Issue 18

Inside Culture: 15

Toby MacDonald Interview: 20

Black Leopard, Red Wolf Review: 23

MIFTA Season: 24

FRE

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4th March 2019 / Issue 18

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Br-Oak House

Students left enraged as Oak House ball tickets advertised online for £80 Sam Honey & Josh Sandiford Head News Editor & Breaking News Reporter Tickets for next month’s Oak House Ball are being resold at jacked-up prices – in some cases four-times the face value.

The first block of tickets for the March 25th annual showpiece went on general sale on February 26th, priced at £20.

With 1,000 Oak House residents and just 300 tickets initially available, they sold out in an hour and some began to appear on buy and sell sites for significantly higher prices.

The event includes a drinks reception and three-course meal at the Principal Hotel, half a bottle of wine, and an after-party featuring Hyde Park Bass.

One post on Fallowfield Students’ Group (FSG) offered a single ticket for £50, and described the price as ‘the bargain of the year’. It claimed that some were re-selling for as much as £80, with another post offering this price of four times the original.

The Mancunion has seen screenshots of messages from people attempting to sell tickets for £80, a markup of 300% on some

of the first set of tickets released at just £20.

The event is incredibly popular, and with the cost of the ball around £60 per person, organisers had used the budget to subsidise prices.

The official event page briefly advertised tickets available for cost price (£60), before it was confirmed that an extra 200 tickets would be released on February 28th, after a compromise was reached with the Principal, although this will still mean just half of the 1,000 residents can attend.

It is unclear as to whether this second release was organised in response to the expensive re-sales.

This extra wave of tickets were priced at £35, a half-way house between the original price, and the £60 cost per person. The extra 200 tickets will reduce the sky-high prices being offered through resale, and will allow a greater proportion of Oak House residents to attend.

As a result of limited tickets being available, the event’s official policy is to prevent those that do not live at Oak House from entering.

It is unknown whether this fact is being widely advertised on resale posts, with students at risk of overpaying hugely for a ticket, and then being barred from entry.

Organisers will hold a list of the names of Oak House residents, checking those entering against this.

Some may level criticism at the organisers over the release of all tickets in a single selling period, with the staggered release of tickets likely to allow a wider number of residents a chance to purchase one.

One first-year music student said: “Who’s going to pay £80 for a night when you pay £99 a week on rent? They probably didn’t sell the tickets for [£80] and just gave that price to pressure people into buying.”

Other students were unhappy about the allocation of tickets and the fact they sold out so quickly.

Prasham Sheth, a first-year economics student said: “Precautions should have been taken so that only one ticket could be bought per person or per card. Since Oak House has funds more than any other body, subsiding 300 tickets to 20 from 60 wasn’t a smart

thing to do. They could have subsidised 400 or 500 tickets at 30 to 35 pound keeping in mind the student population of Oak House.

“I opened the link at exact 6pm and when the app opened, the phase one tickets were not available, I thought there was a mistake and I refreshed the page. By the time the page refreshed, phase 2 tickets had also been sold out. I went to ask my roommate if I should still buy the third phase tickets and by the time I reached in his room, third phase tickets were also gone.”

Whilst some people were displeased about the ‘Night in Vegas’ ball being for Oak House residents only, some noted that this is a difficult policy to enforce. One student, who chose to stay anonymous, told The Mancunion that they had been in contact with a member of the Oak House Residents’ Association, telling them that if sales were to have been made through the Students’ Union site – as opposed to Skiddle – the event could have been restricted to Oak House residents only.

Story continues on page 2...

Photo: Hawwa Alam / @hawwaetc

Headlines this week

New student group launched to combat crime Page 3

SU Elections open Page 3

Students resort to gambling to cover cost of living Page 5

Puzzle Page!

Page 14

2 News Continued from page one...

Inside Issue 18

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Br-Oak House Sam Honey & Josh Sandiford Head News Editor & Breaking News Reporter They added: “The Oak House [Residents’ Association] budget is not m e a nt to go on a ny non- re s ide nt s a nd there fore the subsidis ed ticket that they are s elling is unfair if it goe s to a non Oak Hous e re sident as the subsidy com e s out of t he re nt t h at t hey p ay that year for their halls.

“I think [the ball] is a great idea and i f t h e R A p u l l i t o f f t h e n i t ’s a m a z i n g and total congratulations to them but

i t ’s j u s t u n f a i r t h a t o t h e r h a l l s h a v e been strict on their ball ticket policy a n d s u b s i d y a n d [ O a k H o u s e ’s ] h a s just turned into how [they] can s ell o u t a n d a l s o r e s e l l t i c k e t s . I t ’s a b i t ridiculous.”

When asked by The Mancunion for a comment regarding the res elling of tickets at higher price s, a spoke spers on for the Oak Hous e R e s i d e n t s ’ A s s o c i a t i o n s a i d : “A f t e r hearing the concerns about ticket allocation we h ave decided to reallocate funds from other future

events to the ball and s o we are r e l e a s i n g 2 0 0 t i c k e t s a t £ 3 0.

“500 is the maximum capacity the venue can hold for an event like this.

We w e r e n o t e x p e c t i n g a n y w h e r e n e a r this level of intere st in the ball. “ I t ’s a l s o i m p o r t a n t t o m e n t i o n that we are students volunteering o u r t i m e t o o rg a n i s e t h i s e v e n t a n d not profe ssional event planners.

O rg a n i s i n g a n e v e n t f o r t h i s m a n y p e o p l e i s a h u g e u n d e r t a k i n g . We a r e trying to put on the best night possible for the most people.”

Photo: Garry Knight @ Flickr

Why is SU election turnout so low?

Investigations, page 7

ONS: Manchester has the highest number of deaths of homeless people in England Dogs Unleashed Societies, page 12

Burnham’s campaign to end rough sleeping by 2020 takes yet another hit, following the recent proposal of a £100 fine for rough sleeping Shivani Kaura Deputy News Editor

The history of menstruation Lifestyle, page 29

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According to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Manchester has the highest death rates of homeless people than any other local authority area in England and Wales in 2017.

This report came after a homeless man was found dead on Market Street in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The statistics show a direct correlation between the relative poverty of an area and the number of rough sleeper deaths.

In Manchester alone, rough sleeping counts have risen from just seven in 2010 to 123 in 2018, and it was found that more deprived areas had about nine times more deaths of homeless people compared to the least disadvantaged areas.

More than half of all deaths of homeless people in 2017 were due to liver disease, suicide or drug poisoning and around 84% of deaths were men.

Ben Humberstone, from the ONS, said: “[Today’s] findings show a real contrast between areas in terms of where homeless people are dying. Every one of these deaths is a real human tragedy and understanding where these deaths occur is particularly poignant.”

The Guardian recently revealed that features@mancunion.com Opinion Editor: Sophie Marriott Deputy Editor: Cachella Smith opinion@mancunion.com

council bosses have been ‘accused of deliberately hiding the scale of the rough sleeping crisis’ in England, and have done so by ‘changing the way they complied figures for the 2018 official count’.

ONS reported that there was a 2% fall in rough sleeping in England in 2018, although critics have questioned whether the decrease was due to councils changing their counting method as results ‘did not reflect the reality on the streets’.

When The Guardian contacted local authorities, they were told that they needed to change their reported estimates to a street count, as advised by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Minister of homelessness, Heather Wheeler, said: “These claims are an insult to the hardworking outreach workers, local charities, and other groups that collate these figures and are independently verified by Homeless Link.

The Homeless Link is a government paid charity which aims to guide councils to collect rough sleeping statistics and to officially verify their count for their constituency.

Wheeler added: “The rough sleeping count uses a well-established method – adopted by many cities across the world – providing us with a reliable way of comparing change over time, and councils have the freedom to choose how they conduct their count to best

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suit their area and individual circumstances.

“We have set out bold plans to end rough sleeping – and these figures show our work is already making a difference.”

Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), have put together Greater Manchester’s Plan for Homes, Jobs and the Environment which aims to find the right housing, in the right places for those who need it. Other aims include creating jobs and improving infrastructure to ensure the future prosperity of Greater Manchester.

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, promised to eradicate homelessness in Manchester by 2020 as part of his mayoral manifesto.

Mayor of Salford and Greater Manchester Housing Lead, Paul Dennett, said: “We have always wanted this to be a plan for everyone in Greater Manchester and the only way we can be confident of this is by as many people as possible having their say.

“We listened to the response to the 2016 plan and have produced this radical redraft which will improve the city-region for generations to come.”

It is currently predicted the final plan will be adopted, and in late 2020/early 2021 which will fall behind Burnham’s campaign to end homelessness in Greater Manchester, although the plan will surely be a start to getting people off the streets.

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Photo: James Shuttleworth

New student group launched to counter crime in Fallowfield

Fallowfield Student Crime – or FSC – also aims to ‘create a dialogue’ between students, community leaders, police, and the universities Josh Sandiford and Emily Broncz Breaking News Reporter and Deputy News Editor

A new Facebook group has been set up by students to help Fallowfield residents document crime.

Fallowfield Student Crime - or FSC also aims to ‘create a dialogue’ between students, community leaders, police, and the universities.

The page is aiming to become a focal point for reports from victims of crime, and a place for students to share advice, information, skills and ideas. Within a week of launching, the page had nearly 100 ‘likes’.

FSC is also organising a ‘Fallowfield Forum’ drop-in meeting where students can contribute ideas toward the running of the project. The first meeting took place last week in the University of Manchester’s Students’ Union, with future meetings planned at other campuses and around Fallowfield.

Last month, The Mancunion revealed that a ‘first response’ student group was being considered by students living in Fallowfield. At the time, Greater Manchester Police said that such a project had not fully been “organised in conjunction with the police,” and that they were not in a position

to “advocate people taking the law into their own hands.”

When asked about the new student group, the University of Manchester declined to comment, but pointed out a range of initiatives run by Manchester Student Homes.

A spokesperson said: “The universities, in partnership with the council and police, are committed to engaging in dialogue with students on all aspects of personal safety and household security.

“Through Manchester Student Homes (MSH), (jointly funded department of the University of Manchester and Manchester

Metropolitan) students are supported on all aspects of life off campus. MSH works in partnership with external agencies, and the wider University to develop specific campaigns around safety.

“These include a regular police drop-in surgery, a landlord accreditation scheme and a student ‘neighbourhood watch’ style group known as ‘Student Eye’ which has seen a number of student properties engaged with Manchester Student Homes and Greater Manchester Police.”

The Mancunion is currently awaiting comment from the organisers of the group.

Everything you need to know about SU Elections 2019 Polling stations can be found in the Students’ Union, North Campus, and Owens Park, Fallowfield Josh Sandiford Breaking News Editor Every year, students vote for the eight full-time Executive Officers to lead the University of Manchester Students’ Union (SU). Here is The Mancunion ’s preview.

From the 28th of February, voting will be open for the roles of General Secretary, Education Officer, International Students’ Officer, Women’s Officer, Liberation and Access Officer, Activities and Development Officer, Welfare and Community Officer and Postgraduate Students’ Officer.

58 candidates are running for the various roles and have now begun campaigning on social media and around the Students’ Union. Fatima Abid, Lizzy Haughton, Sara Khan, and Olivia Meisl are all running for re-election.

Polling stations can be found in the SU, North Campus, and Owens Park, Fallowfield.

Voting opens at 12pm on 28th February and closes at 5pm on 7th March. Results are expected at 8pm on the same day.

The SU are offering daily incentives and prizes in an effort to drive voter turnout.

Incentives include free food from the SU, and prizes include guest-list at an Academy gig and a £50 U ber ride.

Manchester Students’ Union is the largest in the country and represents over 40,000 students — but previous SU elections have struggled with low levels of turnout and been characterised by student apathy.

Last year, just 19.8% of students voted in the Executive Officer elections, although this was amongst the highest in the country.

When asked why the SU elections are important and why students should

vote, Riddi Viswanathan, the current International Students’ Officer, said: “This is one chance were all University students can make their voices heard, in fact, this is the time where they can reshape what the SU and the university looks like by electing their leadership.

“I don’t think they should miss out on the chance to exercise their democratic rights because the elected leaders do so much and they leave a very good impact on student life. I don’t see why students would lose this opportunity [and] not vote.”

You can find more information about the elections, including a full list of candidates, daily incentives and prizes on the SU website.

For full coverage of the election, visit The Mancunion’s live blog.

Photo: Ethan Davies @ The Mancunion

More on SU Elections on page 7, Investigations: ‘Why is turnout so low at SU Elections?’

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ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

OfS: Top-ranking universities must admit fewer from middle-class backgrounds

“Radical” methods are needed to ensure universities meet diversity targets Rona McCann Sub-editor

The Office for Students (OfS) has called for universities to narrow the gap between the admission numbers of those from middle-class backgrounds and of those who are less well-off.

The move by universities is necessary to reach diversity targets, the OfS has revealed.

The universities’ watchdog has named Russell Group institutions in particular in its statement, saying they must eliminate this gap within 20 years.

The OfS has put forward two possible scenarios under which the disparity between the number of advantaged and disadvantaged students would be minimised throughout this time frame.

First, the country’s leading universities, where the gap is most pronounced, doubles its intake of working-class pupils. This scenario has been forecasted to be unlikely given the Department of Education’s current predictions for higher education attendance.

An alternative scenario that would eliminate the gap would be to directly reduce the number of well-off students that are offered places to study.

Whilst a need for greater diversity within the make-up of university populations is widely seen as favourable, the method of admissions boards choosing against middle-class students has been dubbed unpopular by experts.

Professor Claire Callender, who specialises in higher education policy, has argued that putting a cap on the number of middle-class students admitted into universities will receive

great backlash from students, parents, and institutions, and might even fall short of equality legislation.

“If the only option is to have some form of positive discrimination, I am not clear whether it would be permitted under the law.”

“Targets are very useful and certainly it is important that universities do everything they can to widen the participation of underrepresented groups.”

Others, however, see this “radical” approach as necessary in order to effect real change.

“The OfS is right to look to radical solutions to increase access at the most selective universities,” Sir Peter Lampi, founder of the pro-social mobility foundation Sutton Trust, has said. “Despite efforts and some progress in the past two decades, the gap remains wide.”

“Doing this could radically shift the

balance and increase the numbers of the poorest students studying at the most selective universities.”

The OfS’s scenarios were revealed as part of a set of papers written following a board meeting at which widening participation targets were set. The targets were set for Russell Group member universities and a handful of others that require high grades for entry.

Last year, it was revealed by the Higher Education Statistics Agency that the University of Manchester had a 17.1% private school to state-funded school ratio among its students – the 30th highest of all UK universities and conservatoires – compared to a national average of 12%.

In the UK, around 6.5% of school pupils are educated in the independent sector.

First Bus announce sale of Queens Road depot Photo: David Dixon @ Wikimedia Commons

First Bus announce the sale of their Queens Road depot to Go-Ahead Group following rising business costs, in a move likely to effect students Alex Walker News Reporter On 19th February, First Bus announced the sale of their Queens Road bus depot to the Go-Ahead Group for £11.2m.

The sale would include the depot on Queens Road, Cheetham Hill along with around 160 vehicles. It was also proposed that the staff at the site would transfer to the Go-Ahead group upon completion of the sale. Until the deal is finalised in a couple of weeks, services will continue to run without any intended changes.

This sale comes after the axing of the Bury and Tameside depots in April 2017.

The services operating out of these depots then moved to either Queens Road, Bolton or Oldham. After the continued industrial disputes over pay in the Rusholme Depot in December, it also closed earlier this year.

The spate of closures comes after ‘rising business costs’ for the firm and fare hikes for passengers.

Students may be affected by the deal, particularly by potential changes to Service 41. This route connects Sale to Middleton, via the main Oxford Road route used by students.

Managing Director of First Bus, Giles Fearnley, released a statement saying, “I’d like to thank our employees for their

continued hard work to deliver the best experience possible for our customers in Greater Manchester. Today’s announcement does not reflect on the effort, commitment or individual performance of our Queens Road employees and we will be supporting them fully as they transfer to their new employer.

“Over the years we have enjoyed a constructive relationship with both the GoAhead Group and Transport for Greater Manchester and look forward to working closely with them to ensure this transfer goes ahead as smoothly as possible with minimal impact for our customers.”

In response to the deal, Councillor Mark

Aldred, the Chair of Transport for Greater Manchester, said, “Our first priority is passengers across Greater Manchester and affected staff.

“We have been reassured by both First and Go-Ahead that the transfer of services will be managed in the best way to minimise disruption.”

The Mancunion also contacted First about their Rusholme depot, at the end of the curry mile, that appears to be permanently closed, with windows boarded up.

The depot appears inactive, and if this is the case, then the cuts to First services may be more extreme than first concerned.

Jewish Society launches after antisemitism row Photo: John Allan @ Geograph

Fears of antisemitism at the University of Essex have risen after 200 students vote against the creation of a Jewish society and a lecturer posts worrying material on Facebook Emily Broncz Deputy News Editor More than 500 people turned out in a show of support this week for a newly formed Jewish Society at the University of Essex.

The group was set up in mid-February, despite 200 students opposing its formation in a vote earlier in the month.

That led to claims of antisemitism at

the University, and a computer science lecturer, Dr Maaruf Ali, was suspended after he allegedly posted antisemitic material on Facebook. The University has also launched an investigation.

The posts, since deleted, were believed to allude to Holocaust denial, as well as opposing the creation of the Jewish society.

About 36% of voters objected to the society due to its proposals of wanting to

“explore Zionism” and celebrate the Israeli Independence Day. Students who cast a vote against claimed that these aims were rooted in politics, rather than in religious interests.

Society president Amy-Julie Fogiel was among the speakers at this week’s solidarity event. “I’m very proud to be Jewish,” she said. “I can’t wait to establish the society and continue this journey. Light wins over darkness.”

The National Union of Jewish Students (UJS) previously called the situation “shocking” and “deeply disappointing”. It said there are more than 60 Jewish societies at universities across the UK. A spokesman from the University of Essex Students’ Union said “any form of hate speech” was rejected by the university and that “all reports of antisemitic behaviour” were being taken “extremely seriously”.

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Students resort to gambling to cover the cost of living New analysis from The Gambling Commission estimates that two in three students gamble – equivalent to 1.2 million people Octavia Spray News Reporter Thousands of students are relying on gambling to support themselves through university - and some have been left with debts as high as £5,000.

That’s according to the National Union of Students which has claimed students are increasingly reliant on such activities due to the failures of the government student loan system.

It found that nearly half of students who gamble do so to supplement their income.

Students are particularly vulnerable to gambling in recent years due to the changes

in technology and readily-available student loans. Recent technology has allowed online bookmakers to target their ads at ex-gamblers to lure them back to their websites.

The Gambling Commission has discovered that two in three students gamble which amounts to roughly 1.2 million people.

Tim Miller, the Gambling Commission’s director for research said: “Whilst many may do so without experiencing harm, for some, gambling can lead to debt, time away from lectures and potentially lead to a longer term problem with gambling.”

There is currently very little support at university campuses to build awareness or

counsel students with a problem. Numerous students who are frequent gamblers blame the open-ended hours of free time at university as the main reason for their addiction. They also continually highlight the lack of a support system, or someone to turn to in helping with their addiction.

For many students, they suddenly find themselves for the first time with more of a disposable income in the form of a student loan which is all too tempting. Once involved, the gambling industry is very effective at retaining their customers through incentives, discounts and adverts.

It’s estimated that around 127,000 students

have a gambling problem in the UK. This has become more prevalent since the revision of the Gambling Act that means that casinos no longer need a membership for entry and online gambling sites can now advertise on television.

Trevor David, a consultant at Gamcare, a gambling charity has stated that: “More education is needed – people need to know how to spot a gambling problem in others and what help and support to provide.

“University staff need to know how to spot a problem and what support to provide. Student money advisers, for example, should know what simple questions they can ask to find out if a student is having trouble with gambling.”

