Palatinate 844

Palatinate The UK and Ireland’s Best Student Publication, 2021

Thursday 11th November 2021 | No. 844 | FREE

Durham gears up for

Lumiere

UCU strikes again Poppy Askham News Editor University and College Union members at campuses across the UK, including Durham University, are preparing to go on strike in protest against proposed cuts that could see their pensions slashed by 35%.

Dates are yet to be confirmed, but the Union’s President, Jo Grady, is currently proposing two days of strike action this term, which would most likely fall in November.

This would be followed by a period of action short of strike (ASOS), meaning staff would refuse to carry out any marking or assessments, work outside contracted hours, take on voluntary tasks, cover for absent colleagues or reschedule lectures or seminars missed due to strike action.

If the dispute with employers continues, the Union would then “significantly” escalate action in Epiphany term.

The University told Palatinate that “our priority is now on making sure any impact to student education and staff workload is minimised. Members of the Durham community can stay up to date at our dedicated USS changes website, which has detailed information on the

proposed changes and sector developments.”

Grady described her proposed two days of action as “a brief but massive show of strength” which she hopes will aid the Union’s position in negotiations with employers over the Christmas holiday period.

The Union’s course of action will be in confirmed when its higher education committee convenes tomorrow, following consultations with branch delegates.

76% of members of the University and College Union voted in favour of taking strike action in a recent ballot regarding the pensions dispute and almost 85% backed ASOS. The Union is contesting proposed changes to the University Superannuation Scheme (USS), the sector’s principal pension benefit system.

They argue that the proposals would cut the annual guaranteed pension by 35% and limit protection from inflation.

Support for strike action was particularly strong in Durham; almost 80% of participating members voted in favour.

The Durham UCU branch also recorded high turnout levels — 63% of members participated, whilst just 53% voted nationally.

Continued on page 7

www.palatinate.org.uk

Diana’s fashion legacy Inside Indigo

A lively climate protest in Market Square on Saturday 6th November to mark Glasgow’s COP26

Durham CFO on panel calling racial slurs ‘banter’ Max Kendix Editor-in-Chief Durham University’s Chief Financial Officer sat on the five-person panel of Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC) that reportedly dismissed the repeated use of a racial slur as “banter between friends”.

Stephen Willis has since resigned

his position as a non-executive director at YCCC but claims this was over frustration at the slow pace of action on racism by the club executive.

Willis, who sits on the University’s Senior Leadership Team, was the sole representative of the Club’s Board on the otherwise independent panel.

The University describes Willis as a “highly regarded colleague of the utmost integrity” and “passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion”. They also stressed that he joined the panel on a personal and voluntary basis and was co-opted “to provide organisational context” on YCCC. Continued on page 7

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

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Editorial

Inside 844

(Rosie Bromiley)

News pages 1-6 Satire page 8 Comment pages 9-11 P pages 12-13 Scitech pages 14-16 Politics pages 17-19 Puzzles page 20 Palatidates page 21 Sport pages 22-24

indigo

Durham must get rid of casualisation for good D urham staff will strike this term, and probably into next term, too. It’s the outcome no staff nor student wanted. 73% of UCU members, on a 64% turnout, voted for strike action in support of the UCU’s Four Fights — pay, workload, casualisation and equality.

The most enduring concern is a cut to staff pensions. The USS, a national pensions scheme for academics, faces a financial blac hole, and staff have been told that their proportion of contributions compared to the University’s must increase to make up for it.

The University points out — fairly — that, while they can make representation to the national scheme, they are one party of many, and so their influence is limited.

But casualisation, an issue which has become increasingly central to the UCU’s demands, is directly and solely the University’s remit, and an area in which they could ma e significant progress.

If they did, they would mitigate the significant educational harm to students by persuading lecturers to stay put.

In February of last year, the University vowed in a joint statement with the UCU to limit its use of casual contracts, and said it would realise a “significant reduction” in staff on casual contracts.

This was a major commitment and change of direction. In the 2018/19 academic year, data seen

by Palatinate suggested that as many as 56% of staff at Durham — academic and non-academic were on fixed term or atypical contracts, a proportion which had risen by 28% since 2014/15.

In the same period, the University reduced the number of staff by 15% while increasing the number of students by 10%, leading to a larger burden of work per staff member. Is it a coincidence that, according to the NSS, organisation and management, the sense of a learning community, and learning opportunities have all declined for the past five years Defenders of the use of casual contracts point to the fact that they are a symptom of a changing world. It is no longer realistic to expect long-term tenured positions in the modern job market. Across the University sector their use is now more common than ever before, with a recent UCU study suggesting that, in 38 higher education institutions surveyed, 27% of academic staff were on casual contracts.

Perhaps, it is suggested, casual contracts allow institutions a greater degree of flexibility. n the face of changing and challenging circumstances, the University can

be agile in hiring and dismissing staff. Of e ual significance, for young academics without a proven track record, casual contracts give the University a chance to test an individual without making a premature commitment.

However, whatever their supposed merits, these are considerably dwarfed by their offences. They offer staff little opportunity to plant roots, be it in property, place or people.

“Meaningful action would mitigate the damage future strikes inflict on students’ education”

The anxiety of an insecure contract can weigh heavily. One staff member gave a sobering account of the effects of casual work in a Palatinate survey: “I am paid for only a small fraction of my working hours and these will often eat into my personal time and prevent me from resting. The teaching workload has caused me multiple instances of relapsed mental illness and burnout this academic year.”

Editorial page 2 Creative Writing page 3 Stage pages 4-5 Travel page 6 Style page 7 Visual Arts pp. 8-9 10 Food & Drink page 10 Interview page 11 Features pages 12-13 Film & TV page 14 Music page 15 Books page 16

Letters to the editor Disagree with something we’ve published? Send an email to editor@palatinate.org.uk explaining why for a chance to be featured in print Casual contracts, then, are not conducive to building a successful University that works for the interests of its staff and students, particularly if staff are required to take on more taxing workloads.

The University’s commitment to limit the use of casual contracts is promising, but the promises should be reinforced with clear, measurable targets by which they can be held accountable.

Crucially, if the University listens to the UCU’s demands, meaningful action would mitigate the damage future stri es inflict on students’ education.

Toby Donegan-Cross & Max Kendix Editors-in-Chief

Palatinate is published by Durham Students’ Union on a fortnightly basis during term and is editorially independent. All contributors and editors are full-time students at Durham University. Send letters to: Editor, Palatinate, Durham Students’ Union, Dunelm House, New Elvet, Durham, DH1 3AN. Alternatively, send an e-mail to editor@palatinate.org.uk

Palatinate Editorial Board Editors-in-Chief Toby Donegan-Cross & Max Kendix editor@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Editors Martha McHardy & Harrison Newsham News Editors Theo Burman, Lilith Foster-Collins & Poppy Askham news@palatinate.org.uk News Reporters Orlando Bell & Elizabeth McBride Investigations Editors Patrick Stephens & Kathryn Ellison Satire Editors Ben Lycett & Hannah Williams satire@palatinate.org.uk Comment Editors Ellie Fitzgerald-Tesh & Anna Noble comment@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Comment Editors George Pickthorn & Miriam Shelley P Paul Ray & Ethan Sanitt profile@palatinate.org.uk Science & Technology Editors Elise Garcon, Cameron McAllister & Caitlin Painter scitech@palatinate.org.uk Politics Editors Maddy Burt & Rj Batkhuu politics@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Politics Editors Joe Rossiter & Laetitia Eichinger Puzzles Editors Thomas Simpson, Hugo Bush & Katie Smith puzzles@palatinate.org.uk Sport Editors George Simms, Abi Curran & Jonny Tiplady sport@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Sport Editors Harvey Stevens & Mary Atkinson Indigo Editors Cerys Edwards & Honor Douglas indigo@palatinate.org.uk Deputy Indigo Editor Adeline Zhao Features Editors Isobel Tighe & Miriam Mitchell features@palatinate.org.uk Creative Writing Editors Millie Stott & Ella Al-Khalil Coyle creative.writing@palatinate.org.uk Stage Editors Ben Smart & Jodie Sale stage@palatinate.org.uk Visual Arts Editors Nicole Wu & Christian Bland visual.arts@palatinate.org.uk Books Editors Imogen Marchant & Samuel Lopes books@palatinate.org.uk Style Editors Grace Jessop & Anna Johns fashion@palatinate.org.uk Food & Drink Editors Nia Kile, Josie Lockwood & Emerson Shams food@palatinate.org.uk Travel Editors Gracie Linthwaite & Holly Downes travel@palatinate.org.uk Film & TV Editors Charlotte Grimwade & Grace Marshall film@palatinate.org.uk Music Editors Katya Davisson & Annabelle Bulag music@palatinate.org.uk Interview Editors Stephanie Ormond indigo.interview@palatinate.org.uk Photography Editors Lainey Lin, Thomas Tomlinson & Rob Laine photography@palatinate.org.uk Illustration Editors Verity Laycock, Rosie Bromiley, Victoria Cheng & Anna Kuptsova illustration@palatinate.org.uk Felicity Hartley, Georgia Heath & Hannah Davies Heads of Advertising Thaddeus Dominic, Ben Stoneley & Kyra Onyebuchi advertising@palatinate.org.uk Heads of Alumni Relations Elena Liciu & Ben Stoneley alumni@palatinate.org.uk Sophie Garnett finance@palatinate.org.uk

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PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

News

Protestors to demand University divestment from Barclays Patrick Stephens and Poppy Askham Investigations Editor and News Editor Durham student groups, such as ECO DU and Durham Sustainable Investment Society, are jointly organising a climate protest to demand that the University divest from Barclays and declare a Climate Emergency.

The ‘Durham’s Dirty Banking’ protest, which will be held outside the Bill Bryson Library on 12th November, is being organised by student environmental lobbying group, Eco DU in coordination with more than 11 University societies and associations, including the Students’ Union.

Last year, the Students’ Union Assembly voted in favour of boycotting Barclays due to its poor environmental record, but the University has continued to use the bank. Barclays has financed billion in fossil fuels between 2016 and 2020, making it Europe’s biggest financier of fossil fuels according to the Rainforest Action Network.

Eco DU is calling for the University to cease its use of Barclays by the start of the next academic year.

Tom Lovegrove, one of the Eco DU members organising the protest told Palatinate: “As students at the University we have the right to demand that our University uses

a ban that reflects the values it stands for.”

The protest, which will feature speeches from student organisations, is also being held to put pressure on the University to declare a climate emergency and to stop hosting companies involved in the fossil fuel industry at recruiting and networking events.

More than 160 UK Universities have already called a climate emergency, but Durham is yet to.

University emissions reduced from 30,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2015-16 to under 23,000 in 2020-21. Since April, 100% of the University’s electricity supply is from renewables. The University has also effectively eliminated its use of oil, although its use of gas, which accounts for half of its emissions, was only slightly lower in 2019-20 than in 2016-17.

Most of the reduction is in emissions linked to electricity consumption, which halved from 2005-6 and 2019-20. However, the University website states that, due to University expansion in the ‘Estates Masterplan’, energy consumption will likely rise until 2027. It says that it will compensate for this with a new Carbon Management Plan.

The previous plan, from 20142021, included replacement of old equipment with lowenergy alternatives, use of renewables, and reduction in business travel,

What happens to the University’s waste?

Total University waste in tonnes, split up by where it ends up.

Anaerobic digestion is a process, typically involving food waste, which produces biogas and a nitrogen fertiliser. Less than 1% of waste ends up in landfill.

which is the source of 12% of the University’s emissions.

Part of the University’s Carbon Management strategy has involved on-site renewables. 20 buildings, including the Palatine Centre and Maths and Computer Science Building, now have onsite renewables or low-carbon systems of some kind, of an estate of more than 300 buildings.

In the 2020-21 academic year, 300,000kWh were produced by the

(Amana Moore)

University’s onsite renewables, compared to 240,000 in 201516. For context, the electricity use of the Bill Bryson Library in a year is more than 800,000 kWh, and this does not include gas. As a comparison with other Universities, Durham is 22nd in England for its total renewable energy generated.

The University has roughly £5.2m worth of investments in the 10 banks providing the most finance to fossil fuels. ore than £2.9m of this is invested in JPMorgan, which has invested by far the highest amount in the industry: more than £200bn between 2016 and 2020.

Durham’s investments are in the form of bonds or shares in Barclays. Banks such as JPMorgan use the money raised from selling these to invest in companies, such as those extracting

fossil fuels.

The University also has almost half a million invested in Unilever PLC, which was listed by Break Free From Plastic as one of the (Thomas Tomlinson) top ten global plastic polluters in 2020.

The University told Palatinate: “Since July 2018, the University has had no investments in companies involved in the extraction of fossil fuels. We took the decision to withdraw investments from such companies following a full consultation with our staff, students and alumni – the Durham University Commission on Divestment from Companies Involved in Fossil Fuel Extraction.”

This decision followed in the footsteps of 61 UK Universities that had previously made similar promises, and was made following a year-long consultation with staff and students, four-fifths of whom were found to support divestment.

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Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

News

Durham housing: students s Lilith Foster-Collins News Editor Data collected by Palatinate suggests that the rush to sign student houses starts as early as late October.

The number of student houses available on the online housing site Sturents rose until October 26th, and then began to decline steadily until November. At its peak, 967 houses were available, of which 262 were 4-beds, 207 were 5-beds, 170 6-beds, and 70 7-beds The median rent price of houses at this time was between £120140 per person per week (pppw), with just 15 houses costing less than £80 pppw, though this had increased to 27 on 4th November.

More than 42% of houses cost over £140pppw.

Many student houses are being advertised for significantly greater rents than last year. One home from Bill Free Homes, in Claypath, was £130 pppw last academic year, but is advertised for £145 for the next year. Another,

let by Hope Estates in the Viaduct, faced more substantial increases.

In 2021/22, the house cost £130 pppw, an increase of £5 from the previous year. But it is advertised for £150 pppw for the 2022/23 academic year.

One Bill Free Homes house in Gilesgate, was £93 pppw in 2019/20. For the next academic year it is £118 pppw. The deposit for the house also increased, from £320 per person to £590. A Harrington’s house in the Elvet area

was £129 in 2020/21, and advertised for £149 for next year.

Different sized houses have been signed at different rates.

7-bed houses showed the fastest decrease in percentage terms, with 36 houses remaining by 2nd November. 8+ beds and 2-beds showed the slowest decline, and 1-beds and studios remained fairly stable.

House numbers seemed to recover by 4th November, with the number of houses available increasing for every price range, size and area, except Claypath, which continued to decline. Many agencies release additional student houses at the beginning of November and January.

Each area of the city shows a different picture. The number of houses in Whinney Hill and Neville’s Cross plummeted after the 27th October, whereas Claypath, the Viaduct and Gilesgate showed a more steady decline. Indeed, the number of houses available in Gilesgate was higher on the 4th November than during the month before.

Durham student housing situation “very stressful” Lilith Foster-Collins News Editor Students have described to Palatinate how the housing rush put pressure on them to sign quickly.

Tansy Adam signed in week four of Michalmas term. She found the agents quite communicative, but they were rushed through the process, at one point being told they had to be at the agency by 5pm or they would lose the house.

Emma Clarke and Isobel Wooler, first-year students, agreed that the process was stressful. They called the rush “frantic”, and felt that the situation was “mad”.

After viewing one house they called a friend, and when they got off the phone the house had already been signed by the group after them.

“It did feel quite hectic”, said

Clarke. Agents were telling us which houses from that day had already gone, making me feel like I did need to move quickly if I found a house I wanted.”

One group of first-year students told Palatinate how they had walked around looking at houses for five hours, until they “wanted to cry”. “The housing rush is really stupid” they said, and it felt like they needed to sign houses too quickly.

They looked at 12 houses before signing. Similar to previous years, landlords told them to just knock on houses that they wanted to look at, rather than agreeing an official viewing with the agent.

