Issue 25: 30 October 2023

SOAS SPIRIT

THE STATE OF THE METROPOLITAN POLICE

GAZA HAS GIVEN ITS ALL - WHAT NOW?

SOAS Suspension Sparks Debate Over Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Protest

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Credit: Jacob Winter)

Hiba Ul-Hasan, BA History

On Monday 9 October 2023, a rally was organised at SOAS to demonstrate solidarity with Palestine. A large crowd was addressed by representatives from various societies, including the SOAS Palestine society, SOAS Fight Racism! Fight Imperialism!, and Justice for Workers. The event encountered a brief interruption when a fire alarm was triggered, momentarily halting the rally. However, momentum was quickly regained as students and staff were evacuated.

Following this event, on Thursday 12 October, some of the

students involved with the demonstration received notices of suspension. The following day members of the Palestine Society were issued a formal warning from disciplinaries, pending a further investigation, despite not being present at the rally. As a result, the Palestine Society formed a petition calling for SOAS to drop all disciplinary actions against those suspended and revoke the warning given to society members. An international general strike was called for Friday 20 October, as a day of protest ‘against repressive state terror’, although the gathering on campus failed to gather any mean-

ingful momentum, despite one activist’s use of a smoke bomb. SOAS has provided a statement about the suspension of students stating that they were made due to a violation of ‘an agreement with the executive, supported by the Students’ Union, which disrupted our teaching, learning and wider activities and led to a significant breach of health and safety policies and procedures.’ In addition to these disruptions, SOAS has stated

The Motion of No Confidence against the Co-President for Welfare and Campaigns

The State of the Metropolitan Police Sunak Shortens HS2

Niger Asked France to ‘Leave My Country’ after the Military Coup

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Letter from the Editor

Dear Spirit readers,

The Politics of Distraction

The Facade of Objectivity: We Can Do Better

Feminist Masterpiece or Giant Infomercial?

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What a tumultuous start to an academic year! With strikes held by UNISON and protests by the Palestine Society, it is clear that in every SOAS domain, staff and students are fighting for their rights and for justice. It is a given that balancing work and life as a student or worker is a difficult act as it is, but to include the turmoil we’ve all seen or experienced since September (and over the years) is an additional weight that shouldn’t have to be carried. I hope that everyone is coping during these exceptionally hard times.

It is for that reason in particular that I hope Issue 25 of the SOAS Spirit can provide some solace to our readers. Having had such an impressive turnout at our Writer’s Pitch Meeting, we received a wide range of submissions, of which I hope there is something for everyone.

of the Feature’s section by Anisah Mahamoud, with a focus on Black History Month. Having edited for our Opinions section last year, Mahamoud is certainly well-versed in her field and I’d recommend highly following her editorial work over the year to come. Amran Abdiqadir-Mohamed is another one to look out for, with a wide variety covered in her edition of the Culture section for this issue. A personal favourite is ‘Five Horror Films to Watch for Black History Month’ by Alina Edwards. Another piece that is a must-read is Aaliya Safdar’s account of the events organised and hosted by the Syria Society in the second week of October. The panel event ‘Eye on Syria: Past, present, future’ blew me away, so for those who missed it, this article is an essential read. Notably, if you haven’t already had a flick through the paper, you also need to seek out Amelia Casey-Rerhaye’s new Foreign Affairs section, entirely contributed to by year-abroad students from the likes of Jordan, Taiwan and China; so you’re getting high-quality international news reported from the ground.

Of course, all of this can’t be organised and put together without some seriously hard work behind the scenes and so to the trusty Senior Editorial Team of 2023/24, I am indebted to you for your unending efforts - Clayton Barrington-Russell, Sanna Hamid, Amy Kan, Eman Baasti, Jacob Winter, and Amelia Casey-Rerhaye, you are my rock(s).

We must also mention the Sub-Editors and Contributing Designers who spend endless hours editing, but most importantly, to our writers, who are truly the heart and soul of the Spirit. Thank you for contributing to this year’s first issue of the SOAS Spirit. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we did putting it together.

