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Forge Press ISSUE 149 | MONDAY 30 NOVEMBER 2020
THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER
Sheffield Hallam MP backs student petition to house asylum seekers in vacant University accommodation
Campaigners for Sheffield STAR outside the Home Office. Credit: Juliette Barriac
Jack Mattless Olivia Blake, the Labour MP for Sheffield Hallam, has offered her support to a joint petition by Sheffield Student Action for Refugees (STAR) and ASSIST Sheffield, calling for asylum seekers to be housed in unused accommodation owned by the University. She told Forge Press: “Asylum seekers risk homelessness and
destitution this winter. Campaigns like ASSIST do fantastic work in providing housing to asylum seekers but they’re battling against a clear shortage of suitable accommodation. “I 100 per cent oppose the ‘hostile environment’ and no recourse to public funds rules. The government should provide more support to people who have fled violent and dangerous situations, and it should stop all evictions – I
applaud attempts to find suitable accommodation for asylum seekers.” The petition, which has amassed nearly 700 signatures, was started by STAR after the Home Office resumed evicting asylum seekers from emergency accommodation earlier this month. Under current UK law, asylum seekers without a residential address are expected to leave the country within 21 days. Continued on page 4 >>
FORGETODAY.COM
Students divided on University adopting IHRA antisemitism definition Pippa Coleshill Sheffield SU’s Palestine Society are seeking support to challenge the University’s proposed adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism on the grounds that it could infringe on other minorities’ rights to freedom of expression. In a statement, the Palestine Society criticised the University for “rushing” through the adoption of the IHRA definition and shortening the consultation period that was promised to the Jewish community and other stakeholders. The University of Sheffield Students’ Union already adopted the definition in 2018. Now, Jewish students are looking for the natural progression of events to be the University’s adoption. The Palestine Society statement reads: “We strongly believe that the document makes a poor contribution towards tackling antisemitism; it generates further marginalisation and discrimination rather than tackling it; and is a threat to freedom of speech and of scholarly inquiry. “While some of the IHRA’s ‘illustrations’ of antisemitism are easy to understand and unambiguous, others, which relate to Israel and Zionism, refer to highly contested historical and political issues.
“We believe that these illustrative examples, if adopted by our University, will lead to serious implications for, as previously stated, freedom of speech, academic study, as well as the ability for Palestinian students to express their identity, understand their historical heritage, and campaign for their political and national rights. “We do not deny the benefits of adopting a definition of antisemitism, nor do we deny that anyone should want the possible protection that a definition could provide, we believe that it is the right of minority groups to be able to define the nature of the oppression they face. However, this should not be achieved in a way that silences the ongoing struggle for liberation of another minority group, in this case, the Palestinian people. “We believe in the intersectionality of struggle for freedom, and value of all oppressed groups working together to address unfairness, prejudice and discrimination in all societies.” The society insists that at the very least, there should be a reasonable time frame for consultation on the definition as was first agreed upon by the University. The statement continues: “By adopting this definition, the University would be silencing Continued on page 6>>