Clarke was asked what factors contibuted to the idea that Durham may run out of housing.

She said “I think that as our year and the previous year are quite big, there is some fear that there might not be enough houses for

us all, especially as this year colleges had to find extra accommodation to fit the increase in numbers.”

Students were aware many houses had increase their rents this year. Adam explained how it felt like landlords were taking advantage of increasing numbers of students in order to put their prices up.

She noted that living in college is also very expensive, so is not a good option for many students.

The cost of a single room with a shared bathroom in college is currently set at £7,724 per year.

The housing rush was described as “cut-throat” by Clarke and Wooler, who had underestimated how quickly houses would be signed in Durham. Adam suggested that finding housing had become uite a selfish process, as students compete for the best houses.

Clarke and Wooler pointed to a domino effect as significant in the rush: as soon as some people start signing, everyone rushes to sign before houses go, and this is initiated by the release of houses early in the term.

The students Palatinate spoke to did not see any easy solutuons to the problm. A later release, Clarke and Wooler explained, would still result in a rush to sign.

The main benefit of this move however, would be that people would be in more secure groups with people they had known for longer.

Many colleges offer housing talks with advice for signing were offered a housing talk, but this came too late for Clarke and Wooler, who had already signed.

They suggested that some housing information as early as freshers’ week would have been useful.

A brief history Theo Burman News Editor The Durham housing market has historically struggled to accommodate for the expansion of the University and the student body.

Last year, the SU Welfare and iberations Officer wan wift re-launched the “Take Time to Sign” campaign, with the aim of educating Durham students about the housing situation and delaying the rate at which freshers sign houses.

Durham agents frequently use signposts and adverts stressing the importance of finding housing quickly to encourage students to sign early on in the year. Last year, the SU spoke out against this practise, arguing that “landlords and letting agents use those particular mes-

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

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News

sign early despite price rises

(Mark Norton)

of the Durham City student rental market sages to create a sense of panic that the number of houses in Durham is much smaller than it is.

“Letting agents are often under enormous pressure from the landlords whose houses they are signing on behalf to get the properties signed as soon as possible, but it s definitely true that more housing appears on the market from January onwards.”

In surveys conducted by the SU in 2019, it was found that 21% of landlords or agents had entered students’ properties without prior notice. This is a breach of their rights as tenants under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. Another 22 respondents said they felt threatened or harassed by their landlord or agent.

There were also complaints about estate agents, with a student commenting that “dealing (James Tillotson) with the estate agent has been

difficult”, and they had found them “inflexible” as “they often ignore my emails and requests for issues with the property.” Another student commented that their estate agent had been “rude and treated me as though I was a nwuisance.”

The survey reinforced the pressure on students to sign houses early, with responses including: “Sorting housing for next year was extremely stressful. There is a huge amount of pressure to sign a house early.”

Students stated that 41.1% of this pressure to sign early was driven by other students. A large number of other respondents selected “multiple factors, such as other students, uncomfortable marketing techniques and pressure from landlords or agents, as also contributing to this culture of pressure.”

Landlords: Housing rush worst in five years

Analysis

Lilith Foster-Collins News Editor

Obtaining student housing has never been easy in Durham, but this year it is likely to be harder.

The data shows that there are still plenty of houses in Durham and the idea that the city may ‘run out’ of student housing is not substantiated. But as prices rise this year, many students will be priced out of the areas they want to live in. And this will result in competition for the most desirable houses, prices and areas.

The Michaelmas housing rush in Durham is an almost fabled entity. It is a phenomenon that has persisted each year in student memory, and is not one that is likely to go away, especially as student numbers expand.

The yearly ritual of house hunting — wandering around Durham in the cold afternoons of November, knocking uninvited on the doors of student houses, queuing outside an agent at 9am to be the first in is illustrative of a system that has failed.

The solution to such a longstanding problem is not immediately obvious. But there are a few things that could be done to address the issue.

Agents have long been called upon to unite in releasing houses later on: this may not prevent the rush, but a later rush would at least provide an opportunity for first years to get to now their potential housemates better. University accommodation, if offered at a cheaper rate, could provide an affordable alternative to living out, reducing the pressure on city housing.

And if the University is to prevent a worsening student housing situation, it must take into account the availability (and affordability) of housing when it chooses to expand student numbers.

Bill Free Homes, a student housing esate agency, spoke to Palatinate about what the housing rush means for agents.

“We would prefer a later start to proceedings as we are still in the process of bedding our new tenants in by the time le ng season comes around. We prepare well in advance and hope that things are at least delayed until November.

They suggested that the housing rush had been worse this year: “We did reach 100% capacity much earlier than normal. This year the rush has been sooner than the 5 years prior to that. “we have 230 houses to let and by the 10th of October we had 700 groups register for a pre-release.

“This year it seemed very much student lead in the rush for housing. ill ree omes confirmed that rental prices had risen this year.

“Rents have increased this year but then in ation is at % and the cost of wages and building materials are soaring also. One bigger factor is gas prices.

“I am sure that no one likes cost increases of any sort, but without them houses cannot be heated or repaired e ectively. I am deeply sorry that gas prices have risen as they have but it is not our fault.

Bill Free Homes expressed: “We are a commercial operation, and have to balance the demands of our clients (landlords) and our customers (students).

One landlord Palatinate spoke to agreed that the rush was happening sooner It s ge ng earlier .

“Estate agents are coming to us as ing hen are properties coming on the market?’, ‘When can we get the keys to go and show our new tenants around for next year The landlord suggested it was mainly first years who had been interesed in signing early, and suggested there were problems with the pace of the rush: “There’s lots of di erent issues that come with signing contracts far, far too early.

“From my point of view, and from a human being point of view, I thin it s wrong .

They also confirmed that prices had increased, and say that while there are multiple factors, including the pandemic, Brexit, and increases to gas and electricity bills.

Lilith Foster-Collins News Editor

“The shortage of houses in Durham City Centre is also the major [reason why they re ge ng increased .

The landlord also indicated that they thought the problem might be spreading throughout Durham.

“In certain areas of Durham, you aren’t allowed to have any more student properties.

“I think that’s probably the reason why house prices in the likes of Gilesgate and the surrounding areas are going up.

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Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

News

Majority of students accused of sexual assault face no consequences Kathryn Ellison Investigations Editor Content Warning: This article contains repeated mentions of sexual violence, assault and misconduct.

The vast majority of students accused of sexual violence at Durham University faced no disciplinary consequences between October 2014 and July 2019, data from the Sexual Misconduct and Violence Annual Trend Monitoring Paper (2019) has revealed.

The paper shows that a total of 262 disclosures of sexual violence were reported during the five year period, however only a maximum of 16 students and staff have been dismissed or expelled from the University as a result of an investigation.

The paper also indicates that the majority of victims chose not to make formal disclosures against alleged perpetrators, with formal disclosures being required by the University to start the investigation process.

In the academic year 2018/19, 68 incidents of sexual violence were informally disclosed, compared to 17 formal disclosures of sexual misconduct of all categories. This includes non-violent sexual harassment, stalking and domestic abuse. Of the 17 formal disclosures, fewer than five resulted in expulsion or dismissal from the University.

The paper also suggests that male students are far more likely to commit acts of sexual violence than female students, with data from the five year period of 2014/15 to 2018/19 indicating that men were 40 times more likely to breach the sexual misconduct policy than women.

urham University is a safe place to live The paper s findings come after a pledge that Durham would become a “University community where survivors are supported while we strive to eliminate sexual violence” in 2015/16.

Despite this, investigations of sexual misconduct during the

2018/19 academic year took an average of days, with five out of 17 formal reports being withdrawn by the reporting party.

In a Durham Students’ Union report on the impact of the Pincident campaign (a campaign allowing users to informally report abuse via Durham Students’ Union’s website), the biggest reason for victims choosing not to formally report sexual misconduct was feeling like “nothing would be done if they made a complaint”. This reason was a factor for 56% of students.

The data also indicates that breaches of the sexual misconduct policy occur most frequently between undergraduate students. Only 39 out of 257 alleged perpetrators of sexual misconduct over the five year period were staff or those not affiliated with the niversity.

More serious breaches of the policy were more likely to be reported to the University.

99 incidents of assault by penetration and 89 incidents of sexual assault were formally

reported over the five year period, indicating a possible underreporting of less severe breaches of the university’s sexual misconduct policy.

In response to Palatinate’s investigation into the paper, Jeremy Cook, Pro-ViceChancellor (Colleges and Student Experience) at Durham University, said: “Durham University is a safe place to live, work and study, and we are working tirelessly, including with our students and student leaders, to make it even more so.

“There is no place here for individuals who are found to have committed acts of sexual misconduct or violence.

“When students disclose or report instances of sexual misconduct or violence to us, we are committed to providing comprehensive support, investigating promptly and taking decisive action.

“Our approach has seen an increase in cases reported to us, but we see this as our community growing in confidence that we will act appropriately in response to such reports.”

LFT testing for sport

Certain sports will no longer require LFTs to compete. The University recently restricted testing sites by closing down the tent on alace reen. .

Free speech complaint

Conservative MP Richard Holden visited the Durham University Conservative Society. On Twitter he complained about the “real concern to free speech on campuses”.

Mary’s debit card scam

There have been multiple reported cases of debit card fraud at St Mary’s College.

Between £50-£100 has been stolen from each victim.

Chancellor steps down

Sir Thomas Allen is to retire from his role in July 2022 after the summer graduation ceremonies. An “international search” is underway for his successor.

Castle to vote on JCR sabbs University College JCR is voting on whether or not to make their Senior Student a sabbatical position. Almost every other college at Durham has a sabbatical president.

Clubs to be credited for anti-spiking efforts in new University campaign Poppy Askham News Editor A new accreditation scheme that will recognise local bars and clubs that instate antispiking measures has been unveiled.

The #DurhamUnite campaign will see college common rooms in association with the University and Students’ Union (SU), collaborate to encourage venues to take action to combat the recent surge in spiking incidents in the city.

Those that do so will be able to display a special charter mark demonstrating their support for the campaign.

Suggested measures include offering cup covers, increasing entrance checks, and providing more staff training.

A study recently found that more than 160 reports of suspected spikings were made to JCRs and college welfare teams in Freshers’ Week, the week before and the weekend after it. Local police have also confirmed that they have

received multiple reports of spiking via injection in the city in recent weeks.

The #DurhamUnite initiative follows last week’s studentorganised boycott of nightclubs on 26th October. More than 90 sports clubs and societies backed the ‘Durham Night In’ and at least three venues closed their doors on the night.

Hala Heenan, the boycott’s principal organiser and current St Chads’ JCR President, welcomed the new campaign.

She told Palatinate: “I think it’s a great initiative that’s taking that inter agency approach to the issue that the Durham Night In was advocating for.

“I’m looking forward to seeing the action that comes out of the campaign.”

The initiative also comes in the wake of student uproar over a tweet from the University’s student welfare division that told students “don’t get spiked”.

The University stated that the tweet was “wrong and should not have been issued” in an apology released two weeks later.

The statement also said that the University takes concerns about drink spiking “very seriously” and that they will take this opportunity to “learn and improve” its messages on the topic.

The new campaign was revealed by SU welfare and liberation officer, onah raham.

He also noted that the SU is also currently updating its student safety advice and has been planning active bystander training events. raham called on students to involve themselves with the campaign, explaining “ #DurhamUnite is led by student voices throughout

the colleges so please speak to your Presidents, your Student Support teams, and your SU so we can respond to what is happening in Durham accordingly”. elow lute, Europe s worst nightclub and a local favourite, empty during the ig Night In (Thomas Tomlinson)

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

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News “a highly regarded colleague” Continued o

on

Last week, ESPN reported that at least one Yorkshire player referred to player eem afi as a “P**I”, telling other people “don t tal to him afi , he s a i”, as ing “is that your uncle ” when they saw bearded Asian men and saying “does your dad own those ” in reference to corner shops, reducing afi to tears. Cric eter ary allance has since admitted to using the slur.

illis is passionate about e uality The panel upheld seven of afi s allegations against the club, citing insufficient evidence of the remaining claims. It also said Ballance should not face disciplinary action, nor any other staff or player at the club, and did not accept that afi was offended by the comments at any point.

The panel also decided that afi himself should have been disciplined when referring to a player from Zimbabwe as ‘Zimbo’ — despite this being a nonoffensive term more similar to ‘Aussie’ or ‘Kiwi’.

However, YCCC has refused to publish the full report, citing legal reasons. But another member of the panel, Mesba Ahmed, told

The Telegraph that the panel members had done “as good a job as we possibly could have done” before reaching a conclusion.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid tweeted last Tuesday: “‘P**i’ is not banter. Heads should roll at Yorkshire CCC”. Several sponsors have withdrawn from the club over the past week, and Yorkshire has been banned from hosting international Test matches on its home ground.

A Durham University spokesperson told Palatinate: “Stephen Willis’ membership of the Yorkshire County Cricket Club Board as an unpaid Non-Executive Director was undertaken in a personal and voluntary capacity.

“He resigned from his post because he was not convinced that all those charged with the responsibility of delivering important recommendations to improve equality, diversity and inclusion at the club shared his sense of urgency to take action.

“Durham University has no comment to make on the matter. We believe everybody has the right to work and live in a safe, respectful and inclusive environment.

“Stephen Willis is passionate about equality, diversity and inclusion in and outside the workplace and it is integral to his values. He is a highly regarded colleague of the utmost integrity.”

Cuts could see pensions slashed by 35% Continued o

on

Staff also backed strike action in a second ballot regarding the nion s four fights rising workloads, staff casualisation, workplace inequalities and pay issues.

The ballot results give the Union a six-month mandate to strike, meaning staff could walk out at any point before the end of April 2022.

Staff at Durham University previously went on strike

(Tim ac er)

in 2018, 2019 and early 2020 over similar greivances. rady proposed an initial two days of action to reflect the nion s two campaigns the first day will be focused on the four fights, and the second on the pensions dispute.

29 universities, including Oxford and Newcastle did not meet the 50% turn-out threshold legally required for union ballots.

The Union proposes that these branches participate in the days of action, but staff will not go on strike.

Before escalating action next term, rady proposes launching reballots with a longer voting window with the hope of addressing low turn-out levels at some branches.

She stated: “I believe in UCU members’ ability to do this, get even better ballot results next time, and translate them into a serious victory that reverses the decade-long trend of underinvestment in staff in this sector”.

Locals plan River Wear clean-up Orlando Bell News eporter A member of the Durham community has organised a clean-up of the River Wear in order to ensure the continued health and smooth flow of the river. The clean-up will occur between Prebends Bridge, located next to St. Cuthbert’s, and Penny Ferry Bridge, down by the Radisson Blu Hotel.

This from-the-water litter pick is scheduled to take place on the 17th of November, in time to clean the river before Durham hosts the famous Lumiere Festival, which begins on November 18th. ( ames Tillotson)

The organiser is also hoping to run on-the-morning clean ups during the festival. The initiative has the full support of the Durham City Parish Council, the Durham Cathedral Security, Durham Regatta, and Durham Schools Rowing Club. Fourhundred Durham residents have also offered their volunteer support to the initiative as well as the Radisson and Marriott Hotels offering refreshments for the volunteers. The initiative is still seeking further volunteer support to be in the boats to collect and collate the litter recovered.

Maintaining the proper order and cleanliness of the river is vital to many of the activities that take place on the river. pecifically, the organisers are pleased to have the support and active assistance of the Durham Amateur

Rowing Club (DARC) as if the weirs fail due to neglect and floating debris accumulating, rowing, and other activities, would not be safe to go ahead.

The organisation are also advocating for more lifebuoys on the popular walking stretches of the river that are so popular with students. Concerns regarding student safety and the river have been raised many times before.

In 2014-15 three University students tragically died in the River Wear across an eighteen month period. A 57-year old man also died in the river in August 2018. Cold-water temperatures, currents, and the river’s proximity to many of Durham’s nightlife venues poses a particular danger.