Delroy

Black Liberation in ‘White’ Scandinavia

South Africa: The Rainbow Nation Divided

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Five Horror Films to Watch for Black History Month

‘I call this Girl Dinner, or medieval peasant’

Caesar at SOAS – SOAS Syria Society

Celebrating Cultural Richness through the SOAS Societies

For this issue, I look particularly to the thoughtful curation

Lulu Goad Editor-in-Chief

Your SOAS Spirit Team

Anna

Amber

Tamara

Amelia

Mahin

Hiba

Aditya

Clayton Barrington-Russell Managing Editor

Amy Kan Creative Director

Eman Baasti Senior Sub-Editor

Amelia Casey-Rerhaye Senior Foreign Affairs

Jacob Winter Editor-at-Large

Sanna Hamid Executive Digital Editor

News

Editors: Barty Roberts, Archie Thomas, Leticia Chen

SOAS News

that, ‘during the rally, multiple fire alarms were activated across our buildings that forced us to evacuate all buildings.’

‘Where actions or statements on the part of staff and students are potentially unlawful or do potentially breach our policies or expectations of behaviour, they will be investigated and if misconduct is established, appropriate action will be taken.’

A statement from the Palestine society says, ‘Our rally was initially held on the steps of the SOAS main building which is where rallies have always been held at SOAS. The SOAS Palestine Society has held a rally there as recently as September 29th without repercussions or complaints from the University.’

‘The rally we held on October 9th was no different. We made it clear that we would in no way block access to the main building. We then safely moved off of the steps and onto the green, as instructed, as soon as the fire alarm was triggered. Needless to say, no member of the SOAS Palestine Society was involved in triggering the fire alarm, a fact confirmed by SOAS management.’

Continued from page 1

The Palestine Society is yet to receive a clear explanation for the issued suspensions and warnings and the investigation into the 9 October rally is still ongoing.

SOAS’s statement further outlined that ‘Like all British universities we have a legal duty to protect freedom of speech – however unpalatable the views may be to individual members of our community – and as such we have a clear and zero-tolerance policy in relation to anti-Semitism and all forms of racism.’ It is not unlikely that this statement is made as a result of ex-student Noah Lewis’ abandonment of his studies in 2020, due to what he referred to as a ‘toxic antisemitic environment’ present at SOAS, says the Guardian. The university was forced to refund £15,000 in fees.

Both statements can be read, in full, on the SOAS Spirit website.

The Motion of No Confidence Against the CoPresident for Welfare and Campaigns

Laura Steurer, BA Politics and History

At the most recent SOAS Student Union Annual General Meeting (AGM), an emergency motion of no confidence was tabled against the current co-president for welfare and campaigns, Sushant Singh. According to the SOAS Student Union website, Singh first studied at Delhi University, then finished his MA at SOAS and is the incumbent CoPresident for Welfare and Campaigns, receiving a London living-wage salary from the Student Union. He was first elected for this position in March 2022 and re-elected in March 2023 with the highest number of votes ever recorded.

The official agenda of the Student Union’s annual general meeting, which includes the no-confidence motion discloses the four main reasons for submission: sexual harassment allegations, failure to fulfil election pledges, acting beyond one’s brief and public affiliations with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP is the ruling political party in India, and is known for suppressing Muslim and Christian minorities in order to forge a new Hindu-nationalist state. These allegations are still under investigation and it would be irresponsible for us to comment on them, we have merely outlined the content of the no-confidence motion which is publicly available on the SOAS Student Union’s website, within the news section.

As per an anonymous source, concerns about Singh were initially raised in the run-up to the March 2022 elections,

yet there was insufficient evidence to warrant an investigation. A new Student Union CEO was appointed in September 2022. This led to a new administrative structure and consequently, the need to re-raise the allegations to a new team, which was not done by the original allegers.

