25 May 2021
News | 5
Faculty of Health Food Parcel Project
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Manelisi Magoro
he Food Parcel Project is part of the faculty of Health’s ‘Life Changers Fund initiative’. It is a collaboration between the faculty and student bodies to address student hunger. In 2018 it was estimated that 30% of students were food insecure and that percentage is likely higher in 2021 in the aftermath of the national lockdowns in 2020. The Health Faculty recognised that
supporting students only academically is insufficient, and that there was also a need to support them in other areas. This led to the initiation of the Food Parcel Project. The drive accepts donations of nonperishable foodstuffs such as canned food, whole grains, long-life milk and toiletries. It is important to note that perishables are not collected in the donation boxes which are found on several locations on campus such as: HW Snyman North Building (next to the library), the entrance of Student Admin, 6th floor of
PDBWhy: UP adopts trans protocol Vasalya Moodley
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n recent UP news, the University of Pretoria adopted a new trans protocol. This was done to allign with the university’s Anti-Discrimination Policy and to include the needs of non-binary, transgender and intersex students and staff. The trans protocol is UP’s response to protecting vulnerable individuals experiencing trans-aimed discrimination, thus building a stronger policy of anti-discrimination and creating a safe, inclusive university life. This new protocol was compiled and produced by the Centre for Sexualities, AIDS and Gender (CSA&G), the UP Transformation Office, UP and OUT, #SpeakOutUP, Department of Residence Affairs, the SRC, students and staff as well as other societies and organisations. The collective efforts in drafting this protocol have spanned three years and were initiated when a student in the process of transitioning stated that he needed to feel recognised and safe in his university environment. Acting director of the CSA&G, Pierre Brouard, has stated that this protocol is a response to the question but “what kind of space do we want to create at
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UP, where everybody – including people who are transgender, intersex, non-binary and genderqueer – feel welcome”. Discrimination, whether it be due to malice or misinformation, is prevalent in university spaces; with the addition of this protocol, Brouard hopes to achieve broad transformation at UP. Brouard now wishes to start the conversation of gender fluidity to create an environment of understanding and acceptance before a student or staff member announces their transition or process thereof. In this way, prepatory work is done so that there is no place for discrimination and harm after the fact. Trans issues are not in isolation either, they can be linked to other facets of one’s identity such as race and disability. He hopes that this protocol will illustrate how these issues connect together. According to Brouard, despite the South African Constitution protecting sex and gender, actual policies containing applicable provisions to execute such protection are absent. He goes on to say that these are new uncharted waters for South Africa. With this new protocol, a conversation has now been opened and the recognition it condones is empowering. PDBY asked UP students what they thought of the new protocol.
the Dentistry building, House Ukuthula, Tuks Bophelong and Hippokrates. “We do not only collect non-perishable food items but also toiletries to assist students too. All sponsorships are gladly accepted” says Vanessa Steenkamp of the project. The drive received two big donations of perishable food that included bread loaves, sandwiches and cooldrink. These perishables need to be distributed swiftly to ensure that they remain fresh. In the case of such donations, class reps are informed to pass on the message to students. “The remainder is taken to residences or churches who have and [continue to] assist us when we have a student without a place to stay or when [students are] waiting for accommodation’. “We also donate to the community”, Steenkamp adds. The Food Parcel initiative plans to collaborate with the Department of Dietetics on incorporating a balanced cooked meal with all
Natania Harding 2nd year Mechanical Engineering
“ “As a non-binary [person] I am excited to see not only representation of the trans community but affirmative action taking place. Our constitution may protect us but we do not necessarily feel safe even in more open and accepting environments such as university. We are people and yes I am happy we are receiving protection now but it is the bare minimum to not be endangered for living as our true selves. I hope this protocol will allow us to be more than protected but also accepted and integrated into society.”
