Ethan Saks | Staff Writer
Featured Image: Attendees sign in outside of the conference room where Friday’s assembly was held. | Courtesy of Tyler McKay/Excalibur
The recent YFS Activist Assembly addressed some of the social justice issues that are prevalent at York and across Canada. Workshops included anti-oppression training, pipeline discussions, and conversations about solidarity, among many others.
“It’s important to organize around the issues that matter to us: from Free Education, to Climate Justice, to Anti-Racist policies and practices, it is time that student concerns are addressed,” reads a booklet given to participants during the assembly.
Canada is renowned worldwide for its tolerance and equity. Still, it’s no secret that marginalized Canadians continue to fight against oppression. Issues such as the gender wage gap and hate crimes plague Canadian society.
In 2018, Statistics Canada reported women earned $4.13 less per hour than men. That’s $0.87 for every dollar earned by a man. In 2017, there was a 47 per cent rise in reported hate crimes from the previous year, totalling over 2,073 criminal incidents that were motivated by someone else’s race, religion, sexuality, or ethnicity.
According to the event’s website, the Activist Assembly “is meant to bring leaders from all walks of life into the Convention Centre in the Second Student Centre so we can learn from each other and learn how to fight for access to a more just and equitable world.”
Some students feel that the event can provide them with the hands-on knowledge they need to take action. Rory McDonald, a fifth-year sociology student, explains that the university does not do enough to prepare students to stand up against social justice problems.
“I learned a lot about these sorts of issues in my program from a theoretical perspective. I want to know how I can move outside of the ivory tower and do something,” says McDonald.
Evia Gale-Bunzel, a first-year environmental studies student, explains that understanding social justice issues is essential, especially for new university students.
“I’m interested in learning more about social justice on campus, and what is being done. There’s so much that requires taking action, like education cuts, anti-racist policies, anti-sexism, and anti-homophobia and transphobia.”
Such a diverse agenda brought students out for various reasons. While many attended to learn about how they can take action against oppression, some students focused their efforts on the YFS strike in reaction to Premier Ford’s education cuts.
Adam Zeineddine, a third-year philosophy student, attended the event in support of the YFS strike efforts.
“We’re interested in having a democratic strike movement that involves all students and gets everyone involved in fighting the Ford government.”
Social justice problems take many different forms. Marginalized Canadians continue to fight for equality across the country — the Activist Assembly is an attempt to educate university students about how they can help make an impact and incite social change. Now, students are looking forward to the one-day student strike, set to take place today, November 6.