From Chianti with love

A series on the experiences of Durham students abroad Rob Polya One afternoon I found myself lost on the side of a dusty, nameless road somewhere in the outskirts of Rome. How I got there I don’t quite remember. I was rather thirsty and tired, but was helped by a lady in khaki tracksuits and another with a bou uet of flowers in her hands, shouting “bless you, bless you!” after me as I boarded a bus.

This kind of religious hue that so often seeped into conversation would set the tone for many interactions I’d have with the Italians I was with. They were razor-tongued, cynical people, yet absolutely adamant in the existence of od. “ hat do you mean, you don’t believe in od ... you funny nglishman...” they’d mutter to my co-worker.

Even the chef with the jaded dagger tattoo on his thigh, who was, at the same time, able to coax incredulous stories into credibility and categorically deny the existence of the mafia, ealously believed in the existence of Christ. Just as fervently as he believed that the entire commune of aiole was run by communists, and that his salads would go for 50 euros a piece in the best central London hotels…

There was, even amid the mid-service sweat and cigarette-smoke, an element of inescapable sentimentalism that at times bordered on indulgence.

While many of my co-workers missed their Sicilian homeland, singing along to the folksongs of their forebears and deriding the unrefined accents of their Tuscan peers, countless tourists seemed irresistibly captivated by the idea of Tuscany.

Even I was prone to this. One night, while a raucous erman wedding illuminated the night, I was looking at the moon, thinking about the noble and tragic refrain of Dante’s exile… until the urgencies of the job at hand beckoned me back to practicality.

As with most things, constant exposure always came withthe risk of acquiescence, whereas for the guests, the place always offered a kind of painless enchantment to them.

While guests found only the dis-reality of la bella vita, the Italians themselves seemed fedup. “I’ve been saving up for three years, I’m going to say goodbye to my son and daughter, and not leave a trace behind”, the chef grumbled one night. “I’m never coming back to Italy. I don’t know where I will die, but I

know it won’t be here.”

Around late-September, it became necessary to take more care when walking in the dark of the morning. Wild-boar roamed the woods and were notoriously dangerous. I once planned to wal to aiole to travel to iena.

“You’re crazy”, the head-waiter exclaimed to me as we were getting ready for bed.

“The wild-boar will kill you if they want to…I walked from here to aiole before sunrise I’ll never do it again…I heard a really loud rustle and grunt right behind me, I nearly sh*t myself...I knew a guy in Albania who was killed by one”.

Sometimes I wondered whether the chef himself posed a greater threat than any wildboar could! In any case, he was a certainly a character One night, he sidled up to me and said “join me and D--- in the garden there are some Dutch girls who want to f*ck!” I politely declined.

He stuffed a speaker into his back pocket, winked and waddled off. The chef had some questionable views about women, but was routinely engulfed by service and solitude.

What absent love he so often claimed to be looking for, so often simply vanished into his work and his words.

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

8

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PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

Comment Ready, steady, sign! Durham’s student housing crisis Ellie Young Once again, the effects of the pandemic are leaving students vulnerable, worsening the already dreaded ‘rush to sign’ student houses.

The significant increase in the volume of students over the past two years, has culminated in chaos with regard to signing a student house. Competition is fierce and rent prices have soared, putting landlords in a position of power while leaving students in the dark.

The University should take the responsibility How much longer must students be left to face the consequences of the pandemic unsupported?

As a second year who was initially rejected from Durham because of the Government’s catastrophic handling of A-level results, I cannot complain about the increased volume of students. Of course, worthy

students should not be denied their deserved places because of a pandemic beyond their control.

Yet, the niversity should ta e responsibility for its decision to over-subscribe for two years in a row.

The lack of foresight by the University in housing its students is remarkable. This has already been seen in the re-allocation of Collingwood students to private accommodation half an hour away from college. The ‘rush to sign’ that many of us are currently caught up in should have been predicted and planned for. It is unfair to expect students to face the consequences of University decisions alone.

Without University guidance or support, many students are being forced to enter this competitive housing market completely blind, with houses disappearing as soon as they are put on the market.

A landlady I met at the weekend told me about several offers she had received from students who had not viewed the property in person. This really scared me given the prevelance of catfish properties that look nothing like they do online. I worry that proprietors and housing

agencies will take advantage of this, and that students will find themselves in unsatisfactory living conditions. Unfortunately, this already seems evident in the shocking increase in rent.

Although the increase in gas prices may be a factor in the increase in rent, the extent to which prices have gone up – including properties where bills are not included – can only be explained by landlords seeking to profit from the increased volume of students seeking housing.

This threatens to be catastrophic for lower-income students, who will be the ones to suffer most from soaring rent prices. As a working-class student, I’ve been trying to work out a bigger budget to keep up with both housing prices and my peers who have a higher income.

I’m sure that many other lowerincome students are feeling left behind in the rush to sign a house, due to the additional burden of negotiating finance on top of the pressure to sign.

I know of students who are considering commuting to Durham from their homes or living further out of the city where housing is more affordable.

Being a working-class student in Durham can feel isolating at the best of times, increasingly expensive housing will only lead to more financial and social alienation.

I worry that this will further prevent or discourage future working-class students from applying to Durham. The recent Palatinate investigation, which found that students from the wealthiest areas of the country are eight times more likely to apply to Durham than from the most deprived areas, suggests that serious reforms need to take place. But it feels impossible for change will happen in Durham’s expensive and exclusive climate.

While ‘living out’ is a choice independent of the University, it is integral to the university experience, it is not fair that we have been thrown into such chaos as a result of University decisions. The houses we sign for next year while have longterm consequences after the chaos of the ‘rush to sign’ is over, especially for lower-income students who will be affected disproportionately. We all hoped that the effects of the pandemic would be a distant memory: a ‘normal’ year. But the reality is that students will continue to be vulnerable to the long-term effects of the pandemic.

(Victoria Cheng)

Visibility and voices: Durham’s forgotten Black alumni Rapha Matonga Last month marked the 34th time the UK has celebrated Black History Month. In the weeks that have followed I have found myself pondering upon its personal significance to me.

As a Black child in the UK, I harboured feelings of frustration towards it; October was always a time in which I would be inundated with a plethora of complaints regarding what is meant to be a celebration of Black history. Chief among them was the grievance that there is not a ‘White History Month’.

The irony was never lost on me: the weekly curriculum involve learning about the white Tudors, the white Victorians.

Every history lesson consisted of detailing the achievements of white (primarily male) historical figures. Yet, for the four wee s in October, in which pupils would learn about lac historic figures like William Wilberforce and John Newton, there would be ojections.

Indeed, my early experiences of Black History Month were not

only marred by constant displays of white fragility, but also by the fact that it was often used as a time to exalt white saviours; creating the illusion that black people were not instrumental to the UK’s history.

The truth, of course, is that there are many Black figures in ritish history but acknowledging them would inevitably mean forcing white people to acknowledge their ancestors’ typically poor treatment of black people. This in turn desecrates the UK’s longstanding tradition of sweeping (the extent of) its racism under the rug. This is the nation that managed to both be one of the biggest players in the slave trade and convince people that they abolished slavery.

More recently, the Government went as far as releasing a highly condemned report, which concluded that there is no systemic racism in the UK. Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound that so regularly gas-lights us!

This ‘sweeping under the rug’ tradition is one that many British institutions still observe, and to a certain extent Durham University is also guilty of this.

As preparation for a recent job interview, wanted to find the name of the first lac student at University College. The search yielded no result. I also found a lack of information when widening the search to find the first non-white student at the University of Durham.

‘Sweeping under the rug tradition Who was this person? What did they study? What did they go on to do afterwards? Could they still be alive?

And perhaps now more than ever, it s essential to reflect upon what the “Black Experience” looked like for them: how were they received? Did they deal with the same microaggressions as Black students today? What advice, if any, would they have for a Black student or staff member at Durham?

The fact that it’s not clear who they, or many other notable Black alumni, are adds to my feeling of alienation at an institution such as Durham.

White students at Durham can find portraits of the white people

(men, really) that came before them on every wall in every hall.

In comparison, Black students are given the impression that not a single Black alum is noteworthy.

Resultantly, the University continues to perpetuate the idea that aca-demically educated lac people are flu es. This is simply not true: we are here, we have been here, and we will undoubtedly continue to be here.

The University’s theme for last month’s Black History Month was “visibility and voices.” Ironically, its Black alumni appear invisible and seemingly silent. It is incredibly hard to believe that Durham University does not have a rich (albeit potentially painful and tainted) Black history, and it is undeniably true that its Black alumni and students are currently contributing to Black history in remarkable ways. So why did Durham outsource figures and spea ers, instead of finding and inviting back these Black alumni and students? It would have been entirely possible for the University to have focused its approach to Black History Month on the University’s Black history.

Whilst sifting through copious archived documents, pictures,

etc. would unquestionably require a lot of effort but that is absolutely the point. Whilst the practice of using Black History Month to discuss white saviours is fortunately now less common, there is a new practice of using this month for concentrated virtue signalling. It is all well and good to flaunt their “allyship” in October but what about the rest of the year?

As long as institutions continue to only address Black history in October, they will forever preserve the notion that Black History belongs in the “other” category.

This is far from the truth.

The University’s Black History simply is a part of the University’s history. In which case, spending ovember to eptember to find out who and where its Black alumni were (or are) isn’t just about allyship: it’s ultimately a journey of self-discovery, and it’s one that invests time and effort in Black alumni in the way that they deserve.

In doing this, a new tradition ensues; one that requires the University to not let the brilliance of its past, current, and future Black students go unnoticed.

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Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Comment

A united front: is student action effectual enough?

Ben Pawlowski

In the last two years, both locally and nationally, we have seen the overwhelming power that collective grassroots action can hold with respect to raising issues and inspiring change. In a wide range of areas, whether that be the wave of #BlackLivesMatter protests in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, or vocal supporter opposition to the failed European Super League, young people in particular have begun to voice themselves on issues that hold a profound importance for them. Youth action and anger can no longer be ignored, or swept to the periphery of what is seen as important.

The recent response from the Durham University student body to the rise in spiking cases is another pleasing manifestation of this trend. On the last count, compiled by Joe Anson, JCR Vice President for St. Chad’s College, over 160 suspected spiking cases had been reported to college JCRs and welfare teams during Freshers’ week, the week before it and the weekend after. There have since been horrifying reports of spiking via injection.

The response from the Durham student body was overwhelming – Durham, which traditionally is not known for student-led action, was one of the forerunners in the response to the rise in spiking incidents both locally

and nationally. Durham Night In, held on Tuesday 26th October, saw over 1,400 students of the University, pledging to boycott nightclubs that night, with many of their peers joining in solidarity.

These measures will have a tangible impact The response from nightclubs across Durham has, in my view, been swift and reassuring, a further indicator of the strength that mass solidarity and coherent action brings. Jimmy Allen’s, as an example, have introduced more searches on entry, whilst also encouraging customers to put lids on open drinks in what are just two of a number of new measures introduced. Babylon, another popular club with students, are introducing free drug-testing kits for students, plus introducing the use of metal detectors on arrival.

Durham students themselves, the responsibility for this ultimately rests on the University.

Unfortunately, Durham University has hardly covered itself in glory with regards to the staggering growth in cases of spiking, with the now infamous #dontgetspiked tweet as the most explicit example of their ineffective response. Instead of perpetuating the notion of victimblaming, the University needs to educate its students, providing comprehensive teaching on the morality and consequences of spiking and nuances of consent.

This is the only long-term solution which, coupled with the recent changes implemented by nightclubs, will deter attackers and make Durham’s nightlife a

safer space for all.

Despite the aforementioned inertia of the University body, there is a basis for inspiring change through education.

Talks about topics such as white privilege now form an important part of Freshers’ Week, whilst there has been a steady push towards decolonising the curriculum. Evidently the foundations for this change exist – the only question that remains is whether the central University body is willing to push for that change.

The success of the studentled anti-spiking protest has perhaps hidden the inefficacy of the University’s response.

Nevertheless, it should remain a source of immense pride for

everyone involved, whether you played a leadership role within the Durham Night In movement, or simply stayed in that night. owever, the fight is far from being won. It’s time for Durham niversity itself to fulfil its role in the fight against spi ing. Our student body must now hand over the baton to the University to bring about the institutional change required to encourage a culture from which perpetrators are excluded, allowing Durham to be a city with a nightlife to be enjoyed, not feared, where students can focus their energies on having a good time rather than being inundated with anxieties surrounding their safety.

(Verity Laycock)

The responsibility for this ultimately rests on the central University body These measures are very welcome and will hopefully have a tangible impact on spiking levels. However, they will not completely eradicate the threat of spiking within Durham’s nightclubs and bars. There is only one long-term solution to this problem – education – and since a number of the perpetrators of spiking are suspected to be

“Have you noticed?”: are beauty standards toxic?

Jessica Donaldson Beauty standards remain prominent in society. Social media is awash with influencers carefully curated images and, upon an extensive scrolling through our feeds, most of us will make judgements on the people, and their bodies with which we are presented online. Comparisons and judgments are unavoidable; with more content comes more opportunity for appearances to be crafted and altered, and for beauty standards to be upheld.

Beauty standards can vary dramatically around the world but, regardless of their specific details, these standards are largely expectations for how the ‘ideal’ person should look.

We praise and express envy for those who achieve these seemingly ‘better’ lives, appearances… whatever it may be.

A deviation from such beauty standards is considered surpris-

ing, perhaps even shocking. It is a deviation to be commented on, to be remarked on. We feel entitled to critique other people’s lives and appearances. But why do we have this entitlement to comment on the appearances of others? Why, when we are so aware of the negative effects of beauty standards, do we still perpetuate them in our society?

We are able to detach from the reality of a celebrity as a person It was thoughts like this that came into my head whilst reading about Tilly Ramsay, TV personality and nineteen-year-old daughter of chef, Gordon Ramsay, and her recent experience with such judgment. Ramsay, who is currently performing on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing, came up as a subject of discussion on the radio station LBC. Presenter Steve Allen, during a discussion about the dancing programme, remarked that Ram-

say was “a chubby little thing”.

He invited the listener to agree with him, asking: “have you noticed?” He then speculated that it was “probably her dad’s cooking”. Allen, with no connection to Ramsay whatsoever (other than watching her briefly on television), felt that he had the right to not only comment on Ramsay’s body, but also speculate on her individual circumstances. Gaining considerable support from her Strictly Come Dancing costars, fans and other celebrities, Ramsay remarked in a social media post that being “called out on a national radio station by a 67-year-old man is too far”.

Yet, as amsay finishes her post, she understands “that being in the public eye obviously comes with its own repercussions”. uch a comment reflects a general complacency towards celebrities and the judgment they may receive on social media – because they have ‘chosen’ to be famous, they somehow ‘asked for’ such treatment. Perhaps this is where the entitlement to com-

ment on others’ bodies comes from – we are able to detach from the reality of a celebrity as a person, so we can make judgments without fear of them ever finding out. uch an entitlement, however, is not only confined to the realm of celebrity.

The same entitlement was rife in such a concentrated environment When considering how beauty standards can mould the way that we view others, I thought back to my own experience in the unique educational environment of all-girls school. A microcosm of society’s beauty standards, the same sense of entitlement to comment on other’s body that Allen demonstrated was rife within such a concentrated environment. I often overheard similar comments, made without a second thought for the emotions of others. I’ve also seen what effect extreme beauty standards can

have, knowing many individuals who have suffered with mental health problems relating to their body image. n the age of the influencer, beauty standards really are upheld in the media. It is here that I believe our problem lies. The correlation between the media and such standards is perhaps emphasised best by the fact that during the Covid-19 lockdowns of 2020, with most spending increased periods of time online and alone, both adults and under-18s felt worse about their bodies.

We can try our best to disregard these beauty standards and cultural ideals of what a body should look like – yet, with such standards still being upheld in the media we consume without any criticism, it becomes more difficult to disregard them.

