“The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers”

If only the members of Occupation Cambridge had followed Shakespeare's suggestion, perhaps they wouldn't have had their protest interrupted by those pesky lecture-attendees demanding to be allowed the run of their own faculty.

At the time of writing, the students occupying the Law Faculty building are making what is likely to be their last stand against University authorities threatening them with forcible eviction and charges of trespass.

The Editors of this paper feel that there is much to be praised in the actions of Occupation Cambridge. Various members of our news team have visited the protesters every day since their demonstration began and found them sleep-deprived, hungry, but undaunted.

It takes organisation, guts and conviction to spend your weekend- and much of your week- in a cold, dull building, potentially to the detriment of your degree. The Cambridge Student admires the protesters for their dedication to politics and their own ideals, and salutes them for taking action for a worthwhile cause. Contrary to those who have denounced the activists as hippies who don't know what they're doing, Occupation Cambridge has had a consistent and clear conception of their goals and tactics. It is inspiring to see that the stereotype of student apathy does not always hold true.

However, sometimes good intentions aren't enough. It looks like Occupation Cambridge misjudged the mood of their fellow students, many of whom have criticised the activists' methods for inconveniencing them. In retrospect, while the Law Faculty is a suitable building to occupy with a big lobby, Cambridge law students, who are all-too-often more concerned about their careers than justice, were never going to warm to a principled socialist demonstration.

It also seems overly-optimistic on the part of the protesters to assume that the University would easily cave in to all their demands; to do so would set a dangerous precedent for the University and would have forced it to abandon its jealously-guarded political neutrality. Yet while the University as an institution has declined to support the actions of Occupation Cambridge, academics have come out in droves to offer messages of approval and solidarity. TCS finds this both surprising and heartening.

Events on the Sidgwick Site are developing all the time and there is unlikely to be a conclusion before we go to print tonight. However, TCS feels that we are observing an important moment in the history of student activism in Cambridge. The admittedly somewhat-reduced numbers still heroically holding out in the Law Faculty have shown that, despite this university's reputation for often being inward-looking and elitist, there are still those prepared to put themselves at risk of disciplinary action for the sake of people thousands of miles away. This can only be a good thing.