struggling to get united. contemporary student movement in poland as a part of international...

8/7/2019 Struggling to get united. Contemporary student movement in Poland as a part of international networks.

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Struggling to get united. Contemporary studentmovements in Poland as a part of international

networks.

Piotr Kowzan

Magorzata Zieliska

Magdalena Prusinowska (absent)

Institute of Education, University of Gdask, Poland

ISA, 16.07.2010RC47.12: United We Stand? Social Movements in Eastern and Western Europe


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Goals & methods

Discussing one student movement in Polandin the context of global actions and theInternational Student Movement (ISM)

Authors were participants and founders of themovement, have experienced it's crisis


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Student movements in the globalcontext

International Student Movement (ISM)- an independent platform unitinggroups struggling for free and emancipatory education.

Originating in Germany

Against neo-liberal reforms

International Day of Action against the Commercialization of Education(5/11/2008) - a series of coordinated protests in over 25 countries

Reclaim your Education - Global Week of Action (20-29/4/2009)

massive demonstrations and occupations (especially in Spain, Germany,Croatia, Austria and the USA)

violent police repressions


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Bologna Process

In Europe protests had oftenAnti-Bolognian character,

For Poland B.P. meant: mobility,different structure of studies, andin contrary to e.g. Germany, morechoice for students

But the new reform plans thatintroduced some elements ofcommercialisation (moredependency on business) werepresented in spring 2009, when

student movements in Polandhad already been mobilised.


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Student movements in Poland

Polish activists hearing about ISM and expecting that something should go on inPoland too

Independent movements in Gdask and Wrocaw with clear alliance to ISM,focusing on local issues

Later also actions in Lublin, Pozna, Warsaw

Mostly block recruitment of PhD students and former exchange students; multiplemembership


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OKUP

Gdansk: lack of scholarships for PhD students, who first (in November 2008) decided toact within the available organizational framework first-year students took over thePhD Student Council.

need for an active and open organisation empowering students' voices and articulatingtheir grievance against the security policy at the university (increasing number of camerasinside buildings, fencing of the previously open campus, and security guards controllingeverybody who enters the library).

first meeting - March, 11, 2009, around 50 people turned up and there was a heateddiscussion about everything that should be changed at the university.

Otwarty Komitet Uwalniania Przestrzeni Edukacyjnych Open Committee for theLiberation of Educational Spaces


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Organizational structure

Based on: Consensus decision-making Working groups for particular issues

Sign language at the meetings Online discussions between meetings


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Photo: Dominik Krzymiski

The fence around UG


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Issues and actionsIssue Actions Results

Fencing the previously

open campus

an open letter to the rector + discussion panel +

a clandestine direct action + a film + interviews

in the media

= no changes with the fence; bu

of discussion at the university a

media

Police-like control in the

library

research + petition + meetings with the

administration

= some minor changes

Lack of scholarships for

PhD students

coordinated international flash mob + T-shirts

with slogans + letters from the student council to

the dean

2 scholarships + at least 2

promised in year 2010/11

Cameras and over-reactive

university police

fake cameras installed = no changes, minor repressions

members of the movement

New reforms more

commercialization of

public universities

demonstrations, banners, discussions, T-shirtswith slogans

difficult to evaluate

Solidarity

with other movements

solidarity letters + meetings/conferences

together+ coordinated film screenings

some degree of unity, a

organization on the national lev

being established

Cars parked on the grass

and sidewalks

discussion with the rector university guards started to dea

the problem

Autonomy of the

university vs. police control

letter to the rector, legal research, individual

interventions

more awareness about the auto

at the university


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Zombie Flsh Mob


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Reactions

Some support (petition, protesting against thereform) OKUPE as a collector of complains

Lack of interest from most of students Destroying the elite image of the studies Activism in the cradle of Solidarno


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The life-cycle of the movementA lot of energy in the beginning, 50 members

Many left, dissatisfied with aggressive discussions

National/Common Education Congress separate group

Latency, communication limited to a minimum


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Occurring problems and theirpossible explanations

Consensus vs. different goals Membership crisis Incoherent group Different understandings of power (Weber vs.

Foucault) Polish authoritarianism Academic culture of criticism (Graeber D.,

2009, Twilight of Vanguardism)


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Other conclusions

Small group managed to attract a lot ofattention but not to mobilise masses Struggling to unite with other groups in Poland

and abroad some successful, some not Western (Central) Eastern Divide?

Copying methods and goals from the West oraddressing universal needs?

Local vs. global/Western know-how


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Thank you!

Any questions or comments?

Contact to the authors:

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

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