Norman Nawrocki

Red: Quebec Student Strike and Social Revolt Poems Norman Nawrocki

The largest ever civil disobedience movement in Canadian history rocked Quebec in 2012 when hundreds of thousands of post-secondary students staged a province-wide strike against increased tuition fees. Quebec's "Printemps Erable" (Maple Spring) then morphed into a massive social uprising that transcended purely education concerns. On the table: cutbacks and privatization of social services, environmental issues, freedom of assembly and expression, and the ongoing corporatization of the educational system and the public commons.

As one of the "Professors against the hike" from Concordia University, Norman wrote these pieces in the spirit of love and rage between marching with students and banging a pot. His poems talk about brutal police repression, the nightly, festive "casserole" marches, and question why thousands of people were arrested for standing up for their rights. The thirty-four pieces are a personal testimony to the power and passion of this movement and to the remarkable selfless courage, solidarity and creativity of the students. They fought for everyone. They raised the bar for us all.

The book also contains new original, compelling art by Montreal artists Judith Brisson, Caro Caron, Philippe Caron, Mathieu Chartrand, Raphaëlle Dubois Beauchamp, Chloé Germain-Thérien, Tournesol Plante, Keenan Poloncsak, Artact QC, Marie-Pascale Rokas and L École de la Montagne Rouge.