I had to think hard to remember what I did last Thursday. After a few moments of concentrated effort, I remembered that I slept into the late morning, had a bowl of Frosted Flakes for breakfast, struggled through a pivotal Spanish exam and watched the Miami Heat beat the Los Angeles Lakers in overtime that night.

For thousands of college students who participated in what organizers called a “National Day of Action for Education Rights,” last Thursday was not nearly so mundane and forgettable. The movement, which began at public universities across California as a response to tuition hikes and cuts in funding for higher education, spread throughout the country. The Reuters Web site reported that 100 events were scheduled in 30 states, and that most demonstrations were peaceful. One of the exceptions occurred on the UW-Milwaukee campus; according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, UW-M police used pepper spray to disperse the crowd and called on the Milwaukee Police Department for assistance. Fifteen people were arrested.

Regardless of the minor incidents, it is admirable, and encouraging, that students across the country bothered to take part in the movement. Some cynical observers might suggest that students joined the rallies insincerely, simply causing a ruckus for its own sake; while this may be the case for a limited few, as it is for any large-scale demonstration, the budget shortfalls are impacting college students, making longer working hours or larger loans a required step to continue their education.

The point of contention at issue during these marches is not a new issue, and it does not appear that a solution is imminent. Whenever a legislative body decides how to allocate public money, there will necessarily be angry constituents. Where one person will complain about a cut in funding to the public school system, another will take issue if there is a cut to the armed forces budget. Disagreements over how to divide public monies are part of the democratic process. Provided that the protesters avoided the arrogant assumption that they are the only ones affected by tightening government budgets, I am pleased that the students voiced concerns on behalf of college students across the nation.