CUNY Social Forum: July 2008

Monday, July 14, 2008

Issues We Care About

Re-igniting a CUNY-wide movement, as well as student and youth movements

Address Institutional racism and sexism as evidenced by the breakdown of/disinvestment in Asian American Studies, Black and Puerto Rican Studies, Women and Gender Studies Departments and Programs

Transparency in the political and economic structure of CUNY- How is CUNY run? What about funding? Who has decision-making power? How can students become decision makers in these spheres, and how can we hold CUNY accountable to its students?

Re-imagining CUNY in terms of what we want and what CUNY's mission statement intends for the institution to be.

Fair contracts for students and adjuncts

Healthcare for adjuncts and students

CUNY as a symptom of/example of another gutted public institution adjunctification and corporatization of CUNY

Create coalitions between students, adjuncts, staff, and faculty

Gentrification of CUNY and our surrounding communities

We are currently in the process of determining a time and place for the event, and creating a system in which interested folks or groups can submit proposals and be involved. If you are interested in either helping with the nuts and bolts of the Forum, or in taking part in the Forum in the Fall, please contact us at cunysocialforum@gmail.com. This is a valuable and unprecedented event for CUNY, and we need as much support as we can get.

Goals of the Social Forum

Make more students aware of radical CUNY history

Network between and within campuses

Assess needs of CUNY as a whole, and individual colleges, in order to determine more goals and projects of our group

Build a base for the broader CUNY movement

Create an inclusive space that deepens our political analyses

Create a space in which we come together as CUNY students, transcending electoral and other politics

Seek to create a space for dialogue

Maintain and sustain cross-campus relationships after the forum

Think of next steps and common goals

Bring together already organized folks with those who are not yet involved defend the mission of CUNY!

Mission Statement

We, students, faculty and alumni, of all CUNY campuses, have come together to create a more accountable, accessible, and democratic CUNY. We want a CUNY that is accountable to the students and surrounding NYC community, accessible to all New Yorkers seeking higher education, and a CUNY that is truly democratic, where students, faculty, and the community have meaningful decision-making power.

In the face of a rapidly changing New York, we want to ensure that the City and State stop the pattern of disinvestment in CUNY and in public education......

We are dedicated to making the CUNY Social Forum a space in which we can build ties between existing student groups and student activists at CUNY and strengthen these efforts.

www.cunysocialforum.com
(still under construction)

Call for Submissions

The CUNY Social Forum will take place from October 17th-19th, 2008 at City College. In the spirit of the World Social Forum credo that "Another World is Possible," we invite individuals and organizations from within and outside of CUNY to submit proposals for the interactive sessions.

A central goal of the Social Forum (SF) is to lay the foundation for a cohesive cross-CUNY student movement that addresses CUNY-specific issues and interrelates them with local struggles for social justice and democracy. But like all Social Forums, the CUNY SF is open to all those who are struggling for democracy and social justice on all issues including education, housing, student activism, healthcare, labor rights and unions, immigration, war, political prisoners, police brutality, food and so on.

The sessions are envisioned as a series of interactive workshops or cultural events that address problems, reflect on alternative visions, and create concrete strategies for action. Active participation of attendees is necessary for this process to succeed; we thus encourage a diversity of activities and ways of engaging people that generates participation in the process of imagining alternatives. Lectures are discouraged.

Sessions may include workshops, films, discussions, games, or cultural events. Activities should be inclusive and foster critical reflection, democratic debate, the free exchange of experiences, and interlinking among diverse groups and individuals.

The deadline for proposals is September 17th. With your proposal, please include:
o the name of your organization
o the type of event
o contact information
o a short (less than 50 words) statement of purpose of the
submitted proposal

Please email proposals to: cunysocialforum@gmail.com or go to www.cunysocialforum.com
Thank you for your support and interest.

-the CUNY STUDENT UNION

CUNY Social Forum

Monday, July 14, 2008

Issues We Care About

Goals of the Social Forum

Next CUNYSF MEETING

Mission Statement

Call for Submissions

Blog Archive

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