Alberta Student Day of Action rally to take place March 28

By Luis Armando Sanchez Diaz, March 28 2022—

The Alberta Coalition for Affordable Tuition (ACAT) is hosting their second Student Day of Action rally on March 28 to protest against tuition hikes on post-secondary institutions across Alberta. 

ACAT defines itself as “a democratic coalition of Alberta post-secondary students building the power to end higher education cuts,” according to their Twitter bio. 

Alberta Student Day of Action’s mission is to mobilize students across the province and pressure the provincial government to retract their decision regarding tuition hikes on post-secondary institutions. 

“Our mission [is] to create a province-wide democratic coalition of Alberta post-secondary students ready and willing to exercise our political and economic power to demand a reverse to advanced education budget cuts and an immediate freeze on tuition increases,” states the official webpage of the organization. 

The rally will be held at the Quad — the area between the MacEwan Centre and the Taylor Family Digital Library (TFDL) — at 12 p.m. Another rally is expected to take place simultaneously outside of the Alberta Legislative Assembly by U of A and MacEwan University students. 

The event has been endorsed by the Faculty of Arts Students Association (FASA).

“Our Council voted to participate in the second Alberta Student Day of Action to call on the provincial government to freeze tuition and reverse the $700 million in cuts to the post-secondary sector,” expressed FASA in a statement posted on their Facebook page. 

Also, the protest will see the participation of the University of Calgary’s School of Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) drama students who, on March 25, voted in favour of cancelling classes for the day to participate at the rally.

“This is historic, as it will be the first Alberta post-secondary student strike in our province’s history,” stated FASA in an Instagram post.

Visit Alberta Student Day of Action’s official webpage for more information about tuition hikes on Alberta’s post-secondary institutions. To learn more about FASA involvement with the protest and future events online.