Dual protests cancel classes at both CEGEP de l’Outaouais campuses
Posted May 8, 2012 10:49:11 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
GATINEAU – The Quebec student protesters who have been forcing class cancellations at the CEGEP de l’Outaouais were demonstrating again Tuesday morning, though pouring rain diminished their numbers to around 85 people. They converged on both the Gabrielle-Roy campus, where they have been protesting for weeks, and on the Felix-Leclerc campus across town.
Normally sheer numbers of student protesters, more than 300 all of last week, have been enough to shut down classes at both campuses out of fear for the safety of the students still trying to get to class.
But today students found out the Felix-Leclerc campus would hold classes just as they were celebrating victory at Gabrielle-Roy.
At that the students crammed into cars and sped across town, managing to storm the Felix-Leclerc building and fill the atrium.
Vincent told 1310News there were only about a dozen students trying to get to class at this second campus and the 85 protesters were joined by hundreds in the atrium.
“It was something special because here, that campus is way smaller than Gab, so I mean, all that people compressed was amazing,” he said, adding he was impressed by how quickly the protest moved from one campus to the other.
The students are vowing to return to the Gabrielle-Roy campus Wednesday, hoping to have their usual numbers of 300 or more as they continue to protest the injunction that forces the school to attempt to hold classes for those who want to learn.
It’s part of a larger province-wide movement protesting hikes in tuition fees of $325 a year for five years.
The school administration told 1310News it would keep trying to follow the injunction order and hold classes but they will cancel them if safety is an issue.
The injunction is set to end on Friday and protesters have said they don’t want to see it renewed.