UoM in top 30 in latest QS University rankings, amid Brexit warning The University of Manchester improves on its both its global and UK ranking from last year, placing 29th overall in the world in the QS rankings Sam Honey Head News Editor The University of Manche ster has ranked 2 9th in the world, and the 10th in the UK in the QS world university r a n k i n g s f o r 2 0 1 9, a s Q S i s s u e d a warning over the e ffect of Brexit on t h e U K ’s p e r f o r m a n c e i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l tables.

One of just three ranking systems to receive International Ranking Expert Group (IREG) approval, QS us e s a range of indicators, including an i n s t i t u t i o n ’s A c a d e m i c a n d E m p l o y e r

reputation.

The University of Manchester move s up five spots from its 2018 place, and als o ris e s from 7th to 6th in the UK standings.

In the UK rankings, it finished 13th for Arts and Humanities, 7th for Social Sciences and Management, and 7th for Life Sciences and Medicine.

The Massachusetts Institute of Te c h n o l o g y ( M I T ) r e t a i n s i t s f i r s t place ranking, with Stanford, Harvard, Caltech, and Cambridge completing the top five.

Oxford, UCL , and Imperial College

L ondon als o featured in the ten be st in the world.

Although the late st rankings were a success story for UK Higher Education, t h e r e w a s a w a r n i n g o v e r h o w t h e U K ’s w it hd rawa l f rom t he EU cou ld a f fe c t t h e c o u n t r y ’s f u t u r e p e r f o r m a n c e i n the QS rankings.

T h e U K ’s e x c e l l e n t p e r f o r m a n c e , which is bettered only by the USA, h a s b e e n he av i ly l i n ke d to t he i r participation in the Erasmus scheme “Much of the highly cited re s earch that has contributed to UK success this ye a r w i l l h ave come a b out a s a re su lt

of collaboration with EU universitie s and as a consequence of participation i n E U s c h e m e s , ” s a i d B e n S o w t e r, director of re s earch for the rankings system.

Although the future of the Horizon scheme has been guaranteed by g o v e r n m e n t f u n d i n g u n t i l 2 0 2 0, t h e e ffect of an unmitigated fallout from the EU could be devastating.

L ast week, P rofe ss or Colin Riodarn, V i c e - C h a n c e l l o r o f C a r d i f f U n i v e r s i t y, ca l le d for B rex it to b e de l aye d for u p to two years, de s cribing a no deal exit ‘intolerable’.

Photo: Rept0n1x @Wikimedia Commons

Two people stabbed in city centre The separate incidents took place over three hours on High Street and at Piccadilly Gardens Rona McCann Sub-editor Two people were stabbed in he city centre in s eparate attacks on February 24th.

The attacks on two male victims were non-fatal and are not believed to be connected, de spite occurring just two hours apart.

At 7:30pm, a man in his fortie s was attacked with a bottle outside Morris ons at P iccadilly Gardens. He was stabbed with the bottle in his back and his head.

The victim was taken to hospital with injurie s that are not life-threatening, and has since been dis charged.

A 23-year-old man has been arre sted on suspicion of S ection 18 assault.

The s econd stabbing took place 300 metre s away at 9: 56pm outside a Coop store on High Street, following an altercation involving a woman.

The victim, a male in his 20s, exited the store to find the woman he was with surrounded by three ‘white men’.

When he went to join her there was an ‘altercation’, Greater Manche ster Police has said.

The victim was knifed twice by the gang and was taken to hospital in s erious condition. The men als o took the victim’s mobile phone after attacking him.

The man has now been dis charged

and is recovering at home.

No one is known to have been arre sted for the incident on High Street, with inve stigations for both the stabbings now underway.

To aid in GMP’s inve stigation of the incident, council officials have been trawling through CCTV footage of the area from the night.

Pat Karney, Manche ster City Council’s city centre councillor, said: “We don’t want any s ort of reputation for knife assaults in Manche ster. You can s ee in L ondon what that leads to. That’s why we’re taking this very, very s eriously.

“We will be asking Co-op and Morris ons to provide any additional CCTV footage

they might have. The men re sponsible for the Co-op attack are complete thugs [and] cowards.”

GMP first looked into whether the two incidents were linked, but has since cast its doubts on this being the cas e.

City of Manche ster Superintendent Chris Hill stated: “We have been working round the clock to piece together the circumstance s surrounding the s e incidents which we now believe to be is olated and unconnected.

“I would urge anyone with any information or footage of either incident to get in touch with us as s oon as possible.”

Police patrolling has been increas ed in the wake of Sunday night’s events.

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Study finds Brexit may risk UK’s current standing within the United Nations Research carried out by select universities on behalf of the United Nations

Photo: Huhsunqu @ Wikimedia Commons

Association has found the UK must improve its foreign policy after Brexit to maintain its current influence in the United Nations Claudia Hedger News Reporter A recent research project carried out by the Universities of Manchester, Leeds, and Southampton on behalf of the United Nations Association has found the UK must show its value and improve its foreign policy after Brexit, in order to maintain its current influence in the United Nations (UN).

The UN is an international organisation with 193 member states, set up to encourage peace following World War II. It aims to increase cooperation on international problems through harmonisation of actions, for example through creating the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF).

The study involved 29 interviews with UN diplomats, UK officials, and individuals from non-governmental organisations.

Currently, the UK has a strong role in

drafting resolutions, agenda-setting, and negotiating – but very little influence on the General Assembly.

Interviewees from the study said if the UK fell below its commitment of spending 0.7% of Gross National Income on Official Development Assistance (which aids in promoting economic activity and welfare in developing countries), its reputation would be in ‘free fall territory’. Even with this spending, they said the decline in UK influence would be noticeable.

The research indicated that as a result of Brexit, British diplomats could lose political capital which is accumulated through relationships such as being a member of the EU. This would result in less alignment of UK campaigns due to the lack of EU backing.

Whilst the UN is not an EU organisation, there are links between the two, especially since the EU gained ‘enhanced participation rights’ in 2011.

While the EU doesn’t have voting rights, unlike normal observers (e.g. the Arab

League), it can address the UN General Assembly under certain circumstances.

The report also suggested ways to counteract the decline in the UK’s influence after Brexit. Stating if the UK invests in multilateralism and provides a clear, value-driven leadership approach the impact could be offset.

Specifically, contributing resources from London to demonstrate the value of the UK, addressing gaps in diplomatic capacity at the General Assembly and maintaining the aforementioned 0.7% foreign aid spending commitment.

While there are inevitable challenges for the UK to maintain its influence in the UN post-Brexit, there may still be hope through continued investment Angie Pankhania, Deputy Director of United Nations Association UK said: “It is absolutely possible for the UK to be an influential player in international forums such as the United Nations, but it requires a principled and consistent approach.”

Erasmus in jeopardy as Spanish students are widely affected

Photo: Rept0n1x @ Commons Wikimedia

Spanish students are reconsidering Erasmus placements in the UK, as Brexit creates uncertainty Poornima Geemon News Reporter The future of the Erasmus student exchange programme is reportedly in jeopardy, as Brexit uncertainty continues.

University students currently enrolled in the programme are not affected, although those enrolled for the 2019-2020 academic year could lose their scholarship in the event of no-deal.

The EU provides around €16.38bn of funding for this programme, and Spanish students who want to study in the UK could be negatively affected. In the event of a no deal Brexit, financial backing for these students could be affected.

Spanish students are now being

advised to consider universities in countries such as Poland, Norway, or The Netherlands, with some told to withdraw from their scholarship offers in the UK. A student from Santiago de Compostela, who was given a scholarship offer to study in Leicester, said: “Foreign Services called me on Monday and recommended I choose another destination because they couldn’t guarantee that I would receive a scholarship if I go to the United Kingdom.”

Although students are advised to reconsider their options, the Spanish government is urging those affected to remain calm. “It seems hasty to take measures,” said José Manuel Pingarrón, the secretary general of universities.

The response among Spanish universities has varied greatly.

Universities such as the University of Málaga have decided to refrain from acting until the final Brexit situation is confirmed.

Other universities that are not planning to stop students from undertaking their Erasmus placement in the UK are The Autonomous University of Barcelona and the University of the Basque Country.

“No one benefits from the disappearance of Erasmus,” said Marius Martínez, Vice-Chancellor of the Barcelona institution. “Why would the United Kingdom want to remain outside one of the largest frameworks for research?”

Are SU elections worthwhile?

Historically the turnout for voters at the SU elections has been considerably low.

Will the polling stations now open and campaigning well underway, we ask the student body if they think this is all worthwhile “I don’t think it’s worth the time or effort that people put into it. No one seems to know what the SU officers do apart from earn £19,000 a year.”

Josie Fowler, Politics, Philosophy, and Economics “Yes, it gives us some say in the people who make decisions. If you don’t vote, don’t complain..”

Anuli Changa, Law and Politics

“In the 9 or so years I’ve had the pleasure of wallowing about in the stagnant swamp of inadequacy that is the University of Manchester Students’ Union, the Exec Team have served at best as a buffer which shields the higher-ups from having to actually enact any of the change wanted by the student body and at worst as an ineffective group, given too much free reign, not enough support and a hotbed of infighting.

Liam Armstrong, International Disaster Management “I think most students feel disconnected from the SU and don’t really know what executive officers do, but in my view the elections are incredibly worthwhile as the leadership has a lot of power and responsibility over student life, students should definitely vote.”

Anonymous “From what I have seen, the new initatives to get people to vote (such as free food) are simply ways of make our uni seem more engaged in student politics than it actually is. People will pick names at random, get their free pie slice, and never think about the execs again.”

Kizzy Bray, Visual Anthropology

Investigations 7

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Wh yi

st

urn ou t s o lo wa t SU Elections?

34.4%

28.7% 16%

2015

2016

2017

19.8%

2018

After International Students’ Officer Riddi Viswanathan pointed out that low turnout could be an issue with the SU and suggested students might not be entirely to blame, Felix Hanif-Banks and Josh Sandiford delve deeper

Each year, students vote for the eight fulltime executive officers to lead the University of Manchester Students’ Union (SU). These executives are meant to act as the leaders of the University’s student body, representing their concerns and enacting meaningful change that makes the University a more welcoming, inclusive and thriving space for all.

However, many students feel a lack of meaningful connection to their Students’ Union as they don’t see it as a body that adequately represents them. The physical Students’ Union building is often neglected by many students – even following massive renovations in the summer of last year – who work and eat in other more purpose-built spaces around the University.

Turnout has consistently proved to be a problem in recent elections. In 2018, just 19.8% of students voted – and this was amongst the highest in the country, with neighbouring Manchester Metropolitan University’s elections seeing a turnout of nearly 10%. The SU Elections rarely see significantly higher turnouts, with previous years recording figures of 16% in 2017 and 28% in 2016.

Prior to that, 2015 was a record high of 34.4%, but the significant decline since then is telling.

Clarity of message appears to be the largest obstacle for many students, as apart from banners strung up around the SU itself, there is little information readily accessible to students.

A second year History and Sociology

July 2018

“

student, Bethany Veal told The Mancunion, “[she] would vote if she knew what candidates stood for… to get mass turnout [this information] needs to be around campus.”

Information is present on the SU’s own website, but a part from that there’s little to grab people’s attention other than banners containing little information other than a name and a catchy slogan. Bethany went on to say, “There are lots of signs saying who to vote for outside the SU, but none stating a few points of anyone’s manifesto etc. The only times I have seen what people are standing for, without looking for it, is when I have been directly approached in the library etc, and candidates have been very pushy about you voting there and then, only knowing their mottos and issues they want to change.”

The issue of an information gap is evident and it’s hard to direct blame at either the SU, students, or candidates themselves. Students are obviously difficult to engage with meaningfully at the best of times, so expecting tens of thousands to actively search for and read through multiple manifestos online is a huge undertaking. This leads to the predatory practices experienced

by Bethany and countless other students that arguably turns the elections into a glorified popularity contest as it becomes a test of who can hand out the most flyers in the library.

While individual candidates handing out freebies may not be the best method to ensure elections are run fairly, the Students’ Union itself has resorted to such tactics to encourage turnout.

People voting on specific days can expect free food from SU kiosks such as a slice of pie or a

portion of chips, and there are competitions where those who vote can win a £50 Uber voucher or guest list at an Academy gig. While this may be less corrupting than direct candidate influencing, it shows the lengths considered necessary to regain past levels of turnout or even surpass them.

This strategy does somewhat appear to be a sign of the SU clutching at straws with these elections, but other potential avenues remain unexplored. The Students’ Union Facebook page, which has over 50,000 likes, seems to be a pool of untapped potential. While the page is on a surface level extremely popular, posts regularly fail to achieve double-digit engagement, proving their strategies to inform Manchester’s student population aren’t successful.

A poll on Fallowfield Students’ Group of 83 people found that only 2 of those planned to vote in the upcoming elections. There are very few people with positive things to say about the SU election process as it seems to have alienated many. Nieve Elliott, a second year Politics student told The Mancunion, “issues the student union focuses on are not meaningful and far fetched”.

There seems to be a general feeling of a disconnect between the SU Exec team and their student body, as many are unaware of the impact they have or the roles they fulfil.

Improvements to the lack of communication could certainly be inspired by the efforts of other universities. For example, Liverpool’s Students’ Union has a clear, accessible page that directly lists the recent major contributions of their Exec team, meaning students can assess the

work done by recent officers, giving them more information to help future votes and hold their SU accountable.

In a recent interview, the current International Students’ Officer, Riddi Viswanathan, was asked about low levels of voter turnout in previous SU elections. She pointed out that it could be an issue with the SU and suggested students might not be entirely to blame: “Maybe we haven’t communicated well about the impact that the leadership has on student life.

“That is an underlying problem with us and not a problem with students. Students would engage if we engaged with them and we should be looking to engage with them this year by [telling them about] the changes we have brought to their lives.”

When asked what her message would be to try and persuade students to vote, she said: “There are many incentives, including free giveaways of tea and chocolate. Candidates also give their own goodie bags away. Students should use [the elections] as an opportunity to get what they want out of the university and most importantly, [students should] look at the impact that student leaders have on their lives.

“Having a full-time International Officer role, having a full-time postgraduate role or even having lecture podcasts or increased numbers of gender-neutral toilets on campus. We are the ones that have been behind the scenes doing this for students and if students want to see more changes like these on campus then they should definitely vote.”

“

Felix Hanif-Banks and Josh Sandiford Investigations Editor and Breaking News Reporter

Last year The Mancunion produced an end of year review of the 2017/2018 exec performance. Major concerns outlined included “Campaigns Officer Deej Malik Johnson racked up an expenses tab of £985” even though he “was largely inactive in his role”, as well as the resignation of “Education Officer Emma Atkins... at the height of strikes over lecturer’s pensions.” Source: The Mancunion

8 Science & Tech

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

One more data revolution should be nipped in the bud At the AAAS annual conference, Dr Allen describes the perils of using machine learning to analyse data in experimental science Toby James Contributor Machine learning is all-pervasive.

From the facial recognition in your phone to the most groundbreaking of research astrophysics, a journey through the scientific and technological landscape of 2019 wouldn’t be complete without more mentions of machine learning. When used correctly, machine learning can be a powerful tool.

But are the researchers in loco parentis shirking their responsibilities?

Rice University statistician Dr Genevera Allen believes so. In a speech to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, she argued that scientists are callously leading their machines into bad habits, and science will pay a price for it.

What is machine learning? Machine learning is, fundamentally, a statistical technique. A mathematical tool to find patterns in otherwise unmanageably large datasets.

Often bundled in conversation with the more abstract concept of ‘artificial intelligence’,

machine learning is conversely well-defined, (theoretically) well-understood, and, arguably, well-overused.

It all starts with data. The hidden currency behind the 21st century, data and the patterns therein hold considerable worth in the right hands. The primary goal of machine learning is to find useful patterns in large datasets. The latest generation of experiments produce more data than can be reasonably handled, and machine learning is a powerful tool that can identify important information from it.

The key word is classification. The objective of many machine learning algorithms is to apply a set of labels to a set of data. To do this, the algorithms must first be ‘trained’ on a dataset of known, labelled data.

In this step, the parameters of the algorithm are tuned until it returns the known results on each of the known data.

A major criticism of machine learning is that it is a black box. Data goes in, results come out, and what happens in between is incomprehensible. It is difficult to argue with this standpoint.

Photo: The Opte Project @ Wikimedia Commons

There are several traps lying in wait for any prospective machine learning algorithm.

One of the most perilous is ‘over-fitting’. This is when the algorithm relies on features of its training dataset that are particular to that individual dataset, and not to the data as a whole. Through this, coincidental similarities in initial data can render an algorithm useless.

Another trap lies in the fact that these algorithms are designed to find patterns, and do not have the ability to indicate that there may, in fact, be no underlying pattern in a set of data. As a result, they can be prone to finding patterns where there are none.

Allen argues that this type of error is more common than many scientists realise.

Citing studies on cancer data as an example, she discusses how the clustering of data – the classification of data points as similar – is wildly different, and indeed incompatible, between studies. This alarming lack of reproducibility raises questions about the reliability of these studies, and of the many using similar methodology.

A simple fix would surely be the repetition of experiments. Deadlines, funding issues,

Naltrexone: the stigma surrounding treatments for substance abuse

and agenda all too often get in the way of this: The real world is impeding on scientific best practice. According to Allen, the consequences of this lack of repetition often don’t rear their head until two studies are later compared by another researcher. Describing this as a “reproducibility crisis,” she is not afraid to apportion a large part of the blame to misuse of machine learning techniques.

All of this reads like just another chapter in the modern day’s struggle with data and how to handle it. The 21st century is in the midst of what has been described as the 4th industrial revolution, the age of big data.

Despite the promise, data is running the risk of becoming a dirty word. Malpractice is seeping through every facet of data science, and Allen’s accusations are just the latest in a series of examples.

Since Cambridge Analytica’s Lil Uzi Vert-alike Christopher Wylie revealed the extent of Facebook’s information harvesting activities, data has been at the front of public imagination. But this is not new. Ben Goldacre’s Bad Science was a bestseller in 2009, a decade ago.

Photo: The Opte Project @ Wikimedia Commonss

Despite the lack of adverse side effects, Naltrexone is underprescribed by GPs to treat substance abuse – possibly locking thousands out of recovery Tom Allen Contributor A potentially life-saving drug used in the treatment of alcohol addiction is being vastly under-prescribed due to unjustified GP fears, new research has found.

The study, conducted by the University of Manchester, found that the use of Naltrexone to treat a range of impulse control disorders produced no increased risk of serious adverse effects when compared to patients who were prescribed a placebo.

Despite evidence supporting the overwhelming safety of consuming Naltrexone, only a minuscule 0.5% of patients eligible for treatment were prescribed the drug by GPs. This comes despite an estimated 600,000 Britons identifying as having a drinking dependency.

Naltrexone is known as an opioid antagonist, a class of drugs which binds to

opiate receptors in the brain without activating them. This effectively blocks the mechanism by which numerous painkilling opiate drugs work, such as morphine.

By blocking these receptors, the drug inhibits the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine, colloquially known as the ‘pleasure chemical.’

Under normal circumstances, dependent drinkers would experience a flood of the neurotransmitter in an area of the brain known as the ‘ventral tegmental.’ This causes users to experience feelings of happiness and joy after reaching for a bottle and encourages future drinking.

Now, those taking Naltrexone see a marked reduction in the reward and pleasure aspect of drinking.

The reluctance shown by medical professionals in writing prescriptions for the drug is not without reason. During the 1980s, a number of clinical trials were conducted investigating the effects of Naltrexone on patients receiving high dosage treatments

of the drug. It was found that severe liver toxicity was induced in a significant number of recipients, leading the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require the drug be distributed in a box clearly stating the potential dangers of its use.

