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News GoFundMe launched for severely injured student
Ella Bicknell
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Friends and family of Tom Lazarides have launched a fundraising page for the third-year business and management student, who suffered life changing injuries after a swimming pool accident in June 2020. Tom was visiting a friend’s swimming pool during the summer holiday. When diving into the pool, he fractured his neck in two places and sustained a serious spinal cord injury.
The Durham student was airlifted to an intensive care bed King’s College Hospital in London. For many weeks he could breathe only with the assistance of a ventilator. During the summer, Tom contracted rhabdomy-
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The University Executive, in response, told Palatinate: “The Respect At Study procedure covers all forms of potential bullying and harassment. In some less serious cases, speaking to, or writing to, the person concerned to let them know that their behaviour is unacceptable can be sufficient to remedy the situation. For serious allegations of racist behaviour this approach would not be appropriate. The Respect At Study policy is currently subject to review, including consultation with students.”
DPOCA’s letter also claims, in reference to a cultural survey conducted following the signing of the Race Equality Charter: “The findings of this survey expose how the university fails to acknowledge significant issues like the low BAME representation amongst staff. The composition of the senate discipline commitolysis, a condition where skeletal muscles break down, which slowed his recovery.
The Hild Bede student has been described as a popular young man who loved to play sports. He played county-level cricket, rugby, and was a valued member of Durham University’s golf team. Speaking to Kent Online, his mother, Bridget Lazarides, said “I am incredibly grateful that he is alive and incredibly lucky that he is starting to recover”.
Tom’s friends aimed to raise £30,000 over the summer, climbing mountains and completing swim challenges in freezing waters
Tom is now able to breathe unaided and no longer needs to tee, for example, is worrying as there are only three BAME members out of nineteen.”
The University executive argued that signing up to the Race Equality Charter was “an important reflection of our desire to address racial inequalities as part of the University’s wide-ranging commitments to equality, diversity and inclusion. The framework will help us to identify what we can do to support the representation and achievement of our minority ethnic staff and students across our whole University community.”
Another major theme of the letters was a perceived lack of transparency in terms of incidents of racism. DPOCA said: “The University does not provide publicly the statistics on the number of reported incidents, open investigations and outcomes of racist incidents. This means that the true extent of racist incidents that occur at this University are not known. We relaunched our wear a neck brace. According to fundraising pages set up to aid Tom’s recovery, “he now faces the very realistic possibility of being discharged to a care home, with no realistic path to recovery on the NHS, and limited access to physiotherapy”. The family is now looking to move him from Stoke Mandeville hospital, which can only offer four 45-minute physiotherapy sessions a week, which will enable Tom to fulfil his potential. The GoFundMe page, “A Ton for Tom”, aims to raise £100,000 to fund what is needed to start his recovery. It is projected that a bed at the rehab hospital will cost £10,000 a week and ongoing physiotherapy will cost £3,700 a week. Tom is determined to finish his degree and is planning his long-term future, however, treatment has been dramatically cut due to Covid-19. (Beatrice Law) ‘Recognise, Report, and Resist’ form recently and in three days we have had almost 20% of reports that the total reports that the Report and Support tool had over the last year. We ask that the university increases transparency and make these statistics be available to the public.”
Several of the letters also cite statistics that 62% of students do not think anything will happen if they report a hate crime.
The University Executive pointed to its new “online Report and Support tool through which staff, students and visitors can report unwanted behaviours and seek support: reportandsupport. durham.ac.uk.”
The letter claimed that DPOCA had provided its college POC representatives with Anti-racism training, and criticised the University for not doing so itself. “If the university were to provide POC Reps with adequate support, it would make tackling racism at the college level so much easier. If
Tom’s friends raised over £30,000 during the summer, climbing mountains and completing swim challenges in freezing waters. Since 9th November, the GoFundMe has raised over £8,500 from 100 donations, ranging from £5 to £5,000. One donor commented, “I don’t know the man but I felt like I had to help. Hopefully everything starts looking up for him. Stay strong!”
Olympic gold medallist Sir Mo Farah sent a video to offer his support: “I know you’re fighting right now, a tough battle but believe in yourself, I know you can win it.” Cricket players including England Captain Joe Root, a variety of Premiership rugby players and Liverpool’s Joe Gomez have all sent Tom video messages.
As well as the GoFundMe Page, Tom’s school and university friends set up “Tom’s Fight” with the university really cared about making Durham a safe space, they wouldn’t leave it up to students to do all the groundwork. This is your responsibility.”
The University told Palatinate: “When the College People of Colour (POC) representative structure was introduced in August 2020, the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Unit worked with the Durham People of Colour Association (DPOCA) and provided funding to support training for the POC representatives. We continue to work closely with DPOCA and look forward to doing so in future, including through our work on respect and tackling racial inequalities.” nothing if you refuse to adissues within the university”
The main letter from DPOCA acknowledged recent statements made by the University, such as that by Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Anthony Long, that “Racism has no place at Durham University”. Similarly, following the death of George Floyd, the University stated that it is united in tackling ‘ignorance, intolerance and hatred.’
