Québec student strike against tuition increases, 2012

In the longest student strike in Canadian history, college and university students across Québec organized marches, pickets in front of classrooms, and other actions from February 2012 to September 2012 to oppose the Québecois government's proposed tuition fee increases of $1,625 CAD ($325 CAD per year) over five years. Based on reporting in English-language student newspapers, there were at least 168 protests in the campaign. Montreal was the epicenter of activism, and solidarity protests were organized across the country. Organizing began as early as 2010. It relied on student associations and federations, which used direct democracy for deliberation and decision-making. In mid-March 2012, more than 75% of Québec's university and college students (appx 300,000) were on strike. The municipal police were present at almost 40% of these protests and often highly repressive, with many officers in riot gear and using tear gas, concussion grenades, and "kettling" to make mass arrests. Some protests opposed this repressive policing of demonstrations. In May 2012, mass protests spread across civil society in Québec to condemn the government's Bill 78, which limited freedom of assembly and contradicted constitutional rights. The strike pressured the government to hold a general election in September 2012, and the new government cancelled the tuition fee increase and repealed Bill 78.