Whilst more than three decades have passed since the drug was deemed unsafe, a total of zero cases of hepatic failure have occurred due to Naltrexone usage. The FDA have since removed the warning from the drug’s packaging. However, the longstanding stigma is still prevalent. Worries stem from the usage patterns that potential patients would exhibit if they were prescribed the drug.

Alcohol addiction has no overnight cure – patients would instead need to take the drug at least daily over a period of months.

A more widespread stigma surrounding substance abuse treatment is the concept of medication-assisted treatment. Whilst it may seem counterintuitive to treat one drug problem with the administration of

another, the research is clear– it works.

In 2012, the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation (HBFF), one of the USA’s top addiction treatment providers, announced that they were to move away from the 12step abstinence model popularised during the last century. Instead, they were to treat patients with medication that would ease them off their drug of choice in a more natural manner.

The decision by the HBFF to utilise this treatment method may seem trivial. After all, it’s merely employing a scientifically proven process, as opposed to continuing with an antiquated model. However, it demonstrates a wider cultural shift in the manner that drug dependencies are both viewed and treated.

With an increasingly strained national health service and depleting resources with which to treat patients, ignoring potentially life-saving medication such as Naltrexone should be of great concern to doctors and patients alike.

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Rosy Candlin

Features 9

An interview with Every Month founder Rosy Candlin Liv Clarke interviews Every Month founder Rosy Candlin, a campaign set up in Manchester which helps tackle period poverty by making period packs, discussing why its important to openly talk about this issue

“

Talk about menstruation openly, without embarrassment: a lot of period poverty is enabled by the fact that people feel uncomfortable to talk about it

Rosy began Every Month in 2016 after she had graduated from Edinburgh University and returned to her hometown of Manchester. At the time tampon tax was being widely discussed, yet Rosy noticed a more prominent problem was evident in the city. “There was a lot of more notable poverty in Manchester than before I had left,” Rosy explained. “There was all this talk about the affordability of products… [yet] we were talking about an issue but also missing the issue.”

Unlike the tampon tax, period poverty does not receive the same level of media coverage, despite it being a more serious problem. As Rosy pointed out, “I knew that I was always going to buy the products regardless of whether they were taxed…but for the people in poverty it’s not about the tax, they literally can’t afford them anyway.” She came up with the idea of making ‘kindness period packs’ in order to help those who struggle to buy sanitary products, and that was how the idea for Every Month came about.

Rosy started making packs in her living

decision to give people who can’t afford them access to sanitary products, but we don’t have the resources to explain the safest ways to use a menstrual cup,” Rosy told me. “The most important thing is providing some sort of access… it is making a compromise.” Disposable sanitary products are certainly better than no products at all.

The campaign was recently featured in a BBC Radio 1 documentary, ‘About Bloody Time’, which showed Every Month alongside two other movements in the UK who are combatting period poverty. Rosy explained to me that the show helped to legitimise what they do, although it has not necessarily brought Every Month any more funding. “It adds a slight bit of legitimacy to what we’re doing… it’s raised the profile of period poverty.

But what keeps the campaign going is financial and product donations.”

Social media is the outlet which brings Every Month the most engagement. Their Instagram page is full of period-positive illustrations, breaking down some of the stigma associated with menstruation. In fact, on their website, you can buy decorative pins featuring a pair of smiling tampons, the purchase of which pays for a year’s worth of period packs for one person.

Every Month is definitely playing a role in fighting period poverty here in Manchester, so what can be done to target period poverty on a national scale? Rosy advises several different approaches, tackling the problem from different angles. “I think it’s important to write to your MP, as they can raise its profile and support the campaign,” she suggested. “It has more impact when constituents write to them compared to us contacting them. People can donate sanitary products to their local food bank, they will always be accepted, or you can donate to us on our website.”

For Rosy, it can even be beneficial to just discuss menstruation, after all, it was due to a lack of discussion that this problem was ignored for so long. “Talk about menstruation openly, without embarrassment: a lot of period poverty is enabled by the fact that people feel uncomfortable to talk about it, so people are less likely to.”

By changing our attitude towards periods, more people can get involved with solving the problem, and already that discussion is becoming more evident in society, compared with several years ago. “I forget there are so many people who don’t know that it’s [period poverty] a thing. in

Getting in touch with Every Month founder Rosy Candlin was like reaching out to an old friend. Having followed both Every Month and Rosy herself on Instagram I contacted her about organising an interview, although arranging a day proved tricky when we discovered that we were both attending Maggie Rogers on consecutive nights. Nevertheless, we managed to arrange a phone call, which began with us both gushing about the gigs and comparing reviews.

However, the purpose of this conversation was not to review live music but to tackle a more serious issue: that of period poverty.

room, on a very small scale. “It was literally me just putting things in…I made 250 packs a month, just me,” she explained. Each month she would drop them off at two food banks, making that time of the month a little easier for a small group of people. These first few months were both more and less challenging than Every Month is now; the movement was a lot smaller, but this also made it more manageable. “No one really cared about it at all, that was tricky…[but] I had a lot of time on my hands. It is harder now than it was then.”

Now Every Month has expanded considerably, there are 10 trustees involved and around 70 volunteers. “The trustees shape the way Every Month will go, in terms of which direction, like a committee…it’s so great to have all the volunteers to help.” Nowadays they make 800 packs a month, generating a significant impact in the Manchester area. The movement is currently in a slight limbo phase, as Rosy described it, “We’re in a weird place, we’re a bit too big, but everyone’s a volunteer, [so we’re] not big enough to be employed by Every Month.” Like all volunteering work, having an impact takes a lot of hard work and dedication.

Rosy currently lives and works in London at a cancer support centre, which she helps to arrange fundraising for. However, she’s still heavily involved with Every Month and does all the organising for it. You would have thought that creating a movement like this would give you an immense sense of achievement, yet Rosy is very humble about the whole thing. “It isn’t just me so I don’t have this feeling of ‘wow I helped all of these people,’” she told me. “When I see people making all the packs, I’m like ‘whoa, cool’.

But we’re not at our goal yet. If we can get menstrual products free in Manchester, we’ll be like wow, we did a thing. Right now I don’t reflect on it much.”

Every Month has certainly gone from strength to strength since 2016, although it has been faced with challenges, revealing the complex nature of period poverty. In the beginning, Rosy included sachets of hot chocolate in the packs, which had to be replaced with chocolate bars as some women could not afford to boil the water required.

The campaign seeks to be gender neutral, they help all people who experience period poverty, no matter what gender. “Sometimes we have people who fundraise for us and say they are raising money for women, that’s ok but we want to keep it neutral,” she revealed. Sometimes the result of that is that we’re told that we’re erasing women.”

Sustainability is an aspect which Every Month have considered when creating the packs, however, because of the nature of the situation they have decided against the inclusion of reusable sanitary products in their packs.

“The majority of our packs are disposable products, I totally agree with sustainable products and non-disposable, however, we have made the

Pho to: R o sy Ca nd l

Liv Clarke Features Editor

When Every Month started, the media wasn’t talking about it. It’s now being covered by the media but talking even a little bit is such an easy entry [into discussing period poverty].”

The beauty of Every Month is that it does not just provide help for people in poverty, but it also brings volunteers together and creates a close-knit community.

They frequently organise ‘packing parties’, where everybody gets involved with creating the packs. Even though Rosy is based in London, she comes up to Manchester often to be a part of it. “Yeah I love it, it’s my favourite thing,” she said happily, “Very rarely are there spaces like that, very few people know each other outside of Every Month…I really like it, there are women of all different ages, loads of cool women, literally no one has turned up who hasn’t been nice, everyone wants to get it done and have a nice time.”

Organising Every Month is not an easy job, sometimes the financial factors involved can make it seem like an impossible task, as Rosy described to me, “Even during the hard moments, the admin, it can be frustrating. We’ve put on events that have been so stressful, looking at the bank account is stressful.” But the joy generated at the packing parties makes it all worthwhile, “the packing and doing of Every Month really help to create a nice afternoon, even if it is just ‘I’ve had a nice afternoon today’. I’ve met some really cool women who I’ve known for two years now…we even have an Every Month baby! It’s given me a lot back.”

For the time being, Rosy wants Every Month to continue its work in Manchester and keep raising funds to make more packs. “Keeping afloat, bringing in money…those are the things that we’re focusing on in the immediate future, to keep us going. Come along to any of our events because that helps out.” She does have hopes that over time Every Month can have a greater impact on the situation in general, by bringing about more long-term change when it comes to period poverty. “We need to increase our campaigning side. Where we are trying to make change, sustainable change. I want to grow, but not quite yet, we don’t have the capacity yet. We want the campaigning to match what we do.”

Every Month will be hosting an event at Cubo on Monday the 11th March, to raise money for the campaign. Details can be found on Facebook.

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

10 Opinion

Apathy towards climate breakdown is not an option Photo: niekverlaan @ pixabay

Oli Storey looks at the recent student protests against climate breakdown, and argues that it is time for the youth to be more active in the face of The University of Manchester’s investments in the fossil fuel industry Oli Storey Contributor On the February 15th, thousands of students took to the streets across the world to protest against climate breakdown.

It was a rare show of post-millennial generational solidarity and a clear message to our leaders. A message to stop griping amongst themselves, to quit placating us with short-term solutions and paper straws, and address climate breakdown.

Before the accusation that I am being hysterical and we are in fact making great strides to a carbon-neutral economy, I will give credit where credit is due. The advances in both solar and wind energy have shown effective reform within our current system of incentives is possible. This government has begun changing consumer behaviour and a decrease in plastic waste is encouraging.

However, meagre targets of generating a third of energy using wind by 2030, wasteful investment in expensive nuclear plants and the cutting of solar subsidies are all holding us back. And, however many coffees I have from my reusable cup, it will have no impact on the 71% of greenhouse emissions that are produced by just 100 companies.

This hypocritical policy, which preaches environmental solidarity while maintaining structures and incentives that perpetuate climate breakdown, has been tackled recently by People and Planet. Like the FridaysForFuture student movement, they have taken their campaign Fossil Free directly to power – challenging a meeting of the University of Manchester’s governors.

The campaign accused the university of being “naïve” as they increased their investments in the “dying industry” of fossil

fuels from £7.6m to £10m. Those included are Shell, BP, and Exxon Mobil – stars of the 100 most polluting companies.

The university is simultaneously contributing to our climate breakdown and reneging on its own principles of its ‘Environmental Social Governance’ strategy. It is, like most institutions and leaders in society, not only shirking its responsibility to radical change but is undermining its own integrity as a leader.

While 71 other universities have divested from fossil fuels in the UK, our university is worse than failing to be a leader. It is a follower of this government’s own hypocritical strategy, 99.4% of whose foreign energy investment is in fossil fuels. Banning paper straws and ‘sustainable’ goals become embarrassingly hollow when the detail is revealed.

We of the post-millennial

generations have been born into a paradoxical world where everything is simultaneously getting far better and far worse.

Those aware of the latter are willing to forgo the ultra-consumerist, short-termism that is driving this climate breakdown. We need more of the public to support a call for radical sustainable change.

I want us to make such a noise that our societies’ leaders take notice and implement the radical change that billions of people and this planet needs. I want the university and others to stand by worthwhile principles and not be on the side of those willing to accelerate our climate breakdown. It is time to for the majority of our generation to stand up and be counted; remaining apathetic to this issue will land you on the wrong side of history.

Which sun is shining on us?

Sophie Marriott argues that whilst we enjoy the unseasonable weather this week we should remember the climate change it is a symptom of is not just going to keep making things a bit warmer, but it is already causing devastating natural disasters Sophie Marriott Head Opinion Editor A delightful Springtime scene; young people relaxing on a patch of grass, sipping fruity ciders and eating whole-food picnics in buttery sunshine.

If you squint in a certain light you can even imagine the Ali G was a seaside cliff-face, or a rolling mountain range. The weather is lovely, but people do seem to think they’ve just been dropped into the centre of the Sound of Music.

I do hate to be a killjoy, but whilst the green spaces on campus have become countryside picnic spots, it should be pointed out that it should not be like this. At all.

February is a grim month, notoriously so.

We plan in holidays specifically to cheer up what is otherwise the novelty of the new year

being eroded by rain and mist. So of course this unseasonable warmth is celebrated, and the massive ecological crisis behind it is easy to scoff at.

“If this is global warming, bring it on!” To be honest, half of me is tempted to agree.

Obviously, however this is not the overall effect of global warming.

In October last year an entire Hawaiian Island, was wiped off the map by a Hurricane. East Island was only a small spit of land, about 100 Acres in total, but it was a valuable haven for the endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal. More than anything it was a piece of our Earth which we have destroyed through our actions.

The warming of the oceans as a result of climate change is causing storms, hurricanes, and tsunamis to intensify. Making them more dangerous and putting more lives at risk.

Luckily East Island was uninhabited, the Indonesian coast of the Sundra Strait wasn’t.

281 people died in the Tsunami in December, and over 11,687 were forced to leave their homes.

It is the same climate change which means you can eat ice lollies over your seminar reading and which is destroying lives and ecosystems around the world. This is not intended as a rant to tell you not to enjoy the good weather whilst it’s here.

I for one will be relishing the warmth; obsessively counting how few layers I’m wearing as if I score points for how few I dare to leave the house in. It is imperative, however, that we do not shy away from what is really causing this and the real trouble we are in.

The recent IPCC report which gave us 12 years to drastically change our emissions

Photo: John LeGear @ Flickr

and energy consumption warned against letting global temperatures rise about 1.5C. At this temperature 50% fewer people would be facing disaster and displacement from rising water levels than if the planet was half a degree warmer. It could save coral reefs; 99% of which would die at 2C temperatures.

This isn’t even the worst case scenario, at the moment when the report was released, the world was on target for 3C of warming.

This would be disastrous for the planet and the animals and people on it.

If we are going to enjoy this glorious weather, and we absolutely should, we also need to remember that the same sun beaming down on us is not so kind to others.

So, lets not forget that it will likely turn its nasty side on us if we don’t do something now.

Opinion 11

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Exclusionary student politics

Nimo Omer Contributor I never want to dampen any enthusiasm young people may have for politics, or dismiss the small amounts of political engagement that are specifically designed for BME students.

But when it comes to political life on campus; whether it is formal political societies or radical activist groups, it for the most part, seems to be aimed at a specific type of student.

The politically astute, articulate and let’s not forget probably white male - is the perfect combination for the feeble discussions about everything from the free market to global communist revolution.

There seems to be a total and complete lack of urgency within student politics at this university to encourage greater diversity within these groups.

The diversity that is evident across the

“

They claim to be radical, anti-racist, and in favour of the emancipation of minorities, and yet manage to exclude minorities themselves.

Photo: Chris Beckett @ Flickr

Nimo Omer deplores the lack of encouragement for BME groups to enter into political circles at University

city and the campus seemingly disappears whenever I walk into these spaces and frankly I am tired of feeling like an outsider.

This becomes somewhat of a self-fulfilling

prophecy with BME students, including myself, deciding that student politics is just “not my thing” and avoiding it altogether.

My problem is with student politics as a whole, but I think there’s a particular issue with left-wing groups on campus. They claim to be radical, anti-racist, and in favour of the emancipation of minorities, and yet manage to exclude minorities themselves. I’m not sure what’s worse: the hypocrisy or the faux radicalism.

At one meeting, it wasn’t just the lack of minority voices that was an issue, but it’s the effect of not having minorities in a room full of people discussing radical change.

Bizarre is the only word that comes to mind. It was a total and unfettered spectacle of white privilege that both confounded me and yet was not entirely without anticipation.

Whilst it was not verbalised, the colour-blind ideology permeated every single part of the meeting. There hovered the unspoken assumption that race did not need to be discussed – there were bigger fish to fry.

By ignoring the importance of race and geography these “radical leftists” reproduced exactly the same ideas that they claim to deride. And this is where the problem lies – these people will become the political activists, the journalists and the individuals that help shape this country’s political future.

All the while, they cannot or choose not to acknowledge the importance of black and brown voices in political change. What does that mean for us?

When BME students are left out of these spaces our concerns, our problems and our anxieties are left out too and this is simply unacceptable. I mean this not as derisory but rather constructive criticism.

I am calling for all of the political groups on campus to take a step back, reflect and at least show willing to try and tackle this issue.

Polluted pennies Cachella Smith suggests that we should not have to resort to money tactics in a bid to try and save our environment Photo: David Ingham @ Wikimedia Commons

Cachella Smith Deputy Opinion Editor I don’t doubt that your February sunbathing sessions have been plagued by concerns of the environment this month. With temperatures reaching as high as 19C in what is known to be one of the rainiest cities, environmental change has certainly been a hot topic this week - awful pun intended.

Andy Burnham has not been left out of the conversation. Asking the government for £116m in order to instigate a Greater Manchester ‘clean-air scheme’ has not, however, been greeted with rainbows and sunny skies.

Citing statistics such as the 1,200 premature deaths of 1,200 people caused by poor air quality in Greater Manchester alone, Burnham wants to reinvent the city as a clean-air zone - ‘drastically’ reducing nitrogen dioxide levels by 2024. A pretty precise date for a pretty non-precise goal, it seems.

The way to go about achieving such a

positive goal is of course an attempt at dissuasion through forcing the general public to put their hands in their pockets. Figures floating around at the minute are £100 per day for buses and HGVs, threatening another Magic pass rise, with older taxis and private hire vehicles subject to a £7.50 charge per day.

The controversy comes from the fact that private cars have been exempted, unlike other cities in the UK. This is an attempt to protect those who would not be able to afford a new car that fits with standards, thus avoiding placing a tax on poorer people.

The problem then, is that instead of targeting private cars and vans, (note that diesels currently contribute to more than 70% of nitrogen oxide levels), the levy will, in the majority, affect those who take the bus. I might have missed something but have we not spent the past 20 years trying to encourage people to use public transport over their own cars?

Obviously, the idea behind the scheme is incredibly positive, and I appreciate the

sentiment behind trying to reduce the tax burden on the less wealthy. I have a question however as to who exactly considers those who typically take the bus to have less in the bank than someone who owns a car? Surely no one could agree that increasing the chance of a further rise in public transport prices, could ever be a positive move for the environment?

That said, I can’t help but feel that my real issue stems from the idea of using money as a ‘dis-incentive’ at all. I appreciate that this seems to be the way the world spins these days, yet surely there is a more effective way of combating climate change that taking more pennies out of people’s pockets. Perhaps advertising how many deaths are provoked by polluted air each year might do the trick?

And yet that seems to be the problem itself.

Everyone has access to facts, statistics, and we all learn about it in school. Lord knows I have spent many a French oral exam discussing the benefits of recycling. We are all aware. So why is real harm to the planet, real harm to ourselves, not a ‘dis-incentive’

enough?

It’s an old argument but I think it says something about our society if the scariest thing about climate change is the threat that our wallets may end up a little lighter.

“

Why is real harm to the planet, real harm to ourselves, not a ‘dis-incentive’ enough?

12 Societies

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Introducing: Dogs Unleashed Ellie Martin finds out how you can get involved with our favourite dog walking society Ellie Martin Contributor This week, I sat down with Aramish Fatima, President and co-founder of Dogs Unleashed to talk about the amazing society that is bringing the joy of dogs to campus.

Aramish, a zoology student, decided after joining a couple of volunteering societies that she felt there was a need to get closer to animals. The ZooSoc was her first thought, but they only really provide lecture series and don’t have opportunities to interact with animals.

Aramish wasn’t the only one looking for closer contact with animals, with her coursemate Tom Humphreys joining her in her search.

Tom has three dogs and eight cats at home and, before coming to uni, he worked at a shelter as well, so he was naturally interested in having a society involved in helping animals. With this in mind, he and Aramish looked for places where it would be possible to volunteer with animals. Initially, the pair started off thinking that they would make the effort themselves to volunteer at a local dogs shelter, but then, they thought, why not open it up to everybody? They pitched their idea to the SU, and Dogs Unleashed was born.

