Middlesex University students protest - more to come on Wednesday

I went in my capacity of Barnet TUC publicity officer to photograph the protest organised by the Middlesex University Students Union (MUSU) this afternoon. They gave out leaflets, made speeches and marched around the university's Hendon campus in order to promote the National Union of Students (NUS) demonstration in central London this coming Wednesday.

I might have been embarrassed to help with this sort of activity in the past, but now I see it in the nature of skills transfer. The students are revolting, but many students unions and the NUS itself have been rather, how shall I put it, supine in the recent period. The effect is that sometimes students need advice in banner-making and so on.

In the case of NUS, the lack of campaigning has been a deliberate strategy - Labour Students tamed and reformed NUS so that it could not cause the government too many headaches. A lot of sad schmucks got a career out of it as well. That was fine (by them) when Labour was the government, it's not so good for them now, and it's been lousy for students all along. Hence, NUS calls its first demonstration in five years.

If you want to join the demonstration in central London on Wednesday, it assembles at 11.30am at Horse Guards Avenue. Middlesex students and staff are leaving Hendon campus at 11am.

My set of pictures from the Middlesex protest is here.