The University continued: “We condemn all racism and hate crime in the strongest possible terms. Racism has no place at Durham University.
“We are working to build a safe, respectful and inclusive environment. We acknowledge we have more to do to make this a reality for everyone, but we are working hard to achieve this.
“Having signed the Race Equality Charter in March 2019, we are working to understand any instia series of fundraising challenges aimed to raise £30,000 over the summer. Their first swim challenge took them from Bradfordon-Avon to Bristol, swimming 36km over two days and raising £19,000. Their second challenge involved climbing Ben Nevis followed by a swim from Fort William to Fort Augustus, through the Caledonian Canal and Lochs, covering over 26 miles through freezing waters. They then returned by canoe and climbed the summit of Nevis again.
One of Tom’s best friends, Will Bryant, is also running a marathon in Florida in March to fundraise for Tom’s recovery, and has so far raised £2,230 out of his £3,800 target. Tom’s supporters have created an Instagram account to update followers on the developments in his recovery and
DPOCA: “Performative actions mean nothing”
fundraising. tutional or cultural barriers that may stand in the way of BAME staff and students, and to improve the representation, progression and success of BAME staff and students within our University community.
“Professor Jacqui Ramagge, our Executive Dean for Science, and a representative from the BAME Staff Network, currently chair a Black Lives Matter round-table discussion for University staff, which has been meeting with University Executive representatives to discuss relevant issues and identify opportunities to address structural inequalities from a race perspective.
“Also Professor Simon Forrest, Principal of the College of St Hild and St Bede, has chaired a roundtable discussion involving stuNews Online dents and senior University staff including Executive members. This has led to the University providing financial support to a student-led project aimed at supporting access to higher education by people of colour.
“We have made it a University priority to take forward the recommendations of the Durham Commission on Respect, Values and Behaviour. We are currently seeking nominations to a Respect Oversight Group, which will oversee their delivery and report on progress to the University Executive. For more information on getting involved or making a nomination, please visit the Durham University website.
“The vast majority of our community embrace our shared goal of creating an environment that is respectful and inclusive. However, where behaviour falls below the standards we would expect, we will take swift and decisive action.”
Durham lead in mass testing helps students return for Christmas
News University defends high salaries
Max Kendix News Editor
Most departments are to move to online teaching from 7th December, as the University continues to trial the new Lateral Flow Tests (LFTs) in several colleges. The online teaching and tests will enable students to travel home in a national “student travel window” from 3rd to 9th December.
The Bill Bryson Library and the Sports and Wellbeing Park will remain open for most of the winter holidays, as will access to catering for students.
The form of catering will vary by college situation, but will at least include a pantry or selfcatered kitchen, and potentially a central catering facility to buy meals.
Durham is still the only university in the UK distributing LFTs widely and on a self-administered basis, with those living in Stephenson, Van Mildert and University College being the first to sign up to the pilot scheme.
LFTs aim to identify asymptomatic students, with results available in less than half an hour. Michelle Donelan, Minister for Universities, told Vice-Chancelparticipation programmes
Cllr Simon Henig, Leader of Durham County Council, said: “This year has been incredibly difficult for people in County Durham and across the world.
“The impact of coronavirus on our communities has been profound and I think we are all in need of something to look forward to at the moment.
“By announcing Lumiere’s relors that free self-administered Covid-19 tests would be provided to facilitate mass testing in the week before the travel window.
English universities were told to move all teaching online by 10th December to allow student to travel then study at home for the end of term.
At Durham, certain face-to-face teaching will continue until that date, including laboratory-based teaching and practicals. The University’s current plan is to resume in Epiphany term with a “blended model of face to face teaching and online learning”.
The news comes as Covid-19 cases dwindle in Durham, with daily cases now in single figures. Cases have decreased significantly at most universities since the first few weeks of term, and Durham still leads nationally in terms of cases as a proportion of the total student and staff population.
Durham’s University and Col-
lege Union (UCU) branch threatened strike action at the end of October if face-to-face teaching was not suspended.
Vice-Chancellor Stuart Corbridge, however, said that the University has seen “no evidence of transmission in classroom settings”, and are “continuing with prioritised face to face teaching, as well as with a wide range of in person student enrichment activities”.
