Goals

GRASPé holds a retreat at the beginning of every semester to share visions, to discuss long-term goals, to reconsider its structure, and to establish its plan of action for the semester. After the Winter 2007 semester retreat, a session was held to format the goals that were discussed there. Here are the results of this meeting:

GRASPé is an autonomous group of McGill students committed to direct action to further radical political and social change within and beyond the University community. We work on a non-hierarchical, consensus-based model and oppose all forms of domination and exploitation including capitalism, imperialism, patriarchy, racism, heterosexism and ableism. Our goals include:

1. Free education! We work towards education that is both free and accessible beyond finances. Although we strive for the elimination of fees, we recognize that this is merely one of many steps towards a truly accessible education system. Truly accessible education will require changes in society outside of the education system, representing a challenge to the capitalist model of production and social relations. We organize in the radical currents of the student movement with groups such as ASSÉ and RAME and promote the participation of McGill in this aspect of the student movement. 
2. Democratization of the university: We work to promote a culture of direct democracy and collective action, and to subvert the myth of the need for hierarchical institutions within the student union and the administration. Specifically, we challenge the legitimacy of the board of governors as a body that does not represent the broader university community, including students, faculty and staff. We work to support and encourage general assemblies and other forms of self-determination and autonomy. 
3. Decorporatization of Education: We challenge the corporate influence on and privatisation of our learning and our university. We view public space, the integrity of knowledge and sustainable food choices to be incompatible with profit-seeking corporate interest. We see the university as being more than an employee training center: a burial ground for creativity and critical thought. We work to highlight the corporate presence on campus and to create alternatives such as a student-run book cooperative. 
4. Solidarity with Workers: We seek to build ties between students and workers as McGill turns towards an increasingly corporate model. We recognise and support the struggles of the workers of our university in their own right, yet also realise that student well-being is dependent on respect for and dignity of labour. The process of building solidarity is ongoing.
5. Challenging power and privilege: McGill is an institution that reinforces power and privilege, and is an extension of broader systems of domination. By directly challenging the manifestions of these larger systems at McGill, we stand in direct solidarity with those struggling for dignity, justice and self-determination. Specifically, we support Six Nations and other Indigenous peoples in their efforts to reclaim what McGill has stolen from them. We also oppose McGill’s complicity in the military-industrial complex as a site of research and recruitment.

The long-winded version.

The concise version (minus analysis).