The society, while having only been launched this year, has already been hugely popular with students. Aramish says that at the freshers fair, despite having what she described as a “really shitty” stall and the rain pouring into their tent, students were making a beeline for the stand all day. Even though Aramish was alone at the stall for the entire two days, because Tom was on placement, she gave

out over 700 leaflets and had 300 students sign up on just the first day. “The interest and enthusiasm about the society was incredible,” she said. This is not particularly surprising considering what a brilliant idea this initiative was, and how novel it was on the university society’s scene.

Dogs Unleashed works closely with Manchester Dogs’ Home to provide student volunteers the chance to walk the dogs currently being looked after in the shelter every weekend. The dogs are all rescues, and the shelter needs all the help it can get to look after the dogs and make sure they have the best opportunities to find a new home. This is exactly what the society helps to do! A group of around 10 students will meet early every Saturday and Sunday to travel together down to Manchester Dogs’ Home. When they arrive they are given a volunteers badge and a dog, and sent off to the park next to the shelter to walk their dog for about 45 minutes. Sometimes volunteers will pair up depending on how many dogs need walking, or whether a person is comfortable or not in walking a big dog by themselves. Once they bring the dogs back there is usually another dog that needs walking and so students usually spend around two hours at the shelter.

The shelter has permanent volunteers working during the week, but they really need the support at weekends as these are the days when the shelter is open for visitors. Doors are open to the public from 12pm. People can come and see the dogs, with the aim of potentially adopting them, so it’s important that the dogs have already been walked by this time

Photo: JBSibley @Flickr

so that they have calmed down a little as this massively increases their chances for getting adopted. These dogs are all rescues looking for new homes, and they can exhibit behavioural problems, so the shelter sometimes finds it difficult to source volunteers who are willing to help dogs with these kinds of issues. It’s also far more common to find big dogs in shelters as they are more likely to be abandoned due to the higher level of responsibility. This is why the work that the students do is so important in helping the dogs be on their best behaviour when potential new owners come to visit.

The brilliance of Dogs Unleashed lies in that it’s not just beneficial for the dogs, but for the students too! Who wouldn’t love to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning hanging out with some dogs? Students can benefit from the stress relief and companionship that walking a dog provides, profit from the exercise, all while engaging with and giving back to the community. Some people join the society because they left a dog at home when coming to uni and want the opportunity to be around dogs, whilst others come because they want a dog but never had the chance to look after one.

For those who might not be super comfortable handling big dogs, but who are passionate about animal rights and especially the rehoming of rescues, the society provides opportunities for off-site volunteering as well. They have fundraising events to raise money for Manchester Dogs’ Home, and also for the society itself. The money raised for the society is used to reimburse students for their travel costs to get to and from the dogs home on the weekends, making the society

completely accessible to everyone! Recently, they attended a pet show run by Manchester Dogs’ Home where they had a stall and sold raffle tickets.

They also have bag packing events or ‘Guess the Name of the Dog’ competitions to raise funds.

The popularity of the society has been huge, especially for its first year, so much so that there are already discussions of opening the volunteering hours to Wednesday afternoons as well as weekends. They’re also considering involving more shelters around Manchester.

Manchester Dogs’ Home was chosen because it was the most reasonable distance away from campus, but, clearly, there is the demand for more opportunities to hang out with dogs, and the students are willing to travel!

This society really ticks all the boxes; everybody loves hanging out with dogs, and the idea has come from a real desire to help animals, but also to engage with the community beyond Oxford Road. And, as the cost of the travel is reimbursed, the society is open to access for all.

The society provides mandatory training for new members at the beginning of each semester, but the society is on the lookout for new committee members for next year, as Aramish will be graduating this year. She says she plans to keep in contact with the society, but as everything is currently run by her and Tom, they are looking to appoint a fully fledged committee for the coming academic year to make to society even better!

If you think you could help look after some doggos and help with the organisation of Dogs Unleashed, get in touch on their Facebook page.

Meet the Ghanaian Society The Ghanaian Society have got big things planned for the upcoming year, so watch this space Chloe Hatton Societies Editor The Ghanaian Society, despite only being formed this year, is already planning on having a big impact on student life.

The main idea of the society is to come together to provide support for Ghanaian students both currently on campus and those about to start. It’s a place where students can share experiences and coach others about how best to survive on campus. They’ve also set up a buddy system to help provide support to prospective students, giving them top tips on what to bring and what not to bring, advice on travel arrangements, and any advice that might help a fresher settle in.

However, the support doesn’t just stop there.

They also help connect students with the alumni network so that every student in the society can improve their job prospects.

Coming to university can be a stressful enough time as it is, but the Ghanaian Society are on hand to make that transition a little bit easier.

Besides providing support for these students, the society also wants to share aspects of Ghanaian culture with students here at the university. They’ve got big things planned, starting with a celebration for the Ghanaian Independence Day, which is on 6th March.

They’re hoping that this event will showcase the culture, structure, and above all, the hospitality of Ghanaian life.

Kwame Asamoah Kwarteng, the interim President of the society, told me “we know that Ghana is a country that’s very popular for volunteering, so we’re here to give students a free consultation before they go”.

“We’re planning on joining the Ghana Union on Saturday March 9, to have our 62nd

Independence Day Musical Concert, where you’ll be treated to the nicest Ghanaian music, including Hiplife and Highlife, and dance, including Azonto and Kete. It will be at Freedom House, Chippenham Road, Ancoats M4 6FF, and we’d like to invite everyone to be there.”

Expect dance, food, music, and handmade Ghanaian fabrics - if you’ve ever wanted to learn about Ghana and its culture, this is the place to do it. The society will also be a showcasing some of the lesser known areas of the country’s culture too.

“Did you know,” Kwame asks me, “that Ghana is actually the second largest producer of cocoa in the world?”

As well as what is sure to be some of the best chocolate around, the society will also be showcasing another of Ghana’s favourite products, shea butter. If you want to get involved in the event, make sure you keep an eye on their Facebook page for further details.

Moving forward, the society wants to expand their events, holding public lectures and seminars about the history and culture of Ghana for all students to get involved in, as well as making sure that they really get involved in the Students’ Union. They also want to organise trips and volunteering sessions for students.

“It’s really important to us that we give some of our skills back to the community”.

“Ghana has such a unique story. We have lecturers, MPs, and even a (recently resigned) cabinet minister in Britain and we really want to showcase the very best of our culture by having more cultural exchange events.”

If you’d like to get involved with the Ghanaian society and find out more about what they do, follow them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Alternatively, WhatsApp them on +233206371598.

Photo: Ghana Union of Greater Manchester

“

We really want to showcase the very best of our culture by having more cultural exchange events.

Photo: UoM Ghanaian Society

WHO WILL INFLUENCE YOUR LIFE ON CAMPUS? 28TH FEB TO 7TH MARCH manchesterstudentsunion.com/elections

Scan the QR code and register to receive the latest job alerts This week’s top employers are:

Mancunion Crossword #10 Solution Revealed Next Issue!

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10

Last week’s solution

2

Across

Down

5.

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Who scored Man City’s winning penalty in the Carabao

Cup? (8) 2.

New charges are being suggested for buses and lorries to

improve what in Manchester? (5, 3) 3.

Labour have announced support for a second Brexit what?

(10) 4.

Which meeting did student activists storm recently?

(9)

Which country’s national celebration day was this week? (5) Where has Tommy Robinson been banned from? (8) Who sent an email to all BBC staff ahead of a much anticipated TV return? (4, 9) Whose authority did Chelsea keeper Kepa challenge in the League Cup final? (5) What degree Celsius did Wales hit last week? (6) What was too low in the UCU strike ballot, meaning the planned action won’t go ahead? (7)

Black Leopard, Art in Kosmos Inside In Conversation with The Art of the Red Wolf: 23 Maggie Rogers: 18 Bromantic Comedy: 21 Mancunia: 25 Taverna: 27 Culture

CULTURE Photo: Mark Johnston

THE

Live Review.

16

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Music

Saytr Play

Photo: JACK WHITING (Authorised Press Shot)

Post Malone

Photo: Jack Greeney @ The Mancunion

Post Malone Jack Greeney

6.5/10

Contributor Jack Greeney reviews Post Malone’s highly anticipated the arena performance, but were even the greatest fans underwhelmed?

Set to headline Reading and Leeds this summer, Post Malone was looking to hype up British audiences early at the Manchester Arena on his European tour.

After Roddy Ricch and Tyla Yaweh performed as support acts, Malone emerged from a large black shoebox with the siren calls of ‘Broken Whisky Glass’.

For an otherwise nonchalant figure, the 23-year old delivered a surprisingly mature vocal performance. He had consistently strong vocals through a variety of fused genres. Leg rocking like an old-time country singer, Post Malone kept his flow tight when rapping and hit his notes when singing. He even put former heavy metal band experience to good use screaming in ‘Blame It On Me’. This was particularly impressive after the singer apologised (unnecessarily) for a bad cold supposedly affecting his voice.

Between the interludes of each song, his warm and lively character shines through. Slurring his words and clutching his red house party cup, Malone lit up the second-most expensive onstage cigarette of his career, incurring a £3,000 venue fine. If they wanted a show from someone who cared, they shouldn’t have booked the guy with “Always Tired” tattooed onto his face.

More professional though was the fantastic lights show. There were impressive deep red washes, stage smoke, and stylised footage which complimented Malone’s confidence as a solo artist.

Despite great performances in ‘Candy Paint’ and ‘I Fall Apart’, for large parts the set-list became an indistinct ocean of bass which meant an acoustic break was a much-appreciated reprise. Softer solitude was offered with ‘Feeling Whitney’ and ‘Stay’ which pleasantly disrupted the show, allowing for a break. Having said that, an immediate return to hit track, ‘Leave’

recaptured the audience’s excitement.

This burst of energy was direly needed, yet it still fell short. ‘Leave’ isn’t a bad song (maybe he’s a Brexiteer). However, live at the Arena, a banger like ‘White Iverson’ or ‘Rockstar’ would have been much more effective.

Unsurprisingly, the latter was a particular highlight when Malone finally reached its fervour. Post Malone’s most popular song with 1.4 billion Spotify streams, ‘Rockstar’, was performed with energy and familiarity.

Here, rapper 21 Savage was one of few feature artists to have their vocals played out; any mention of his recent plight however, imprisoned by US ICE in an alleged “targeted operation”, was jarringly absent. A shout-out was in order at least.

Post Malone sang 21 songs in total (surely not some cryptic tribute), although many were shorter than record length with feature vocals cut. Then came the speech. If Post Malone’s rapping is laconic, the same cannot be said for his speeches. After droning on about following your dreams and never giving up, Malone walked out after an again snipped ‘Congratulations’. In total, the show was less than one and a half hours, speech included, encore sorely lacking.

Post Malone does not particularly bring anything new to hip hop besides setting a new record with the number of his face tattoos. What he does possess however, is an ear for hits, and is clearly working hard to push himself further. However, these gems were often lost in the vast set-list of trimmed tracks and bass-heavy narratives.

Although not a bad performance; some more effective set-listing choices would certainly have made it better.

Manchester-based Saytr Play are a band which stand out in the current crop of guitar bands, and are no doubt in store for a bright future, writes Aidan Tinsley There aren’t too many guitar bands in the modern music industry which can’t be neatly categorised into an indie-rock sub-genre, meticulously manufactured to appeal to a certain demographic. There are, of course, exceptions to every rule — and this is why we have Saytr Play.

The

Manchester-based

group

released

their

first two singles ‘Mother’s Love’ and ‘Don’t Go East’ in 2017 and encountered an immediate positive response. At this point, the band had already supported both The Hoosiers and The Sherlocks, meaning they were no strangers to the big stage, but these releases offered a foundation from which they could establish themselves as a headliner.

Notable musical progression followed in 2018 and 2019, with the release of ‘Fragile’ and ‘Bang Average’ respectively. The song ‘Bang Average’ deserves a particular mention — a bittersweet anthem detailing the inevitable heartbreak of unrequited love, which simultaneously pulls your heartstrings and compels you to move to its dynamic beat.

Singer Fred Farrell drives the group and acts as the archetypal rock ‘n’ roll frontman, exuding a charisma and desire to perform essential in any great band. Along with his ability to perform on stage, the strength of Farrell’s vocals are paired perfectly with the quality of a clearly experienced band capable of delivering consistently tight shows.

Having steadily built up a loyal fanbase over the last few years, this band now seem on the verge of something special. Following the success of their sold-out headline at Gorilla on February 22nd, it remains to be seen what’s next for the indie-pop outfit but it’s already clear that the future of Saytr Play will be anything but ‘Bang Average’.

Hot Right Now

Review.

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Lil Pump – Harverd Dropout

Music

17

The blockbuster-album approach to Lil Pump’s highly anticipated Harverd Dropout loses most of what was appealing and exciting about this young Floridian rapper, says Harry Thorfinn Harverd Dropout Harry Thorfinn

4/10

After bursting onto the scene in late 2016, Lil Pump has become somewhat of an embodiment of modern rap- birthed from memes and viral moments until all of a sudden, he manoeuvred into real success, climbing the charts and racking up hundreds of millions of streams. Over a year since first being announced, Pump’s sophomore album Harverd Dropout finally sees the light of day.

However, Harverd Dropout feels like forced fun. The beats sound too polished and once the novelty wears off, Lil Pump’s shtick begins to wear thin. For an artist so concerned with the “now”, Dropout ironically feels stale. Tellingly it’s a bad omen that the title is based on a meme which circulated over a year ago (which Pump should know is basically a lifetime in internet years.) A few fun moments and hit singles make this album bound for streaming success, but ultimately a forgettable project.

Lil Pump has become synonymous with “Soundcloud Rap” — which needs no further introduction as it has dominated your timeline as well as the charts for the past few years.

The fashion, drugs, and overall recklessness of this loose scene have in recent years led to a slew of think pieces comparing Soundcloud Rap to Punk. Whilst these takes feel trite now, it is worth noting that as Hip-Hop has replaced Rock as music’s most consumed genre, these artists seem to fill a similar stylistic and cultural position by pushing boundaries and pissing off older generations.

Yet unfortunately, Dropout doesn’t feel particularly innovative or edgy. Quite the contrary — it feels sterile. A variety of

Photo: Michael14375 @ Wikimedia Commons

beats from different producers could have given depth to the album, as the formula of bouncy synths, snappy drums, and 808s quickly becomes tiresome, such as on ‘Eskeetit’, ‘Who Dat’, and ‘Drug Addicts’. Similarly, several songs feature a familiar distorted 808 which sounded unique on ‘D Rose’ back in 2017 but now sounds recycled and boring.

‘Drop Out’, ‘Nuh Uh’, ‘ION’, ‘Multi-Millionaire’, and ‘Too Much Ice’ all use this and you can’t help but feel Pump has artistically painted himself into a corner.

Yet there are a few good moments on this album and Pump’s dedication to the party is somewhat admirable. Pump never explores the darker side of wealth and drugs that artists like Future and the Weeknd revel in — actually it doesn’t seem to faze Pump in the slightest.

“Whole gang full of drug addicts,” Pump gleefully raps on the aptly titled ‘Drug Addicts’.

Unfortunately, Pump’s lifestyle will one day take its toll, but at least he’s enjoying himself for now and we don’t have to sit through a moody introspective Lil Pump track quite yet.

There are flashes of Pump’s charisma here too. On ‘Off White’ Pump raps in different registers and switches up his flow a few times which is welcomed, and the menacing but playful ‘Vroom Vroom Vroom’ has the most annoyingly satisfying hook imaginable. These songs are obnoxious, loud and under 2 minutes. In small

Record Reappraisal

doses Pump’s energy is infectious but over 16 tracks it’s numbing. At least Pump can still rap something ridiculous, forcing you to crack a smile. On ‘ION’ Pump raps “left wrist cost a Bentley coupe/drop ten Xans in Wonton soup,” conjuring the absurd image of Pump eating a cereal-like concoction of Xanax and soup — which is pretty funny I guess.

Yet these few moments of fun drown in endless cups of lean and relentless misogyny.

Harverd Dropout feels calculated, the presence of a major label is definitely felt. For example, the features feel less like organic collaborations and more like an eager attempt by a record label to market Pump as an upper echelon rapper. Almost all of the featured artists are significantly older than Pump and sound out of place in his world. Kanye, Lil Wayne, and YG featuring on this album doesn’t really do much for anyone involved.

Cramming in features and songs on an album has become the norm in the streaming era, and unsurprisingly these bloated albums often don’t result in better music — Harverd Dropout being the latest example of this. That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised if it goes triple platinum in the next few days.

Photo: badgreeb RECORDS @ Flickr

Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Josh Sandy explores the turbulent history and content of one of Fleetwood Mac’s most celebrated release, Rumours Whether it’s The Beatles with their threesolo-records-in-one White Album, or Pink Floyd’s famously fraught The Final Cut, there is a certainly a case for musicians doing their best work whilst under extreme pressure.

However, the circumstances behind these albums pale in comparison to the immense turmoil that unfolded behind the scenes of Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 record Rumours.

Following the success of their eponymous 10th studio album, which notably featured a departure from their blues roots in favour of a soft-rock sound and the acquisition of the US folk duo of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, Fleetwood Mac faced the unenviable task of continuing their momentum. Along with the existing difficulties of following up a critically acclaimed album, the band faced the divorce of bassist John McVie and keyboardist Christine McVie, and the breakdown of Buckingham and Nicks’ long-term relationship.

This, coupled with the band’s excessive and well-documented cocaine usage, led to a range of issues during the album’s recording.

The band’s internal strife is reflected heavily in the album with the full complement of band members only sharing joint song-writing

credit for one song, ‘The Chain’. This is ironic when considering the song’s message about staying together against all odds, but also demonstrates their remarkable resilience and commitment. The highlight of the album’s lyrical content can be found in the stark dichotomy of Buckingham’s and Nicks’ views on their break-up. Whereas Nicks favoured a positive outlook in ‘Dreams’, Buckingham took a more negative approach in ‘Go Your Own Way’, and even included the infamous barb directed at Nicks: “Packing up, shacking up’s all you wanna do”.

The most genuinely affecting song, however, belongs to Christine McVie with her selfpenned stripped back piano ballad ‘Songbird’.

The track focuses on the self-sacrifice required in love and the need to finally let go in order to move on, which creates a truly heart-breaking, but ultimately encouraging, message.

Sonically, the album builds on the softrock sound of its predecessor, but also contains some interesting flairs throughout the course of the record. The album’s opening cut,

‘Second Hand News’, is a unique blend of Celtic-rock with a Bee Gees-inspired groove that produces a strikingly distinctive sound. In addition, the country-folk sound of ‘Never Going Back Again’ invokes memories of Buckingham and Nicks’ pre-Fleetwood Mac days, and provides an unusual degree of nostalgia for a song about moving on. However, the album’s true magnum opus is the ethereal ‘Dreams’, which can certainly stake a claim as the greatest break-up song of all-time. The track bleeds raw emotion, and the combination of Mick Fleetwood’s understated drums and Buckingham’s finessed backing guitar provides the perfect backdrop for Nicks’ graceful vocal performance.

Overall in Rumours, Fleetwood Mac managed to do something very few bands could emulate.

The sheer tenacity from the band and their ability to create a seminal album during this period is truly inspiring. Ultimately, at a time when the music industry seems fickler than ever, we could all do with learning a lesson or two from the ‘Mac’.

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ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Live review.

Music

Jungle

Photo: Pascale Chalmers-Arnold

Despite bringing the funk to Manchester Academy, Jungle’s bold stage presence was not enough to save them from an inconsistent setlist Jungle Pascale Chalmers-Arnold

6/10

As the lights dimmed and thick smoke filled the Manchester Academy stage, Jungle’s live band strutted out to raucous applause. Their signature graphics hung above the set, shining white through a haze of red. A guitar chord sounded, the drums and percussion started up, and the band launched into the opening bars of ‘Smile’, their

latest album opener, singing “When you smile / The world feels a little better / I just wanna see you smile”.

