Little recap for the unaware: for the second time in my undergrad time at McGill, there's a major strike going on. The first time was in my first year, when the TAs went on strike, and it resulted in one of my profs having to mark 1000+ exams and his decision to give no partial marks (I got 2/6, which I'm actually pretty pleased with). Now, it's a much bigger strike that has pretty much alllllll the university support staff on strike. We're talking receptionists, technicians, lab peeps (special shoutout to Frank because I love him so much)..... Pretty much think of anything, and trust me those people have something to do with it. McGill is firm in their belief that students remain mostly unaffected, and after the millionth thing went wrong today, I lost my mind. So I took matters in my own hands and did something dramatic:
I emailed the principal of McGill University.
Secretly I feel super awesome. And I kinda like what I sent, so I'm posting it here for all of you!
"Dear Principal,
I would like to officially take you through my day to show you how badly the strike is affecting us students.
This morning I went to McGill Health Services to get blood works taken, as asked by my McGill doctor. But of course, the technician is on strike, so I have to go to the Montreal General on my own time, terms, and money to get said tests done.
Then I proceed to my 4th year chemical engineering reactions class, a class I've been looking forward to since I got into engineering. But of course, we're told the lab is cancelled due to the strike, and so we'll have to content ourselves with a youtube video instead this semester. At this point I have to mention, engineering at McGill (or chemical anyways) is already so little practical experience, now we flat out get NONE?
After class, I'm hungry, so I make my way to the cafeteria in McConnell. My parents and I worked out a food budget where they put some money on my card for the semester, since I spend so much time on campus and have little free time to make meals. But of course, I'm told there's no money on my card, which surprises me since I filled it up last week. I'm told it could take a month or until the end of the strike, because a girl today came in and said she filled it on the first day of class and it STILL hasn't gone through.
After having to pay cash for my meal instead, I go meet one of my professors, who told me he might have a research project for me. But of course, I'm told the project requires lab technicians who are on strike, so the project is cancelled.
Do I need to keep going? Because there are so many more, equally frustrating stories due to this strike. I know there are a lot of important matters at hand, but I think you've all lost the focus here: you are a UNIVERSITY. Your focus should be your students. Instead, we're getting the short hand of the stick and picking up all the negative consequences of this strike. So don't say we're not affected. And maybe it's time to start thinking how you can better the situation for us.
Because without students, McGill is nothing.
I hope this letter will urge you to better an unfair situation for us.
Sincerely,
Elisabeth
U4 Chemical Engineering "
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