the guy by the door …

… and the World.

Did or did not the late Larry Summers exhort us to be a global university? Well the net is a bit Amerocentric, but it’s a start. This Harvard SLAM list has been alive with notices about vigourous student action on other campuses. :

• Students at the University of Miami joined with SEIU hunger strikers Wedenesday Feb 12, but were locked out of the Ashe Building.
• Students at the University of Virginia began a sit-in on Wednesday February 12th to demand that the university pay its employees a living wage! [More from IndyMedia Richmond.]
• Students at the University of Colorado are currently on Hunger Strike until the University adopts the Designated Suppliers Program.
• At midnight, police arrested TEN students at the University of California-Riverside for participating in a non-violent civil disobedience demanding that their university adopt a policy ensuring that university apparel and uniforms are produced in factories in which workers are represented by a democratic union and earn a living wage.[ A second round of arrests.][More from LA IndyMedia. and WWW IndyMedia.]
• Students at ColombiaUniversity who are sitting in at the Low Library to demand that Columbia adopt the Designated Suppliers Program, so that collegiate apparel be made in factories where workers have democratic representation. [More from Zach of the Graduate Students Union]

Most support to living wage campaigns at other campaigns[universities?], and complaints to the administration can be done at

http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/uvalivingwage/alerts

with the exception of the call to action at Colombia University. I include below a draft of my letter to the president of Colombia; do feel free to use it as a template.

Cheers
K…

Dear Mr. Bollinger,

I am writing to support the struggle of those brave students at Colombia
University who are sitting in at the Low Library to demand that Columbia
adopt the Designated Suppliers Program, so that collegiate apparel be made
in factories where workers have democratic representation, and to which
companies pay enough to allow workers to negotiate for a living wage from
management.

The students claim to have presented this proposal to Columbia in
September and have not seen any action despite going through many meetings
and attempts to work with the University administration. You’ve stated
support for “the goal of promoting basic fairness in wages, working
conditions, and a voice for workers”, and this student request is asking
you to live up to those exemplary principles and to act to make sure those
goals are met.

My thanks, and best wishes,
_______ ________
_______ University