The Ryerson Students' Union has terminated all staff working at the Centre for Safer Sex and Sexual Violence Support and Good Food Centre. Both of these centres provide essential services to students, and are now gone. Services like these are the lifeline for many students - whether they are vocal about it or not. Unfortunately the RSU is focused more on spending thousands of dollars on branding than on students. The President, Ali Yousaf, is leading the charge towards cuts to student services.

President Yousaf has been involved in accusations of financial mismanagement, and has been protected by disgraced former RSU President Ram Ganesh, who stopped an investigation into the matter. His attitude on the Nov. 24th General Meeting was disgraceful as he disregarded genuine concerns from students about services at school. It was also announced that a $700,000 surplus in the budget was found, but still refused to fund the equity centres, instead opting with executives to spend tens of thousands on giveaways, branding, and influencer collaborations. 

The RSU has not been clear with students on their finances, and runs a shady game of student politics that focuses on themselves rather than the community. It is time for this to end. Let the RSU know that power will not be put in the hands of a failed organization, but rather directly into the grassroots groups that make up the foundations of the school’s student life/services.

We want the RSU to:

• Release their financial records and be transparent with their members
• Hire back the staff members they laid off
• Reinstate and boost funding to student services and programs
• Hold executives accountable through an oversight agency
• Restructure the Union so that corruption doesn’t occur time after time
• Abolish the cushy salaries that Executives receive

Read the full RSPSU statement here.

Sources and Further Information:

The Ryersonian: Transparency concerns raised at RSU board meeting

The Eyeopener: Termination of C3SVS Staff is Harmful to Survivors

The Eyeopener: 6fest Investigation a Dead End

RSU Financial Statements