“Graduate Center Student Strike Update”: 16 Demands
Item
GRADUATE CENTER STUDENT STRIKE UPDATE
FAX: 642-2642
Tel. 642-1600
At 5PM Thursday, April 18, the following demands were reconfirmed. The continued occupation of the Graduate Center was
also reconfirmed by an overwhelming majority. The negotiation process has begun with Graduate Center administrators. -
The Graduate Students’ continued takeover is in solidarity with the student strikes at the other CUNY campuses
These are our demands by consensus:
1. We insist that Chancellor Reynolds meet with the delegated representatives of the strike committees from all CUNY
campuses.
2. Statements by our Graduate Center administration that they will not bring police or additional outside security forces onto
our campus, and a statement opposing the use of police to end occupations on other CUNY campuses.
3. The administration present a plan showing what they are going to immediately do to escalate pressure on the legislature
to stop the budget cuts, proposed tuition hikes, proposed termination of 800 adjunct position, and the decrease in state financial
aid. This plan should be presented at an open forum of students and administrators at the Graduate Center and in a public
statement to the press.
4. The agreement reached between the PSC and CUNY which specifies that CUNY Graduate Center students be given priority
over other graduate students in all adjunct hirings should be enforced.
5. Mina Rees Library hours be substantially extended, especially evening and weekend hours. The budget of the library be
increased sufficiently to cover the expenses of book and journal purchases, and to support those services necessary for our
research needs.
6. The Graduate Center administration, and each program, actively recruit students and faculty, particularly from within the
CUNY system to reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the City of New York. Sufficient support should be provided to ensure
_ completion of degrees by students, and the accomplishment of tenure for faculty.
7. The Graduate Center administration, and each program, actively recruit students and faculty, particularly from within the
CUNY system affirmatively in support of those of the working class, and to disallow discrimination of gender and sexual
orientation.
8. Chancellor Reynolds should initiate a plan showing what she is going to do to escalate pressure on the legislature to stop
the budget cuts, proposed tuition hikes, proposed termination of adjunct positions, and the decrease in financial aid.
9. Chancellor Reynolds should rescind the raising of minimum high school requirements for entering college students, since
at this time, high schools are incapable of complying with her expectations, and thereby fewer public school students will be
able to obtain a college education.
10. Governor Mario Cuomo should rescind his proposed CUNY budget cuts, tuition hikes and cuts in financial aid. Instead he
—should expand the State budget for health and education.
11. End the freeze on new Ph.D. programs.
12. CUNY should return to a policy of free tuition.
13. The number of distinguished faculty lines in each Graduate Center department should be equally proportional to the number
of students in each of those departments.
14. The CUNY administration should be responsible for negotiating pay for the contract workers who are unable to work due
to the strike.
15. The appointment of Executive officers should be done by program Faculty, student, and staff committees.
16. No disciplinary action against people Involved in the Graduate Center takeover.
* A TEACH-IN is scheduled for all at 1PM on Friday, April 19 in front of the Graduate Center.
* An open forum is scheduled outside the Graduate Center at 4PM on Friday, April 19.
FAX: 642-2642
Tel. 642-1600
At 5PM Thursday, April 18, the following demands were reconfirmed. The continued occupation of the Graduate Center was
also reconfirmed by an overwhelming majority. The negotiation process has begun with Graduate Center administrators. -
The Graduate Students’ continued takeover is in solidarity with the student strikes at the other CUNY campuses
These are our demands by consensus:
1. We insist that Chancellor Reynolds meet with the delegated representatives of the strike committees from all CUNY
campuses.
2. Statements by our Graduate Center administration that they will not bring police or additional outside security forces onto
our campus, and a statement opposing the use of police to end occupations on other CUNY campuses.
3. The administration present a plan showing what they are going to immediately do to escalate pressure on the legislature
to stop the budget cuts, proposed tuition hikes, proposed termination of 800 adjunct position, and the decrease in state financial
aid. This plan should be presented at an open forum of students and administrators at the Graduate Center and in a public
statement to the press.
4. The agreement reached between the PSC and CUNY which specifies that CUNY Graduate Center students be given priority
over other graduate students in all adjunct hirings should be enforced.