He continued: “We welcome the Government’s guidance on how students at English universities can travel home safely for
Lumiere to return in 2021
turn next year, we hope to spread Community outreach is also Kiara Davies a message of hope and show there an important part of Lumiere. News Reporter is light at the end of the tunnel in Since 2009, more than 10,000 these difficult times. local residents, including thouLumiere, the UK’s largest and “As the evaluation of last year’s sands of schoolchildren, have most successful light festival, will return to County Durham in 2021, showcasing works by local, national, and international artists. Last year’s Lumiere boosted the local economy by £11.5 million, and, despite the extreme weather conditions affecting attendance numbers, turnout remained high with around festival demonstrates, Lumiere also provides a significant boost to our economy, as well as supporting artists and creative businesses from the UK and beyond. “The most complete recent figures show creative industries contributed more than £11 billion to the UK economy in 2018 and we expect the arts will play a crucial role in our region’s recovbenefited from the festival’s learning and participation programmes, as well as the many volunteering opportunities the event creates. The event has been planned to take place from Thursday 18th to Sunday 21st November 2021, with the art’s charity and Lumiere organiser, Artichoke, making 165,000 visitors. ery from the pandemic. sure that appropriate measures “Lumiere will be a major part are in place to keep attendants More than 10,000 local residents have benefited from of that and I’m delighted to an nounce its return.” - safe in accordance with the cur rent coronavirus guidelines. the festival’s learning and (Naomi Clarke/Paul Norris)
Christmas.
Kiara Davies
News Reporter Durham Cathedral has received lottery funding worth almost £2 million to maintain it during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Oliver Dowden, Secretary of State for Culture, confirmed the grant for the Cathedral, which is one of 162 heritage sites across England to share the £14 million.
These grants for historic sites aim to meet the ongoing costs and support the reopening and restarting activity when it is possible to safely do so.
Other northeastern historic sites that have received funding include the Friends of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (£35,000) and Trinity Church in Gosforth (£30,000).
Duncan Wilson, Historic England Chief Executive, said: “Historic places across the country, from Durham Cathedral, embodying more than a thousand years of history, to the Crystal Palace di-
“We are aware that many of our students will very much want to continued from front travel home for Christmas, while In the Faculty of Social Sciences others will choose to, or have to, and Health, six of its 1060 staff remain in Durham. All of our stu- members were on salaries of over dents will have our full support. £100,000, amounting to around
“We are reminding our stu- 0.6% of the Faculty. dents that under current na- This was the lowest number tional restrictions, in place until and percentage of staff on over Wednesday 2nd December, travel £100,000 across the University’s home is not permitted. academic faculties.
“Following that date, we want The Freedom of Information to support our students to make Request also revealed that the informed decisions regarding University has hired seven memtheir travel and will be providing bers of staff in 2020 on salaries of information, advice and support over £100,000. in [the] coming weeks.” Commenting on the TaxPayer’s Alliance findings, the University told local newspaper, The Northern Echo, “Durham University is a world top 100 institution with around 20,000 students, over 4,000 staff and an annual turnover of around £360m. “Competitive salary packages are essential to attract and retain outstanding individuals in a global market for higher education leadership talent. “Our Remuneration Committee considers a number of criteria in its deliberations, which include extensive benchmarking across the higher education sector, as well as performance in role. The (Amana Moore) these criteria.”
Cathedral granted £2 million lifeline
Committee regularly reviews nosaurs, much loved by children and grown ups alike, are being supported by the Government’s latest round of grants awarded under the Culture Recovery Fund.
“This funding is a lifeline which is kick-starting essential repairs and maintenance at many of our most precious historic sites, so they can begin to recover from the damaging effects of Covid-19.
“It is also providing employment for skilled craft workers who help to keep historic places alive and the wheels of the heritage sector turning. Our shared heritage is an anchor for us all in these challenging times and this funding will help to ensure it remains part of our collective future.”
Durham Cathedral is currently shut to visitors but remains open for private prayer and quiet reflection. Worships continues online, with live-streamed services on the Cathedral’s Facebook page.
News Durham SolidariTee launches Christmas sales drive
Toby Donegan-Cross
Deputy Editor
The Durham branch of SolidariTee is encouraging students to buy their t-shirts in the run up to Christmas.
SolidariTee is the largest run student charity in the UK that fights for change in the refugee crisis, in particular through legal aid.
They argue that in the short term, legal aid minimises the risk of an individual who has a legitimate claim to asylum from being deported unjustly and brings family members, scattered across Europe, back together again. This makes it the most sustainable and empowering form of aid.
The fundraising model of SolidariTee is simple. Student volunteers sell and deliver t-shirts around university towns, cutting out middle-man costs since the teams work remotely. They also run events in order to raise awareness, and use infographics to challenge false narratives
Max Kendix
News Editor The Durham People of Colour Association (DPOCA) have launched a campaign to buy Christmas gifts for children in the local community. The campaign, called Operation Christmas Joy 2020, aims to fundraise £2,020 in 20 days to buy the gifts from local businesses and distribute them to families.
Local charities, including Durabout refugees.
The idea was conceived by Cambridge student Tiara Sahar Ataii in early 2017 as a form of “silent protest”. Those wearing the t-shirts could see the wide range of support, while also making a tangible difference.
Since its conception, the charity has set up bases across over 40 universities in the UK, US, and Europe.
The 2020 t-shirt designs are based on a collaborative artwork produced by refugees and asylum seekers from northern Greece. They are produced ethically and sustainably, using organic cotton and water-based inks.
