Right now, the student debt in all of Canada is over $13 billion and students in Ontario are carrying the largest chunk of that, organizers of the Provincial Day of Action to Drop Tuition Fees said Thursday.
“We want to say with a clear voice that students are sick of high tuition costs,” said Erik Halliwell, president of the Carleton University Students Association. “Students can’t afford to attend college or university anymore in Ontario because Dalton McGuinty has turned his back on students and their families.”
Hundreds of students marched through downtown Ottawa to call on the provincial government to develop a new formula for funding colleges and universities that would make tuition more affordable. Simultaneous rallies were held in a dozen other cities across the province.
“I am walking to work against an impoverished Ontario due to student debt,” said Carleton student Ayeila Daneshmend. “Education should be a right for everyone. Availability should not be based on money. It should be open to whoever wants to learn.”
