The 2005 Quebec student strike, occurred between February 24, 2005 and April 2005. Part of the important popular opposition to the Charest government, it was led by students of CEGEPs and universities of Quebec, on strike to protest budget cuts of 103 millions in the Grants and Loans program. A student strike occurs when students from a teaching institution such as a school, college or university refuse to go to class. ... Beginning in 1963, a terrorist group that became known as the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) launched a decade of bombings, robberies and attacks on government offices and at least two murders by FLQ gunfire and three violent deaths by bombings. ... The 1996 Quebec student strike occurred in 1996, in the province of Quebec, Canada. ... A student strike occurs when students from a teaching institution such as a school, college or university refuse to go to class. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... April is the fourth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of four with the length of 30 days. ... Protest of December 15 & 16, 2003. ... CÉGEP (Collège denseignement général et professionnel - College of General and Vocational Education, pronounced say-jep [fr/en] or see-jip [en]) is a type of educational institution in Quebec. ... Beginning in 1963, a terrorist group that became known as the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) launched a decade of bombings, robberies and attacks on government offices and at least two murders by FLQ gunfire and three violent deaths by bombings. ... In the United States, financial aid refers to funding intended to help students pay tuition or other costs, such as room and board, for education at a college, university, or private school. ...

Background

During the 2003 Quebec general election campaign, the Liberal Party of Quebec, lead by Jean Charest, made a promise to freeze education cost. Having to deal with a rough budget, and because of the election promise, the Quebec government changed the Grants and Loans program by transforming 103 millions of grants into loans, nearly doubling the debt of the poorest students. Map of Quebecs ridings and how they voted by percentage The Quebec general election of 2003 was held on April 14, 2003, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec (Canada). ... The Parti libéral du Québec (Liberal Party of Quebec), or PLQ, is a liberal political party in the Canadian province of Quebec. ... The Honourable John James Jean Charest, P.C., (born June 24, 1958) is a lawyer and the Premier of the Province of Quebec, Canada. ...

Coalitions representing most CEGEPs and universities, outraged by the new measure, started to negotiate with the government. Talks and protests, in the form of marches, went on for over a year. Students from most CEGEPs and universities took the streets on April 14, 2004 (the first anniversary of the Charest government taking of power) and November 10, 2004. April 14 is the 104th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (105th in leap years). ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... November 10 is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 51 days remaining. ...

On strike

During their 29-30 January 2005 congress, the students' unions members of the ASSÉ (Association pour une Solidarité Syndicale Étudiante) and other independent students' unions decide to form the Coalition de l’Association pour une Solidarité Syndicale Étudiante Élargie (CASSÉÉ) to coordinate the upcoming strike campaign. ("Cassé" is a French word equivalent to "broke".) January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... January 30 is the 30th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... A students union, student government, or student council is a student organization present at many colleges and universities, often with its own building on the campus, dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body. ...

The strike was initiated on February 21, by a group student's unions member of the CASSÉÉ, the Anthropology students' association from Université de Montréal (Association étudiante d'anthropologie de l'Université de Montréal). But the real start was given on February 24 when over 30,000 students members of the CASSÉÉ, The Canadian Federation of Students-Quebec and a few other unions joined the strike. February 21 is the 52nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... A students union, student government, or student council is a student organization present at many colleges and universities, often with its own building on the campus, dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body. ... Anthropology (from the Greek word άνθρωπος, human) consists of the study of humankind (see genus Homo). ... The Université de Montréal (UdeM) (University of Montreal) is one of four universities in Montreal, Quebec. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ...

The FECQ and FEUQ, federations of CEGEP and university unions, called for a general strike on March 4 and March 9 respectively. By March 15, over 100,000 students were on strike. This turn of events surprised many as these organizations are traditionally opposed to strikes as a negotiation tactic. A general strike is a strike action by an entire labour force in a city, region or country. ... March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... March 9 is the 68th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (69th in Leap years). ... March 15 is the 74th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (75th in Leap years). ... Tactics is the collective name for methods of winning a small-scale conflict, performing an optimization, etc. ...

Students protest in front of 600 Fullum Street, on March 16.

On March 16, 2005 students from traditionally more conservative institutions like École Polytechnique de Montréal, as well as from Concordia University and McGill University joined the strike for 24 hours. Between 10,000 and 100,000 students ( 80,000 being the number most reported) took the streets for a peaceful march in Montreal, creating the largest student protest ever staged in Quebec history. At this height of the strike over half the entire student population (230,000 out of 450,000) of Quebec were on strike simultaneously. Download high resolution version (1792x1200, 632 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1792x1200, 632 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... LÉcole Polytechnique de Montréal is an engineering school in Montreal, Quebec. ... This article is about Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. ... McGill University is a publicly funded, research-intensive, non-denominational, co-educational university located in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ... Montreal or Montréal1 (pronounced in Canadian English, in standard French, and in Quebecois French) is the second largest city in Canada. ... Quebec has played a special role in Canada, and its history has taken a somewhat different path to the rest of Canada. ...