When judgments are being made in the media about people’s appearances, it is unsurprising that we carry this entitlement to comment on other people’s bodies into our lives.

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

11

Comment

Why won’t the Government ban conversion therapy?

Olivia Kemp Content warning: This article discusses conversion therapy and depression.

On 29th October, the Government published a consultation document outlining detailled proposals to ban conversion therapy in the UK. This document includes references to ending the “coercive and abhorrent” conversion practices that seek to change sexual orientation or gender identity. The consultation period will last six weeks, concluding on 10th December 2021.

The Ministerial Foreword to the document states that “the United Kingdom is a global leader on LGBT rights and is committed to banning the coercive and abhorrent practice of conversion therapy”. The Rt Hon Elizabeth Truss MP, further noted that the aim is for “every individual to have the freedom to be themselves” and that “proposals have been developed with the protection of LGBT people in mind”.

On the surface, such statements

are encouraging. Yet it seems that the document is a mere performative action aimed at cultivating a progressive image.

This is due to the fact that ‘consenting adults’ will still be able to seek out and receive conversion therapy. y affirming that they “do not intend to ban adults from seeking such counselling freely”, the overnment ualities Office is ruling out a complete UK ban for conversion therapy, due to ‘democratic reasons’. The ideals upheld by democracy, then, almost paradoxically appear to be preventing the total eradication of this degrading practice.

This loophole has ignited debate over the definition of providing consent. I remain unconvinced that anyone is able to consent to these abhorrent practices. For many, refusing conversion therapy would lead to losing family, friends, faith, communities, and careers.

Indeed, conversion therapy may be something that individuals willingly seek, but this itself must be questioned. Proposals that allow for people to 'consent’ to something that cannot be consented to, should not be supported; adults should not be able to consent to be harmed in

any mental or physical capacity.

Other harmful acts such as female genital mutilation have been outlawed without such a loophole clause; this leads one to question the true intentions of the consultation document's proposals. All coercive attempts to change sexuality or gender identity must ultimately cease; the Government must ensure that victims and survivors get the protection they deserve.

The consultation document also makes little reference to the religious practices which inflict harm through the use of conversion therapy. Whilst religious liberty is considered by many people and most nations to be a fundamental human right, it should not be used as a guise.

The widespread torture and illtreatment of LGBTQ+ people by certain religious practices needs to be addressed; the only way to do this is to completely outlaw conversion therapy.

I reached out to Durham University alumni, Augustine Tanner-Ihm, who has noted that his experience of conversion therapy was dangerous and still ‘causes some issues today’.

As an intern at a charismatic free church in Liverpool, he was required to attend a Friday

night community called ‘L.I.F.E ministry’. This ministry was a form of conversion therapy; they tried to ‘change’ him, and turn his desires heterosexual. Augustine notes that he ‘didn’t feel safe’ and ‘didn’t know what to do’. They were sponsoring his visa; this was the only means by which he would be able to stay in the UK. Having experienced depression and ‘thoughts of death’ as a result of his experience, he ultimately worries that the proposed loophole in the law will ‘continue to harm queer people in the UK’.

No one should feel threatened or coerced into conversion therapy, nor experience abuse and scrutiny as a result of

rejecting such practices. The aforementioned proposals set out by the Government must be questioned; the loophole clause with regard to ‘consenting adults’ must be removed.

This disturbing vision of abuse should rouse everyone to action.

As a nation we must engage with these facts and resist these socalled "robust proposals". The loophole in the document shows ignorance; the proposed notion of ‘consent’ must be questioned.

Such barbaric practices which deny human dignity and demean victims must be fully outlawed with no scope for exemptions.

Love is not a disease; it does not need treating.

(William Fonteneau via Unsplash)

Why aren’t more working class students at Durham?

Becks Fleet Palatinate recently published data showing that eight times as many students from the wealthiest areas were admitted to Durham University than those from the most disadvantaged areas over the last five years.

This would be a major embarrassment for any university, but especially for one based in the heart of an area with a rich history of coal mining and a huge workingclass population. This is clearly an issue which must be addressed soon, but who, and what, exactly is to blame?

As a fresher from a distinctly working-class area (Wednesbury, a post-industrial town in the est idlands , have first-hand experience with the support offered to applicants in socalled ‘deprived areas’. The most impactful and helpful assistance I received wasn’t from the University itself, but non-profit organisations who provide support, often on behalf of universities, including Durham.

The summer school in Durham – organised and run by The Sutton Trust – which I attended last summer was my first true introduction to the University, and

(Rosie Bromiley) sparked my interest in applying (I wish I could say it let me experience the city, but this was during peak Covid-19 times so we were Zoom-bound).

Frankly, it’s a bad look for Durham that this support for disadvantaged students isn’t offered by the University itself, but by a non-profit.

The University itself does offer support to working-class applicants (often in the form of reduced grade requirements, known as a ‘contextual offer’) and this, combined with the fantastic wor of non-profits with the endorsement of the University,

shows that the University is somewhat trying to increase its intake from disadvantaged areas.

Although they shoulder some of the blame (does this support really go far enough?), I can’t simply point the finger at the University administration and say that they’re solely to blame.

A point I’d like to stress that it isn’t the case that working-class people don’t go to university.

Although the numbers are still lower for disadvantaged students – 27.9% of the most disadvantaged students went to university last year, compared to 58.3% of the least disadvantaged – they are

much better than they used to be.

Durham specifically still stands out as one of the worst universities in the country for intake of disadvantaged students, with just 25 new students last year coming from ‘low university participation’ neighbourhoods. The issue isn’t that working-class people aren’t going to university, it’s that they’re not going to Durham University.

Although the University itself can only take part of the blame for the issue, there’s another problem that they have a responsibility to do something about: Durham’s image.

It’s hard to deny that Durham has a bit of a reputation of being ‘posh’ and ‘snobby’, something which has been done no favours by recent reports of archaic (and dangerous) initiation ceremonies, and last year’s reports that some students were competing to have sex with the ‘poorest girl on campus’.

Durham has a bit of a reputation of being ‘posh’ and ‘snobby’ Of course, all of this concerned me as a university applicant last year; I accepted my offer regardless, mostly based on my affection for the city and Durham’s prestige.

Since I started here a month ago, my worries about how d fit

in at Durham have disappeared, as I’ve realised that it’s not as posh here as it’s often made out to be, but the image of the University to outsiders – and particularly potential applicants – remains an issue. Intelligent working-class students are certainly going to university, but they’re simply choosing not to come to Durham.

I have only been able to cover the tip of the iceberg thus far; there are countless other factors at play that influence the big eight to one’ statistic. For example the Government’s neglect of state schools which worsened following the pandemic, when cashstrapped schools had to make countless compromises to keep things running.

Costs of university have furthermore climbed to a concerning level and students (in Durham’s case, those outside of the North East) want to stay local, and not leave their friends and families.

However, the reality is that intelligent students, of which there are many, from disadvantaged backgrounds are not attending Durham in the numbers you’d expect.

Frankly, I can’t say I blame them; why would the people of Wednesbury want to attend a university seemingly tailored towards the people of Windsor?

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Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Profile

Yanis Varoufakis: Greece is even more bankrupt than it was at peak of crisis

Profile speaks to the economist and former Greek finance minister about the dire situation for young people in Greece, what went wrong in 2015, and his grand vision for a new economic world.

Paul Ray Profile Editor

T

he year is 2015, and Europe is once again in a moment of crisis. Greece, still fatally stricken by the financial crisis of 2008, is about to default on its debt repayments from its second bailout loan, worth €100 billion.

If Greece declares bankruptcy, and so loses its capacity to meet its debt repayments, then European banks (mostly German) face black holes in their books, potentially leading to severe economic crisis in other debthit nations like Spain, Portugal and Ireland. For the stability of the European economic order to continue, Greece needs a third bailout loan.

Then, on the 25th January, left-wing populist party Syriza win the Greek general election, and Yanis Varoufakis becomes the country’s finance minister.

A British-educated economist and academic lecturer by trade, Varoufakis’s mission was to totally renegotiate Greece’s debt settlement with the EU; restructure the debt, reform the failing economy, and lift the socially and economically depressing condition of austerity from Greek life. He fails. On the 12th July, Greece’s Prime Minister signs a third bailout package worth a further €86 billion, contrary to a referendum in which Greece votes No to a third bailout by a margin of 61%. Varoufakis resigns from the government.

That was six years ago. In our interview, I ask Varoufakis how Greece has managed to stay afloat since he left government.

“Well, let me give you some numbers. In 2015 when the whole world was referring to Greece, quite rightly, as bankrupt, our debt was 300. Forget the zeroes,” he explains, calmly and methodically. “And our income was 175 -- that’s when I left the ministry. Today, public debt is nearer 400. And income is 168.

So we are more bankrupt than we were in 2015. The reason why you don’t hear of this in your newspapers, media and so on – this is

completely out of the news – is because the European Union has decided it doesn’t want to deal with the Greek crisis anymore. So they are pretending it’s not there.

And the only way to pretend that the bankruptcy is not there is by continuing to give out loans. In 2015 when I disagreed with the Prime Minister back then and resigned, [Greece] took a credit card of €85 billion. When that ran out, they shifted some of their debt to beyond 2032. Now what they’re doing is they have the European Central Bank printing money and lending it to the Greek state, effectively. So it’s lending, lending, lending. That would have been fine, if it wasn’t, however, for the conditions; the strings that came attached with this lending. And those strings were continuing with harsh austerity.

Now you have evictions, 600,000 homes that are about to be auctioned off with people losing them, and losing their shops and so on.”

On austerity, “it’s a political d e c i s i o n ,”

(Olaf Kosinsky)

Varoufakis tells me. “You have to understand that a state goes bankrupt when the powers that be decide that it is bankrupt. If they decide that it’s not bankrupt, it’s not bankrupt. So, theoretically, the European Central Bank could keep printing money to refinance the Greek debt. I don’t think they will, ad infinitum, but they could. Now the question is, what happens to the people of Greece?

Because the price of continuing to extend the bankruptcy into the future, pretending to have solved it then the price you have to pay

peasants, you know, working for peanuts in the tourist industry, in shops, earning next to nothing, never being able to imagine a proper life. Either they accept this, migrate.”

Yanis’ new book, Another Now, is a strange hybrid of vividly atmospheric fiction and an economics lecture, in which we follow three protagonists through to a post-capitalist 2025, with a utopian economic and political settlement in place. I ask Varoufakis what prompted him to write a novel, after years

“We are losing all of our young” for that is desertification. We are losing all of our young people.

They are emigrating.

There is nothing to do here. Either they choose to stay here as

of patiently explaining economic concepts to general readers in factual tomes.

“The main reason is that so far, all the books that I’ve written concern the present, and concern my analysis of what’s going on. This book has the purpose of answering a question that I always avoided throughout my life. An important question. And because it was so important, and because I didn’t really have an answer, I was avoiding it. And the question is, ‘OK mate, you’re a leftie, you don’t like capitalism – what’s the alternative?’

“The problem with this question is that the moment I come up with an idea, I immediately come up with its opposite. I immediately start having arguments with myself.

So I thought [...] let the characters fight it out.”

At one point in the interview, Varoufakis describes the world of his new book as a ’realistic utopia’. It’s essentially a form of market socialism, where capitalist markets remain, albeit in closely regulated form. But one market conspicuous in its absence from Varoufakis’s new world is the labour market, people freely selling their time doing labour for bosses in exchange for an

hourly or monthly wage.

“I believe that as long as there is scarcity, you can’t do away with markets,” Varoufakis explains. “[But] there are two markets that have to go before we can even begin to speak of socialism.

One is the labour market and one is the market for money, in particular financial markets and the commercial banks.

“In my book there is a full sketch. Some people say it’s too comprehensive, because it takes away from the novel to have all this detail. But I wanted to provide as much detail as possible on how you can have a functioning market system without labour markets.

“Now, why do we need the market at all, the market for goods and services? Because if you don’t have the markets, how do you make decisions as to what corporations produce, about prices, and about distribution, who gets what?

“There are two alternatives that I can think of. One is the Soviet model of central planning.

You have a Gosplan (a ministry of planning) that decides how many washing machines will need to be produced, how many cars and so on. We know that that failed. This system kills innovation, because it can only plan for things that we know are produced.

“The alternative to Gosplan, and the market system, is for everything to happen through negotiation.

My colleague Michael Albert believes that consumers and producers should form assemblies. To me this is too unwieldy.

“I am a socialist, I’ve been a socialist all my life, [but] I have a great appreciation for what Oscar Wilde once said, that socialism will not happen because socialist meetings last too long into the evening.

“In the end, as long as it’s not the labour market or the market for cash, the market has a certain liberating effect. You don’t need the approval of the collective.

“This collectivism is highly oppressive. That everyone has to agree before you do anything. So markets can be quite liberating, as long as it’s not the labour market, because it’s through labour markets that capital imposes its iron will on the many.”

Realistic utopia, or the pipe dream of an academic who couldn’t fulfill his project when actually in power? Perhaps only history can answer that.

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

13

Profile

aroness ally or an: want people to be able to fulfil their potential

Profile speaks to the former hair of fsted about her time at urham, how the pandemic has increased ine uality in education, her thoughts on orbyn, and last year s cancellation of national e ams than anitt Profile Editor “I found Jeremy Corbyn … “.

Baroness ally organ trails off, deciding how diplomatic to be. ot very, is the conclusion she seems to come to Corbyn was a ridiculous leader of the abour Party”, the abour peer tells me.

Perhaps this judgement is unsurprising. former senior advisor to ony Blair, Baroness organ hails from the opposite wing of abour to eremy Corbyn. uch of her career has involved working cross party, and organ was even appointed as Chair of fsted by avid Cameron’s coalition government in 2010.

“I found Jeremy Corbyn ... a ridiculous leader of the Labour Party” Before her political career began, though, Baroness organ studied geography at an ildert College. organ describes her e perience of urham fondly loved an ildert”, she says. loved the modernity of the place when was there, liked the feeling of space t was a very lively college.”

Whilst at urham, organ organised a conference for schools in the orth East, focused on widening access to further education. he notes the irony of this, considering her future involvement in the education sector. spent a lot of my life looking at widening access to higher education, and, in fact, without uite realising it, did it while was at University”.

What ultimately drew organ into politics, though, was a talk she heard given by eil innock, the then hadow Education ecretary and future abour leader. organ describes how she was inspired by his drive to try and open education up to a broader group of people”. t was this idea, she says, that education could act as a powerful engine for social mobility” that persuaded her to join the abour Party. t’s something still feel very strongly about”. organ consistently emphasises the importance of e uality in education. ask her what she means by this. What would she want the

country’s education system to look like want e uality of opportunity. want people to be able to fulfil their potential. o, think there’s always a danger that, if you just talk about e uality in the broader sense, you can lose e cellence and individuality”. ore practically, organ continues, this means fair access to great teaching” and ensuring that there are great headteachers” all around the country.

“Covid-19 has been a bit of a wake-up call” organ then turns to the impact Covid 1 has had on schools and universities. think there needs to be uite a rethink, personally, of where we are. nd think Covid has been a bit of a wake up call.” ll the way through my career ’ve felt we were on a journey, and there were a group of people really trying to push things and widen access in education to more people. feel we’ve taken a real step back”. organ then describes how a combination of austerity and the pandemic are the causes of this. ll the evidence shows that the most disadvantaged, particularly in poor schools have suffered the most in the last eighteen months, and the trouble is you can’t make that by saying we’ll just say that people can have different grades”” organ says. o, think there needs to be serious work and resource put into what we mean by catch up”. he former Chief of fsted is especially scathing about Gavin Williamson’s leadership, when he was ecretary of Education. ’ve never come across a person so incompetent and so unsuited to being Education ecretary. thought he was an absolute embarrassment, actually, and at every stage failed”. he pauses, e asperated. e had no strategy, he had no solutions, he had no plan. though he was an embarrassment.”