WJungle’s Manchester date comes in the middle of the band’s massive worldwide tour, which started in Las Vegas back in September 2018, and is continuing until August 2019. Since their second and most recent album For Ever was only released five months ago, their set is comprised of new hits and old favourites.

After ‘Smile’, came their lead single ‘Heavy, California’. Their preoccupation with the Californian Dream, and the disillusionment they have felt for it, is a running theme throughout the new album, with Lloyd-Watson and McFarland both having given LA a go, before dejectedly returning home. Yet despite the lyrics being about failing to chase the dream — “Can’t afford you… I’m a lonely heart / You’ve been miles away / Held up at the border” — this classic Jungle funk anthem really got the audience grooving along.

Having set the upbeat tone, Jungle then cranked up the glitz. Gold lights shimmered out, illuminating a crowd dancing wildly, hands waving above their heads in time with ‘The Heat’, the lead single of their debut album, before jumping to a big crowd-pleaser ‘Julia’. The disco beat kicked in, as they crooned lyrics describing the perfect girl they desperately longed for – “Julia / I don’t know a thing about you…Soon enough / You’ll be all I ever need”.

In Conversation with Maggie Rogers It was the day before Maggie Rogers was due to play the biggest venue of her life, Manchester’s O2 Ritz. Fresh off stage, coffee in hand, admittedly running on adrenaline rather than tour-bus slumber, she invited me into her thrilling world for a few minutes.

With an air of Florence-like calm and Stevie Nicks’ confidence, Maggie Rogers was a force to be reckoned with. She sat wearing acid-greenwash jeans, holding my gaze. Physically, of course, Rogers is beautiful. She struck me in every way authentic while oozing a certain coolness. More importantly, she has a powerful energy that shows power and femininity are not separate entities but are intertwined. Rogers named Patti Smith as one of her main influences, and it wasn’t hard to see why. Maggie is following in her footsteps by portraying the same honesty and experimentalism in her artistic expression.

The eye contact meant that we could chat casually, and I could “read the energy”, as Maggie put it. This energy was electric, and it wasn’t because she’d just got off stage after rehearsing. I sensed this was a well-established presence that wasn’t about to fade.

Rogers doesn’t mince her words, and speaks when needed. She does so in a way that makes the mundane seem poignant, much like her lyricism.

Despite the mostly tranquil mood, there is a grittiness and realism to tracks such as ‘Alaska’ and ‘Back in My Body’ – melancholic in tone, but emotive nonetheless. It is lyrics like “I am here and in the poem of my mind”, that are relatable and meaningful to a modern day audience.

Maggie, someone who really did “trust [her] inhibition”, felt confident that she would “know

Having ended long relationships whilst writing For Ever, it is unsurprising the album chronicles heartbreak and grief. ‘Beat 54 (All Good Now)’ played next, offering a slower sound to accompany devastating lyrics: “I never had enough for you/ But you said someone/ Would come and replace me/ How can you replace me”. This melancholic mood continued with ‘Cherry’, an even slower track featuring the chorus, “You’re never going to change me”, sung on repeat, and leading into ‘Pray’, a song about taking charge.

The following tracks ‘Lucky I Got What I Want’, ‘Platoon’, ‘Crumbler’, and ‘Lemonade Lake’ notably favoured style over substance, and were found to be lacking since neither McFarland or Lloyd-Watson possessed the vocal range or sonic style to convey the depth of feeling needed to give the songs conviction.

While the break-up theme continued, the calibre of song improved with ‘Casio’ – a funk number filled with falsetto that had the crowd clapping along to the beat – and ‘House In LA’. Grand crescendos and buzzing synths filled the venue as the band exited the stage during ‘Drops’. The crowd were having none of it, begging for a fitting encore, which was provided when the band came back out to finish with flashing lights, the well-loved chorus of ‘Busy Earnin’’, and the blistering guitar solo from ‘Time’ — providing that epic assault of the senses all gig-goers long for.

Read the full article on mancunion.com

Louise Avey catches up with the ethereal Maggie Rogers about love, life and being a confident figure in the music industry Maggie Rogers Louise Avey

when it was right for the next thing” in terms of musical progression, but for now, she’s simply here to “enjoy it,” saying “I’ve been working 10 years for this!” Maggie is proof that the second wave of fierce, strongly spoken and authentic women, particularly within the music industry, are here. She is the perfect embodiment of a new wave of feminist role models, that we, as women, all needed growing up. From lyrics centering around selfhood, oneness, passion, and growth instead of love, breakups and female competition; these are positive love letters for the next generation of girls.

Many of her songs possess a calming quality – definitively folky and soulful, with post-modernist electronic elements, which Rogers proclaim are due to a “spiritual experience in France”.

She talks of her humble, banjo-playing musical upbringing – a time in which for three years she didn’t make music at all – whilst “working through some things” and focusing on studying.

But now she’s back to making music, she simply “can’t make enough.” Strangely enough, Rogers had been “making and releasing music for ten years” before Pharrell Williams discovered her at an NYU songwriting workshop.

During our chat, Maggie was confident, selfaware and, dare I say it again, authentic. On being branded as such, she wondered, “What does that mean, I’m so myself? There is no persona, no gimmicks”. Maggie should, of course, be branded authentic. She is just continuing to be herself, in an ever-changing music world, while navigating the confusing, foggy post-grad state, like so many of us are. Asking about being a role model to young girls she replied “It’s so much

9/10

cooler to make something you like and say if you don’t like it. If you do like it, that’s cool too, come to my concert and we can dance together”. The rawness of these words seeped through as I was reminded of my own views of creativity and living life to the fullest.

This was a take away feeling after seeing Maggie live, with it being one of the most enjoyable shows I have ever been to. Rogers, performing as an uncensored version of herself in every way, meant I could let go of my inhibitions and enjoy the show in a new way too. I felt myself dancing more freely, singing louder and being a rawer, unfiltered, happier version of myself. I looked around at the smiling, swaying crowd, and they were doing just the same.

Read the full article on mancunion.com

Listen to our Spotify Playlist Scan the code and follow ‘The Mancunion’ for more!

Photo: Olivia Blinn @ Mancunion

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Games

Preview.

The Occupation

Photo: WhitePaperGames

Pete Bottomley of White Paper Games speaks to Jeremy Bijl about their latest project – The Occupation – on the eve of its release

library. In the centre is a courtyard called the Whitworth gardens and we’ve got a library kind of based around the architecture in Manchester.”

“If you give the world a foundation and background and kind of build your story on top of that, it just helps build a richer world.”

Pete went on to tell me about the narrative setting and the political moorings of The Union Act. “The game is based around this thing, The Union Act, which is happening on a very specific day, giving that context to the world where everyone is talking about it and what’s right and wrong.”

Key to this idea, however, was that White Paper – as Martin and James had told me in our previous interview – are not trying to create a game which is itself overbearingly political, choosing instead to convey the sense of a conflicted and nuanced society attempting to make sense of obfuscated political happenings.

“It’s not that we need to tip-toe around anything because that’s the setting. But what we do aim to do is create characters in the world that have conflicting views on immigration or data collection or whatever the theme might be.”

“Those conversations are happening regardless so it gives the game a good foundation.”

Photo: WhitePaperGames

earnest on their upcoming project.

Speaking about that more personal side of reaching the end of a game that has dominated the lives of White Paper’s employees for the last four years, Pete said: “At the back end of Ether, everyone was completely wiped out so we had to take a couple of months off just to decompress. On a personal level, that was a massive and emotional thing to put out.”

“

I think everyone will be proud of

Photo: WhitePaperGames

On top of this, The Occupation will also exist in a shared universe with White Paper’s previous game, Ether One: “We want to create this larger collective universe so you’ll definitely see that.”

“Hopefully, the more games we create – and hopefully it won’t take four years to make another one – you’ll get that sense of a shared universe. They are standalone but it just helps build that world.”

Pete then told me a bit more about what navigating Turing as a player would involve: “The core gameplay loop is you enter an area, you follow these different leads, find some evidence to question someone on, and challenge their answers.”

“Today you came to interview me with a set of questions; the kind of questions that without talking to me about were just things that you were interested in.”

“But if you’d snuck in before this and found a note on my desk saying, ‘The Occupation will never be in VR’, and I’d told you VR was a distinct possibility, you’d be able to call me out on it.”

Whilst the roadworks around Salford had prevented me from arriving early enough to do any snooping, I could see through the glass door of the conference room the rest of the team – some seven or eight people – working in

what we’ve created

“

“The phrase I like to use is real-time political thriller.”

I was talking to Pete Bottomley, co-founder of White Paper Games. Having started the interview by suggesting similarities between The Occupation and the 1993 film Groundhog Day, Pete was quick to delineate the differences between the two creations.

“It’s not necessarily that you have to keep repeating the events over and over, or that you’ll have to keep replaying a certain environment to perfect your playthrough or anything like that.”

“Some people can play it over and over again – the game definitely has re-playability – whereas some people will think ‘that was my story.’”

The Occupation is a first-person narrative driven game set over the course of four real-time hours in a fictionalised 1980s Manchester.

Essentially a contained wedge of space-time set at the epicentre of a major political event (the passing of a controversial bill called The Union Act), the game casts you as an investigative journalist tasked with finding out the truth at the heart of things.

Having been in development for around four years, I came to Pete with my own redhot journalistic take that this equated to one year per hour of gameplay. Far from being a reflection of inefficiency, Pete told me that this was a testament to the depth and richness of the game’s world: “It’s hard to quantify detail, but we spend so much time on the universe and we love putting little story threads in that make the world feel like a real and lived in place.”

In an era of gaming dominated by open-world leviathans (often populated primarily by empty expanses), this commitment to making a game that is focused and deep, rather than sprawling and shallow, was something Pete clearly felt was integral to the vision of the studio: “We’re really inspired by the immersive sim approach to games. Some events are not necessarily directly related to gameplay, just for the sake of flavour. I personally enjoy just getting lost in those types of games.”

Key to this depth in The Occupation, Pete told me, was its North-West inspired geographical and political setting.

“The fictional town in The Occupation, Turing, is loosely based in a Liverpool/Manchester. So we were inspired by the gardens in Liverpool, the Manchester

19

“I think The Occupation’s different because we’ve been slowly growing the team and tried to help get processes in place, and we’ve built this great momentum.”

“I think everyone will be proud of what we’ve created. No matter what the critical reception is like, we’ll all know that we’ve made a cool game.”

The Occupation, then, is shaping up to a fascinating title when it releases next month. As a fixed-length game, there’s plenty of scope for things to go awry when put into the hands of players not intimately familiar with its design. However, White Paper’s commitment to keenly focused, tightly curated design, immersive and contextualised world-building, and dynamic artificial intelligence should make this one of the indie titles to watch out for this year.

The Occupation will be available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC on 5th March for £19.99.

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ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Film

Interview: Toby MacDonald Maddy Peden talks toxic masculinity, Timothee Chalamet and the positive shift that’s happening within our current canon with Toby MacDonald Photo: Courtesy of HOME Manchester

sea of pubescent teenage boys at Caldermount, making her casting an important piece of the puzzle. “She’s the only girl and there is something kind of ‘fable-ish’ about that notion. We didn’t want a fantasy figure coming into the school. We just wanted her to be a real girl and we managed to find Pauline. She has an intelligence that is really terrific”.

The film operates at a primarily comedic level, but it doesn’t take much digging to realise it is presenting a challenge to toxic masculinity, a subject that is garnering worthy attention recently, particularly within the film industry. I raised this with Toby and whether he felt these tumultuous political times impact on his responsibility as a filmmaker. “I subscribe to the notion of smuggling messages in films. I think they resonate with audiences much more than the hammer and blow [approach]” — in relation to the topic of toxic masculinity specifically.

Toby highlights the casting of Alex Lawther as his leading man; “Alex as a romantic lead, he’s a very contemporary type of actor portraying a very contemporary type of masculinity as well”.

Lawther plays opposite Jonah Hauer-King’s handsome-but-dim Winchester.

“Oddly, Winchester was the hardest part to cast as he read off the page like a sort of quite

heightened character in terms of a big, thick, posh boy, but somehow when Jonah played it, there was a tenderness that was really unexpected”.

It was our consensus on these actors heart-warming yet poignant dynamic that led Toby to his closing there are lots of thoughts; “There’s these boys coming an interesting thing going on with leading through, [that are] men… we did have a period where all these able to carry a far actors were brooding more emotionally hunks, [but now] there are lots of these boys intricate story. coming through, [like] Timothee Chalamet, that are really fine actors and able to carry a far more emotionally intricate story”.

Old Boys is on general release in selected cinemas from 22nd February and will be screened at HOME Manchester from 8th March.

“

“

I recently had the pleasure of meeting with director Toby MacDonald to discuss his feature film debut, Old Boys. We talked toxic masculinity, Timothee Chalamet, and the positive shift that’s happening within our current canon of leading men.

Old Boys is a more modern retelling of the classic Cyrano De Bergerac narrative set within the walls of Caldermount, a fictional public boys school. The time period is sometime during the 1980s — a time when these institutions were on the cusp of a decline in financing and status.

I asked Toby why he brought these two elements together. “I have always loved that story… and I always thought the ironies and feeling of unrequited love would work really well in a teenage [context]”. He went on to highlight that these institutions have now come to be associated with repression and this was something that he wanted to highlight in the setting. “We tried to subtly push a prison feeling through it all; the Alcatraz vibe, the fire alarms, having to line up arms width apart”.

The setting means the cast is predominantly male, bar Agnes (Pauline Etienne), the central female figure who makes up one third of the central ‘Cyrano’ love triangle, with Amberson and Winchester. Agnes stands out amongst the

R E v I E w

Cold Pursuit Carl Fitzgerald Contributor

1.5/5

What Liam Neeson said was stupid and awful. Now that’s cleared up, onto his latest film: Cold Pursuit. Honestly, any extra attention this movie does or doesn’t receive due to Liam Neeson is going to be inconsequential, so it won’t change the fact that the film is just bad.

Telling another Neeson action plot-line, he plays Nels Coxman, a snowplough driver who seeks revenge on the Colorado drug cartel that murdered his son. But in the process of Coxman bulldozing his way through the gang’s ranks, the film completely loses its tracks and comes to involve a turf war with the cartel’s Native American rivals. Coxman’s brother supplies him with a hitman and a young police officer trying to make sense of the whole thing. And that’s just a fraction of what they try to squeeze in here.

The main problem with Cold Pursuit is its lack of focus. When looking at the trailers, one might think it’s quite simply a straight action revenge movie with a touch of humour. And maybe if the whole film itself had that same sense of humour it may be slightly more watchable — but most of it is just painstakingly slow and uninteresting. In fact, the pacing is so far off that there’s constant long stretches of time where Coxman, the main character, just disappears so they can cram in more secondary conflicts.

Cold Pursuit is a revenge thriller that proves nothing more than a particularly dull entry in a string of bad genre flicks But it’s not like the film doesn’t have some standout moments. Early scenes of Coxman and his wife, played superbly by Laura Dern, coming to terms with the death of their son make for terrific insights into the psychological and social effects of revenge and grief. Both actors bring their A-game to these scenes and they’re the closest the film comes to being genuinely impactful.

But once Coxman’s wife abruptly leaves her husband she’s never mentioned again, that whole element gets completely binned. In a similar vein, nearly all the action scenes are well acted and shot, but are torn to shreds in editing. As a result they’re mostly just incoherent and lack any desired impact.

And that’s not even touching upon the film’s final act which just takes a hard swerve when we see Coxman pretending to be a chauffeur in order to kidnap the mob boss’ son from school. It’s just a remarkably odd turn that’s creepier than they seem to be aiming for.

Cold Pursuit is not without potential. It’s led by some solid if, at times, over-thetop performances and I’ll admit I’m always a sucker for snowy mountain settings. However, it’s all wasted when the finished product is so fragmented and forgetful, being too unfocused to let any of the characters really shine in their own right. Mostly though it’s just plain boring, moving at a snail’s pace from scene to scene with any brief moments of surprise just serving as an occasional wake-up speed bump on a predictable A-to-B road.

Photo by JerzyGorecki @ pixabay

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Film

The Art of the Bromantic Comedy: Starring I love You, Man

21

Photos: David Shankbone @Flickr, Gage Skidmore @Flickr

To study the themes of wholesome male relationships in film, look no further than 2009’s I Love You, Man which unravels itself after repeated viewings

Opinion.

To study the themes of wholesome male relationships in film one can look no further than 2009’s I Love You, Man. While admittedly little more than a glorious B-movie nestled in the comforting categories of Netflix, the Paul Rudd and Jason Segel helmed flick seems to reveal some deeper qualities after a ludicrous number of repeated viewings.

The story follows newly engaged Peter (Rudd) who is suddenly forced into an increasingly cringe-worthy search for some male friends to fill out his lacking wedding party.

“Girlfriend-guy” Peter goes on a series of awkward “man dates” until he meets his one true “bro montana” Sydney Fife (Segel) while trying to sell a former Hulk actor’s humble abode.

The simple joy of this bromantic comedy is the subversion of rom-com norms while maintaining the age-old structure of cute meeting, conflict/breakup, ultimate reunion. Making two male friends the subject

of the comedy allows for a funny and endearing exploration of male intimacy while allowing a constant joke about something more than heterosexuality to exist in every scene. A perfect example of this is their shared love of the band Rush which is at the heart of the relationship — the two will sing lyrics down the phone to one another, leading to the f iancée Zoe (Rashida Jones) questioning why Peter is “licking Sydney’s air guitar?”

Honestly, the true joy of the bromantic romp is the opposing trajectories and personalities of the two best friends.

Peter is a “straight arrow” estate agent who is pleased by “adult things”: Sunday night programming on HBO and a glass of wine, watching Johnny Depp’s Chocolat, or goign to fencing practice. When he meets Sydney, we see Peter devolve to enjoy the immature, unambitious activities he missed out on without male friends: cutting loose in the mancave, slapping some bass when

playing countless Rush anthems and learning to express himself animalistically with screaming practice on Venice Beach.

Conflict comes when Sydney fails to at least partly move towards an adult lifestyle.

His comically public hint that Zoe should initiate more fellatio throws up red flags and Sydney struggles to keep up with his old mates because he’s too childish to hang out with their families or to negotiate full-time careers. However, part of the resolution is Segel’s character seeing value in a simple night in with a loved one and a Johnny Depp flick over a one-night stand with a divorcée.

The Bromantic Comedy’s bread and butter is providing the easy watching of a rom-com with more immature stabs at humour at the purity of a best friend dynamic. I Love You, Man is perhaps the crème of the crop in this area but bromantic themes can be found in anything from Pineapple Express all the way to Good Will Hunting.

Why Green Book’s Best Picture win is a good thing

Adrian Kanyoli argues

that the time is right for him to suspend his hatred of white-saviour films like Green Book and Hidden Figures following the former’s recent Best Picture win

Hidden Figures. Photo: NASA Kennedy @ Flickr

If you know me, it’s clear I’m not a fan of white-saviour films. I believe they’re condescending to people of colour, and use historical inaccuracies to perpetuate racial stereotypes. Frankly, I think this plot formula should be most offensive to white viewers, since it depicts them as complacent participants in a racist system who later gain a Messiah complex after meeting one extraordinary person of colour.

Most people of colour aren’t extraordinary.

We can’t all play piano like Don Shirley, score like Mo Salah, or joke like Eddie Murphy.

Going off the definition of the word ‘most’, most people of colour are average. And to truly cure the world of racism, white allies need to realise all people of colour need support, not just the special ones — look up black mediocrity when you have a second.

