OTTAWA, Oct. 7, 2015 /CNW/ - In Ottawa, members of the Canadian Federation of Students from local post-secondary institutions dropped a massive banner off the Mackenzie King Bridge to help raise awareness around on-campus polling at the University of Ottawa and Carleton University campuses, and to let politicians know that in this election, students are voting.
"This generation of students is facing skyrocketing tuition fees and mounting student debt," said Roméo Ahimakin, Vice-President of Services and Communications of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO). "Students have presented concrete solutions to decision makers for many years to eliminate the financial barriers to accessing post-secondary education. This time, we won't be ignored."
Graduate students are also facing challenges, "Despite rising graduate student enrolment, increases to the Canada Granting Council have been minimal, forcing universities to rely on private funding and the commercialization of research," said Michael Bueckert, Chairperson of the Ontario Graduate Students' Caucus of the Canadian Federation of Students.
"The federal government needs to re-invest in public research to protect the integrity of graduate research, and allow Canada to innovate."
"Along with facing financial barriers to their studies, young workers face precarious work, unemployment double the national average, and the expectation of working for free. " said Vanessa Dorimain, Vice-President of University Affairs at the SFUO. "A $28,000 debt cannot be paid off with experience. Students need a bold national vision for addressing the barriers in Canada's labour market."
As the voice of Canada's students, the Federation is encouraging all young people to vote this election so the political parties will stop ignoring the serious situation they are in: growing tuition fees, rising costs of living and high youth unemployment have forced young people in Canada to become the most indebted generation in Canadian history.
The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest student organization, uniting more than one-half million students across Canada. The Canadian Federation of Students and its predecessor organizations have represented students in Canada since 1927 in their call for fully accessible public post-secondary education.
SOURCE Canadian Federation of Students
Image with caption: "Ottawa Students Join Provincial Day of Action for Federal Election (CNW Group/Canadian Federation of Students)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20151007_C7149_PHOTO_EN_516080.jpg
Michael Bueckert, Chairperson of the Ontario Graduate Caucus, 613-315-7947 or [email protected]; Roméo Ahimakin, Vice-President of Services and Communications, 819-329-4206 or [email protected]
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