“I thought Gavin Williamson was an embarrassment”

organ’s frustration over how the government have handled the education sector and national assessments during the pandemic is apparent. o what would she have done differently would have kept the e ams, actually”, she says. lthough there are problems with the testing regime, think probably, on balance, it would have been fairer to carry on with it” than to have teacher assessed grades. ” thought it was the responsibility of the ofE and wider government to say, we will work with you to deliver e ams.’”

organ continues.

But will tarmer’s approach work think it is very hard for him at the moment because we’ve got a very populist Prime inister who’s not very interested in government, in my view. e’s interested in power and being Prime inister”, organ sighs. nd that makes it difficult to engage in a serious way it’s damaging for everybody”.

“I would have kept the exams”

(Parliamentary Portrait)

ask whether it would have been practical to organise e ams during the pandemic. Especially during the first lockdown, would national assessments have been possible to arrange Baroness organ answers immediately es.” here was noise, but think, actually, you could have argued it through, if it was delivered in the proper way.” organ suggests that core subjects could have been e amined using local community centres and spaces as e am halls. f you’d said to a local authority in your patch, Can you make sure that there is provision to have e ams delivered and work with schools in your area ’, think that would have been doable but they the government weren’t prepared to send resources or influences or powers or decisions down to the local areas.”

“We’ve got a very populist Prime Minister who’s not very interested in government” owards the end of the call, ask about eir tarmer. What does the Baroness think of the abour Party leader think he’s got a set of politics that are his. What he isn’t is a Corbynite he’s not someone who supports the far left”. e grew up with politics being discussed around the kitchen table; it’s sort of in his bones.” e takes Parliament seriously, he wants to rebuild a abour Party that’s rooted and has support across the country”,

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

14

Science & Technology LED streetlights reduce insect populations by half William Brown Over the last decade, there has been a transition in the UK’s streetlights.

Councils have replaced mercury and sodium streetlights with white LEDs, arguing that they use half as much energy and are easier to control. Durham County Council began this work in 2013 by upgrading over 55,000 streetlights across the county in a move that the council claimed would save over £24 million in a 25-year period.

Given the current climate crisis, it sounds like the type of policy that would go ahead unopposed; who could say no to reducing energy consumption?

But nothing is ever that perfect. The rollout of LEDs has been problematic from the beginning, with Public Health England warning in 2018 that the new streetlights, which release higher levels of blue light, might disrupt our sleep patterns and cause damage to our retinas.

Councils were asked to think beyond immediate financial benefit and consider the social costs

of installing these new lights.

However, the transition continued unabated.

Light pollution harms wildlife. Animals depend on the daily rhythm of light for essential behaviours (eating, sleeping, reproduction, etc.). Introducing artificial lighting confuses these behaviours. Birds, for e ample, can end up migrating too early or too late because of the changing light conditions in their habitat, and bright lights can attract insects.

So it is unsurprising to learn that LEDs are having a negative ecological impact. Research published by Boyes et al. last August makes clear the e act severity of this impact, with insect populations reduced by up to a half.

Acting as the basis of most food chains and playing an essential role in controlling soil ecosystems, the impacts of their loss could be significant, with consequences further up the food chain. Caterpillars, for e ample, are a key food source for hedgehogs and songbirds, and later become important pollinators as moths.

Funded by the National Envi-

ronment Research Council, the scientists behind this latest study claim it to be the first investigation into the impact of white LED lights on insects. The researchers focused on moth caterpillars for this study because of their abundance and low mobility.

Studying hedgerows located under LED streetlights, populations of moth caterpillars were 52% lower than in nearby, unlit areas.

In contrast, populations under sodium lighting were 41% lower.

The researchers considered moth caterpillars to represent other nocturnal insects, implying that the effect of LED lights goes beyond one species.

The obvious question is whether this rollout of LED lights should continue. Although they are having a greater impact on local wildlife, it’s also important to remember their greater energy efficiency in the conte t of climate change, and the enhanced public safety that the brighter LEDs can provide.

However, there is a solution.

LEDs are far easier to customise than mercury or sodium. It is possible to dim them or apply filters

(Victoria Cheng)

that block the blue light, which is the most harmful both to insect populations and to our sleep patterns.

Placement is also important.

Boyes et al. argue that certain key habitats ought to be left alone, and that streetlights in general ought to be used with consideration of the surrounding environment.

Given the seemingly eternal paralysis around the climate, it’s

(Victoria Cheng)

refreshing to have an environmental issue with a seemingly easily achievable fi . Compromise is key with environmental issues, and the suggestions given by the researchers are certainly worth considering.

With this study and hopefully future ones like it, local governments can have an array of information to make the best decisions about the future of street lighting.

IR light therapy could reverse dementia Summer Revely During a pilot study, led by Dr Paul Chazot of Durham University and Dr Gordon Dougal of Maculume Ltd., transcranial photobiomodulation therapy (PBM-T) has shown significant improvement to the sleep quality and memory of individuals. i minutes of PB , twice daily at 1068 nanometres in wavelength, significantly improved the brain processing and memory of healthy people aged 45 and over, over a period of four weeks.

Tracy Sloan, a 56-year-old in general good health with no diagnosed memory-impeding conditions, was one participant in the study. She said the therapy helped her “without a doubt”, and that during treatment she didn’t need to write things down in order to remember short messages. She also described a huge improvement in her quality of sleep and said that she “had more energy”. o could this be beneficial to people living with dementia? ementia can be defined as an umbrella term for previously irreversible, neurodegenerative disorders in which damage to brain cells obstructs their ability

to communicate with each other.

PBM-T proposes a way to help. In this study, a fitted helmet delivers infrared light rays transcranially (through the skull) into the brain.

As a result of the radiation emitted, higher mitochondrial stimulation increases the level of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) released in neurons and neuroglia (cells of the nervous system).

This molecule is at especially low levels in dementia patients.

ATP acts by releasing energy to drive many key biological processes, including the nerve cell repair pathways required to reconnect damaged neurones of dementia patients.

(Durham University)

In sufferers of vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, symptoms seen are often a result of restricted blood flow to the brain through a narrowing, and eventual blockage, of its blood vessels.

PB can improve the fle ibility of the endothelium (the inner lining) of these vessels by increasing levels of nitrous o ides (NOs).

NOs act as retrograde neurotransmitters in synapses, allowing blood flow and o ygen to be supplied to the brain’s white matter. This matter is composed primarily of long-range myelinated

a ons, which are the insulated, impulse carrying part of nerve cells. o, a higher o ygen supply is potentially of huge benefit to dementia patients by increasing the nerve impulse conduction rate.

Interestingly, works in the US also involving Chazot and Dougal show a significant improvement in nerve connectivity using IR-therapy in mild to moderate dementia sufferers, regardless of their se .

In a double-blind, sham-controlled clinical trial using nearinfrared stimulation, two neurophysical assessments on 60 participants, in the form of mini mental state e ams ( Es), were taken eight weeks apart: one at week zero before treatment was used, and one at week eight of treatment. hese showed significant improvement to memory performance and cognitive processing between weeks zero and eight for both males and females, as well as no significant difference in the efficacy of the treatment between the se es.

This is hugely important, as it displays how despite differences in genetic profile, clinical presentation and gross anatomy, treatments like PBM-T still propose a

hopeful, effective treatment to relieve and possibly reverse the lifelimiting effects of mild to moderate dementia.

As well as physical improvements, caregivers of patients partaking in the study reported lifted moods and higher energy levels in the participants. This is consistent with effects observed in participants such as Tracy Sloan in the UK study.

Although more research is required, evidence suggests that infrared therapy could be helpful in managing other neurodegenerative diseases.

Potential benefits include improved motor function to patients with Parkinson’s disease, motor neuron disease and to those who have suffered a traumatic brain injury, and restoration of blood flow, to promote nerve cell repair.

Clearly, methods of infrared light therapy show a very promising ability to improve and possibly reverse the progression of symptoms presented in dementia patients, and for other neurodegenerative conditions.

With hope for approval of these treatments to be used on patients in the UK soon, we are one step closer to overcoming the huge global challenge proposed by neurodegenerative disease.

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

15

SciTech

Lumiere’s 'Chronos' resonates with Durham’s atomic research Mitch Walker umiere starts ne t hursday, and with it comes 'Chronos', a projected piece of art which will tell the story of time. Whilst Gross and Epsztein’s artwork plays out on the side of the Ogden Centre for Fundamental Physics, a very different lightshow is underway ne t door, where lasers are instead being used as part of an atomic clock to measure time with incredible precision. In doing so, Prof. Jones’ lab stands shoulder to shoulder with similar e periments being undertaken at Caltech, JILA, and Princeton.

In order to measure time, physicists e ploit the structure of atoms. This means that the same clock can be built anywhere, as atoms of a given element all behave the same. By shining a laser beam onto the atoms, it is possible to drive the electrons to

transition between energy levels.

This allows the laser to oscillate at a precise rate which can be counted: the atoms act like the pendulum of a grandfather clock, swinging at a fi ed speed such that all the seconds measured are the same size. Of course, the laser ticks much more rapidly than a pendulum — for caesium clocks (the most common) there are over nine billion cycles each second!

A view into a vacuum chamber used(Thomas in Durham's Tomlinson) atomic clock

They have been used to check Einstein's Widely used atomic clocks keep time so well that in 30 million years, they’ll only be wrong by one second, and ongoing e periments aim to do even better. In fact, labs are starting to reach fundamental limits on

(Matthew Hill)

precision as dictated by quantum mechanics.

Even then, ways to bend the rules and be ever more accurate are still being developed.

Such precision may seem like a waste of time, but atomic clocks play a key role in e perimentally verifying fundamental laws of physics.

Perhaps most famously they have been used to check predictions made by Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity: in 1971, four atomic clocks were boarded onto commercial aeroplanes and flown around the world.

Afterwards, the clocks were found to disagree with one another by amounts that matched those predicted by the theory. If all of this feels far in today’s world, atomic clocks also have important commercial applications in global timekeeping, GPS, and television broadcast.

Seeing the universe through dark matter lenses Leo Li Here is a riddle for the riddleloving phin What is the ring which is made of gala ies, and what is the lens which is made from the invisible f the phin hadn’t surrendered her life to Oedipus and lived until Einstein published his paper regarding gravitational lensing in 1936, she would know the answer to the first part of the riddle an Einstein ring. Nonetheless, despite her shrewdness, she couldn’t answer the second part of the riddle with full certainty. Her best guess would be dark matter, but really, nobody knows.

The famous Einstein ring is a product of strong gravitational lensing. It occurs when a high concentration of mass with a gravitational attraction so strong that it bends light passing by. The concentration of mass acts as a lens, focusing gala ies hidden behind it, which are tens and hundreds of megaparsecs away, onto our telescopes.

Their distorted and multiplied images form an arc or — if one’s in luck — a full gleaming circular ring. he first sighting of an Einstein ring took place in 1979,” sniggers the knowledgeable phin , validating Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity (GR).

Since then, other gravitational lensing events have been spotted, with notable effort using my personal favourite Hubble Space Telescope.” he relishes in e plaining the other two major classes of lensing. Weak lensing: smaller distortions of background

gala ies which often remain undetectable without applying statistical corrections. Weak shear signals produced in images are analysed to constrain the lensing mass. Microlensing: a relatively small lensing mass periodically channels more light to our telescopes, without producing distorted images of the light sources.

Gravitational lensing has offered astronomers insight into the mass distribution of the Universe. Most observed gravitational lenses simply don’t contain enough stellar or visible mass to bend passing light rays.

Therefore, astronomers propose the e istence of invisible dark matter in the lensing masses.

“So, I am correct,” cackles the phin , dark matter indeed makes up the invisible lens.”

Before we discuss whether the phin ’s statement is truly indisputable, we must have a general idea what dark matter is, or could be. It is theorised that the Universe’s mass is comprised of 85% dark matter.

Dark matter is a noninteractive, non-baryonic and hardly detectable form of matter which contributes massively to the Universes’ gravitational field. ark matter could e ist as massive compact halo objects (MACHOs). Similar to dark matter, MACHOs are non-luminous astronomical bodies.

However, MACHOs can also be constituted of dim stellar objects such as brown dwarfs and neutron stars, which are made of baryonic matter.

Astronomical observations of gravitational lensing and the cosmic microwave background

(CMB) have also indicated that e istent C s cannot account for the overwhelming abundance of dark matter in the Universe. ark matter could also e ist as a form of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). The WIMP theory is more widely accepted and theoretically plausible. It states that dark matter is a new elementary particle, yet it is e cluded by the Standard Model of Particle Physics.

And last, dark matter could just not e ist at all. umerous modified gravity ( G) theories suggest that, outside the four fundamental forces of nature, there are additional forces which are misconstrued as dark

matter. Most plausible MOGs are alternatives to GR or consider it as a special case.

A prominent contestant of GR and the hypothesis of dark matter is the theories of modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND).

They modify Newton’s law of gravitation by replacing the inverse square dependence on distance with an inverse linear relation. The most recent theory postulates an undiscovered new form of gravity as a potential fifth force’. aliant effort by two researchers from Czech Academy of Science, Skordis and Zlosnik, proved that this particular theory of MOND matches both gravitational lensing and cosmic microwave background data.

Nevertheless, the physics community still hold by GR and the dark matter hypothesis. The former has simply been proven correct through uncountably many e periments, and the latter pertains to a systematic and satisfying model of cosmology.

In addition, MOGs, especially MONDs, fail to construct any feasible or meaningful cosmological models. o, is the phin correct We won’t know until the day dark matter and its (non )e istence are fully understood. or now, we shall find harmony in our differences, and together, gaze up at the coldly glimmering stellar rings, scattered across the ever e panding dark night sky.

(Xiaoyao Yin)

16

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

SciTech

Durham University students involved in bacterial defence mechanism discovery Gabriel Ferrante Research by the Biosciences Department of Durham University and collaborators at the University of Liverpool and the University of Northumbria has discovered a new bacterial defence mechanism which has future biotechnology applications.

Bacteria, and the viruses that infect them (called bacteriophages, or phages), are intertwined in an endless cycle of competition. Similarly to human viruses, phages continuously evolve to escape the immune systems of their hosts.

After injecting their genetic material into a bacterial cell, phages subvert their cellular machinery, replicate within and subsequently destroy the cell, releasing their brethren to infect neighbouring bacteria and repeating their parasitic lifestyle.

However, bacteria have many types of defence mechanisms to destroy their would-be invaders. These bacterial defence mechanisms are many and varied but often involve enzymes to precisely slice up the phage’s genetic material after it invades. or e ample, their C P Cas

systems that have revolutionised biotechnology, or their more unknown Bacteriophage E clusion system (B E ) which uses multiple enzymes to modify phage DNA to stop them from replicating.

The researchers and their collaborators tracked different defence systems in bacterial genetic material and found that the bacterium Escherichia fergusonii used the B E system alongside a new type of DNA cutting enzyme to defend itself from phages.

97 students completing their BSc or MBiol degrees in Biological Sciences at Durham University contributed to this study by collecting and purifying phages in workshops during their final or penultimate years of study.

97 students completing their BSc or MBiol degrees at Durham University contributed to the joint study These phages were then used to test the new defence mechanism after it was inserted into another species of closely

related bacteria, Escherichia coli.

Subsequently researchers found that B E and the new en yme termed B U’ work together to defend against phage infection.

BREX and the new enzyme termeed 'BRxU' work together to defend against phage infection They were able to discover that Br U recognises multiple modifications found in phage genomes, added to evade different bacterial immune system proteins, like B E , and cleaves the DNA. This system is not perfect, with some phages being able to dodge the tag team defence of Br U and B E systems. he special aspect of Br U is its ability to recognise multiple phage DNA sequences with different modifications, which are also used in humans to control gene e pression.

Gene e pression is the system which allows different cells to have different structures and functions through the switching on and off genes to produce proteins specific to various

cell types. his allows comple organisms like humans to have specialised cells which carry out distinct functions.