I am writing this in a positive light because we need you, white saviours. The politics of the far-right are only effective so long as the white majority supports them.

The Windrush crisis only became a scandal because white people were outraged and phoned LBC. If there hadn’t been that outrage, if it was just Majid Nawaaz and David Lammy shouting into the wind without a response, Amber Rudd would still be Home Secretary.

As one of the few Black students on my course, I’m painfully aware that my equality and few unique privileges hinge on the tolerance of white liberals. In a day and age where we’re all taking necessary steps to add some colour and diversity to dusty white institutions dominated by straight,

cis-gendered men, minority groups tend to forget that, outside our circle of allies, we’re outnumbered. The rise of the far-right shows this.

Now, by giving credit to our allies, I’m not undermining the steps taken by civil rights groups but it would be disingenuous to pretend that minorities succeeded on their own.

While the courage of heroes like Dr. Martin Luther King and Marsha P. Johnson led the way, victory was achieved in the hearts and minds of their white allies.

The reason posting videos of racist attacks and police brutality is so effective is because white allies will see them, become just as outraged as we are, and demand consequences. They get to be our saviours.

And that’s why white-saviour films like Green Book and Hidden Figures, are so popular today. There’s an appetite in the US and the UK to right the wrongs of the recent far-right surge.

That is why I’m temporarily suspending my hatred for white-saviour films, because we are at a crisis point. With the upcoming Presidential election and a possible second Brexit referendum in sight, we need white saviours more than ever to be active, use their numbers to take the reigns, and decide whether they want a future where British people of Caribbean descent continue to be deported or not.

So, if the majority believe a film about a racist white man befriending a gay Black man is the best picture of the year, I see that as a good sign for times to come.

28TH FEB TO 7TH MARCH manchesterstudentsunion.com/elections

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Books

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REVIEWS.

‘Black Leopard, Red Wolf’ by Marlon James

Ellis Coopey reviews ‘Black Leopard, Red Wolf’, the first novel in Marlon James’ new fantasy series, ‘The Blackstar Trilogy’

Photo: Press Shot

I grew up reading fantasy fiction. Though I should confess that I’ve never read Lord of the Rings, I’ve watched the films but not read the books. From the little I have read, Tolkien’s works read like dull travel guides-come-histories of Middle Earth. Since then fantasy writing has, in some ways, come a long way.

Unfortunately, in many ways it hasn’t. The genre has become a sort of commercialised fan-fiction, set in variations of Middle Earth, rehashing stories of elves and orcs.

Marlon James is very good at shedding light on histories that have often been overlooked, particularly Jamaican history. The Book of Night Women was about a young woman, Lilith, born into slavery in Jamaica and A Brief History of Seven Killings was about the communities of Kingston during the attempted assassination of Bob Marley, both significant socially-charged times in real-life history. So when James, so hardpressed by real world issues, said he’d be writing fantasy, I couldn’t help but wonder, what can he possi-

‘You Know You Want This’ by Kristen Roupenian

Does Kristen Roupenian’s debut collection live up to the hype of Cat Person? Lucy Downing finds out...

bly have to say?

This is the first way in which Marlon’s book excels.

Fantasy should be both familiar and alien, and a fantasy world using African mythology as a foundation has so much potential for discovery. Enter Tracker, the central character of Black Leopard, Red Wolf.

Tracker understands the world through his sense of smell, and in turn, it’s through smell that readers understand the novel’s world. This is an almost hallucinatory perspective. When we meet his friend Leopard for the first time, ‘on him [Tracker] smelled the leaves he ran through and the fresh wet of the dew […] and the fresh musk of the grave dirt under his fingernails.’

Following the insight gained by Tracker’s sense of smell, we begin to intimately understand this world.

In the Western world, most of what we know about Africa is shaded by colonial history. Search for who discovered Mount Kilimanjaro and you’ll get Johann Ludwig Krapf.

That’s a nonsense — it suggests

that generations of Tanzanians had looked to the horizon and somehow missed it. There are relatively few representations of Africa in pop culture, I’ve seen The Lion King, Black Panther, Madagascar and a few BBC wildlife programmes. There are even fewer works about Ancient Africa. So, while Medieval Europe is heavily wrought in our collective imaginations, Ancient Africa is lost. James’ novel is an effort to correct this, hopefully enabling us to discover a fuller and more vibrant picture of Africa.

Tracker and Leopard embark on what seems a simple journey to rescue a child who has been missing for three years. As the task becomes ever more complicated and allegiances change, they slowly start to question whether the child is actually worth saving.

The novels opening lines haunt you throughout, ‘The child is dead, there is nothing left to know. I hear there is a queen in the south who kills the man who brings her bad news. So when I give her word of the boy’s death, do I write my own with it?’

Kristen Roupenian’s short story collection has arrived at last.

Since her short story, Cat Person, went viral at the end of 2017 (getting her a $1.2 million advance) fans have been anticipating whether You Know You Want This would live up to the hype.

Her stories access the complexities of the human mind, and narrate — comically, darkly — under a title which in itself, understands our gasping for more: You Know You Want This.

Roupenian claws at your nerves with Angela Carter vibes; her horror stories revel in gory imagery and psychological malfunctions – from the ‘desiccated corpse’, to the mysteries behind curious minds and psychotic women. Sex and desire are shown without modesty.

Less attention is given to the external threats of supernatural phenomenon, allowing her to fuse psychosis, trauma, panic, insomnia and sadism. These stories are a little too real to be read as escapism.

Her dark commentaries of America’s guilty past are witty yet horrifying. Themes of race and gender transcend into a schoolteacher’s nightmare in The Night Runner where malicious schoolgirls encapsulate Gothic fixations of witchcraft and rituals. Isolated in a community with ‘customs’ and supernatural beliefs, the kind, charitable male teacher suffers nightly home invasions where girls leave him faeces and ‘rub their ninis against [his] wall’.

This is Roupenian’s satirical reaction to a society grown fearful of feminist capabilities.

Mocking the concept of the ‘matriarchy’, her female characters are ruthless. Daughters are sadistic.

Men are kind, and powerless. If we hadn’t already crowned Roupenian as the feminist hero behind Cat Person, her collection’s enrichment of villainesses and male victims could have been misconstrued as gynophobic.

One woman’s inclination to bite people as ‘sexual gratification’ in Biter, ultimately allows her to overpower the habitual occurrence of sexual harassment in the work place — a controversial, empowering narrative which humours readers and further establishes her literary contribution to the #MeToo movement.

It is doubtless that Roupenian feeds off our fear of human capability. Prevalent in Cat Person and climaxing with Look at Your Game, Girl, the collection explores and challenges the notion of intuition. In Cat Person, Margot allows herself to be misled by the virtual-reality of the texting game; transfixed by the self-esteem obtained through a clumsy and unsuited admirer, she suppresses her subtle repulsion of him.

Look at Your Game, Girl is a complete teaser. Portraying the climactic development of a Charles Manson-come-child-abduction horror, Roupenian obliterates its potential as a drama at the story’s resolution. The reader finds

For all its ambition, Black Leopard, Red Wolf is a humbling story asking very human questions; ‘I wanted to tell him I had come searching for myself’, Tracker says to himself. Much of the novel is a search for — within the community where Tracker is born, he is told that he is neither male nor female and yet he so desperately wants to identify: ‘You will always feel the strength of one and the pain of the other’. James’ world has no need for labels Tracker wrestles with his masculinity too and I feel for him, ‘Happiness? Who needs happy when there is masuku beer? And spicy meat, good coin, and warm bodies to lie with? Besides, to be a man in my family is to let go of happiness, which depends on too many things one cannot control’. Sound familiar?

I’ve read this book once and I’m reading it again. Black Leopard, Red Wolf is proof that fantasy fiction has the power to communicate deeply moving human messages.

Read the full article on mancunion.com.

the creepy cult follower with yellow toe nails and ash-stinking clothes, to be completely harmless to the girl who fears him.

Potentially mistaken as an anti-climax, this story artistically explores the toxic absorption of societal and media hysteria on a young mind. When a child has been kidnapped, the protagonist is enticed by the comfort of authoritative figures (parents and female police), to groundlessly propose the mysterious figure, ‘Charlie’ from the park, as a potential suspect. Despite the man being found innocent, she grows up with psychological trauma of the event.

Roupenian masterfully reveals Jessica’s obsessive behaviour, derived from suffering the potential threat of wellbeing as a child.

The story asks us to consider the extent of which communal fear can absorb our individuality and possess our psyches.

Overall, Roupenian is a wizard of provocative, psychological fiction, exploring the dark side of the human psyche. Each of her short stories is terrifyingly relatable, making the reader fear something much more relevant than more supernatural horror stories. One could compare her psychological depth to Netflix’s Black Mirror, but even that would undermine her crafting of historical and modern horror. We have been promised a film and drama series to be made from the collection. I am certain it won’t be found appropriate for the pre-9pm watershed.

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Theatre

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Photo: John Topliff

Swish

Swish

Alexia Pieretti reviews Swish Swish, a story of strong women and friendship, as of the Drama Society’s MIFTA season

M I F T A S E A S O N

Swish Swish at the Three Minute Theatre (3MT ) followed three teenage girls: the lively and rather innocent Marcy (Mariella Dyckhoff), calm and organized Gabrielle (Hope Leslie) and brutally honest, confident Samantha (Lauren Owen). The trio are childhood friends who have vowed to call each other for an hour every morning as they get ready. However, the separation between them starts to cause problems after Marcy finds out her mother has cancer.

The play was written by the immensely talented Ellie Klouda – who also did the sound design, with co-direction by Lily Brittain. It is an ode to her school friends, her mother and grandmother; to the women who have shaped her life, and these relationships are evident in the heart warming storytelling. The intimate atmosphere of the 3MT went well with moments like Samantha’s monologue describing the intimacy of plaiting hair, engaging you in the lives of the three girls.

Rarely does any piece of media portray teenage girls so accurately. The conflict in this play was much more be-

lievable than many films and plays that merely focus on girls gossiping behind their friends’ backs. A particularly genuine and memorable scene saw the three girls dancing freely to Carole King, each in different ways that show their slightly different personalities (Marcy was in heart-shaped sunglasses, miming into her hairbrush). The comedic moments were also impressive, particularly the hilarious scene where Samantha described her boyfriend asking her if she was an organ donor during sex.

Much has to be said for the direction. All three girls had scenes where they had to do their hair onstage in a set amount of time and often these rituals were just as captivating as the scene taking place simultaneously.

All three actresses embodied their characters with facial expressions and movement. While often in acting, fidgeting is discouraged, these mannerisms made them seem more like real characters, as Samantha spread out her arms or Marcy folded each of her fingers. Their facial expressions were a glimpse into their consciousness, as we watched Ga-

A Place

brielle fighting her annoyance that her teacher said her hair was unprofessional and from the discomfort on Marcy’s face, we could tell Samantha’s words hurt her. Dyckhoff’s portrayal of Marcy was full of life, whilst capable of bringing the audience to tears when her face finally gave way to her grief.

A nice touch was including Gabrielle’s complicated relationship with her hair due to being mixed race, as she struggled to find the right products. However, I do think she could have played more of a role in the main plot-line as she sometimes seemed to only be a mediator for Marcy and Samantha. There were also some plotlines that were opened such as Samantha questioning her sexuality and Gabrielle considering reaching out to her distant mother, which were not resolved. Of course, it is realistic that in our tumultuous teenage years, you encounter many problems, some of which take a long time to resolve.

On the whole, a wonderful production, a truly genuine portrayal of female friendship and a showcase of talent.

Photo: Flynn Greenwood

Kayleigh Crawford reviews Sass Holmes’ A Place, as part of the University of Manchester Drama Soicety MIFTA season A Place is a psychological piece written by Sass Holmes that tells the story of four characters who end up in a sinister, purgatory-like place together, watched over by three ‘mediators’. Where is this place? The answer is not clear.

The Lady in the Red Dress (Elena Brearly) tells us it is simply ‘here’. With a slightly dystopian vibe, A Place raises concerning questions about life, death, and the ‘gap’ in between, throwing philosophical, moral and religious struggles left, right, and centre. The audience was even integrated into the storyline and became part of the narrative as the play progressed.

In a performance that shifted from complete detachment to overflowing emotion, Elena Brearly stood out as The Lady in the Red Dress, startlingly intense in her portrayal of an unworldly ‘mediator’. Despite remaining in a single spot for most of the play, Brearly’s performance was anything but static. The rest of the cast followed suit, with a stage and set design that per-

fectly captures the world-shaking (yet at times confusing) tone of the play.

The atmosphere created by the sound, lights, and set design (complete with an image projector) was unmatchable, lending itself brilliantly to the performance given by the actors. The set changes were spectacularly integrated into the performance. Clever direction of Sass Holmes and Radha Bhandari drew the audience’s attention to the changing scenery by removing and adding pieces in slow-motion. Although this was effective in the context of the play and helped to illustrate one of its fundamental themes — time — there were nevertheless occasions where it felt a little too drawn-out.

The plot progressed interestingly; all the characters had a solo focus, before their stories intertwined. This had the brilliant effect of highlighting the talents of the actors. Emily Fitzpatrick and Alex Stevens shone as Husband and Wife; their first appearance as individuals meeting in an art gallery had the audience laughing as they became a paint-

ing the couple studied. This tenuous relationship between the audience and the characters remained throughout the play, intensely self-aware in its orchestration and always tiptoeing the line between acknowledgement and obliviousness.

Another amazing performance was Kenan Vurgun as the Priest, showcasing a wavering resolve which declined further as the play progressed. Angelica Fitzmaurice also deserves a mention for her performance of the Girl, capturing the curious and blunt nature of a child incredibly well whilst switching between the extremes of carefree and troubled.

A Place is an incredibly well-structured play, with the repetitive and slowpaced mediators a direct and clear contrast with the other four characters. An interesting conceptual piece with an unmatched atmosphere, the actors excelled in their roles, and the multimedia elements set the play apart. A Place tells the story of a ‘gap’ between forwards and backwards and also one of hope, darkness, light, struggle, and strife.

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

A R T E F A C T

Photo: Andy Hay@Flickr

of

Arts

Photo: ‘Disposition’ by Matthew Johnston

the week Photo: Andrew@Flickr

In this instalment of Artefact of the Week, Angus Dickson looks at the bizarre Vimto monument on Granby Row, considering its place in Manchester’s history, and how it continues to evoke a distinctly mancunian pride Every student has seen the iconic Vimto monument in front of the Sackville Street building. For me, it’s a reminder of pre-exam nerves and last-minute cramming on a bench, but what does this antiquated and unintentionally quirky statue actually stand for?

The monument was carved out of an oak tree that came from a sustainable forest in 1992 by Kerry Morrison, who then painted it and erected it in the exact spot where Vimto, the famously British soft drink, was first produced.

The wooden sculpture commemorates Noel Nichols, an experimental herbalist, who created the internationally recognised beverage over a hundred years ago. Nichols found a market for soft drinks during the Temperance movement, when people began to take the negative effects of alcohol more seriously.

The Manchester-born soft drink started out as a medicinal tonic, originally called ‘Vim Tonic’, in 1908, as it would supposedly fill one with ‘energy, vim and vigour’ according to the old adverts. This was subsequently shortened to ‘Vimto’ after they decided to carbonate the drink and stop advertising it as medicine.

The entire piece was repainted in 2011, making it look as though it was installed far more recently than it was, and it therefore seems a little temporally misplaced. There is a nostalgic element to it, as if it’s trying to hark back to Manchester’s golden years.

The statue consists of a giant, old-fashioned Vimto bottle, surrounded by the fruits, herbs and spices that combine to create Vimto’s unique flavour, which is still used in restaurants and bars all over Manchester: In Northern Quarter, the ‘Manchester Martini’ and ‘Vimto Daquiri’ rely heavily on its fruity flavour, whilst The Refuge

by Volta use it in their Red Cabbage.

Even the Midland Hotel and Manchester House serve a Vimto jelly with their Sunday roasts.

This whacky yet iconic sculpture commemorates not only Vimto’s creator, Noel Nichols, but Manchester’s pride of the now internationally renowned soft drink.

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Art in Mancunia: Matthew Johnston Saoirse Akhtar Farren introduces the work of artist and Manchester Metropolitan Student Matthew Johnston We are thrilled to introduce Matthew Johnston to our readers, a film-making student from Manchester Metropolitan University who is one of Art in Mancunia’s first painters.

Johnston has chosen to exhibit four of his pieces, all of which take on very different characters. His paintings range from expressing dissatisfaction with aspects of society, to inspiration from significant and personal experiences.

‘Homogeny’, a 24 x 24 inch acrylic painting on wood, is a canvas that represents the class divide which can be seen in individual quality of life. This painting is particularly poignant; especially placed within a Manchester setting, as it can certainly speak to the social disparity that prevails on our streets, and even speaks to the financial inequality at university. Johnston argues that an aspect of human behaviour is to look aside from stark poverty and injustice. Maybe society turns a blind eye as a tool of coping with the harsh lived reality that many individuals face on a daily basis. ‘Homogeny’ however, is a colourful reminder of blind ignorance toward class division, and

through an artistic medium Johnston enables the viewer to reflect on one’s purposeful obliviousness to important social matters.

The second 24 x 24 inch painting on wood was created after an inspirational trip to the Manchester Art Gallery in the centre of town. I easily identified the majestic Egyptian scene on the 1st floor of the main gallery with Johnston’s piece after a recent visit. ‘The Water of the Nile’

by Frederick Goodall is recreated

by Johnston using bold facial expressions, colour and shapes, to communicate the velocity of the Egyptian pyramids against local Egyptian people strolling across the desert. The 24x24 inch painting inspired during a trip to the Manchester Art Gallery, alongside, Johnston’s other paintings on wood, are part of Johnston’s collections named “the room” paintings. Within this collection some of his works are unnamed.

A sense of ineffability is a theme that I certainly take from Johnston’s work.

Indeed, the painting ‘Window’ is also another example of Johnston’s art which has left him ineffable, as he described a sense of ambiguity when finishing ‘Window’. This made me reflect on how much dis-

cussion in art seeks to unpack a deeper meaning and ultimately an answer beneath and around art works. On the other hand, why does everything have to have an explanation? Things can merely just be.

I find it refreshing that Johnston appears to be in an awe of his own works, to a point where he can no longer even explain what the paint brush has written. Johnston’s work certainly highlights the limitations of language, and juxtaposes this through his expressive and intricate paintings.

Photo: ‘Window’ by Matthew Johnston

The importance of having a creative outlet We are all artists. Whether we realise it or not, we demonstrate our creative instincts in things that we do every day. Convinced? Let Theo Bennett explain We are all artists. Whether we realise it or not, we demonstrate our creative instincts in things that we do every day. Be it in the way we choose to arrange our living spaces, the pictures we upload to Instagram, or even the mental processes that determine why we decide to write certain letters in certain ways, based on a kind of unfathomable personal preference that few of us would be able to explain if asked.

Mostly saliently, all of us not wearing a uniform shows our creative instincts in the clothes we choose to wear. Those of us wearing a uniform still find ways to channel our innate creativity, through the choices we make in relation to our hairstyles, our makeup, our accessories, and maybe even our socks (for this author in particular, this is most definitely the case). We even exhibit creativity in the words we decide (however subconsciously) to adopt into our idiolect.

It’s why we might favour bamboozle over confuse, or fucking sick over really fantastic.

Some readers at this point might think I’m using this term creative extremely broadly. Perhaps I am. My understanding of ‘creativity’ incorporates any

choice we make, consciously or unconsciously, that is not for a purely functional reason. As you might have gathered, there are a lot of activities that can fall within the scope of this far-reaching term.

For those still unconvinced, let’s return to my examples from above and I’ll demonstrate how these seemingly trivial activities are unquestionably the driving thought processes behind legitimate forms of art. The desire to choose the way we organise our living space is the basis for architecture.

