14/02/2025
Hey everyone! I’m Ella, your Vocational Education Office Bearer for 2025✊️📣
I have been a left-wing activist for a number of years now fighting for refugee rights, against the far-right, for LGBTI+ and women’s rights and for free education. Here I am at the recent trans rights protest in Perth and speaking up for Palestinians in Gaza.
Capitalism is sending students lives backwards - the billionaire class is making record profits whilst ordinary students can’t afford rent or groceries, and our education, including TAFE, is geared toward the needs of big business. And not only that, the rise of the far-right means that we are seeing ramping up attacks on the oppressed.
TAFEs have been chronically underfunded for years by both Labor & Liberal governments. TAFE is increasingly geared toward churning as many students in and out of the system, whilst government funding is nowhere near what is required to deliver quality education. Many courses at TAFEs have been cut over the past years, and IT equipment and material to deliver TAFE courses have not been kept up to standard. As well, TAFEs are increasingly being geared toward the Australian government’s drive to war. TAFE should be about education - not profit or the interests of Australian imperialism.
TAFE teachers are also some of the most underpaid education staff in the country - and I will support them in their fights for better wages and conditions.
I am keen to spend this year speaking out for TAFE students and against all attacks on the oppressed. Both the Labor & Liberal parties have ruled for the business class whilst ordinary students are left out to dry - to change that we need a fighting student union movement.