5. Mina Rees Library hours be substantially extended, especially evening and weekend hours. The budget of the library be
increased sufficiently to cover the expenses of book and journal purchases, and to support those services necessary for our
research needs.
6. The Graduate Center administration, and each program, actively recruit students and faculty, particularly from within the
CUNY system to reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the City of New York. Sufficient support should be provided to ensure
_ completion of degrees by students, and the accomplishment of tenure for faculty.
7. The Graduate Center administration, and each program, actively recruit students and faculty, particularly from within the
CUNY system affirmatively in support of those of the working class, and to disallow discrimination of gender and sexual
orientation.
8. Chancellor Reynolds should initiate a plan showing what she is going to do to escalate pressure on the legislature to stop
the budget cuts, proposed tuition hikes, proposed termination of adjunct positions, and the decrease in financial aid.
9. Chancellor Reynolds should rescind the raising of minimum high school requirements for entering college students, since
at this time, high schools are incapable of complying with her expectations, and thereby fewer public school students will be
able to obtain a college education.
10. Governor Mario Cuomo should rescind his proposed CUNY budget cuts, tuition hikes and cuts in financial aid. Instead he
—should expand the State budget for health and education.
11. End the freeze on new Ph.D. programs.
12. CUNY should return to a policy of free tuition.
13. The number of distinguished faculty lines in each Graduate Center department should be equally proportional to the number
of students in each of those departments.
14. The CUNY administration should be responsible for negotiating pay for the contract workers who are unable to work due
to the strike.
15. The appointment of Executive officers should be done by program Faculty, student, and staff committees.
16. No disciplinary action against people Involved in the Graduate Center takeover.
* A TEACH-IN is scheduled for all at 1PM on Friday, April 19 in front of the Graduate Center.
* An open forum is scheduled outside the Graduate Center at 4PM on Friday, April 19.
Title
“Graduate Center Student Strike Update”: 16 Demands
Description
On April 18th, a "Graduate Center Student Strike Update" document confirmed the students' 16 demands and announced that a negotiation process had begun with Graduate Center administrators.
Some of the demands were tied directly to the building occupation; students demanded that police or CUNY security forces not be brought to campus and that disciplinary action would not be taken against the striking students. Some demands were tied to CUNY budget cuts: They demanded that the CUNY Central administration and Chancellor Ann Reynolds present a plan to immediately put pressure on state legislators to stop the budget cuts. Additional demands targeted inequalities within the Graduate Center itself. Students insisted that the GC recruit new students and faculty "particularly from the CUNY system to reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the City of New York."
Some of the demands were tied directly to the building occupation; students demanded that police or CUNY security forces not be brought to campus and that disciplinary action would not be taken against the striking students. Some demands were tied to CUNY budget cuts: They demanded that the CUNY Central administration and Chancellor Ann Reynolds present a plan to immediately put pressure on state legislators to stop the budget cuts. Additional demands targeted inequalities within the Graduate Center itself. Students insisted that the GC recruit new students and faculty "particularly from the CUNY system to reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the City of New York."
The 1991 CUNY strikes were part of the larger story of austerity measures imposed on New York City and the community efforts to resist those measures. On April 16th, students mainly from the Graduate Center Anthropology PhD program occupied the Graduate Center in solidarity with a broader undergraduate mobilization across CUNY against the threat of steep tuition hikes, massive budget cuts, and faculty layoffs. What began as a one-day strike turned into a ten-day take-over in which students and faculty practiced forms of participatory democracy, discussed the root causes of the austerity problems being faced, and debated actions for change. Students often drew on CUNY’s history as the premier urban, public institution of higher education in the United States to argue that education was a right and that the proposed measures threatened working-class New Yorkers' ability to receive an education.
Contributor
McCaffrey, Katherine
Creator
Graduate Center Students
Date
April 18, 1991
Language
English
Rights
Copyrighted
Source
McCaffrey, Katherine
Graduate Center Students. Letter. “‘Graduate Center Student Strike Update’: 16 Demands.”, CUNY DIGITAL HISTORY ARCHIVE, accessed March 10, 2026, https://stephenz.tailc22a4b.ts.net/s/cdha/item/1694