Anyone who has uploaded a photograph to Instagram is an amateur photographer — they’re not just my words, but those of world-renowned photographer Martin Parr. The aesthetic preferences we display in the way we write are crucial to the art of graphic design. The choices we make in the way we present ourselves are obviously those on which fashion is predicated. The creative force that causes us to select certain words in the way we do underpins the whole of literature. Yep, that’s right, I’m drawing a parallel between the impulse one might have to use the expression fucking sick to

the spirit of creativity flowing through every great work of literature ever conceived.

What I hope this illuminates is that creativity, and by extension, artistry, is fundamental to human nature. Entertaining your intrinsic creative inclination is by no means an indulgence, but essential to achieving genuine fulfilment and becoming a well-rounded human being in general. It is unscientific to maintain the view that humans would have evolved this instinct if it did not serve a purpose. Sadly, however, our creativity is still too often discouraged from letting itself be known to the world.

This is why I will end this article with a plea: find yourself a creative outlet. Art is an inseparable component of what it means to be human, and it’s vital that we make sure to find time to take part in creative activities, whether it’s painting, singing, dancing, acting, gymnastics, pottery, playing a musical instrument, skating, writing, debating, making textiles, taking photos, modelling, doodling, computer programming, playing with LEGO, cooking, or something entirely different. I think it is really, really, really important.

26

Fashion & Beauty Believe in yourselfie

The first coveted selfie location where many a visitor has taken an Instagramable snap is the neon angel wings found inside the Deansgate branch of Dirty Martini. The fluorescent lighting casts the outline of angel wings and a halo with the sign above reading, ‘Get your halo dirty’.

Whether you take a solo shot or one with a friend, there’s no excuse not to have your own angelic portrait captured in this sought-after Manchester spot.

The second location chosen for this list is Neighbourhood, a bar and restaurant located in Spinningfields, Manchester. The floral backdrop provides the perfect spot for a Hawaiian themed exotic full-length photo. Alternatively, you can channel your inner Kris Jenner as you pose on the iconic checkboard tiles that run through the seating area.

3.

Menagerie

5.

Cloud 23.

2.

Neighbourhood

Next on the list is a bar and restaurant in Salford, well known for its bespoke food and cocktails. Asides from its great food and party atmosphere, the restaurant is also well known for its freestanding bathtub filled with colourful plastic balls. Positioned next to the bathtub is a large full-length mirror with a neon light display reading ‘Trade your broken wings for mine’. There have been many a shameless snapper climb into the bath in order to capture a frivolous photo.

The penultimate spot which enables a perfect selfie is in the bar come restaurant Sunset by Australasia in Spinningfields. Designed by award-winning interior designer Michelle Derbyshire, the chic interior boasts impressive velvet pink booths, huge floral displays and plush fluffy cushions. Whether it be inside or out in the terrace, it’s difficult not to get a good picture inside this picturesque space.

Talking to Sophie Thompson , the Junior Social Editor of Glamour UK

5 hot selfie spots around Manchester, writes Ruby Johnston

1.

Dirty Martini, Deansgate

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

4.

Sunset by Australasia

The final location for the ultimate Manchester selfie is the famed Cloud 23 restaurant and bar located inside the Hilton in Manchester Deansgate. As the highest restaurant in Manchester, the floor-to-ceiling windows provide an all-encompassing view of the Manchester cityscape. This is a great way to soak up the spectacular views the city has to offer and also the perfect spot for the ultimate Manchester selfie. When the sun drops, the vast metropolis illuminates the sky, providing the perfect backdrop for your picture!

Ever wondered what a day in the life of a young and successful journalist is like? We sit down with Sophie Thompson of Glamour UK to find out more If the work at University isn’t demanding enough, student distress is further catalysed by finance troubles, the pressure of settling into a new city, and the ever-crowded graduate market. Furthermore, many continue to feel anxious well beyond their first term of study, with it being commonplace to doubt yourself, your university course and your plans post-graduation. Yet, when the majority of students have only lived for two decades, believing you must have a concrete plan for the rest of your life is slightly unrealistic.

We recently sat down with Sophie Thompson, Junior Social Editor at Glamour UK, who appears to have it all figured out.

Yet, although having a dream job for many, Sophie touched on her own experience at University and how it can be a difficult time for most people, especially when so many people around you appear (on the surface) to have their life together.

University is a time to explore, both your personality and your new city in order to begin to discover what you’re good at and what career you may want to enter.

This certainly isn’t the time to have it all planned out. Sophie equally reflected on the gradual careers process and said: “You’re still at an age where you have no idea what you want to do with your life so a lot of it is just piecing things together that you like doing.” There’s no rush to get to the finish line, we’re all going to graduate at the same time!

Journalism is all about curiosity and a hunger for the unknown. A fast-paced career like this involves something new and exciting each and every day. Yet most significantly, like many other creative fields, journalism is a career which involves passion; without a spark of enthusiasm within your writing, your reader will be left unconvinced and shall move their loyalty to a new source or channel.

We asked Sophie what it was that first inspired her to seek a career in journalism, to which she replied: “I’ve always been a good writer and outside of education, fashion and beauty are two major passions of mine, so being able to combine them and end up in a position where I can do it as a career – I feel lucky more than anything to work at Glamour UK!” Fashion is one of the most competitive industries in the world, and despite rapid shifts in consumer culture and the rise of ‘influencers’, it remains an incredibly exclusive space. One reason for the industry’s elusiveness is due to its small circles, it is significantly smaller than one may realise. With a fluid culture of creative freelancing and internships, many young creatives regularly move around employers, meaning individuals often hold crucial connections through former employers and mutual friends.

Although networking is a crucial skill Photo: Bluevelvetvintage.com @ flickr

in every industry, the compact scale of the fashion circuit means that networking within fashion is incredibly important for any prospective employee within this field.

An individual may hold all of the right qualifications and experience, but by not having significant links within an industry will negatively disadvantage themselves from someone applying who is continually connecting to their wider network. It is extremely rare for an incredible opportunity to just abruptly present itself to you, meaning there’s all the more need to reach out to your contacts, or individuals you admire in order to gain experience.

We asked Sophie of Glamour UK what would be her number one tip be for someone hoping to enter the world of fashion journalism to which she reaffirmed the need to network. “Make contacts. You can have all of the experience in the world (which will of course help), but ultimately, it makes getting opportunities a LOT easier if you know the right people.

“Be sure to make time to catch up with friends from old jobs, go to events and get business cards from people you get talking with, message your favourite Instagrammer, apply to go to Fashion Week and make friends with stylists, photographers, anyone you can – because these are going to be the people that can put you in touch with the right people and get you where you want to be.”

Our last question to Sophie was what a typical day in the life of a ‘Junior Social Editor’ at Glamour UK would look like, to which she replied there certainly isn’t a boring one.

“I run all things social here at GLAMOUR UK, so my job is largely around making sure content gets out on time, making our Instagram feed look nice, liaising with influencers and that kind of thing. There are also a lot of opportunities here to learn new things and do things you enjoy, so with my degree being in journalism I also do a bit of writing for the site when I have time, which is a great way to get your name out there.

“No day is the same here – it’s massively hectic, yes, and you have to be prepared to work outside of office hours a lot, but at the same time, it’s really rewarding going to loads of cool events, meeting celebrities, getting free beauty products and clothes from brands.

“There’s also a huge buzz in the office when the first copy of our latest issue touches down on our editor’s desk and we get to see it for the first time, it’s amazing to be a part of such an incredibly friendly and talented team.”

Although Sophie’s position may seem like a distant dream for many, it appears the basic foundation needed is to be confident and pragmatic in your approach to your future career. Be confident, be passionate, and ultimately, be you!

Food & Drink 27

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Kosmos Taverna: Fallowfield’s hidden Greek gem Tucked away between the popular takeaway shops of Fallowfield, is a charming Greek restaurant, Catrin Stewart reviews the hidden gem of the student village Photo: Creative Commons @ max pixel

Kosmos Catrin Stewart

9/10

Tucked away behind a small doorway, between the popular takeaway shops of Fallowfield, is a charming Greek restaurant. With an understated blue and white decor compared to the garish neon and brightly coloured signs we see surrounding it, it is easy to walk past without noticing. Not least, because the restaurant’s name is written in Greek letters. I imagine the alphabet is blinding our English eyes from attempts to de-code it.

But this place is an oasis, a small taste of the Mediterranean in dreary south Manchester. You’ll find traditional feeling decor with the white walls and green plants. The lighting is soft and

calming but bright enough to still see your food.

The menu is extensive, with plenty of variety between and within courses. There are traditional dishes such as vine leaves, stuffed peppers and moussaka. The Greek names might throw you at first but the descriptions of the food speak for themselves. I had the vine leaves to start – unlike many slimy incarnations of the dish that I have tried, these were perfect. A side of tzatziki provided sharp yoghurt and fresh cucumber that perfectly contrasted the richer flavours of rice and dried fruit.

Main courses come with a choice of plenty of different sides – I would recommend the cracked wheat pilau. It’s easy to overlook in favour of trusty chips, but you won’t be disappointed. The grain is soft, full of flavour and the perfect accompaniment to most of the dishes on the menu.

The waiter was attentive and friendly. He

explained certain aspects of our dishes and why some sauces were matched with different elements. He highlighted the courgette and herb fritters as his favourite vegetarian dish, and I can vouch for that claim.

They were light and packed with many fresh herbs but still felt like a filling main course Finally – if you only do one thing that I have recommended in this review (other than going to Kosmos) save room for dessert and order the Baklava. I might be biased as it is one of my personal favourites, but the light filo pastry and generous layer of mixed rich nuts drenched in Greek honey should not be missed Kosmos offer a ridiculously reasonable student deal that can get you two courses and a glass of wine for £10.50 any day of the week other than Saturdays. If that doesn’t convince you I don’t know what will.

& C O D O R

A Y

P

chicken fever: Poultry passion or a mediocre meal?

Yard and Coop Elena Bradley

7.5/10

Tucked away in the Northern Quarter opposite the likes of ‘V-Revs’ and ‘Luck, Lust, Liquor and Burn’ hides ‘Yard and Coop’.The edgy punter’s KFC and with decor to match; the only place to eat lunch in a fairy-light-adorned chicken coop. Whilst predominantly poultry-based, vegetarians and vegans do have some options which are mainly based around halloumi and cauliflower (what’s new?). Admittedly, for a restaurant called ‘Yard and Coop’, the multiple attempts at providing for non-meat eaters are creditable. However, it does seem like an afterthought.

Yard and Coop has a great atmosphere; super chilled and very spacious, lending itself perfectly to lunches with friends or laid back dinners.

In an equally chilled capacity, the food doesn’t try to be something it’s not – which I respect.

The menu is based around different parts of the chicken. From wings, to boneless thighs, drumsticks, and monkey fingers (their own sexy chicken fingers which combine white and brown meat).

Once you have picked your chicken appendage of choice, you move to seven different options of accompanying sauce. These range from classic buffalo, ranch and Korean style to the bees knees; their own cayenne and lime hot sauce. Next on the chicken conveyor belt, you pick your style of fries. Sweet pota-

to, classic with cheese sauce, salt and pepper or dirty (buffalo, Dr Pepper BBQ and ranch).

There are also alternative options of burgers, larger plates, and sides like mac n cheese and ‘amaizeballs’. These were (quite frankly) life-changing sweetcorn fritters with Korean coriander and lime.

The actual food is nothing ground-breaking – but the menu doesn’t promise this, it promises ‘kickass’ chicken and I’d say it does this to the full.

Crispy, buttermilk pieces of chicken with a variety of flavourful sauces and loaded fries: this restaurant is definitely for your chicken cheat days.

I ordered the chicken drumsticks with classic buffalo and salt and pepper fries and was very content. The chicken is clearly well sourced; being both fresh and cooked perfectly. Whilst the sauces are great accompaniments, I would prefer the chicken to be glazed in the sauce, as it was just placed on the side in a small McDonald’s-esque sauce pot which didn’t feel like enough.

Equally, I will say the salt and pepper fries were a let down: just chips with soy sauce, garlic and red and green peppers thrown onto them; which doesn’t qualify as salt and pepper chips for me.

Overall, for a one person lunch you’re expecting to pay around at least a tenner, but more likely upwards of £15. The food is not exactly cheap. Having said that, the portions are absolutely massive – five big drumsticks per person (!) – and so I had more to take home which is always a bonus. In my opinion, Yard and Coop is what it says on the tin: great chicken and chips.

FOR THE 8 LEADERS OF YOUR STUDENTS’ UNION 28TH FEB TO 7TH MARCH manchesterstudentsunion.com/elections

Lifestyle 29

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Menstruation through the ages Anna McFadzean Contributor

Photo: Marco Verch@ flickr

Photo: Hedgehog Fibres@flickr

Photo: m.p.3@flickr

Photo: Max Pixel @ Public Domain

Anna McFadzean explores menstruation throughout history, and the exhibition focused on society’s complex relationship with periods

The John Rylands Library’s six month exhibition ‘Women Who Shaped Manchester’ showcases the exceptional stories of the women that have characterised our city. It includes pioneers in the fields of politics, science and culture. Tying in with the themes of this exhibition is a small display of medical materials. They highlight some shocking, enlightening and often laughable attitudes towards menstruation through the ages.

The display follows the myth of menstruation from its roots in early physiological theory. It journeys through the supernatural and misogynistic, to the completely absurd.

Firstly, the exhibition celebrates the work of Catherine Chisholm – a British physician and the first female medical graduate of the University of Manchester.

She was an early 20th Century pioneer for women’s healthcare in the city. Later, she went on to found the Manchester Babies Hospital. Chisholm radicalised attitudes towards menstruation in medicine, in a turn from male speculation towards the study of women’s experience. The exhibition includes Chisholm’s 1912 thesis: a survey of over 500 schoolgirls in Manchester regarding menstrual pain.

In it, she works to disprove existing medical definitions informed by male practitioners. Furthermore, Chisholm weighs in on the hotly contested topic of co-education.

The thesis boldly concludes that menstruation does not have an impact on girls’ capacity for knowledge.

However, an insight into the preceding discourse on menstruation is needed to appreciate the significance of her work. Hence, the introductory talk to this display began with a discussion of its 19thCentury materials.

Firstly, it looks at Harvard Professor of Medicine Edward Clarke’s thesis ‘Sex in Education’. The thesis is a collection of staggering arguments that was popular in the (uncomfortably recent) 1870s. Clarke claimed that young girls were experiencing “physiological disasters”, as they were “beyond their biological capacity”. He claimed that higher education was impeding the growth of their “peculiar and marvellous apparatus”, and inhibiting menstru-

ation. At least, people argued this audacious claim on a scientific basis, unlike Nicholas Cooke’s ‘Satan in Society’.

Cooke decided that menstruation represented the consecration (declaration as sacred) of young women, and therefore the parting of ways between men and women.

Both of these texts appear embarrassingly late in the medical timeline. They represent regressive attitudes to physiology, equality, and education. Whilst neither theorist stopped the education of women, their work exemplifies some of the beliefs that early female students such as Chisholm had to contend with.

The display looks back again to the 17thCentury. In the 1600s, menstruation was seen as a general barometer for women’s health. Healthcare was based around the theory of the four humors — black bile, yellow bile, blood, phlegm — the imbalance of which was supposedly cause for any illness. People believed menstruation was the body’s natural balancing of the humors. However, blood-letting was the treatment for ‘too little’ or ‘too much’ blood as many believed it to be an illness. ‘Too little’ menstrual blood was not only associated with physical illnesses, but also with mental health issues. One of the volumes on display lists its causes as “too little exercise, indigestion, upset stomach, sadness, grief, frights and the like”.

Although the medical theories displayed here are wildly inaccurate, they emphasise the shift in attitudes to menstruation between the 17th and 19th centuries. Attitudes move from scientific enquiry to the Victorians’ misogynistic fear of women’s bodies.

There is an ironic absence of female voices in the discussion of menstruation. The display addresses this and Chisholm transforms the dominant male narrative.

Chisholm challenges the exclusionary, othering attitudes to the female body that shaped pre-existing medical discourse. She ultimately uses menstruation as an empowering means for entering the medical field.

Not only was Catherine Chisholm a Woman Who Shaped Manchester, she was a woman who transformed women’s healthcare, radicalised women’s education, and took a pioneering step in unravelling the myth of menstrution.

When ‘The What’s on Diary’ met Maisie Williams Fuse FM hosts Matt and Brandon attended TEDx Manchester to interview speakers, including Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams Matt Culley Contributor You may not have tuned in yet, but the Fuse FM radio show ‘You may not have tuned in yet, but the Fuse FM radio show ‘The What’s on Diary’ is a growing name around campus. Co-hosts Matt and Brandon take to the airwaves every Sunday from 2-3pm. This is perfect timing for many of you; emerging from the unique kind of hangover resulting from a heavy Saturday night out in Manchester. Filled with an hour of chilled vibes and engaging conversations, you cannot miss it. A month ago, we were given unprecedented backstage access to TEDx Manchester.

The first speaker to take to the stage is interpretative dancer Moon Ribas, co-founder of the Cyborg Rights foundation. Moon, from Barcelona has Earthquake vibration devices inserted into her arms and feet. Earthquakes trigger those in her arms and moonquakes, her feet. Using these vivid rhythms, she anthropomorphises natural phenomena and translates them into dance routines set to appropriate music.

By using these impulses to prompt her next move, she achieves complete independence from social interaction and the artificiality of the built environment. An hour after her talk had finished, we caught up with Moon backstage at the Bridgewater Hall.

After training at Dance College in the UK and becoming familiar with uniquely human behaviour, Moon said that this did not fulfil her ambition to connect with nature and the planet.

She wondered “If I could be alone in the planet how could I perceive movement?” This gave her the idea of having electronic sensory equipment surgically implanted into her.

When connected to WiFi, she is able to feel any earthquake detected by seismometers, anywhere on Earth or the Moon.

Now she even plans to have a connection to Mars-quakes, too: “This new way of perceiving reality, has of course, changed my

perception of the planet.”

“It was a surprise for me to find out that the Earth is constantly moving”. Reflecting on the societal implications of designing the senses which an individual may choose to have, Moon contemplated that “everyone can decide how they want to be… what would you like to sense?”

From vivid artistic imagery to issues closer to home – TEDx had it covered. Our next interview was with ‘charitable barber’ Ged King. After suffering from trauma during his childhood and a successful military career, Ged found himself at a loss. Before long, he had founded Skullfades.

Skullfades is an organisation which aims to give humanity and confidence back to homeless people by giving them free haircuts. Several years later, and Ged works closely with Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham to tackle homelessness in the city. His most recent project was touring Paris and the refugee camps of Calais – with the same dream of humanising the oft-dehumanised.

Faced with the extraordinary statistic that “homelessness has gone up in Manchester by over 900% since 2010”, Ged decide to act. After founding a barbershop business, he decided to simply go out onto the street with his staff and offer free haircuts to the homeless. Over time he has built up a rapport with the community and learnt a lot about individuals: “Most of the guys on the street, if not all the guys, have experienced high levels of trauma”.

It was this shared sense of a life that could have been, which gave Ged an additional layer of empathy.

“Because of that suffering, it gives me that gift of seeing it in other people and reaching out”. Gaining a profile through his compassion, Ged has also worked closely with those in positions of power. Local politicians have been a positive influence he feels. He explained that he does not “blame anybody” — in fact, he believes those in power are making a positive contribu-

tion — “Manchester’s homeless problem has declined for the first time in ten years”.

Following this sobering reality, we were propelled into the fantasy world of Game of Thrones actress, Maisie Williams. After a quick bite to eat, we sat in a utilitarian room backstage at the Bridgewater. We prepared to interview one of the world’s greatest actresses. Introductions were made, hands were shaken, and we sat down to talk.

