct action malarkey.
The occupation's progress can be followed on the Edinburgh University in Occupation blog, or alternatively via this amusing parody written by the Informatics students camped out in the computer labs upstairs trying to finish their coursework.
The whole thing is gathering momentum, and public opinion is starting to shift. It's an exciting time to be young and pissed off in this country. I might be getting addicted to this non-violent direct action malarkey.
The occupation's progress can be followed on the Edinburgh University in Occupation blog, or alternatively via this amusing parody written by the Informatics students camped out in the computer labs upstairs trying to finish their coursework.