Another level of comple ity is found in the pattern of gene regulation through chemical modifications of DNA and proteins associated with it: this is called the epigenome.

Accordingly, the epigenome also has some role in memory formation, ageing, development and other essential processes.

(Servier Medical Art)

Problems with the epigenome are central to many severe diseases which are incurable or hard to treat such as autoimmune diseases, neurological disorders

and some types of cancer.

Therefore, an enzyme which can recognise and cut DNA sequences with these epigenetic markers may allow researchers to develop this bacterial immune system into a new type of biotechnological tool to simplify laboratory techniques for characterising the epigenome of cells.

Researchers may develop this bacterial system into a newtypeofbiotechnological tool There is still work to be done, as the researchers still need to discover the full scope of modifications and se uences recognised by Br U and the way it conducts chemical reactions to fulfil its purpose.

But this breakthrough marks a great achievement by Durham students with implication for the entire field of epigenetics.

The science of autumn, from September to November Katherine Deck September: Autumn’s palette begins to show The stunning hues underpinning the autumn’s arrival can be attributed to the infamous green pigment chlorophyll, and its breakdown during the autumn months.

During the spring and summer months, when daily sunlight hours are at their highest, chlorophyll utilises this abundance of light through photosynthesis: the process by which light is absorbed by chlorophyll-containing reaction centres to convert carbon dio ide and water into carbohydrates.

These carbohydrates are then used in a variety of vital metabolic pathways, such as amino acid and lipid biosynthesis. Chlorophyll is the dominant pigment in many plant tissues, and since it scarcely absorbs light wavelengths in the green region (~550 nm) relative to red and blue light, leaves appear green. That is, until the onset of autumn, characterised by the appearance of vibrant yellows and oranges where green foliage once was.

As the availability of light decreases, so does the e tent of photosynthesis.

Consequently, leaves stop synthesizing chlorophyll, and any that remains

is broken down. Such plant senescence is triggered by a decrease in light, alongside a comple system of internal hormonal signals.

Catabolism of chlorophyll allows for the recycling and remobilisation of nitrogen so that essential nitrogenous compounds, e.g. proteins and DNA, can be synthesized by the plant.

With the dominant green pigment removed from plant tissues, other pigments, including orange carotenes, yellow anthophylls and red anthocyanins, become visible.

October: Winter preparations begin Leaves are not the only aspect of nature undergoing changes throughout autumn.

As September comes to an end and October begins, animals begin to employ a variety of strategies in order to ensure survival in the coming winter months. A commonly seen behaviour is migration, where birds travel to warmer regions with more reliable food sources during the colder months. Some species carry out annual trips of several thousands of kilometers: the arctic tern migrates an astonishing distance of around 30000 km from the Arctic Circle to the Antarctic circle every year.

The way in which bird are able to sense the Earth’s magnetic field and use it for navigation has remained a mystery for many years, however researchers are now beginning to put forward theories to unravel the mechanism.

T h e

lifetimes is thought to form the basis of magnetoreception.

Some animals, such as moles, enter hibernation in mid-late autumn. In preparation for this feat, many hibernators will hunt vigorously and consume as much food as possible, through a

(Katherine Deck)

c r y p t o c h ro m e radical pair hypothesis proposes that, within a light-sensitive protein contained in the bird’s retina, a pair of unpaired electrons (radicals) switches between two quantum states, the triplet and singlet states, following the absorption of light.

In the presence of a magnetic field, the radical pair spends more time in one of these states relative to the other- this change in balance between spin state

process k n o w n as hyperphagia.

Remarkably, hibernating animals manage to endure several months without food by lowering their body temperatures and metabolic activity to the absolute minimum required for survival.

These measures function to conserve energy during the coldest months, where food is scarce.

Other animals respond to the change in seasons through physical adaptations, such as the

growth of thicker fur or even the change in fur colour, as seen with weasels and ptarmigans. These animals all shed their brown fur coat for a white one, which allows them to camouflage in snowy areas, avoiding predation.

Interestingly, it has also been theorised that the white fur acts as enhanced insulation: since the fur lacks pigments, it has an increased capacity to hold air inside the individual hairs.

November: Wildlife braces for a temperature drop as days get shorter As autumn draws to a close, leaves begin to fall from their trees.

This is a clever energyconserving strategy employed by deciduous trees – since leaves are no longer gathering light through chlorophyll to be used in photosynthesis, it is no longer energetically sustainable for them to be present.

Triggered by the decrease in sunlight and the lack of chlorophyl, ethylene and au in work antagonistically to bring about leaf abscission, saving the tree both energy and water.

These leaves do not go to waste: fallen leaves contain valuable organic material and trace minerals that enrich soil fertility, boosting the potential for new and better plant growth.

17

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

Politics Imposter syndrome: should more be done at Durham?

Joshua Guillen Social isolation, better expressed as imposter syndrome, is a phenomenon predicated on the idea that people, through no fault of their own, are subjected to unjust asymmetries that impact negatively on their ability to socialise, work or accrue opportunities.

This is predominantly something experienced in the world of work: a reported 38% of the workforce suffer from sentiments linked to imposter syndrome, with data suggestive of a further fall in ob confidence as a result of the pandemic.

What is clear, however, is that insecurity of this kind is not exclusively reserved to employment prospects; the last 18 months have served to underline how social and economic inequalities are pervasive across all reaches of society. This diffidence is broadly applicable to British higher education: recent trends point to a growing socioeconomic chasm in offer rates from Russell Group universities — even in cases where projected grades are indistinguishable between students of different backgrounds.

These inequalities should necessarily be considered as core enabling factors in the fomentation of social-based anxieties on campus, especially as they relate to Durham University. The unbalanced nature of admissions, whereby a sustained increase in admissions from the nation’s wealthiest areas has outdone those from the poorest areas, engenders a broader dissonance in the University’s long-term strategy.

The resultant consequences are explicit: heightened disconnect from within the student community will likely lead to more incidents of abuse and explicit classism, despite the current push to create a more diverse student body at the University.

What is clear, however, is that imposter syndrome is as much a social problem as it is a structural one. In essence, if a university like Durham is ill-equipped to provide holistic, responsive support to marginalised individuals, there is no feasible path for a more diverse, representative student demography to be procured. Testimonies from Durham students from the

north of England accentuate the entrenched institutional inertia of the University in dealing with prejudiced and “toxic” attitudes; students of colour have previously reported a culture of racism; and the sociology department recently issued an open letter to the University over the treatment of working-class students.

This underscores an indelible criticism often echoed in the national press: Durham University has helped in the normalisation of a set of behavioural patterns that have served to erode the virtues of meritocratic attainment felt by those of less fortunate beginnings. The University has since reaffirmed its ambition to create a more equitable student experience, but concerns remain about the efficacy of its proposed path.

Here, it is important to stress that steps have been taken to broaden accessibility to Durham, with the introduction of the Brian Cooper scholarship fund one such innovation designed to extend opportunity to the immediate region of County Durham. Yet, despite it being illustrative of a shift in strategic direction, the latest figures of student inta e demonstrate how its impact has been superficial Durham, li e the majority of Russell Group universities, continues to perform poorly for student diversity — even when performance and attainment are measured.

This broader national imbalance may supersede the capabilities of one single institution to resolve on its own, but the reported cases of discrimination at Durham University demand that a more accountable framework is adopted to tackle the unjust prejudices on campus. The work of student groups and societies remain key catalysts for studentled change, but sustainable cultural reform is increasingly seen as a matter for the University itself.

The challenge is two-pronged for Durham first, a more representative admission process that better reflects merit through widening the net to different communities; second, a less convoluted system of student support should be instituted to promote wellbeing for those who feel marginalised. This could, if greeted with the necessary urgency, help to minimise the daunting and perturbed sentiments of imposter syndrome.

Student

Are schools to blame for Britain’s Covid-19 numbers?

Eli Rasmussen It’s a classic whodunnit. The crime? 30,000+ Covid-19 cases a week.

Covid-19 numbers remain steadily high across the United Kingdom despite strong vaccination rates. As many implicate schools for acting as breeding grounds for disease, it is worth examining the truth of these assessments, the health policies already in place and the consequences that would follow if schools were to do more.

While the country led the charge for the world vaccination rollout in 2020, a different story entirely will be told of 2021; as the most in need of protection across Europe and the world have largely been accounted for, other nations have smoothly progressed onto vaccinations of children (those at little risk) while the UK has dragged its feet. While only a month or two behind many of its European counterparts, the recommendation for 12- to -year-olds to receive the fi er vaccine was announced in midSeptember, missing a pivotal deadline at which hundreds of thousands of children would return to in-person teaching.

In France, meanwhile, 66% of children aged 12 and up had received one dose of the vaccine and 52% had received both by mid-September. Denmark and Spain share similar stories.

Britain’s comparably high Covid-19 cases are not because of low immunisation rates alone, however. In fact, in terms of general population, they remain ahead of other major European countries such as Germany, w i t e rl a n d , Austria and

Poland. In schools, despite a slow start, they are making quick progress on account of health teams visiting and administering jabs.

It is with regard to other regulations such as face coverings and health passes where discrepancies in consistency across these countries can really be spotted. Since the UK’s memorable ‘Freedom Day’, masks have not been compulsory in English and Welsh schools and all business has reopened without checks for Covid-19 immunity.

The effects of these mandates (or lack thereof) are evident in student absence. In the month of October, students isolating at home due to Covid-19-related reasons lingered at about 2.5% (204,000 students), according to Department of Education data.

It is reasonable to wonder, then: should more be done to limit disruption?

As we reach the cold of winter and move primarily into indoor socialising, ventilation has become a primary obstacle in disease prevention and one that the Government would like to get ahead of. In England, Scotland and Wales, hundreds of thousands of carbon dioxide monitors have been distributed to schools to uncover areas of CO2 buildup and potentially increased infection. Vaccinations are not mandatory in schools

but are highly advised and if against the will of a child’s parents, can be overridden by the child if deemed knowledgeable about what they are doing. In some US and Canadian school districts, vaccinations (barring any medical exemptions) have been announced as obligatory to attend classes. Unappealing to some, this sort of drastic action might be exactly what is necessary to prevent the same lower standard of online-offline education dealt with the past two years, particularly of frustration to exam-taking students.

Then again, it could be the case that schools are offered an unfair portion of the blame in unchanging pandemic numbers.

The UK’s early jump in the vaccination effort may in fact be costing the country now and a possible indication of what is to come for others, the worry long set in for scientists of the waning effectiveness of inoculations and the possible need for boosters.

A study from Public Health England found, regarding the Delta variant of Covid-19, a drop of 20 percentage points “in vaccine effectiveness against hospitalisation and death more than 20 weeks post-vaccination” in comparison to two weeks postvaccination.

Regardless, schools must not become complacent. While cases have dropped a little in recent days, many, the Labour Party in the spotlight, have demanded a “Covid Plan B” for the winter, including mandatory vaccine passports and face coverings in public places. Of course, if this plan is waiting for the rekindling (Spencerbda- of a pandemic while a fire still vis via Wikime- burns brightly, it might be wise to stray on the side of caution and dia commons) act now.

18

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Domestic

Politics

Statue wars: dealing with controversial monuments Stella Wood The statues of two politicians involved with the transatlantic slave trade are set to remain on public display in the City of London. This new development overturns the previous January vote to remove both statues, a decision which Policy Chair, Catherine McGuinness, considered “an important milestone” towards “a more inclusive and diverse City”. As of 7th October, the statues of John Cass and William Beckford will remain on display in the Square Mile, contextualised with informational plaques detailing the depicted men’s involvement with slavery.

Beckford, twice Lord Mayor of London, was a notorious slave owner with investments in plantations across Africa and the Caribbean. Cass was a philanthropist, who accumulated his wealth through involvement in the Royal African Company.

A report conducted by a City anti-racism taskforce had previously acknowledged that displaying these statues created an atmosphere of “non-inclusiveness”, which contradicted the municipal authority’s aims to make the Square Mile a place “where people of all ethnicities and backgrounds feel safe and welcome”.

Nonetheless, this approach has now been abandoned, following continual pressure

from Government ministers to ‘retain and explain’ controversial historical monuments, as opposed to removing them. Former Housing and Communities Secretary, Robert Jenrick, was particularly influential in lobbying the City of London Corporation to develop an alternative strategy that would legally safeguard controversial monuments.

These protections for ‘contested heritage’ sites ensure statues can only be removed in exceptional circumstances.

According to this line of reasoning, Cass and Beckford’s monuments serve as tools of “powerful reinterpretation” which can be used to denounce the City of London’s involvement with the slave trade. This angle is supported by Douglas Barrow, chairman of the City of London Corporation Statues Working Group, who claims statues like these “enable us to acknowledge and address the legacy of our past with openness and honesty”, placing history in its “proper context”. Both Jenrick and Barrow support “preserving our culture and heritage for future generations” by instead placing informational plaques next to these public displays.

Beneath Jenrick’s policy lies a disturbing undercurrent. It burdens public monuments with the responsibility of ensuring that “we don’t repeat the errors of previous generations”. However, this seemingly ignores the more prominent roles of schools,

universities, and museums in ensuring we remember and learn from our past. Removal does not mean erasure, especially when statues are ‘removed’ to places designed to preserve our historical record. As expressed by philosopher Helen Frowe. “it is an illusion to think that statues provide valuable opportunities to educate ourselves.”

This illusion is exemplified through the dramatic overhaul of Edward Colston’s statue in June 2020. The removal of Colston’s statue by Black Lives Matter activists opened up international discourse about Bristol’s problematic past. As noted by the Mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees, Colston’s empty plinth is a “powerful symbol of a city at a crossroads”. Here, the statue’s absence alone can provide explanation, undermining the case for retention.

To assume that public statues prevent the ‘repetition of errors’ is also to misunderstand the role

of a statue. The current policy may view all monuments as neutral historical records, but many statues are commissioned specifically to honour citi ens supposedly worthy of admiration and respect. The statues of Cass and Beckford, commissioned in 1751 and 1767, were created to glorify their economic and moral ‘achievements’ in advancing colonialism and the slave trade, promoting ideologies that are no longer acceptable in modern society. One must ask what is gained from displaying statues depicting racist figures publicly, rather than in museums designed to convey history’s messy complexity.

At their most extreme, controversial statues can facilitate racism, as seen at the Charlottesville ‘Unite the Right’ rally in 2017. As Mitch Landrieu, the former mayor of New Orleans warns, statues can emphasise problematic perspectives by placing them “literally on

a pedestal”. Retaining the Confederate statue of Robert E. Lee worsened the cultural divide by enabling and legitimising white supremacist views, leading to the tragic Charlottesville incident that saw 35 injured and three dead.

And so, what is the most effective way to address controversial monuments in the midst of ongoing culture wars?

Political theorist, Johannes chul , proposes that the decision to remove or contextualise a statue depends on which method will stimulate respect between citi ens. This suggests that statues should continue to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis by local governments and the community, countering Jenrick’s one-si e-fits-all approach to publicly preserve all ‘contested heritage’.

Ultimately, the satisfaction of today s citi ens surely must be prioritised over the welfare of historical figures.

(KSAG Photography via Flickr)

“The era of big government is here to stay” Daniel Aichen Rishi Sunak recently unveiled his much-anticipated budget, providing us with a clearer picture of how the Conservative Party wants to operate the economy as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Sunak declared this budget as one fit for an “age of optimism” to turbocharge the economy, “unlock productivity” and to “deliver growth more evenly across the UK”.

So, what did this look like in practical terms? The Government has committed to a spending increase of £150 billion over the next three years, including £6 billion to tackle NHS backlogs, £7 billion for transport projects and £2 billion to help schools in England catch up after Covid-19’s devastating impact on children’s learning. In fact, the Government has committed to a real term rise in spending for every government department. To pay for this, Mr Sunak is raising taxes to their highest level since the

1950s, up by £40 billion this year, meaning increases in areas such as corporation tax and National Insurance contributions.