Costing £12, the charity guarantees that more than £8.10 of each sale goes directly towards ham City of Sanctuary, Durham Area Action Partnership and Laurel Avenue Foodbank have partnered with DPOCA to reach out to those in difficulty and deliver the gifts over Christmas.
A fundraising page has already been set up, and will be open for donations between Thursday 19th November and 9th December. The campaign will also ask all colleges to choose three gifts from a list, and to then fundraise the cost of 20 of each gift. NGOs who provide legal aid. Proceeds from one t-shirt is enough to fund a day’s worth of food and accommodation for two translators.
Durham’s branch of SolidariTee is led by Harry Gadsby, a fourth year chemistry student from St Cuthbert’s Society, and Nikita Kumar, a second year law student from Van Mildert College. They lead a team of 25 volunteers.
Asked how and why they got involved with the charity, Gadsby told Palatinate: “Over lockdown I was looking into ways in which I could get more involved in student-life in, whilst investing my time into something meaningful and worthwhile.
“I was aware of the work that SolidariTee does, having had friends who were involved last
DPOCA launch christmas gift fundraiser for local children
year. This meant when I saw a (Beatrice Law)
The campaign will come into force in a year where Durham’s Christmas Festival was cancelled. The festival would have included a marquee on Palace Green, markets in Durham Cathedral’s cloisters, Market Place and Town Hall, as well as festive music and special seasonal events.
“2020 has been a difficult year for us all, filled with a lot of negativity and hate”, said Dan Takyi, President of DPOCA. “Given the amount of misfortune and hardships that we’ve all experienced over the course of this year, we as the Durham People of Colour Association believe that it is only right to try and end it on a high note with some positivity, kindness and celebration.
Facebook post about getting involved, I thought why not and was lucky enough to get the role of Head Rep alongside Nikita.”
Kumar said: “I have always volunteered with various groups and been interested in the refugee crisis, so being Head Rep gave me the opportunity to bring both those sides together into one cohesive role. And the best part is that we have a team who love to do the same, and I get to support them with that.”
Kumar encouraged students to get involved with the charity, saying: “We have so many exciting events coming up, including collaborations with other societies as we really want to establish a name for SolidariTee on campus. Our next event is on 19th November and will be a panel discussion on the refugee crisis and other humanitarian issues.”
The importance of the charity’s mission was reiterated by Gadsby, who said: “The one thing I’d say is not to be naive about the refugee crisis.
Richard Waters
News Reporter Durham University physics and cosmology students are working with a team of UN experts to model the spread of the Covid-19.
Through using computergenerated scenarios, the effectiveness of different potential public health responses can be compared.
Recently this group has applied their modelling to the Kutupalong-Batukhali Expansion Site region of the Cox’s Bazar refugee operation in Bangladesh.
With a densely-packed population of over 600,000 Rohingya refugees, conventional measures such as social distancing or isolation are not always possible.
“Even though the vast amount of money SolidariTee raises goes towards camps in Greece, the refugee crisis is something that hits far closer to home than this. Look at our Prime Minister and Home Secretary’s recent statement on asylum seekers trying to cross the channel.
“Did you know that the UK is the only country in Europe to indefinitely detain asylum seekers? A global change in perspective, and law, is needed to ensure that moral justice prevails.”
Students can get involved in the charity in a number of different ways, including by following the charity’s social media pages, buying a t-shirt, attending events across campus, and becoming a
Durham researchers model Covid-19 spread in refugee camps
rep.
This modelling was able to simulate normal routines, as well as hot-spots for gatherings such as water pumps and aid distribution centres.
It also highlighted the importance of face masks within certain settings in the camp, and has been implemented by those working on the ground.
The team are now designing a website to allow aid organisations and policy-makers to access their scenario modelling in an accessible way.
Durham’s team is led by Joseph Bullock, a PhD researcher in the Institute for Data Science and the Institute for Particle Physics Phenomenology. He was joined by researchers Carolina Cuesta-Lazaro (Mark Norton)
and Arnau Quera-Bofarull.
Comment
Town and gown: old stereotypes revisited?
