More bugging the council

Have had no reply thus far from the council regarding the issues I raised concerning the footpaths around the campus. have shot of this letter today to the same chap. Dear Sir, I wrote to you on the 4th of August this year expressing my concerns regarding the state of the public infrastructure servicing NUI Galway’s main campus. I highlighted some serious accessibility issues and informed you on them and I am yet to hear a reply from your office. Can you please explain to my why you feel it is appropriate to ignore my correspondence and why you see fit to disregard the issues facing students of NUIG facing adversity through reduced mobility? I would appreciate very much the standard etiquette of your actually replying and acknowledging my correspondence. I have enclosed a further copy of the previous letter I sent you and awaiting your reply and comments on the issues I raised with patience. Yours sincerely William O’Brien BSc Equality Officer. I must say, it really is pretty rude to have ignored me for so long.

Quick update and nazis in Dublin

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this, it has certainly been a very busy few weeks. So, we’re back. Summer’s well on the way out, freshers fortnight is over and it’s back to early dark, cold mornings, rain-coats and sensible shoes. Welcome back to college in Galway! First of I guess I better report on societies day, what an event that was. Propping up the Eco-Soc stall, the FEE stall and also the SU stall, I was more than a busy bee! While I’m actually not sure exactly why there was even an SU stall, we are only situated permanently in an office in the same building, it was also only really manned by a few non-exec volunteers, lovely girls but they only really seemed to be collecting people’s mobile phone numbers for some unknown purpose. FEE stall was awesome! I am over whelmed with response we got, the guys think we had around 600 people sign up to our mailing list which is unbelievable, I can only hope that 10% of those actually turn up to meetings and events, if this happens we will straightaway have a huge presence on campus at the very start of the year. Exciting times. To celebrate our success we decided to hold a good old fashioned picket for a little photo op for the website and also, just for the laugh really. We pulled out a few of the ole placards and picketed the Young Fine Gael stall for around 2-3 mins, myself holding a placard that read simply “rabble!”. While this was clearly a bit of a laugh, we managed to get told off by Riona, the societies manager and later on myself and Senan were told off by the SU Exec. Absolute non-sense in my opinion and something that I will take with a pinch of salt. Sooner or later these guys will learn the only really effective way to deal with people like me and Senan... Great fun altogether it was.  In other news it has come to my attention that one of my favourite people in the world; nick griffin, has been invited to a debate in Trinity College Dublin, hosted by the ever so respected Phil Soc... Personally I am absolutely disgusted with the Phil for this one, and the TCD Students’ Union for allowing this to happen unchallenged. This is outright offensive and amounts to nothing more than hosting a nazi rally. Nick Griffin, it is beyond any doubt is a disgusting and dangerous racist. He has been charged with the offence of inciting racial hatred, has had open links with the EDL, was a member of the English National Front and has campaigned against non-white people in the UK for most of his life. He is a holocaust denier, a homophobe and a nazi sympathiser and I find it outrageous that he has been given a legitimate platform to air his views in an Irish university. For this reason I will be travelling up to Dublin for the event and doing everything I can to disrupt the event to prevent him from speaking and also, along with AFA Ireland, LM;HR and other anti-racist organisation will take part in a hopefully massive demonstration sending out a clear and concise message that racism will simply not be accepted in any Irish school and where it exists will be met with extreme opposition. While I am and will always be a campaigner for freedom of speech and expression, I firmly believe that providing a legitimate and public platform for people to air views that are vile, counteractive and ultimately damaging to society extends far beyond our rights to freedom of speech. In my view, people like nick griffin (no caps) have every right to speak and to express their views, they do not, however, have the right to a be made legitimate by framing their arguments on a proper platform, behind a microphone and in front of hundreds of students. If this forms part of out entitlement to free speech, I want to know when it is my turn to address a debate in TCD. Another argument I made in an internet forum was that I have a friend who can put his ankles behind his head and shit his pants, should this be put up on a stage in front of a crowd or broadcast on TV? No. Of course not, it is vile, disgusting, damaging to society and sends out dangerous messages that it is ok to shit yourself in public. Does this interfere with my friend’s freedom of speech or expression? No. Of course not, people will argue that he has the right to shit his pants whenever he wants in the privacy of his own home and away from public. The same goes for airing racist and damaging views. People have fought for thousands of years, and millions have died in the fight for freedom of expression and freedom of speech. Who exactly do you think they were fighting against? Are these brave warriors wrong for silencing their enemies on the battlefield? Is this some sort of censorship? I don’ t think so. I don’t agree at all that confronting those who wish to take away freedoms such as the freedom of expression falls under the category of censorship, it is fighting for freedom and freedom of speech. These luxuries did not just fall out of the sky, they require constant fighting to keep, otherwise people like nick, nazi dick-hole griffin and his ilk will quickly take them away. I look forward to the 20th of October though I have a strong suspicion that TDC will realise just how stupid they are being for hosting this man.

