From the student occupation committee:
Last week, we were invited to a meeting with Dean of Arts Ed Esche and Deputy VC Margaret House at 10.30 on Tuesday 4th May (the day before our deadlines), to address our concerns about the closure of our Philosophy Department. Rearranging our commitments at great inconvenience to ourselves, we arrived at the campus for the meeting, only to find it that they had cancelled it the night before.
Security attempted to stop us entering the corridor and called the police, however the police decided to take no action. The students are now sitting in the board room (around 5 feet from the Dean’s office door), waiting for the Dean to show up and address our concerns.
Students are unanimous in our demand: allow us the meeting you promised us. We have voted unanimously to remain here in occupation in protest of the refusal to meet us.
[see educationactivistnetwork.wordpress.com for more photos]
Save Middlesex Philosophy 
This just sent to me:
To Whom It May Concern:
We are writing to express our dismay at your decision to close the
philosophy program at Middlesex University.
Despite our geographic distance, many of us at Cornell have had the
pleasure to work with students and faculty from Middlesex. In particular,
Middlesex philosophy has had a marked impact on those of us in Cornell’s
Theory Reading Group—an interdisciplinary group of students and faculty
working in philosophy, literary theory, and related fields. The Theory
Reading Group has historical ties with young philosophers in the UK,
including Middlesex faculty, students, and graduates. We have invited
Middlesex faculty and students to our conferences, and the department’s
groundbreaking work in Continental philosophy has influenced our own.
The initial reactions to the philosophy department’s closing have tried to
quantify the importance of that program by citing its statistical
strengths in a number of areas. We are writing to put a face to those
figures, to let you know that we have witnessed firsthand the high quality
of thought that those quantitative measures only approximate. We believe
that our own experience with Middlesex philosophy demonstrates that the
department’s “internationally recognized” reputation is more than brochure
boilerplate. We further contend that the scholarship and scholars
produced at Middlesex have made a measurable contribution to thought well
beyond the walls of their home institution.
Given the prominence and importance of the philosophy program at
Middlesex, we believe that it would be an error to close that department,
and we urge you to reconsider your decision.
Sincerely,
The Theory Reading Group
Cornell University
Kevin Attell
Assistant Professor of English
Karen Benezra
PhD. Candidate, Romance Studies
Jacob Brogan
PhD. Candidate, English
Cynthia Chase
Professor of English and Comp. Lit.
Rebecca Colesworthy
Faculty Fellow / Assistant Professor, NYU
Bradley Depew
PhD. Candidate, English
Ryan Dirks
PhD. Candidate, English
Paul Flaig
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Martin Hägglund
Harvard Society of Fellows
John Hicks
PhD. Candidate, English
Aaron Hodges
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Julie Joosten
PhD. Candidate, English
Jess Keiser
PhD. Candidate, English
Rob Lehman
Department of Cinema, Photography & Media Arts, Ithaca College
Ari Linden
PhD. Candidate, German Studies
Tracy McNulty
Associate Professor of Romance Studies and Comp. Lit.
Douglas McQueen-Thomson
PhD. Candidate, English
Klas Molde
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Liron Mor
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Fernanda Negrete
PhD. Candidate, Romance Studies
Seth Perlow
PhD. Candidate, English
Sarah Pickle
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Dan Sinykin
PhD. Candidate, English
Robin J. Sowards
Assistant Professor of English, Hobart & William Smith Colleges
Christine Suwendy
PhD. Candidate, English
Tatiana Sverjensky
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Johannes Wankhammer
PhD. Candidate, German Studies
Audrey Wasser
PhD. Candidate, Comp. Lit.
Brad Zukovic
PhD. Candidate, English
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Pictures of the current student occupation of the boardroom at Trent Park against the axing of the Philosophy Department and the Dean’s refusal to meet the students can be seen at http://bit.ly/cuzReZ
click on the pictures for larger views
Good luck comrades and stay strong!
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Congratulations on your resistance to this round of cuts. I will be coming in to the University tomorrow to teach on the Theatre Arts course, and would be happy to provide some socialist magic entertainment for the occupying students.
It’s saddened to hear the developments regarding axing Philosophy but also enjoy the fact that people are standing side by side.
Socialist Magic? -> I didn’t know it even existed but sounds interesting.,
Ian -> Great use of your gmail Calendar on http://www.redmagic.org.uk