Charlotte Austin Back in May, the Parish Council wrote a letter to the University complaining about students retion against northern students at the University. Although it is not true of most Durham students, Growing up in County Durham, the University had a more positive reputation in the commudown means that the importance of being good neighbours has never been greater. turning to their houses for exam the reason why antagonism is so nity. I was on the Supported Pro- Both students and locals are Newspapers love to produce stories about town and gown conflict. There’s something about the caricatures of over-privileged students clashing with the stuckin-their-ways locals that tabloids can’t resist. However, as a County Durham local, I’ve grown up with this conflict and I can see it from both sides now that I’m a student here. Especially in the time of Covid-19, students are unfairly getting the blame for the actions of season, suggesting they were only coming back for house parties. Elected officials are meant to represent their constituents, not designate one group as a problem. The suspicion of students runs deep in the community. Take one scroll through the Facebook group ‘Gripe & Grumble & News’ and you’ll see Durham students being blamed every time there is a large group of people on the high owes a lot to the University management. Expansion in student numbers is going beyond what is feasible for a city the size of Durham. 4,000 have been added in the last decade and the University masterplan proposes another 4,000 before 2027. This, in addition to £8k per year college rents, has exploded the private rental market in Durham, pricing local people out. gression scheme, which offered disadvantaged local students improved access to Durham University. This has since been axed. Scheduled cuts to support staff under BPR2 proposals would damage one of the main ways that the university contributes to the community through employment opportunities. The social contract between the city and its University is being stretched to a breaking point. The second lockguinea pigs in the experiment of in-person teaching during a pandemic. The decision to attempt a ‘new normal’ was taken over the heads of both groups and it is they who must suffer the consequences. It is now even more important that we lobby our University to be responsible in the community, both during Covidtime and beyond. (Amber Conway) their university and government. streets – local young people exist Communications from the Uni- too! versity have stressed the impor- Locals are not immune from tance of social responsibility to criticism and I’ve seen them flout protect the wider Durham com- guidelines too. When I see a big munity. However, there is only so group of older men sitting at the much students can do to prevent same table in a pub I think – wow, transmission when they are living they must be lonely, I can underin households of ten or more, and stand why they wanted to break are still expected to attend face- the rules. For freshers living with to-face teaching. A financial and complete strangers, the social political decision was made by isolation is even more intense. universities and the government What happened to the solidarity to encourage students to return of earlier this year and why have to campus. The result of that cal- we started blaming each other? culation was always that cases The recent outbreak of stuwere going to shoot up, no matter dent-local tension does not exist how careful we all were. in a vacuum. Whenever I speak to The rise in cases in Durham locals about Durham University has caused fear in the communi- students, I get all of the predictty. Manifesting that fear into ask- able responses: ‘posh,’ ‘stuck up,’ ing questions of those in power and ‘entitled,’ which they then is crucial but the student-bash- qualify with ‘not you, Charlotte!’ ing I’ve seen in Durham is pure Part of me wants to agree with scapegoating. them after reports of discrimina-
Mass testing gives students a shot in the arm
Emma King
For the first time in this Covidworld we’re living in, I feel able to praise a government policy regarding university students. The recently-announced plans for mass-testing of students at the end of term come as a much-needed demonstration of proper leadership and advance planning. In contrast to Matt Hancock’s previous claim that he could not guarantee students’ return home for Christmas, this feels like a real act of humanity. The government have just announced the week-long “travel window” after national lockdown lifts on 2nd December, during which students can return home safely. The Universities Minister, Michelle Donelan, tweeted that tests will “complement” this staggered departure from universities “with mass testing, using rapid tests that pick up asymptomatic cases,” targeting “areas with highest R rates, highest infection rates and most vulnerable students”. Despite the potential problems of this staggered return, such as end-of-term deadlines and booking advance train and plane tickets (and ignoring the frankly comical BBC headline: “Students to go home in evacuation-style operation”), it bodes well that central government are already enacting a secure exit-strategy for universities nationwide. Even more impressive is the promise of lateral flow tests (LFTs): rapid Covid-19 tests that return results in under an hour. Durham University are already at the forefront of LFT trials amongst UK universities, first piloted in Stephenson, Van Mildert and University Colleges. The plans to roll this one-hour testing out across all Durham colleges are even more encouraging. The logic of mass-testing is simple. The earlier a Covid-19 carrier is identified, the quicker they can isolate, and the fewer people they will transmit the virus to. It’s recognised that nearly half of Covid-19 infections are transmitted by asymptomatic carriers. Mass-testing amongst students is thus particularly important as the 18-25 age group is most likely to present only very mild symptoms, or none at all. In general, the speed and efficiency of testing centres in Durham this term has been impressive: testslots available within the hour, and results returned in under 24 hours. Access to testing has been vital in allowing positive cases to isolate rapidly, and allowing negative cases to return to face-to-face teaching as soon as possible. I only hope this speaks to the national picture. In early September, Matt Hancock inadvertently blamed the public for the shortages of coronavirus tests, telling BBC Breakfast that only 75% of people getting tests were symptomatic, and that he wanted to keep tests available just for those with actual Covid-19 symptoms. He was quickly rebuked for this statement; it is, of course, those asymptomatic cases of the virus that pose the greatest threat of widespread transmission. This feels like a refreshing and reassuring leap forward from the chaotic start of term we all experienced
It beggars belief that hundreds of thousands of students were allowed to travel back to university in September without any kind of widespread testing. This could have prevented the huge spikes amongst student populations across the country, catching the asymptomatic cases early before transmitting it to their new households. The resources for mass-testing were just clearly not in place, but the strategy for the end of this term paints a more hopeful picture for the future. The government website explains how mass-testing of students “will provide additional assurances that where tests are negative, there is a reduced risk in students travelling home, and a reduced risk of transmission to their family and home community”. The key word here is “assurances”. Mass-testing is not simply a case of catching positive cases, but allowing the largely negative population to continue with their daily lives “assured” of their safety. Durham University is yet to announce exactly how and when mass-testing will be carried out here, but the government’s announcement feels like a refreshing and reassuring leap forward from the chaotic start of term we all experienced. Mass-testing in universities, schools, hospitals, and offices is the best way to mitigate the spread and impact of the virus whilst we wait for a vaccine. I’m proud that Durham is leading the way for other universities on this front.
