EXTERNAL REPRESENTATION
External representation refers to SSMU’s representation and advocacy to external actors, including student associations, universities, labour unions, community organisations, and most of all, the government.
The history of victories for student activists through student unionism is broad and impressive. At McGill, students have campaigned for South African apartheid divestment, against the wars in Iraq and Vietnam, for the rights of women and people of colour, and for accessible education.
Across the world, students have always been at the forefront of social and environmental justice. At McGill, this advocacy is mostly amplified by our work with provincial student associations, grassroots organizations and individual activists. By combining our mobilization and lobbying efforts with external partners, we can have a tangible impact on our surrounding environments.
Since education is under provincial jurisdiction, most of SSMU’s external representation and advocacy is directed toward the provincial government. However, external representation also includes our affiliations at the federal level as well as our partnerships with other external partners such as QPIRG and unions on campus (both student and labour).
It is the intention of the 2022-2023 external affairs team to develop a clearer mandate to orient our work with the unions on campus. If you have thoughts on this, please reach out to the External Affairs Commissioners (eacoords@ssmu.ca) or the VP External Affairs (external@ssmu.ca).