Published on Friday, March 21, 2014 by Common Dreams
On Austerity Chopping Block, Students & Faculty Occupy University
Facing mass lay-offs and program slashes, University of Southern Maine faculty and students demand 'human right to education'
- Sarah Lazare, staff writer
Faculty and students launched an occupation of a Maine university building Friday to demand a halt to mass faculty layoffs and department slashes that they say are part of the austerity cuts devastating public education nation-wide.
Over 100 people launched a late-morning occupation of the hallway outside the Portland office of the University of Southern Maine provost Michael Stevenson — the hallway that faculty passed through Friday on their way to receive lay-off letters.
People sat on the floor and leaned against walls as chants and even songs broke out amid discussions about "next steps" for holding the university accountable. "We're using this as a space to organize," said Meaghan LaSala, student in Women and Gender Studies, in an interview with Common Dreams.
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