Comment Mental health awareness is not enough
Paul Ray their emotional support and make accommodations, fantastic. That doesn’t cure you, though, so what So, let’s say you’re plunged into a full-blown mental health crisis, klaxons blaring, feeling like you’re For me, this is where the story finally takes a positive turn. They suggested more appropriate medithe generation most comfortable talking about mental health in human history. The problem is that do you do next? losing your mind. You might have cation, and soon afterwards I start- there is very little the NHS can You might see your GP. Due to reacted badly to medication (Ser- ed at Durham University, whose do for you. They all want to help, You’ll probably have seen a lot of the Covid-19 pandemic, all mental traline side effects can be brutal) mental health counselling service is you can hear the empathy in their your male friends growing hor- health appointments take place or maybe your health has just de- excellent. We are deeply privileged voices and see the concern on their rible little moustaches recently as over telephone. They usually last teriorated through lack of qual- to be able to access this mental faces, but they can’t put you to the part of Movember. One of the main about five minutes, and end with ity professional support. You might health support offered by Durham: top of the waiting list, they can’t put purposes of Movember is to raise a doctor telling you to self-refer to ring the NHS’s emergency mental most people going through mental you in front of an experienced psyawareness of men’s health issues, the local mental health service for crisis line. It’s staffed by a volun- health crises aren’t students at elite chotherapist, they can’t give you a especially men’s mental health. some talking therapy. teer without medical training who universities, and don’t have access personalised diagnostic session to This cause is unimpeachably wor- In Durham, the mental health tells you to do some ironing to take to what is essentially a private form find the right medication for you. thy, with suicide being the single service is called Talking Changes. your mind off it. It doesn’t cut it. of mental healthcare. Until they can do those things and biggest killer of men under 45 in The “first level” of their cognitive You can’t take it. You go to A&E. The mental health crisis in the UK do them efficiently, mental health the UK. behavioural therapy is entirely You wait three hours and finally get is fundamentally not one of aware- awareness will not help people sufWhy are we so mentally unwell, self-guided. It’s online self-help. seen in person by a specialist men- ness or stigma. This is especially fering mental health crises. particularly (but not only) men? Is Every week you log onto a website, tal health team. true of students, who are probably it because there’s a stigma around watch some videos, and read some men’s mental health, that we’re too tips about dealing with stress, repressed to talk about our feelings each online module ending with and find it embarrassing to seek a relaxing meditation video. Once professional help for mental health a week someone from the service crises? That’s the predominant nar- will log in and check your progress rative, the narrative favoured by the and leave some notes about which “awareness” approach, but my re- module you should work through cent experience of mental ill-health next. You never have a live conversuggests to me that this narrative sation with a mental health expert. is flawed. The hellish experience of a mental health crisis in the UK There is very little the isn’t primarily due to individuals NHS can do for you suffering in silence, it’s caused by a chronic lack of NHS resources. What if this doesn’t help you, and Think about it. You’re a man, you keep getting worse? You have you’re experiencing a sharp decline two options. You can either ring in your mental health. Maybe you’re up Talking Changes (or its local depressed, or you’re experienc- equivalent) and ask to be “stepped ing mysterious daily panic attacks. up” to the next level of CBT, weekly Due to mental health awareness thirty-minute telephone consultacampaigns you realise that there’s a tions. The waiting list for this was problem and you need to do some- six weeks in September – a Talking thing to change your situation. Changes administrator told me that You can candidly talk to your fam- at the start of the pandemic it was ily and friends about what you’re six months. You can either wait or going through, they can offer you beg your GP for medication. (Anna Kuptsova)
Did the eased lockdown prioritise men?