Sinazo Sijovu Final year BSocSci (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) “The passing of the UP trans policy is a progressive step towards the university’s overall aim of achieving holistic transformation. Acknowledging the existence and humanity of all members of the UP community goes beyond just saying it - which is why policies like these have to exist, for accountability sake and in order for it to be documented how the university practically plans to better accommodate transgender, intersex, gender non-conforming and non-binary members of the institution as per the needs of these individuals. Additionally, the policy demonstrates what measures are being put in place by the institution to actively make
all persons feel recognised and comfortable not as an exception, but as the standard for how all people within their rights deserve to be treated. I appreciate how this policy plans to engage multiple facets of student life and how it will challenge us all to confront discrimination and do better in our efforts to eradicate it. I look forward to the benefits that the transgender community will directly reap from the passing of this policy but I am also hopeful about the opportunities that it will [be] present for the rest of the UP community to educate ourselves and act in accordance with the policy so as to see to it that the importance of it and why it should be consistently upheld is never lost.”
Hamish Craze Masters in Bioinformatics “I read through the trans protocol and I get the sense that this document was written from a position of compassion. In that regard, I feel happy that I live [in] a society where we attempt to cohabitate and be tolerant instead of the alternative (re-education camps, conversion therapy, genocide). Aspects such as the SCU (Student Counselling Unit) offering their services to transitioning individuals seems like a win no matter how you slice it. However in some places, I feel it may reach for the impractical or idiotic. Say for example: In section 17, accomodation is provided to trans people who have legally
transitioned (their ID document reflects their chosen gender) to residences based on their chosen identity. I just picture a trans-person in Taaibos, Maroela, Mopanie or literally any res and think “yea guys, I don’t [think] this is going to be this win for human rights you expect”. But at the same time, what else is there to do? Build an entirely new res just for the three trans people? That doesn’t seem practical either. At the end of the day I wish whoever is transitioning luck on their journey and advocate for growing a thick skin because by all accounts you’re going to need it.”
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the necessary nutrients at least once a week. Health students who require this aid are encouraged to contact one of the following people via their respective email addresses: Ms Lolo Mosia (lolo.mosia@up.ac.za), Ms Corne Nel (corne.nel@up.ac.za), or Ms Mahlatse Mokwena (mahlatse.mokwena@up.ac.za). The Food Parcel project is an extension of the SNAPP project that provides food parcels to students in different faculties. Steenkamp expressed that they have plans to extend the project to other faculties. “We are one institution and [we] must help each other. We first wanted to get the project up and running on a smaller scale” says Steenkamp. She adds that the next step for the project is to seek sponsorships which will allow them to buy the items in bulk. Steenkamp also expressed that there were some promising sponsorship opportunities and she is confident that this will cotninue to grow.
Student voices in the pandemic I
ntroduction In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic reached South Africa and the country went into a strict lockdown to try and contain the situation. In the following months, a group of University of Pretoria development studies students - themselves forced to leave campus and student residences and try to learn online – wrote about this unprecedented situation. In this short collection we share some of these experiences; some reveal what the students themselves were going through, some capture the stories of others around them. No-one, at the time of writing these really imagined that a year later we would still be so severely affected by this pandemic. But here we are, all still grappling with many of the same challenges. We hope you find these glimpses of how others have been affected in some way illuminating and perhaps encouraging. Editors: Marc Wegerif and Bontle Modubu – March 2021 University of Pretoria, Department of Anthropology and Archaeology. COVID-19 Anxiety Most people might face stress and anxiety as a result of issues relating to food insecurity, money and employment, but from my experience I face stress and anxiety because of my schoolwork. Online learning has been a huge struggle for me as I face challenges with my network connectivity, the constant buying of data and my laptop being extremely slow on certain days (mostly when I need it). Such challenges put an extra amount of stress on top of the general stress I already experience from being a student. I have not been clinically diagnosed, but I generally have bad anxiety, which causes me to stress about things for weeks on end, and sometimes I end up not doing certain things because of my anxiety. Author: Nelisiwe Maseko
Read the collection in PDBY: next installment 07/06
