QPIRG Lounge Speakers Series talks Occupy Montreal demonstrations

The Occupy movement loomed over QPIRG’s latest edition of its Lounge Speakers series.

On hand were community and public affairs professor Anna Kruzynski, Concordia Student Union president Lex Gill, and activist Jaggi Singh.

Doctor Kruzynski made a case for the empowering nature of grassroots action. 

"When you participate int hese street actions often times you end up feeling a sense of power which is very important when you a break with these feelings that things are too large to change

CSU president Gill discussed her recent brush with security agents when being ushered out of a corporate event.

What she heard before being kicked out shocked her.

"There was this one quote fromt he president of Pfizer that minds need to conform to the needs of the market. It just points to this incestuous relationship between the state and the private sector."

Singh was on hand to discuss the importance of research in activism. He made it clear that there are only two sides in the fight against the current political order.

"There's no such thing as neutrality, by saying you're neutral you're helping the oppression happen. So I'm not sure anyone can look themselves in the mirror when they understand things that way and say, 'wow I'm part of the problem.'"

For CJLO news, I’m Shaun Malley