Katie Tobin
After a few months of indefinite uncertainty, June saw the introduction of an eased lockdown. Many of the former restrictions were uplifted and life began to return to a strange but welcomed version of normality. However, many of the new, relaxed lockdown rules were critiqued for the limitations that were still being imposed on women and the LGBTQ+ community. This begs the question: with a male-dominated cabinet, has the easing of lockdown prioritised men? Caroline Nokes, chair of the Commons Women and Equalities Committee, condemned the government for making decisions that were “driven by men, for men, ignoring the voices of women”. The initial relaxing of lockdown in summer prioritised the reopening of pubs, and the current circuit-breaker ensures that Premier League and elite sports are allowed to continue. When football audiences are typically over two-thirds male, the decision to prohibit yoga and Pilates studios seemed undeniably poised in favour of men. Nokes writes that “these [yoga and Pilates] are female-led businesses, employing women, supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of women, and still they are given no clue as to when the end of lockdown will be in sight.” Similarly, beauty salons and female-oriented small businesses have faced numerous restrictions, and unlike the “Eat Out to Help Out” scheme for eateries, there has been no government initiative in place to help these industries. Nokes also noted that if the PM “needed to sort the childcare, get his nails done and his legs waxed,” then the lift on lockdown restrictions in June may have looked significantly different. The continued restrictions on childcare were one of the biggest challenges that parents faced in summer. It seemed laughable when mothers were being urged to return to work when there was no guarantee of secured childcare and schools had long been closed. “I cannot help but feel this relaxation has forgotten we exist,” Nokes wrote, “or just assumed that women will be happy to stay home and do the childcare and home schooling, because the sectors they work in are last to be let out of lockdown”. The government need to readdress their approach
The closure of public toilets has also created new problems for those who menstruate. Although on 31st October, Robert Jenrick announced that a review would be launched to help women be assured of the necessary provision of toilets, this also created new issues for trans and non-binary individuals. The review placed emphasised the “need” for separate-sexed toilets, stating that they intend to “maintain safeguards that protect women and the proper provision of separate toilets, which has long been a regulatory requirement, should be retained and improved.” On 31st October, Keith Farnish tweeted that the policy was an “utterly shameless attack on non-binary people and also nonsense in terms of legislation”. When asked about the new measures, a non-binary student told Palatinate: “I was assigned female at birth and still have my period once a month, but I present more masculine and I’m often mistaken for a man. I don’t want to have to declare my sex or the fact that I’m menstruating to justify being let into a particular cubicle.” Despite the government’s insistence that this new toilet review would be in the interest of safeguarding women, domestic violence and sexual abuse has risen exponentially in the last year with minimal government intervention to tackle this. The Women’s Aid Survivor Survey shows that abusers are using Covid-19 to perpetuate abuse, and the abuse is escalating. In the survey, 67% of survivors who are currently experiencing abuse said it has got worse since Covid-19, and 72% said their abuser had more control over their life. When domestic abuse support groups and one-on-one therapy sessions are currently prohibited, yet the Premier League may continue, it seems that Boris and his cabinet have sorely neglected to address the rights of women and the LGBTQ+ community during the pandemic. The prioritising of pubs and barbers opening before beauty salons and yoga studios reads as clear gender bias on behalf of the predominantly male MPs creating new legislation. With the dire need for increased domestic abuse intervention and ease of access to public toilets, the government need to radically readdress their approach in easing the current restrictions after lockdown 2.0 ends.
Comment Don’t promise climate aid, pay climate debt
Charlie Clark
The solidarity of the Black Lives Matter movement globally is bringing much-needed attention to issues of police brutality and systematic racism. However, there remains a contentious area of chronic racial injustice, frequently sidelined in the debate: climate change. Links between racial injustice and climate change have never been more prevalent. Reductionist portrayals almost always created by white, European academics neglect concerns over social justice. Climate change affects us all globally but doesn’t affect us all proportionately. Until we critically accept that vulnerability to climate change is not a natural phenomenon but a product of social power relations, past and present, we cannot start to combat the issue effectively. Neo-colonial politics and power dominate climate politics
As a collective, we are living through the so-called “Anthropocene”: an era of human dominance characterised by capitalist political economy, outlandish resource extraction, untenable rates of spe-
Freya Reynolds
When Kemi Badenoch, Minister for Equalities, recently denounced “critical race theory”, it was the first time the phrase had ever been used in Parliament. The theory, developed by black academics in the 70s, is more commonly applied in legal practice, resting on ideas that racism is not a phenomenon of the past but one deep-rooted in our society. In the USA, it has become synonymous with belief in white people’s structural advantages, in short, critical race theory confirms white privilege’s existence. Rather than utilising this in current discussions of inequality though, the theory was dismissed. Badenoch’s opposition to “teaching of contested political ideas, as (…) accepted fact,” seems simple enough, but hints at more sinister trends of Conservative action. Following calls to dismantle structural racism, the use of this term in dismissing white privilege, relatively unknown beyond academia, appears calculated. Discussion of the theory has likely emanated from American vilification. This September, Trump ordered the defundcies extinction, destruction of biosphere integrity, ocean acidification, stratospheric ozone depletion, nitrogen fixing at astronomic levels, land-system change, and unprecedented green-house gas pollution (the list goes on...). But who suffers? And more importantly, how do we stop the suffering? While global industrialisation lifted billions from relative poverty, producing technological feats previously resigned to science fiction, the cost was seemingly crippling and disparate. The UK contributed more to temperature change (per capita) than any