March 2016 - CUNY Faculty Protests Funding Cuts

By Abrian De Luna

 On March 10. A rally led by the CUNY Rising Alliance took place outside Governor Cuomo’s office in downtown Manhattan.  The protest was a response to the governor’s plans to cut state funding to CUNY by $485 million in spite of a budget surplus. 

The atmosphere in the few minutes before the rally began was calm, though hundreds of people were present.  There was a casual intermingling amongst the participants.  A few people in the crowd had musical instruments such as a saxophone, drums and trumpets.  Several student led news groups such as Revelation and The Independent were passing out papers and flyers.  The majority of people wore a green article of clothing to signify that they were part of District Council 37,  public employees union of New York or one of their supporters.  CUNY Rising Alliance was joined by other groups such as The CUNY Student Senate and Alliance for Quality Education.  A great portion of the rally attendees held signs that read “Invest In CUNY, Invest In New York” and “CUNY IS FOR THE PEOPLE.”

            Jahmila Joseph, assistant associate director at District Council 37, inaugurated the rally with a speech emphasizing that DC 37 members have not gotten a raise or a contract in the last seven years.  She cited the increased cost of tuition, rent and MetroCards, and said nearly 7,000 of the 10,000 DC 37 members have been making less than $15 an hour, many of whom are parents of CUNY students and graduates working for CUNY.  The protesters booed in response to these revelations.  Joseph’s speech was followed by testimonials from former CUNY alumni about how CUNY had served them, including one who recalled acquiring his first internship through CUNY.  Neither Governor Cuomo nor anyone from his office responded to the rally.  

            Dani Lever, a spokeswoman for Cuomo, told Politico that “CUNY is the way to higher education and a better life for more than 250,000 students, many whom are the first in their family to attend college, or are new Americans and New Yorkers.  The governor has always been a champion and advocate for these students and is committed to ensuring this system remains strong.”  Lever added that, “the express focus of the governor’s plan is to direct additional resources to the classroom and faculty by finding ways to reduce bureaucratic costs and consolidate back office functions.  There is no scenario in which this plan would adversely impact CUNY students and to suggest otherwise is simply untruthful.”

            The protesters practiced a variety of chants and jeers that were used as they marched to their next destination. One chant was in Spanish, going “Cuomo escuchas, estamos en la lucha! (Listen Cuomo, we’re in the fight!).”  Another one was “Public funding-no tuition hikes!”  A third was “Students, faculty and staff unite-same struggles, same fight!” Some even broke out into a song, accompanied by music, shouting “Education is a right!”  and “We are the people’s university!”  The protesters continued as they made their way, escorted by police, from the governor’s office to the rally’s second destination at the Community Church on West 35thstreet.

A CUNY rally against funding cuts on March 10, 2016. Photo by Dave Sanders.