On December 15 - week six of the strike - a public forum on “Labour and the University” was held at Concorde Café in downtown Toronto. More than 35 students, CUPE members, York Faculty, labour activists and other members of the public were in attendance.

This panel discussion, convened and sponsored by Upping the Anti: A journal of theory and action, featured:

Brian D. Palmer, Canadian labour movement historian
Janice Newson, YUFA member & researcher of neoliberal restructuring in universities
(LINK: listen to Janice’s presentation 21:30)
Punam Khosla, striking CUPE 3903 member and media spokesperson
(LINK: listen to Punam’s presentation 24:13)

In the face of anti-union media, an employer that has refused to truly negotiate, and self-serving politicians, it has been difficult to find spaces where we can collectively discuss the historical and political significance of this struggle. Nevertheless, we must ask: what are the implications of this strike for 3903 members, the university sector, and the Canadian labour movement?

Thank you to panelists Janice Newson and Punam Khosla for their permission to post their presentations, and to the forum organizers at Upping the Anti for their permissions and for providing the recording.

For more information please e-mail uppingtheanti@gmail.com or visit www.uppingtheanti.org.

Speakers:

*Bryan D. Palmer* is the Chair of the Canadian Studies Program at Trent University. He is the author of numerous books about the history of the labour movement in Canada, including *Working-Class Experience: Rethinking the History of Canadian Labour, 1800-1991* (1992), *Capitalism Comes to the Backcountry: The Goodyear Invasion of Napanee* (1994), and *James P. Cannon and the Origins of the American Revolutionary Left, 1890-1928 *(2006).

*Janice Newson* has taught in the Sociology department at York University since 1971. A long-time activist and negotiator for the York University Faculty Association, she has authored and edited many publications about the restructuring of post-secondary institutions, including *The University Means Business: Universities, Corporations and Academic Work* (1988) with Howard Buchbinder, and *Universities and Globalization: Critical Perspectives* (1998) with Jan Currie.

*Punam Khosla* is long-time antiracist marxist-feminist activist and organizer, and a strike coordinator and media spokesperson with CUPE 3903. She is currently doing her PhD in Urban/Environmental studies at York University and is a course director (Unit 1). Her current work aims to support women of colour left activism and involves developing a new theoretical framework for understanding the intersections of race, class, gender and sexual oppression in an increasingly urbanized world. Prior to returning to York in 2003 Punam authored “If Low Income Women of Colour Counted in Toronto” one of the first reports in Canada to document the situation, analysis, ideas and needs of low-income women in nine of the city’s poorest neighbourhoods.