The even more conservative École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Montréal and McGill University undergraduates joined the strike on March 18 for 24 symbolic hours, though the McGill strike went largely unobserved and further action was rejected by the student body through an online poll. This constitutes the first strike since 1967 for the HEC and the first strike in 40 years for Polytechnique. École des Hautes Études Commerciales Montreals École des Hautes Études Commerciales, Canadas first management school, was founded in 1907 by the Chambre de commerce de Montréal. ... March 18 is the 77th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (78th in leap years). ... 1967 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... École des Hautes Études Commerciales Montreals École des Hautes Études Commerciales, Canadas first management school, was founded in 1907 by the Chambre de commerce de Montréal. ... LÉcole Polytechnique de Montréal is an engineering school in Montreal, Quebec. ...

Another strike peak occurred on March 24 during a 10,000 people march in Quebec City. A group of radical protesters came late and happened to take the lead of the march. When the march stopped in some locations, the radicals attempted to cause damage to buildings and to force the manifestation to degenerate; however, the intervention of pacifist marchers prevented such events from occurring. March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... Motto: Don de Dieu feray valoir (Gift of God shall make prosper) Area: 547. ... Radical is derived from the Latin word radix, which means root. In various fields of endeavor, it can mean: Sciences in chemistry, either an atom or molecule with at least one unpaired electron, or a group of atoms, charged or uncharged, that act as a single entity in reaction. ... Pacifist may mean: an advocate of pacifism. ...

Agreement

On April 2, the student federations and the government reached an agreement that was still left to be voted on by the individual student associations during the week. This agreement consists of a 70M CAN$ refunding for 2005-2006 and a return of the 103M$ for the next 4 years, totalling 482M CAN$. This money comes from 3 levels: the millennium grant foundation, the federal government and the provincial government. 2 April is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 273 days remaining. ... Canada is a constitutional monarchy and a Commonwealth Realm (see Monarchy in Canada) with a federal system of parliamentary government, and strong democratic traditions. ... This is an article about the politics of Quebec, Canada. ...

The FEUQ officially endorsed the agreement, while the FECQ maintained a neutral position, saying it was "interesting enough" to be voted on by the individual members' unions. The CASSÉÉ rejected it. Over the next week, the movement mostly ended, with over two thirds of the students voting for a return to class during the week. However, at least 20 unions representing over 100,000 students rejected the offer and as of April 11, there were still approximately 20,000 students on strike. During the following 2 weeks, most association ended or suspended the strike to allow the students to complete their semester. April 11 is the 101st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (102nd in leap years). ...

Symbol

On March 30, a group of students hoisted the students' symbol on Mount Royal cross.

The symbol of support for the student strike in question was a small square of red cloth (of about four to five square centimeters) worn upon garment, in the fashion of activist ribbons. The Parti Québécois Official Opposition MNAs, to signify their own opposition and relay the voice of the students and citizens, had adopted this symbol in chamber. Picture of the 2005 Quebec student strike ribbon on the Mount Royal cross. ... cm redirects here, alternate uses: cm (disambiguation) A centimetre (symbol cm; American spelling: centimeter) is an SI unit of length. ... A ribbon is a thin band of flexible material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily for binding and tying. ... The Parti Québécois or PQ is a political party that advocates national sovereignty for Quebec from Canada. ... MNA stands for: Member of the National Assembly (in Quebec) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

On March 30, a group of students hoisted the students' symbol on Mount Royal cross. It took 24 hours before authorities removed it. On its lower panel, it was written: "Arrêtons de sacrifier nos enfants", which means: "Let's stop sacrificing our children." March 30 is the 89th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (90th in Leap years). ... Alternate uses: Mount Royal (disambiguation) Mount Royal (French: mont Royal) is a mountain on the Island of Montreal, immediately north of downtown Montréal, Québec, Canada, the city to which it gave its name. ...

See also

• Opposition to the Charest government
• Quebec general election, 2003
• Politics of Quebec
• Student union
• Strike action
• General strike

Protest of December 15 & 16, 2003. ... Map of Quebecs ridings and how they voted by percentage The Quebec general election of 2003 was held on April 14, 2003, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec (Canada). ... This is an article about the politics of Quebec, Canada. ... A students union, student government, or student council is a student organization present at many colleges and universities, often with its own building on the campus, dedicated to social and organizational activities of the student body. ... Open battle between striking teamsters armed with pipes and the police in the streets of Minneapolis, 1934. ... A general strike is a strike action by an entire labour force in a city, region or country. ...

External links

• FEUQ
• FECQ
• CASSÉE
• Endettement.ca
• Québec Society on the Move: Successes and Shortcomings of the Student Strike a Marxist analysis of the strike