other nation in human history, finding itself as one of the richest economies on the planet. The UK also happens to be one of the least vulnerable nations to the risks and hazards associated with climate change. Conversely, of the ten most vulnerable nations, eight were governed by European colonial empires, and subsequently find themselves amongst the most impoverished and environmentally damaged countries globally. So, surely, it is self-evident that the western powers should pay “a climate debt” or reparation ing of federal programmes based on “race-based” theories, tweeting desires to stop indoctrination with “divisive and harmful sex- and race-based ideologies”, essentially, for organisations to cease suggesting that whiteness is advantageous. statements, but to descisive change Now, the Conservative government is following suit. Whilst May and June were littered with comit comes to application, action has halted. In fact, there has been a turn away from efforts to tackle discrimination, and towards denouncement of movements’ radicalism. This follows recent Department for Education guidance that “extreme political stances” should be removed from schools, threatening to stifle teaching around groups advocating racial equality through structural change. Culture secretary Oliver Dowden recently proposed cutting funding for museums removing exhibits in response to protests, unsurprising given Johnson’s denouncement of Labour’s desire to “pull statues down, to rewrite the history of
for damage inflicted? Seemingly a strategy of minimal aid in the case of absolute disaster has been the adopted policy. Claims in 2009 of $100 billon in affordable grants to nations vulnerable to climate change (all of which were ruled under colonial powers) have been pitifully enacted, and a policy of loans and finance adopted. Nations environmentally and socially decimated by our country”. These actions point to growing attempts by Conservative leadership to perpetuate ideas of a “radicalising” left, pointing to sporadic violent incidents related to BLM. It negates realities that the movement gained support not through intense organisation but thousands of British people voicing anguish at racism within society. Badenoch proclaimed in her speech that Conservatives “do not want to see teachers teaching white pupils about white privilege and inherited racial guilt”. Badenoch, or her party utilising her as a mouthpiece, conflated contested and accepted concepts. Whilst racial guilt and police defunding are topics of debate, white privilege is not. By deeming this issue political, and threatening teachers relaying it as fact, conversations around systemic racism are erased. This is particularly concerning considering Runnymede Trust’s recent finding that teachers feel poorly-equipped to teach about racism. What we need now is reform – not blockades to progress. Structural racism in this country is indisputable, inequality courses through national institutions’ veins. This denouncement points, at best, to the Conservatives’ fundamental misunderstanding of white priviwestern colonialism and now, climate change, are expected to pay interest on loans to repair and prepare for the vulnerability that this climate change is causing. We are now seeing a continuation of this policy of effective neglect. Disaster aid over climate reparations (never providing postcolonial states with the ability to prepare and mitigate risk of climate disaster) will increasingly have disastrous consequences, including endemic drought in sub-Saharan
Africa, crippling wildfires throughout the Brazilian
Amazon, annual systematic decimation in the
Caribbean by cyclones, displacement fatality and destruction of life in India’s lowlands, to give only a few examples. The threat to post-colonial nations in unending the climate reparations paid is minimal. Sea-level rise in the previously Britishruled Kiribati is threatening inhabitants to such an extent that the islands have purchased 5,000 acres from neighbouring Fiji for inevitable relocation. The small Caribbean island of lege, or, at worst, wilful deflection of its existence. Discussions of white privilege are often moved by Conservatives towards white working-class boys’ situations, who statistically suffer educationally. It suggests discomfort recognising inequality beyond class boundaries, intersectionality ignored, along with realities that racial discrimination persists regardless of wealth. Privilege in this context does not connote ease and luxury, as right-wing commentators keenly suggest, but rather that skin colour creates no additional barrier to white people’s progress. It seems ironic that white working-class children are deflections for Conservative MPs, who recently voted to cease school meal funding making this emphatic defence of deprived white people ring untrue. Whilst poor children are useful pawns in dismissing white privilege, when it comes to effecting real change for them, the party casually casts them aside. The fact that the Minister for Equalities – who consistently votes against laws promoting equality and human rights – is prepared to stand “unequivocally against critical race theory,” is a worrying statement. The need for the UK to lead with institutional reform is pressHaiti provides an example of the racial climate injustice ever present among the Global North. Crippling environmental degradation, exacerbated with each epidemic, drought and hurricane season goes back to French imperial rule. Indigenous peoples were enslaved and the nation’s lands left infertile. Surely then, France is paying reparations? Quite the opposite. Despite a non-exhaustive list of cyclones, earthquakes, tsunamis, tropical storms, torrential rains and floods (not to mention being the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere), Haiti is still paying France back a $21 billion indemnity reparation. Yes. Haiti pays France reparations. And whilst nations jump to promise climate aid in the rare event that disaster does strike, this sidesteps the fundamental issues that caused the crises in the first place. Neo-colonial power dominates climate politics. It is critical not to allow the broader science to mask underlying racial injustices. The western powers that caused the anthropogenic climate crises must accept responsibility. Climate change affects us all globally but not proportionally, so lets accept responsibility, abandon paternalistic neo-colonialism and pay our climate debt.
Critical race theory and why you should care
Combatting racism does not translate to empty
mitments against racism — when (Markus Spiske via Unsplash) ing. Combatting racism does not translate to empty statements, but to decisive change, to tearing down and restructuring of institutions founded on white supremacist ideals, facilitated by abuse of black people. If simply acknowledging white people’s privilege is deemed oppressive and limiting by the government, how far can we really go in achieving racial equality in this country?
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