Conversation: Laurie Penny on the UK Student Protests

Conversation: Laurie Penny on the UK Student Protests

Conversation: Laurie Penny on the UK Student Protests

When the UK government passed legislation that may effectively triple the cost of higher education in the UK last week, "It felt like the relationship between state and citizen had totally broken down, like there was no order left."

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"It felt like the relationship between state and citizen had totally broken down, like there was no order left," says New Statesman journalist Laurie Penny of the Parliament Square protest last week, as the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition voted to pass legislation that may effectively triple the cost of higher education in the UK. While Parliament voted, student protesters were shoved and batoned by police, and Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles found themselves in the middle of the mess.

Laurie joins us once again via Skype from London to talk about the protests, the vote, why the student movement is a defining moment for this generation of British youth—and what we can learn from the UK.

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