Some have labelled this as a shift in philosophy for the Conservative Party, from what once was a small-state, low-tax neoliberal party to a party of big government, more closely aligned with the Keynesian economics of tax and spend. However, opposition to both the budget and this supposed ideological re-alignment can be found within the Tory ran and file. ost notably, former minister Chris Grayling stated that Conservative back benchers will be holding “the Chancellor s feet to the fire” to deliver because they “cannot plan a future, as Conservatives, as a big-state, high-tax party”. Mr Sunak’s budget has exacerbated tensions with those who still view the Conservative Party through a Thatcherite lens, especially as it appears to be undoing the last decade of austerity measures that stripped back the state through huge cuts to public services.

Austerity measures were generally seen as necessary to balance the books following the financial crash of and subse uent economic downturn of 2009, but even as soon as 2013, a majority of people in the UK believed that the Government’s austerity measures were hurting the British economy. By 2018, polling conducted by Number Cruncher Politics showed a continuation of this trend. 66% of those surveyed stated that cuts to public spending had gone too far.

Rather interestingly, 53% of Tory voters surveyed were also of the belief that these cuts had gone too far. Boris Johnson and Mr Sunak have recognised changing public sentiment and concluded that, based on political calculation, this is the correct approach for the Conservative party.

We are living through an unprecedented crisis, one that has seen the Conservative Party rack up a bill of £350 billion, pushing borrowing to its highest level in peacetime. This follows an impressive Conservative electoral

victory in 2019, which saw them gain seats in Labour heartlands.

The Conservatives have recognised a dramatically shifting political landscape across the UK since the Brexit referendum. With a raft of new Tory backbenchers representing previous red seats, the Conservative Party is having to find a balance between a desire for greater investment to help with the government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda, and a suspicion of tax and spend economics that is ingrained within many backbenchers. However, there is good evidence to suggest that the Conservative Party is up for the challenge.

There is an argument to make that the Conservative Party is one of pragmatism rather than rigid ideology, enabling them to be highly adaptable when necessary.

During the post-war consensus years, up until 1979, the Tories and the Labour Party agreed over policies such as strong state welfare provision for all and the nationalisation of industry and public utilities. It was Mrs

Thatcher that reshaped the Conservative Party to become the small-state, low-tax party most tend to think of it as today.

The Conservative Party is a pragmatic, adaptable party, with a long history of shifting its policy positions, whether that be on the EU, as we saw with the Brexit referendum, or on the privatisation of industry.

Throughout its history, the party has evolved with changing political winds, enabling it to win over voters and keep winning general elections.

Mr Sunak’s budget is another example of the Conservatives shifting direction to give them the best chance to remain in power. ith rising inflation and supply chain issues impacting the livelihoods of many in this country, it remains to be seen whether this budget is enough to counteract that. It seems likely, however, that the era of big government is here to stay as the Tories begin preparing for the next election.

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

19

International

Politics

Is this the end of the ‘American Century’?

Saigon. In Vietnam, America was globally embarrassed but not cast Rj Batkhuu and Maddy Burt aside, and continued to call the Politics Editors shots on foreign affairs, often to a similar end.

“Gradually, then suddenly.”

One way to highlight the Hemingway’s novel The Sun Also continual importance of the US is Rises reveals to us something the realisation that for every single about how the world can important geo-political event suddenly collapse beneath us. of the last century, the critical Looking back, the signs may question was and remains — what have been there all along. For do the Americans think? Combine the American republic, vaunted economic and military positions as the greatest power in human with soft power, including cultural history, the sudden chaotic and political hegemony, and it collapse of its military operation is immediately clear that the in Afghanistan signalled to many collapse in Afghanistan far from a much larger collapse of its guarantees an end to America’s global power and dominance. Is position as the world’s hegemon. the ‘American Century’ coming The ideological dominance of to an end? What is the meaning the ‘Washington Consensus’ and of this term — does it deserve Hollywood’s global culture a significant place in our preeminence illustrate political lexicon or is this. it just meaningless This brings America’s tautology? us one threat greatest threat The term facing American ‘A m e r i c a n to global hegemony hegemony: internal Century’ was political discord. undoubtedly comes first coined by Some argue the publishing tycoon from China storming of the Henry Luce in United States Capitol 1941. He argued by insurrectionists on emphatically that the January 6th at the behest twentieth century could be of former President Trump the ‘American Century’ if only the signalled the decline of the United States government would American republic. Although drop its isolationist approach and shocking and calamitous, January intervene in World War Two, in 6th represented a ramshackle the process spreading democracy group of lost souls whipped and other ideals. The D-Day into a delusional fever by an landings in June 1944 marked equally unhinged president with a commitment from America to a total lack of grip on the ship international intervention, and of state. These people had no the US’s economic superiority national backing, organisation or was cemented in the immediate consistency — the American state post-war when the country swiftly acted and restored order, represented close to half of the the election certified and r world economy.

Trump was removed from office.

If economic superiority is America’s greatest judged to be a fair measurement threat to global of global dominance, the h e g e m o n y ‘American Century’ started at the undoubtedly dawn of the twentieth century.

However, the US did not possess great influence and power globally until it invested heavily in its military and was prepared to intervene abroad. As China is projected by 2026 to have 89% of America’s current-dollar GDP, this does not equal a definite shift in global relations.

More recently, the failure of America to win the military conflict in Afghanistan has been pointed out as the end of America’s hegemonic leadership of the world order. However, American withdrawal from Afghanistan is not the beginning of the end for the United States.

Many commentators have irresistibly compared Afghanistan to the fall of

comes from China, which has flourished economically from exports, a market economy and private enterprise. The hegemon and the pretender si ing each other up and cautiously testing one another: this will be the dominant overtone of the international order in the 21st century. Questions must be asked. What does China’s hold on global politics look like? What does China possess now that the does not ow do they sei e the new century, if at all possible?

Examining China as a political actor produces interesting similarities and striking differences with America. Take Afghanistan as a case study, the US’s attitude to involvement was not particularly inconspicuous. It dominated the country for over two decades. Now American withdrawal is complete, the Chinese have filled the vacuum in a different manner, their influence less obvious and more muted. Chinese ministers did not immediately refuse to acknowledge the new state, and money flows between borders and their embassy in Kabul remains open.

The mericans in their final moments in Afghanistan were deeply concerned with image because for them the liberal democratic model needs constant ustification.

Chinese influence is less concerned or centred around ‘image-consciousness’. It is not fair that open societies face more scrutiny than closed ones, but

this is the fate of democratic societies — they must constantly justify their governance structures. As such potential Chinese hegemony and American hegemony are different things because as political actors they are different.

China’s rise will be concerned with forging their own path and ideological development. As such, we can expect the Chinese to decouple themselves from the American-led international order and instead attempt to create a Chinese-led order. This is already evident from their founding and leadership of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral development bank that creates liquidity for developing nations in Asia. More impactful, however, the colossal ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ will see Beijing wrap its arms around much of the developing world.

Already, billions have flown from China to the developing world and the influence that i inping now exerts cannot be understated.

This is therefore a different form of hegemonic exercise.

China could dominate in an international system they have created, while leaving the Americans to run the ancien régime. It is therefore an exaggeration to suggest the Americans will be superseded

by China in their own backyard.

More likely, the Americans will remain dominant within the post-WW2 global institutional order (take: the United Nations, World Bank and the

International Monetary Fund).

Concurrently, we can expect a parallel Chinese institutional order to emerge where the AIIB is merely the beginning. This will diminish the importance and influence of the merican-led Bretton Woods global governance system.

Minxin Pei, in The Economist’s series ‘The Future of American Power’, argues that China’s rise is ultimately constrained by internal factors including a restrictive domestic political regime that stifles growth, wasteful state-run enterprises and the fact that China has a much faster ageing population than the US. The trend towards autocratic, personality-based rule under i Jinping leaves the Chinese system unaware of their blind-spots and therefore susceptible to challenges. Healthy democracies with competitive elections do not face this problem.

“The liberal democratic model needs constant ustification In the next hundred years, we could see a new Chineseled order, or multipolar world with a diminished America, but this century remains very much an American one — for now. The question for political commentators is just how long they can cling on for.

(Verity Laycock)

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

20

Puzzles

Puzzle Editors Katie Smith, Hugo Bush & Thomas Simpson For online versions, answers and more puzzles, head to

www.palatinate.org.uk/category/puzzles @palatinatepuzzles

Kakuro 844 25

An Arrow Word works the same as a normal crossword, except that the clues are written in the boxes. Each answer appears in a straight line next to each clue, in the direction indicated by the nearby arrow.

13

16

8

25

13

Bravery

28

9 24

24

16

4

16

16

14 21

9

14

23

Bitter fruit

Walk leisurely

Cherished, loved

Penultimate month

Stage of sleep

Vex, annoy

Sort out (a problem)

Bible’s woman

4

11

11

12

11

French for “after”

Manually show approval

17

8

Arrow Word

14

11

12

16

11

8 15

4

20

7

11 16 6

Necessity

15 20

Sudoku 844

12

o ol e a akuro ou mu t fill all o t e empt uare it a num er et een an o t e um o eac ori ontal lock e ual t e clue on it le t an t e um o eac ertical lock e ual t e clue on it top. it in t e lock a igit cannot e repeate . lock o t o uare it a clue o ill ol e a an a ill pro uce or . can onl e ne er .

Chess Puzzle White to checkmate in two

Maths Maze

11 +6 x3 add the digits cube it

7 3 6 9 1 1 2 6 5 7 8 3 5 2 6 5 2 3 2 4 9 9

4 8 7 3 4 5 2

x3

Sentence Sleuth

1/8

va was a slam poetry champion. othing filled her with more oy than when she grabbed the mic and let the world hear the fruits of her mind.

Aged 24, she was voted the best performance poet north of the equator.

Chile’s pride, the scintillant Ernesto Hernández, was the only person deemed greater. He had famously outperformed her at the New York Slam Open a few years before. “If I return to the NYSO,” she said “Ernesto won’t be so luc y.” ventually, after countless years of struggle, va finally beat ern nde to become the official world slam number one. Three wee s later, she was bankrupt. The moral of the story: rhyme doesn’t pay.

square root

?

in t e t ing t at gi e o lig t in t i tor a out a great poetic ri alr .

PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

PalatiDates: “We just didn’t click”

ri tian rom atfiel an

Christian on Mia

ia rom t.

ar

i tor an

i eral rt tu ent meet or a lin

We both do History so we mainly spoke about our course and we also talked about our families a bit.

opefully not the atfield stereotype

Talkative, friendly and interesting (I hope!!).

Passionate, sociable, down to earth and energetic — seemed like she was having a great first year We just didn’t click.

Slug and Lettuce — fairly chilled, but with a slight edge.

Given the success rate of Palati ate , had no idea what to expect, but it was fun to go and meet someone new.

Mia on Christian

He seemed nice and friendly and quiet.

Perfectly friendly and outgoing — and maybe a tiny bit nervous?

Our favourite societies, boo s and films, our degrees, authentic Italian food and dance — we certainly covered a lot of material!

ate at pag .

Friendly, talkative, interesting and nice.

I don’t think there were any awkward moments.

A night at the Library bar. Quite chill but still lots of fun.

I was hoping for a fun evening with interesting conversation and he delivered.

Maybe as a friend, yes.

I think a coffee or brunch might have been a better setting for it.

Yes, he was nice.

Not on a date.

(Anna Kuptsova)

5

PalatiPets

Think you have the cutest pet? Email editor@ palatinate.org.uk with three pictures and 100 words explaining why for a chance to be featured in print

Kate on Neville If you’ve been followed down Redhills Lane, or into the Viaduct by a tabby and white cat pretending to be starving and neglected, it’s probably Neville. Follower of passers-by, found by the concerned public as far away as County Hall, Mary’s and the northbound Station platform, he is a fixture of the Redhills graveyard.

He barely ever bites or scratches and just loves people Don’t be deceived. He has a devoted family and several meals a day. He barely ever bites or scratches and just loves people.

From the Archives

6

P

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Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

Sport

Durham Women lose out to experienced Man City side

Abi Curran in Manchester Sport Editor

Durham lost 3-0 to an experienced Manchester City side who bagged two late goals to seal the win.

The Academy Stadium hosted a youthful visiting Durham squad where talent for the future shone against national and Olympic stars.

For a native Mancunian like myself, making the trip over to my beloved blue half of Manchester and not supporting the sky-blue clad team was definitely a different e perience.

However, once you have fallen for Durham Women as a club, it is near impossible to not root for the Wildcats.

It was a brisk evening in North West, the Manchester City faithful were out claiming territory at the media stand with various City Women flags. ot pies were in demand and scarves were a staple in the Academy Stadium which was framed by Diwali fireworks and its parent Etihad Stadium.

The Wildcats are currently holding their own in the Championship sitting top of the table. Over in the cup, with

one eye on upcoming fi tures in the league, Durham had the opportunity to give less experienced players a chance to develop their game. urham fielded a side with youngsters Lily Crosthwaite, Grace Ayre and Hannah Greenwood all making starting appearances. Georgia Nicholson would come on from the bench and under the lights they delivered, not looking out place in the much changed eleven.

Durham’s defence remained stubborn for much of the first half, providing Manchester City with a sense of frustration.

The deadlock was broken upon the sixteenth minute with a moment of quality from Fillipa Angeldahl. A formidable counter attack led to the number 12 beautifully striking the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.

There were also glimpses of potential and clever play from Durham. Runs from Lily Crosthwaite in behind tested the City back line in the first half with the young forward gracefully dribbling through swarms of sky blue shirts in dangerous areas.

Despite these moments Durham failed to test Karima

Benameur Taieb, City’s third choice goalkeeper. Though in the other net Megan Borthwick put on a stunning goalkeeping performance denying City multiple times. Alongside an Ellie Christon clearance off the line, this was making to be a gritty defensive performance from the Wildcats.

Into the second half, Durham made changes adding experience and youth to the red shirt Wildcats side. Sarah Robson joined skipper Wilson in central defence which could only be described as a telepathic defensive partnership.

Playmaker Beth Hepple was brought on inside the 58th minute to add an injection of attacking vigour but Durham struggled to get out of their own half for much of the second 45.

Another textbook Borthwick diving save led to a training ground corner drill from Manchester City Women.

The ball bumbled and fell to Caroline Weir just inside the box who thumped it home to double the lead on her 100th City appearance.

By the 89th minute, Janine Beckie made it three, the final score line not uite reflective of

CFA Campus

the defensive shift put in by the Wildcats.

Speaking to Palatinate after the game, manager Lee Sanders spoke of the value of giving younger players the experience of playing against a top side like Manchester City, “I think it can’t give them anything but confidence.

“What an unbelievable night that they have had and it gives them that inspiration to say look, this is what I want to do, this is what I really want to concentrate on, this is what I can make a living from”. Sanders paid particular attention to Grace Ayre’s defensive display at left-back and spoke of his decision to rest

(Manchester City FC) players in preparation for their following league game against Crystal Palace.

“When we put out the starting line-up there was a lot of people that probably looked and thought this could be a bit heavy, so fair play to them I thought they have conducted themselves unbelievably well.”

After an unfortunate 3-1 loss on the road against Crystal Palace last Saturday, Durham will continue their quest for promotion in this Sunday’s Championship game against Liverpool. The top two Championship sides will meet at what is expected to be a packed Maiden Castle.

Sport must act to tackle climate change Hannah Davies The COP26 summit began in Glasgow on 31st October, marking the start of a series of important discussions between world leaders about climate change, and how change can be made in all aspects of life in order to tackle it.

Signs of the damage of climate change on sport have become more frequent in recent years.

Extreme weather events like typhoons, bush fires and heat waves have disrupted sporting events from tennis and rugby tournaments, to athletics and winter sports in the Olympics.