We set off to a good start after confirming that we were indeed a low budget, student production: “We are now using a phone” to record. With its final series about to air, and with future plans in the pipeline, Maisie chatted to us about her experiences of acting. We spoke about being cast in the world’s biggest TV drama series as well as her love for Manchester Maisie’s assertion that “as a famous person people think they know a lot about you” made it clear that fame does not necessarily bring you happiness or fulfilment. We discussed the process behind auditioning for new acting roles after Game of Thrones.

“Just because you’ve done things before, it doesn’t make you any more right for another role”, she explained and conversation moved on to Maisie’s new company — “it was still definitely like a journey figuring out things I wanted to do”.

Referring to the potential immortality of her role as Arya Stark, she believed that she “always felt very different to the character”, but also remains convinced that Game of Thrones would be hard to top “in terms of the show being so iconic”.

“If I never do anything that’s quite as big again I don’t think I’d be mad at that because it did kind of blow everyone’s expectations”.

And to finish, Maisie’s music choices? “I’ve been listening to a lot of James Blake’s new album, Assume Form”.

You can listen to The What’s on Diary every Sunday from 2-3pm on Fuse FM. You can suggest an event we should cover on our Facebook or Instagram pages.

30 Sport England’s five day failures and short form successes ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Harry Deacon analyses the Windies series so far and how the English set up is fairing in preparation for a huge summer of cricket Harry Deacon Deputy Sport Editor After a fairly tragic three match test series out in the Caribbean, England have set about trying to rectify their performances in time for a huge summer of cricket.

The Ashes may prove difficult for an England side that struggled for runs where it counted in the first two tests. 89 runs from Burns in the second innings of the first test proved to be the best opening score, with Jennings worryingly failing to reach 25 in all six of his innings.

However, with the ICC World Cup also approaching, focus must also be turned to the shorter forms of the game: England finally show what they are all about at first One-Day International (ODI) of four. A 6 wicket win with a single name being hard to pick as the best of the bunch – three wickets from Stokes and Rashid followed by centuries from Roy and Root eased the English to victory.

A five-wicket haul from Cottrell dispatched both of the openers in the second ODI. Morgan and Stokes put up a fight but eventually reached the same fate of Roy and Bairstow allowing the

Windies to level the series at 1-1.

However, the third ODI was a marvel to watch. Jos Butler scored a spectacular 150, setting a record number or sixes along the way, while Morgan also grabbed a century as England set a colossal target of 418.

Things looked nervy for the tourists as Gayle set about his usual innings scoring boundaries for fun on route to his 162. A captivating over from Rashid, however, managed to clean up the tail end of the Windies batsmen, with the home side crumbling to fall just short at 389.

With the remainders of the ODIs still to be

played, and a T-20 Series also to follow, there is still much cricket to be played before the crucial ICC World Cup and The Ashes.

For the fans this summer promises to be one of the most exciting in recent years. The Oval hosts the World Cup opener between England and South Africa, with the final of the tournament taking place at the historic and prestigious Lord’s.

Furthermore, as this year’s Ashes are on home soil, fans will be hoping to see display that is quite the contrary to that shown in the West India series in order to regain the notorious trophy.

England’s Grand Slam hopes crushed at the Principality Stadium Wales took advantage of England’s inability to use possession in a match that could decide the whole 6 Nations, ending English Grand Slam hopes James Gill Head Sport Editor England’s hopes to win the Grand Slam in the 2019 6 Nations were crushed by fellow Grand Slam hopefuls Wales in a scrappy Test at the Principality Stadium. Wales sealed a recordbreaking 12th consecutive victory as they came from behind to win 21-13.

Having beaten Ireland 32-20 at the Aviva Stadium and demolished France 44-8, England were favourites heading into the fixture.

With Wales also sporting a 2-0 lead so far in

the tournament, it felt as though the whole Championship rested on this game.

Eddie Jones’ side went into half time 10-3 up thanks to flanker Tom Curry’s first try for England. Up until that point, Wales had been defending resiliently however elements of miscommunication cost them dearly. The Welsh re-grouped during the break and came out in the second half on a mission to retake control of the game, and that they did.

Second row Cory Hill managed to put the home side into the lead 13 minutes from time after a gruelling series of drives. England looked

lost while in possession, often kicking after one or two phases and seemingly the only way to stay in contention was a penalty or drop goal to level the score at 16-16.

Any hopes of getting a draw were dashed as Josh Adams caught a Dan Biggar cross-field kick to secure the win with another try. Biggar missed the conversion but the damage was already done.

If England are to lift the 6 Nations trophy they will need a bit of luck. With only Scotland and Italy left to play, arguably the two weakest teams, they should end with a 4-1 record. Wales, on the

other hand, have Ireland to play last, a defeat there would give Jones’ side the Championship due to their bonus points.

After the game England captain, Owen Farrell said: “We didn’t really get a foothold in the last 30 minutes of the game. We did well in the first half and we had a good go at the start of the second, but then we couldn’t get back that momentum.”

“We made a few errors and they did what they did well. We couldn’t get out of our half and they managed to build a lot of pressure. It will feel a lot worse than it should now but we will look back on it and learn from what we need to.”

Photo: Jim Linwood @ Flickr Photo: Sean MacEntee @ Flickr

United get a point against James DeGale announces Liverpool despite four first injuries retirement after UD loss to James Owenhalf takes a look at one of the Premier League’s most anticipated matches, as the in-form Chris Eubank Jr Manchester United hosted top of the table Liverpool

Eubank Jr won the vacant IBO super-middleweight belt and will be hoping to secure a fight for one of the four major belts James Gill Head Sport Editor Chris Eubank Jr achieved arguably the biggest win of his career so far in a unanimous points victory against James DeGale. The fight, at London’s O2 Arena, was the last for DeGale as he announced his retirement from boxing.

Despite neither boxer finding momentum during the bout, Eubank Jr forced two counts, once in round two and again in round ten, both from left hooks. DeGale wasn’t far behind, although he didn’t knock his opponent down at all, and held his hand in the air as the scores we read out.

The scores all read in Eubank Jr’s favour, 114-112, 115-112, 117-109. After the fight, he said: “I’m back where I need to be, at the top of the food chain and now I’m coming for all the other belts in the super-middleweight division.”

“I dominated pretty much every round.

He is a hell of a skilled fighter but my heart and tenacity got me there. A lot of people said I was going to get my head jabbed off and not stand with a proven boxer. It was the most important fight of my career and I’ve made the statement. It is belt season, it is collection season.”

Eubank Jr won the vacant IBO supermiddleweight title which, while not one of the four major titles (WBO, WBC, IBF, or WBA), is a step back in the right direction after losing the belt a year ago to George Groves. He will be hoping that this will put him back on the map and open up fights with the four belt-holders.

DeGale, on the other hand, said before the fight that he would “knock it on the head” if he lost, something he later confirmed. He said about the loss: “I’m going to go back, talk to my team, and talk to my family.”

“I’ve been to the heights of boxing, I’ve won an Olympic gold medal, won the world title twice, made history and I’ve boxed the best around the world. I’ve left my mark in boxing.”

James Owen Sport Reporter A stalemate at Old Trafford saw Liverpool go top of the Premier League as Manchester United dropped down to fifth. In a highly anticipated fixture between England’s two most successful sides, lacklustre performances in the final third made sure the fixture was anything but a classic.

Jurgen Klopp’s men started off on the front foot with James Milner powering an indirect free kick into the Manchester United wall. Liverpool continued to apply the pressure as Joel Matip was brought down on the edge of the area, but again Liverpool failed to capitalise as Mo Salah’s effort sailed over the bar.

In the 40th minute, Manchester United created the chance of the half as Romelu Lukaku played Jesse Lingard in behind with a pass that left the Liverpool defence flatfooted. Alisson was quick to respond though with an exceptional save.

What started as a high tempo game of football quickly became disrupted in bizarre fashion, as Manchester United interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was forced into making all three substitutions within 40 minutes, whilst

Firminho also made way for Daniel Sturridge.

Marcus Rashford, who suffered a knock early on, was forced to hobble on with no substitutions available.

After the break the visitors couldn’t take advantage of United’s injury woes, failing to register a shot on target with United happy to let them control possession of the ball. Instead, it was Solskjaer’ men who enjoyed the better chances with Matip putting the ball in his own net on the 71st minute (something he attempted in similar fashion midweek). However, his blushes were spared as Michael Oliver correctly ruled it offside.

“It was a strange game, we started really well.

All the injuries in the game obviously cost us rhythm. It happened to us with Bobby [Firmino] and that was a catastrophe,” Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said after the game.

Solskjaer praised his team’s performance, “I can’t remember David having to make a save, so we kept them out of it, and we probably created one or two massive moments that we could have scored.”

Midweek wins for both United and Liverpool against Crystal Palace and Watford respectively helped sustain their top-four and title challenges.

ISSUE 18 / 4th March 2019 WWW.MANCUNION.COM

Sport 31

England’s Women on course for Grand Slam in the Six Nations Only Italy and Scotland stand in the way of a 14th Grand Slam, but the amateur Azzuri are also undefeated like the professional Red Roses James Gill Head Sport Editor England beat Wales 51-12 as they look to secure the Six Nations Grand Slam with two games remaining in the tournament. Nine tries were scored by the Red Rose as they comfortably won in Cardiff.

The result leaves England top of the table with 15 points. Italy are the only other undefeated team, although having drawn with Wales, they are three points behind the English. With the next game between the two sides, there is still all to play for.

After the game, England Head Coach Simon Middleton said “We’re definitely not taking a Grand Slam for granted, you can never do that. It’s too valuable. We’re really pleased with the result. To score 50 points in any game is impressive but to score 50 today is testament to some skilful play and down

to staying in the game and overcoming some frustration to finish strong.”

England are the only professional team in this year’s Six Nations having been given professional contracts in January. The only other nations to offer contracts are France and New Zealand, however these are parttime. Fans and players alike will be hoping that other nations will follow England’s lead.

These full-time contracts for the rugby union side aren’t the first example of professionalism in the women’s rugby game.

Back in 2011, the Netherlands became the first side to offer women’s rugby contracts to their sevens team.

A slew of other countries joined in with England following suit in 2014. Funding for the sevens game has been easier to come by with it being reintroduced into the Olympics in 2016 and there are several sources of money which, despite not being massive, are enough to provide the team with contracts.

The fifteen-a-side form of the game, on the other hand, hasn’t been so lucky. Efforts were made by Italy in 1960, the Soviet Union and 1980, and South Korea in 1988, to get the sport put into the Olympic program but all were met with rejection. It is hoped that the excitement of sevens, as seen in Rio Olympics, will convince the committee that it too should join.

Should that happen, the fifteens sides will have excess to many of the same sources as money as their sevens counterparts, and we would see many more sides turning professional. That said, the decision

by England to offer their side contracts regardless will send a message to the other rugby governing bodies.

With just two games left, against Italy and Scotland, England will be hoping to emulate what the French achieved last year, the Grand Slam. England sides over the years have won 13 Grand Slams with the only real test being

Italy for a fourteenth.

Their final game is against Scotland and is expected to be a walkover. Two of the top ten highest team scores in the Six Nations have been England vs Scotland. The first was back in 2011 when England were going for their sixth consecutive title. A run that would finish at seven, with six of those being Grand Slams.

In that 2011 Championship, England demolished Scotland 89-0. That score is nine points more than the equivalent men’s highest score, an 80 point drumming of Italy

by England in 2001. The second was when England’s women last won a Grand Slam in 2017, with a smaller 64-0 victory.

Simon Middleton and his side will be hoping to cap their Six Nations off with a something similar but there is still a game against a strong Italy side to go. That game will take place on March 9th at Sandy Park, Exeter while Wales face Scotland on March 8th.

women’s hockey and men’s lacrosse sides both ease past opposition The Men’s fencing team progressed to the final of their cup as they move onto an eight-game winning streak James Gill Head Sport Editor Another week, another set of fixtures played by the men and women of the University of Manchester. Here at The Mancunion, we’ve got the scoop of all the biggest games, starting with lacrosse.

The University of Manchester men’s 1st team side comfortably beat their Bristol

counterparts 14-5 in the Quarter Finals of the Lacrosse Championship. They progress to the Semi-Finals of the competition where they will face Nottingham Trent who overcame Leeds Beckett with easy 13-4.

Trent are perhaps the easiest of the SemiFinal opposition, with Manchester lucky to avoid favourites Durham. No matter the outcome, the side has done fantastically to overcome their poor form during the season and progress this far.

Elsewhere, the women’s hockey 1st side overcame a two-game losing streak as they beat a Liverpool John Moores side that has failed to win a game all season. The 4-1 scoreline should give the side confidence as they look to finish the season strong with their final game against Newcastle coming up soon.

The biggest match of the week came in the form of the men’s fencing team. There entered their Northern Conference Cup Semi Final

against the University of Leeds on a sevengame win streak with victory taking them into the Final to play the University of York.

Fortunately they didn’t foil that streak, with a 133-111 scoreline in the glamorous surroundings of the Sugden Sports Centre putting the men’s side on a course for an epic finale to the season. Both sides finished their seasons unbeaten and so the climax, at Goodwin Sports Centre in Sheffield, is not an event to miss.

Photo: mirsasha @ Flickr

Serena Williams cartoon cleared of racism, deemed “offensive” The Serena Williams cartoon that circulated after her US Open final loss has been cleared of racism and continues to divide opinions Harry Deacon Deputy Sport Editor The Australian Press Council have cleared a controversial Serena Williams cartoon of racism accusations.

The cartoon, created by Mark Knight of The Herald Sun, depicted an angry Williams while the umpire asks her opponent to “just let her win”.

The cartoon emerged in the aftermath of the US Open final, where the most successful female tennis player in history

accused the umpire of being a “liar” and a “thief”.

The cartoon sparked conversations of how Black women are portrayed in the media. The portrayal of Williams as unfeminine, rageful, and disrespectful is consistent of today’s trope of the “angry Black woman” in the media, according to professor Trina Jones.

Jones adds that when a Black woman opposes anything “they’re deemed to be domineering. Aggressive. Threatening.

Loud.”

The world number ten lost her patience

with the umpire as she received point and game punishments for her in-game actions, followed later by a fine.

Although the umpire did dish out the penalties to the letter of the law, the incident brought to light the question of why Williams was pulled up, while plenty of other players get away with similar, or even worse, actions.

The Women’s Tennis Association has declared the turn of events as “sexist”.

Thus, the incident brings claims of institutionalised sexism and racism in both tennis and the media.

The watchdog report stated that the cartoon did “not depict Ms Williams as an ape”, alluding that the crude caricature, although “offensive”, was not racist.

The event continues to divide opinions, with one side insisting that the cartoon was neither racist nor sexist.

Others argue that the image highlights underlying racism left over from minstrelsy, an offensive form of entertainment from the darker recesses of American history, as well as the umpire portraying sexism in his actions during the US Open final.

Photo : Dan Cork@flickr

Kepa-strophe!

City retain Carabao Cup, Sarri undermined

Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga publicly challenged under-pressure manager Mauizio Sarri as the Citizens defeated the Blues 4-3 on penalties at Wembley Chris Perrin Contributor Manchester City came out on top against Chelsea to win the Carabao Cup final 4-3 on penalties. With nothing to separate the two sides after 120 minutes, it was Raheem Sterling who stepped up with ice-cold composure to score the winning penalty. However, the game was overshadowed by a few minutes of madness in extra-time when Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted.

Being played just two weeks after City hit Chelsea for six at the Etihad, the final proved to be a far cagier affair. Under the management of Maurizio Sarri, it has been difficult to predict which Chelsea will turn up and there have been occasions on which it has looked like ‘Sarriball’ is finally starting to resonate with his squad Yet, recent bruising defeats at the hands of Bournemouth and the two Manchester clubs have been major setbacks. At Wembley on Sunday however, Chelsea’s setup was well-

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An incredible scene unfolded, with Sarri clearly enraged on the touchline. It was a war of wills, which Kepa won.

Inside Sport

organised. They opted to soak up pressure from their opponents and then counter-attack. Eden Hazard’s blistering pace and dribbling ability made him an important outlet. For City, who so often break teams down with ease, chances were few and far between.

Sergio Aguero did have the ball in the net on 54 minutes, but the Argentinian was ruled offside, with the decision confirmed to be correct by VAR. As the clock kept ticking and the score remained 0-0, a sense of belief appeared to grow among the Chelsea players. N’Golo Kante went close to scoring after 66 minutes, firing over the bar from ten yards out. Ultimately, neither side could break the deadlock in regulation time.

In extra-time, it was City who were doing most of the attacking. Raheem Sterling threatened on multiple occasions down the right-hand side. With three minutes remaining, Antonio Rüdiger’s slip allowed Aguero to let fly just outside Chelsea’s area.

His effort was saved by Kepa down to his left, but the Chelsea goalkeeper injured himself in the process, suffering from cramp. Seeing this, Sarri told Kepa’s understudy Willy Caballero to get ready to come on. Although the motivation for the substitution was Kepa’s injury, Caballero’s impressive record in penalty shoot-outs, as well as his stint at City not so long ago, made the substitution also appear tactically astute.

However, as the fourth official’s board went up to announce the substitution, Kepa waved to his boss in protest, insisting he was fit to continue. An incredible scene unfolded, with Sarri clearly enraged on the touchline. It was a war of wills, which Kepa won. The world’s most expensive goalkeeper refused to come off when told to, and in doing so completely undermined his manager’s authority. Few football fans will have ever witnessed anything like it before.

In the shootout, Kepa went on to save Leroy

Women’s Six Nations

Sané’s penalty but was unable to keep out City’s other four. Jorginho and David Luiz didn’t help their keeper by misfiring for Chelsea. Raheem Sterling dispatched the winning penalty with a daring confidence, finding what he called “top bins”.

At his press conference after the game, Sarri played down the substitution incident: “It was a big misunderstanding because I understood that he had a cramp and I did not want my keeper to penalties in that physical condition”.

Kepa also took to social media to state that there was a misunderstanding between technical area and pitch, reaffirming that he has “full respect for the coach and his authority”.

Sarri’s decision in the following days to fine Kepa a week’s wages and drop him in Chelsea’s midweek win against Tottenham may suggest that what occurred was a lot more than just a misunderstanding Indeed, such an unprecedented disregard for a manager’s authority has provoked shock in the football world. But what may be equally as striking is the actions of Kepa’s team-mates during the incident. At the time only David Luiz approached Kepa to discuss what was going on.

Club captain Cesar Azpilcueta chose not to involve himself in the situation and shied away from passing any judgement post-match, explaining that he was on the other side of the pitch.

It is no secret that Chelsea have a history of sending managers on their way when they do not produce the goods. No manager has served for three full seasons since José Mourinho’s first spell at the club came to an end in 2007. This creates an unstable culture in which players see themselves outlasting their managers at the club.

When pressure mounts on the manager, it may make more sense for players to swim with the tide. Currently sitting in sixth position in the

Uni sport round-up

Premier League with the Europa League as their only chance of silverware this season, there can be no doubts that Sarri finds himself under pressure to prove he is the man to take Chelsea forward.

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When pressure mounts on the manager, it may make more sense for players to swim with the tide.

With a two-window transfer ban recently being imposed on Chelsea, Sarri will have to win over his current set of players otherwise his days will be numbered. What we saw at Wembley on Sunday may well be an indication of the latter As for Manchester City, securing their first trophy of the 2018/19 campaign under their belt will be a massive boost of confidence as they stride through to the home straight of the footballing season. Pep Guardiola will not yet entertain the idea of winning the quadruple, but at this stage, there may well be a feeling of ‘one down, three to go’ for City fans.

With a trip to Bournemouth and the return leg against Schalke in the Champions League to play before the upcoming international break, the sky blues will be looking to keep up the momentum as they fire on all cylinders.

Chris Eubank Jr