What a Little Direct Democracy Can Do

The Quebec Students' Movement (the Maple Spring) played a major part in the defeat of the Liberal government in Quebec by exposing the lack of legitimacy of governing elites. The carnival atmosphere and relentless spirit of the pot banging street protests which developed into the casseroles movement are an inspiration to activists everywhere. The students initiated and sustained over this past summer essentially an unlimited general strike opposing the Liberal Government's attempt to raise tuition fees in the province by 82%. Confronted with severe police repression and the passing of draconian legislation by the provincial government restricting the right of freedom of assembly, the movement succeeded in bringing about the resignation of the Minister of Education, the defeat of the Liberal Government, the repeal of the legislation restricting the right of freedom of assembly together with the tuition hike.

According to a spokesperson for CLASSE, the organizational arm of the student protest movement, what made this possible was years of mobilization around the critique of "austerity measures, and a broken system that places the interests of the rich ahead of those of the majority of the population." But what was different about CLASSE and the student movement in Quebec and a key factor in their success was the reliance on principles of direct democracy as the basis for decision making in their organization. The message that Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois is trying to bring to the broader fight against austerity is that "that the success of Quebec’s student movement is largely attributable to its democratic character..." and that "If students across the country insist on holding real general assemblies, where they are empowered to collectively make decisions on issues that affect their lives, they can build their own movements, which fight for their own priorities."

But Nadeau-Dubois is also insistent that this should not be limited to the student movement, but should also be extended to include all areas of social action - our unions, our workplaces, our communities and neighborhoods. Democracy has to mean a lot more than just marking an X on a ballot once every four years. It means using the principles of direct democracy to build a common front of social movements to block austerity. Read More>>>