What do we want....??

RENT FREEZE
When do we want it?
NOW!!!

I figured loads of people would be writing about the protest this morning so I was going to be a little cautious about just spouting out the same stuff as everyone else.... but I just looked and I'm first so I can say what I like. Which, in reality, I probably would have done anyway.

So. Protest. This morning. Got up at 6.30am!!! And shouted about rent freeze and 33 week lets and poor students for two hours outside the Old Shire Hall. Why? You may well ask. I certainly was when the first word out of my mouth at 6.35am after 4 hours of sleep when I realised I'd overslept was certainly not 'yippee'. Well, to cut a long story short(-ish), Durham University is trying to push our residence charges up 10% when they've already gone up 51% in the last five years and are the highest charges in England. This on top of the fact that loans have only gone up 15%... something just don't add up there.

The protest was organised by the fantastic Mildert president (and no I'm not being disloyal to my college, this is the truth, the Mary's president did nothing but walk away) and I reckon there must have been a couple of hundred people... from Mildert mostly, only one other college president in this whole university bothered to email their college telling them of the situation. Which is absolutely and rediculously out of order, but that's not what I wanted to write about.

It got me thinking this morning, and in my lecture this afternoon when we were talking about revolutionist movements that started in universities in South America, about what it is that drives people to make a stand on something. Why did people travel all the way to London to protest on the situation in Iraq? Why do so many people protest about environmentally friendly power station? Or renewable energy? Or worldwide AIDS treatment? Or Fairtrade products? Or the freeing of prisoners?

Or maybe my question should be, why don't people?

I so very nearly didn't go this morning. I thought it was a stupid idea to get up so damn early for something I didn't think I could ever have an effect on. And I didn't really think that I cared. How shameful is that?! How dare I have such a view when perhaps one of the reasons I'm even in university, allowed to vote and given the opportunities I am is because so many people before me stood in protests for hours, shouted till their voices were sore and risked being arrested for what they believed was right. How dare I turn around and say 'nah, I'd rather stay in bed.' ?!

I think we live in an age where people don't care. And I know that's a very blanket statement. And not entirely true: alot of people do care. Alot of people do fight. And alot of what goes on doesn't affect everyone in the same way. But I really think our society needs a kick up the bum. Things do affect us, maybe not today, but tomorrow, next year, when we're 50, when our children are 20, when their children are 20... We are not individuals, we are a community, what we do, (or don't do) does affect other people.

I had my eyes opened today I think. I need to care more. And fight more. Because I am one of the lucky few in the world who actually can.