It is estimated that by 2050, one in four English football league grounds will experience

regular, yearly flooding. lthough issues like these can be attributed to the wider problem of rising global temperatures, sports have also been put in the spotlight for ways in which they can often damage the environment through their emissions. This is of course also due to the failure of those in charge to fully address climate change in a meaningful way.

Claims by football teams that they are trying to improve their environmental impact appear hypocritical In the same week that the English football league launched their environmental sustainability scheme, Premier League team Manchester United used an

(Flickr)

aeroplane to fly 10 minutes to their game in Leicester instead of taking a coach, emitting 10 times as much CO2 into the atmosphere as a result.

Despite defending their behaviour by blaming congestion on the M6, these actions are inexcusable and make any claims by football teams that they are trying to improve their environmental impact appear hypocritical.

Even more of an effect is made by hordes of fans coming to watch each game – at full capacity, 76,000 fans travel to Old Trafford, and little is done to encourage fans to use public transport instead of cars.

Foods served on match days are mainly meat-based options and this worsens the environmental impact – an issue that League Two team Forest Green Rovers solved by providing an entirely vegan menu for players and fans.

Participation in events on a global scale, such as the Champions League, Euros or World Cup are the worst offenders for a club’s emissions, as not only do teams travel abroad by aeroplane, they are also followed by huge numbers of fans, emitting tons of carbon into the atmosphere.

Other global sporting events, such as the Olympics, pose a

similar issue for the environment.

In order to continue to compete and participate in sports with other nations.

Yet, if sports want to guarantee continuation long into the future, they need to ensure the environmental conditions in the countries involved don’t deteriorate to an extent that they can no longer safely compete there.

Although this is a complicated issue to solve, the very least that can be done is encouraging fans to use public transport, utilising rail or coach travel over planes where possible, and offsetting carbon emissions when they can’t be avoided. Another sport that has been pointed to as being one of the worst for its environmental impact is motorsports, particularly Formula One. A sport centred on the highspeed consumption of fuel, alongside the transport of the F1 circus around the globe on a regular basis, unsurprisingly emits over 256,000 tonnes of carbon yearly.

One redeeming statistic is that with key sponsors comprised of oil companies and car manufacturers, any attempts to improve their environmental impact are heavily influenced by those who have the biggest financial incentive for things to

stay the way they are.

Developments in green technology and turbo hybrid engines have improved the sustainability of F1, but these developments can’t be translated into any real world benefits.

That being said, attempts to marry the sport with environmental issues like Formula E and Extreme E may provide a way forward for motorsports to continue in harmony as opposed to war with the health of our planet.

Fully electric cars in both of these sports have proven capable, yet less popular with current fans – a roadblock to change that we are likely to see across sports as they modify to improve their environmental impact.

During the conference, members of the Sports for Climate Action Framework agreed to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2040 – a positive step and bold commitment to the environment.

However, far more is needed from leaders if the damage of the worsening climate crisis is going to be prevented.

A delicate balancing act between reducing their impact whilst preserving and pleasing fanbases will have to be maintained, but if successful, can promote environmental sustainability on a global stage.

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PALATINATE | Thursday 11th November 2021

Sport

Durham City A.F.C: Is this the end?

After a 16-1 defeat, George Simms asks how long the local club can last

If Jean-Paul Sartre had written footballing stories, it’s hard to imagine a better fit than the inexorable decline of Durham City AFC over the last decade or so. Since the start of the 2018-19 season, the Citizens have been rooted to the foot of Northern League Division Two, in the tenth tier of English football. In the three years since, they’ve won 27 from a possible 276 points in the league.

However, by what started off as luck but is seeming more and more like fate by the day, Durham’s biggest men’s football club have managed to avoid relegation to outside the National League System structure. Their own Sword of Damocles has now hung for so long that it’s become more of gaudy feature piece than a genuine threat at their shared stadium, Hall Lane.

Durham have been in perpetual motion downwards for some time now, but appear incapable of actually reaching rock-bottom. Condemned to be torn between a vicious cycle of hope and disappointment, new managers and players come and go and “everything could change in the next ninety minutes” wails throughout the stand, the moans of the club’s personal poltergeist.

Everything they try, from the well-thought through appointment of Northern League stalwart Peter Mulcaster as manager in October 2020, to the absurd series of young foreign signings made during the ill-fated premiership of former Celtic wing-back Didier Agathe, seems to push the team one step closer to the abyss.

Yet for the last three seasons, the abyss has transpired to be nothing more than one of those rather realistic, but very much not real, pothole stickers that socalled pranksters find it funny to stick on the road to scare drivers, and film their reactions.

In 2018-19, structural changes elsewhere in the league reprieved a Durham side whose 17 points from 38 games put them bottom of the league, 12 points from safety with a 93-goal difference.

The following two seasons still provided the Citizens ample time to embarrass themselves, before the league came to an unceremonious halt, and stalemate.

It’s hard to overstate the depth or breadth of the utter disorder at Durham. In charge between June 2016 and June 2018, former club midfielder lly otchkiss was the last City manager to feel either

the warm embrace of success or the security of longevity. Despite managing an inexperienced squad, he oversaw respectable tenth and eleventh-placed finishes in orthern eague Division Two. However, in the three years since Hotchkiss’ departure, Durham have gone through six permanent managers. Eight, if you count the two managerial pairings they tried at the start of the 2019-20 season. Wayne Gredziak, Billy Harper and Stephen Durant, Andy Iness and Ross Flintoft, Didier Agathe, Peter Mulcaster and Mark Sherwood have all tried and failed to stop the rot at Durham, and been gone within a year. Sherwood, the most recent casualty, lasted just 45 days.

In the 93 league games that have elapsed since Hotchkiss left, Durham have drawn six, lost 80 and won just seven. They’ve scored 76 goals and conceded 351. That’s an average of just short of four goals a game picked

League First Division, now play at New Ferens Park.

Durham have been in perpetual motion downwards for some time now I haven’t yet mentioned the club owner behind this stadium dispute, and everything else that has happened at Durham City over the last eight years.

Vivacious former Newcastle and France U21 defender Olivier Bernard bought the club in 2013.

He was chairman until 2019 and has even had brief stints as caretaker manager.

The Frenchman fell in love with the North East whilst playing for the Magpies and saw the takeover as his way of giving back. History will perhaps not judge his benevolent sentiments kindly.

Six weeks ago, disgruntled fans set up a Twitter page called Save Durham City AFC. It focuses

(Ken Fitzpatrick)

Durham City vs Willington AFC

out of the Citizens’ net. Their last league win came on 9th April 2019, a 2-0 victory over Washington.

After a dispute between the stadium and club owners led to them leaving their long-term stadium, New Ferens Park, in October 2015, they now share Hall Lane with fellow Norther League Division Two side Willington, about eight miles outside Durham.

Despite playing in the same stadium, Willington’s home attendance isn’t far from double Durham’s, with 89 spectators to Durham’s 52 on average. To add insult to injury, Durham Corinthians FC, a club founded in 2018 and playing in the Wearside

2018, Bernard reiterated his initial ambition for Durham City to become a feeder club for bigger North East sides, with an academy nurturing talent from 6-18. He regularly writes on Newcastle United for The Chronicle, but has been conspicuously silent on the state of affairs at the club he owns. Whilst there’s apparently now between 15-20 Durham City age-group sides, the team that matters most has been utterly neglected.

Fans have not missed the irony of the anti-Mike Ashley tirades littered throughout Bernard’s articles.

Whether the former Newcastle fan’s favourite has spread himself too thin financially or simply refuses to put any more money into the club, it’s widely acknowledged that the club is now functioning with a playing budget not far off £0.

On 9th March 2010, The Independent wrote a piece entitled ‘Durham City: in a league of their own’. At that point,

on the idea that the club has 103 years of history behind it, having initially been founded in 1918.

Understandably, it has called on Bernard to either invest or sell the club. He reportedly paid £25,000 for the club and will not sell it for less, despite having virtually no assets and needing significant investment to get it back on its feet.

The page alleges that numerous offers to take over the club have been tabled with plans to help stabilise, yet Bernard is apparently uninterested in selling. His social media suggests he’s more engaged running a gastropub he bought and renovated in nearby Blyth.

In an interview in November

Durham were 27 games into their Northern League Premier Division season. They were propping up the table, with zero wins and an almost impressive minus si points, for fielding an ineligible player. They were considered amongst the worst teams to ever kick a football on this sceptred isle and were unsurprisingly relegated to the Northern League Division One. Eleven years later, very little has changed. They’ve got more than minus six points, which is something, I guess. Courtesy of their 2-2 draw with Bedlington Terriers two weeks into the season, urham should finish in the green points-wise. Not much else is looking positive.

In September, they were suspended from the Northern League for three games for being unable to fulfil their fi tures.

Thanks to a heady cocktail of injuries, managerial changes and sheer embarrassment, the club have named 42 different players in their 16 starting line-ups this season. They’ve conceded 92 goals in those 16 games, nearly six a game.

Last week’s 16-1 loss to Carlisle City was perhaps the nadir of this sorry saga. Those are decent bowling stats, or would be a great record for a team in this season’s NFL, but no-one wants to see them on a football pitch. Unsurprisingly, manager Mark Sherwood resigned almost immediately, and questions were raised as to whether the club would even be around to play out their next game, a visit to Bedlington Terriers. They did, and the manager-less XI ground out a 5-0 loss, which some might argue is a success given the circumstances.

There seems to be no logical end to the misery at Durham City AFC. Trapped in a warped purgatory between the hope of progress and looming threat of relegation, they will inevitably look bring in new blood and set leeches on the old after Sherwood’s resignation.

Change is their only option, yet seems to force them ever closer to the proverbial wall. They appear set to continue brazenly on into their season, having committed to completing all games in their schedule. Relegation to the Wearside League now appears a formality, unless fate intervenes to save them for a fourth time.

That would put them alongside upstarts Durham FC, Durham United and AFC Durham, as well as New Ferens Park’s new tenants Durham Corinthians.

All of these clubs have been founded in the last three years, most likely with the aim of usurping the falling local giant.

If they go down, Durham City would become one of the thousands of clubs in the NLS Feeder Leagues, outside the official ational eague ystem structure. nly significant investment, or a minor miracle, could save the Citizens now.

Although he’s not the French existentialist best known for his footballing aphorisms or prowess, Sartre quipped that, “In football, everything is complicated by the presence of the opposing team”.

Everyone associated with Durham City AFC must wish their problems were still that simple.

Thursday 11th November 2021 | PALATINATE

24

Sport

“Once you’ve fallen for Durham Women, it’s near impossible not to root for them” Abi Curran reports on an away day in Manchester with Durham Women FC

“ nly significant investment, or a minor miracle, could save the iti ens” George Simms dives into the disarray at Durham City A.F.C

The power of Durham’s sports clubs George Simms Sport Editor

In the wake of the #dontgetspiked fiasco, it became apparent that students were going to have to lead urham’s fightback against spiking.

The Durham Night-In organised a club boycott for Tuesday 26th October. More than 1,400 students pledged to take part and, as I walked through the centre of town around midnight that evening, I was comforted to see the streets and club queues virtually empty.

Yet it must be said that Tuesday is perhaps not Durham’s busiest night out on a normal week.

Sports inspire inimitable sense community

for their respective socials. This is what inspired the vast majority of Durham’s sports clubs to support the club boycott.

Clubs from DU Hockey and Weightlifting to Trevelyan College Boat Club released statements stating that they would be boycotting nightclubs on Sports Night.

All in all, sports clubs with more than 2,000 combined members boycotted Durham’s nightclubs.

Alongside this, many sports clubs also called for a week-long boycott.

Men’s Rugby, Basketball, Tennis, Women’s Cricket and Polo, among others, emphasised that a weeklong boycott was the only action that would make clubs act to change their security policies and take proportional action.

Durham University Rugby Football Club (DURFC), one of the clubs to back the week-long boycott, told Palatinate, “Given that we as a club do not condone going out on a Tuesday due to playing games on a Wednesday, the Tuesday boycott was quite frankly

not meaningful enough to reflect the severity of the problem it was raising awareness of.

“We felt that as the sporting community mostly (with notable e ceptions from some clubs) boycotted nightclubs, it would impact the attendance of nights out, especially the Wednesday Sports Night, and would make clear to (the nightclubs) the seriousness in which we take this issue.”

Whilst Marcus Rashford has shown what sportsmen can do to affect social change, many (DURFC)

an of

Some sports clubs don’t allow their players to go out on a Tuesday because they have important games every Wednesday.

However, almost every sports club in Durham runs regular nights-out on a Wednesday and it has become a fundamental tenet of university life. Wednesday is the famed (and sometimes infamous) Sports Night and sees thousands of students bedazzled and dressed up

professional sports clubs are still conspicuously silent on social and political issues.

Sports clubs are a fundamental part of university life You only have to look at the steaming mess at Yorkshire CCC currently to see how far some institutions still have to come. It’s refreshing to see this is not the case at university level.

Sports clubs are a fundamental part of university life in Durham.

Very few people will leave Durham without having represented either their college or University at a sport. Sports clubs should continue to recognise the influence they wield within Durham and be proud of what they’ve achieved with the spiking boycott. Nightclubs have listened and Durham’s streets were much quieter at night throughout that week.

Sports clubs inspire an inimitable sense of community.

These communities can create effective and cohesive vehicles for change, firmly built on trust, teamwork and mutual respect.

As Movember will now show, Durham’s sporting community can be wonderfully powerful when used in the right way. Professional clubs, especially Yorkshire CCC,

Durham athletes get growing for Movember Harvey Stevens

Deputy Sport Editor If you’ve seen some less-thanimpressive moustaches walking around Durham during the past week or so, there is a very good reason why.

Just like every year in recent times, Durham University sports clubs are coming together to support Movember.

The charity encourages men of all ages to grow out their taches in order to raise funds and awareness for a range of men’s health issues.

Their goal is to alter the stigma surrounding men’s mental health, testicular cancer and prostate cancer. By 2030 they aim to reduce the number of men dying prematurely by 25%.

Donations go towards funding innovative testing and treatment

for prostate and testicular cancer, as well as establishing crucial community-led mental health projects.

A huge part of the movement is the work done to get men talking about their mental health.

Far too many men suffer in silence and do not reach out to get the help which they may need. fter the difficult times which we have all faced during the past eighteen months, this seems more important than ever.

After the difficult times we have all faced during the past eighteen months, this seems more important than ever So those who are growing their upper lip hair out and raising money are helping to change this.

Last year, teams at Durham

raised a combined £61,000 for Movember.

They are looking to smash this number this time around with no lockdown hindering the amount of in-person donations.

Durham University Rugby Club has been a big supporter of the movement. Club captain, Rhys Belcher, told Palatinate just how important the initiative is for them. “Movember holds a special place within the rugby club.

“With over 180 current playing members and tens of thousands of alumni we are an organisation full of men who could be affected by the causes that the Movember organisation seeks to support.

“The epidemic of male suicide and the lack of mental health support for men is something that we are very aware of and want to change.”

The club raised over £9,000 last

year, and they are similarly looking to mount together their highest ever total.

“DURFC seek to do all they can to make sure that our brothers, fathers and friends do not suffer in silence and we will do all we can to lead Durham University in raising as much money as possible for the charity.”

“Getting our members talking about mental health makes such a difference” The difference between last year’s effort, and this year, is that sports clubs are now in a position to raise money through events.

Collingwood College Football Club made their floodlit fi ture vs St. Mary’s in aid of Movember, and others have followed suit.

The Combined St John’s and St

Chad’s ugby Club made their first game of the season in aid of Movember, and captain Samuel Simkin spoke of how important it is.

“It’s so vital that the club come together in support of such a great cause,” he told us.

“By getting our members talking about their mental health it makes such a difference, and ensures that none of us will suffer in silence.” ou can e pect plenty more bushy, and some not-so-bushy, moustaches to be springing up in Durham over the coming weeks.

Donate to those raising money for Movember If you can, make sure to donate to some of those raising money for Movember to help support the amazing work they do.