Fine Gael think-in blockade

What a day! For the past week or so both the SU here in NUIG and FEE Galway have been planning a protest against the rise in registration fees, recent cuts to the grant and the proposed reintroduction of third level education fees outside the Fine Gael annual party think-in which was this year in The Radisson Hotel here in Galway.
Both student organisations agreed to work together to create the strongest impact possible and I have to say it was a complete success!
The aim was to obstruct the front entrance as best we could, as Fine Gael's policies are sure to obstruct young people from accessing the education the need to get by in the world by any means necessary.
FEE decided to make some lock ons and physically block the road at the entrance this was done the week previously.

We all convened at Aras NaMacLeinn at mid day and prepared all the placards/banners etc and marched down to the Radisson along with the cycle soundsystem which I was riding, bangin out jungle along the way.
When we got to the Radisson, there were a few people there protesting against the closure of Roscommon general hospital who were brilliant comrades and whose numbers grew over the next few hours. There were a handful of Garda there and they seemed unconcerned when we assembled across the road with banners and stood there quietly. After composing ourselves and having the concrete filled lock-ons delivers we rushed across the road and Senan, Jigs and a few other made a mad effort to lock their arms in the lockons. The Gards responded quickly to this and quickly made off with two of the 3 lock one we brought but amid a pretty mad scuffle both of the lads managed to fit themselves to either end of the same pipe and lay in the middle of the road. By this point Gards were everywhere, they had little idea what was going on and they were pulling the two lads apart and trying for forcefully remove them from the lock ons.
The FEE guys immediately surrounded the guys and I started shouting at the guards to get off them and that they would break the arms of the 2 guys on the floor if they continued to use the force that they were employing. Once they stood back and actually THOUGH about the situation and addressed what was going on, instead of mindlessly reacting violently to any sort of protest as Gards seem to be trained to do, they clearly realised that the lock one were well enough to be designed to potentially seriously damage the users should they be forcefully removed.
The Gards then formed a barrier around the guys which FEE and the students from the Union assembled round and that was it, we, the students had successfully blocked the road.
While the guards were initially quite aggressive, there was a clear change in their behavior once they actually communicated with us, the protesters.
At one stage I was grabbed by the clothes and thrown across a metal barrier by a private security/worker of the hotel who after I challenged him refused to identify himself and informed me that I was on private property.
I pointed out that I was standing on a public road and he had just assaulted me while I was protesting peacefully and that he had no right whatsoever to manhandle me in such a way.
After questioning him for some time along with one of FEE's media people armed with a notebook and a camera I spotted his name tag around his neck and will be making a complaint with the Guards later this week. No private worker has ANY authority over me on a public road, no exceptions.
We spent the next few hours parked outside the hotel, things were cooling down with regard security and Garda and shortly after one o'clock the ministers and TDs started turning up.
One by one we informed them that their conference was cancelled and that they should return home and pick on someone who can afford it. TD after TD was turned away in this manner and forced to enter the hotel through the back door or any other entrance.
I even spotted one ministerial car that was 3 months out of road tax! Another report I will be making to the Garda traffic corp later this week.
We continued blocking the road, with me cycling around with the bike sound system playing music until the Fine Gael party members stopped arriving.
During this time I must commend the Gardai on how they behaved ourselves once it was well established that it was a peaceful protest, I suspect the number of law students and graduates present and acting as legal observes recording everything that happened may have had something to do with this. Regardless, they were very co-operative after about half an hour. Especially when it came to allowing workers and residents of the hotel in and out of the road. We made it very clear that NO members of the Dail were to pass. This was done by every car trying to pass the road block being asked who they were and what their business was, this was done by a member of FEE, and a Gard stopping talking to each and every driver.
There was press everywhere! Every time i looked around the 2 guys in lock ons were being interviewed for various radio and TV stations, I can't wait to hear the full reports.

We negotiated with the gards that we would end the blockade at 3.30pm after I spoke to Spt Marie Skehill and was told we could leave without being hindered. Spt Skehill had had bottles of water delivered and had given them to the guys in lock ons and other protesters. The level to which this pleased me cannot be put into words. Throughout the protest there were many comments and remarks speculating about the next budget in which it is highly likely that there will be another public sector pay cut, including the wages of the Gards themselves.
I informed them that we are in solidarity with them on that issue and that we would support them if it comes down to it.

We broke free from the lock-ons as we agreed and made our way back to the college. Shortly after arriving I was called up by a reporter with the Irish Times and asked about the end of the protest, who I was in relation to FEE and the SU (I was listed as PR spokesperson on the press release sent out by FEE the morning before). I explained the purpose of the protest to the reporter and that I was a SU Officer as well as a key FEE campaigner and I am looking forward to seeing the outcome of the interview.

All in all I think this was a huge success. We blocked any member of Fine Gael from entering the front door, we raised a huge profile for student protests, and the FEE movement and I'm sure will have students talking about it for the next few weeks. Thankfully also no one got arrested! :)
I am so proud of FEE Galway today, we are proving to everyone that we, and students in general are a serious force to be reckoned with.

Viva la revolution and long live FEE Galway!