- The death similarities that Reed draws between the CUNY “retrenchment period” of 1978-1992 and the Covid-19 pandemic are striking. CUNY’s free education program died during the “retrenchment” period of 1978-1992. People no longer looked forward to receiving free education. “We cannot accept the death of this wonderful, free university because we cannot accept the killing of the spirit, aspirations, and the future that will inevitably befall our children, the students.” Because of how many people were affected, this was heartbreaking. It completely transformed the lives of many students. Reed then relates this to the Covid-19 pandemic by underlining the fact that there was actual fatality at CUNY. At this time, it wasn’t just a figure of speech, and he used it to show how the pandemic affects so many students. Both points were made in order to demonstrate the negative consequences. Many CUNY employees and students lost their jobs and education throughout both periods. There was a layoff and termination of peoples jobs.
- In order to emphasize how CUNY changed, Reed uses the term “death cult.” Also, how is CUNY’s demise in some ways? Underfunding and disregarding CUNY’s demands have detrimental consequences for the city, workers, and students. He employs this term to demonstrate how CUNY, which was formerly famed for its openness and accessibility, became a component of neoliberal America. Many things, including education, have been privatized by the cult. Taking CUNY away from students from minority areas benefits the rich and powerful. Students attend CUNY because it is affordable and provides an opportunity to continue their education. Cuny is crushing many people’s aspirations by making it pricey and changing it into a system that cares more about money than individuals. While this was going on, demonstrators’ efforts to keep CUNY free and open for the most part were being undone.
- Reed advises anti-racist and anti-austerity groups at CUNY to join together to discuss ideas rather than focused on themselves. Reed recommends that you think for yourself, actively seize any opportunity to share helpful knowledge and ideas with one another, and then spread those ideas throughout the community. He believes that all CUNY college programs should share their feelings and opinions with one another in order to have a greater impact on the CUNY environment. The message might be louder and bigger if all of the colleges came together.
Spring 2022