According to the same source, the primary reason for reigniting the concerns was Singh’s affiliation with the BJP. As can be seen on Instagram, Singh hosted a discussion in November 2022 with the BJP representative for Dalits focusing on the handing out of scholarships for Dalits, the lowest strata of the caste system in India. Singh pledged in his manifesto to protect minorities in their home country and vigilance against Islamophobia. It was made clear that his association with the BJP was based on elevating the lives of Dalits. Nevertheless, given the ill-treatment by the BJP against minorities, particularly Indian Muslims, students became concerned that one of its members was brought to the SOAS campus and felt it contradicted his election pledges.

The SOAS Spirit can reveal that an outside human resources organisation is currently investigating the behaviour of Sushant Singh. If Singh’s conduct is not deemed worthy of termination from their perspective, then a studentwide referendum regarding Sushant Singh’s position will be held. The investigation is ongoing, updates will be

published on the SOAS Spirit as and when they occur.

“The SOAS Spirit can reveal that an outside human resources organisation is currently investigating the behaviour of Sushant Singh.”

Sushant Singh was initially approached for an interview but failed to respond and has since been approached for comment.

(Credit: Jacob Winter)

Popular Lecturer Leaves Among Ongoing Disputes Between SOAS and Unions

Oliver Jaser Clark, BA Arabic and History

A popular lecturer who attempted to improve relations between SOAS and the University College Union (UCU) has lost his job after his employment contract wasn’t renewed this summer.

Dr David Lunn, who taught at the SOAS South Asia Institute, was the SOAS branch secretary for the UCU, the trade union that represents academic staff. In his union role, Lunn helped draft a joint statement with SOAS in 2022 focusing on casualisation – prioritising the retention of staff. The joint statement pledged to ‘avoid disputes by finding agreeable resolutions going forward.’ Lunn also co-authored an article with SOAS Director Adam Habib in 2022, calling for a ‘social pact between university heads and unions.’

There was, however, no agreeable resolution for Lunn, whose departure shocked and upset many students. A GoFundMe campaign set up for him has raised £5,355 - more than its £4,500 target - from 98 donations.

‘Our wonderful colleague, friend, comrade and tireless Branch Secretary, David Lunn, has reached the end of his latest contract after around 15 years on successive fixed-term contracts at SOAS,’ Lisa Tilley, organiser of the fundraising appeal, wrote on GoFundMe.

‘While we refuse to accept this & plan to fight it by all means possible so that he can remain at SOAS where he belongs, we also want to send David a meaningful token of our appreciation for his service & friendship.’

Lunn was actively campaigning over the summer term about SOAS’ decision to dock 100% of the wages of academic staff who took part in a national marking and assessment boycott. ‘The decision to impose 100% deductions has created a strength of feeling within the branch that I have never seen before,’ Lunn said in May. ‘People simply cannot believe that management is [sic] being so punitive and so aggressive.’

Lunn’s departure comes as relations between universities and the academics, cleaners, and other employees who keep education institutions functioning are under strain across the country. Rising inflation and the cost-of-living crisis are reducing the quality of life for many university employees, and conditions are the worst for the lowest-paid staff, such as cleaners.

UNISON, which represents SOAS service staff, renewed its yearly strike outside the school during the first and second weeks of term. UNISON is campaigning for a ‘proportional increase in pay,’ after similar demands were met at University College London and King’s College London. UNISON also wants SOAS to increase its English language and IT training for workers — a request the union claims was ‘promised by SOAS five years ago.’

Consuelo, who has worked for 20 years as a cleaner at SOAS and now represents them, agrees with the UNISON demands. ‘It’s very difficult, our pay has not gone up since 2009 despite a 13% rise in inflation,’ translated from Spanish. In real terms, these wages are now worth less, ‘after the pandemic her [sic] council tax, rent’ and other expenses increased. ‘We also need our pay to go up a bit,’ Consuelo said.

Consuelo said English lessons were promised in writing five years ago but she only gets one hour of tuition each week. She was upset by the stance of the SOAS administration. ‘We’re all part of the same team,’ she said.

‘We [the Union] should be working together with the management as we know how to run things too.’

In the last year, relations between the SOAS administration and unions have become more confrontational. Strikes have escalated, as have student protests, most notably over the school’s decision to hire an expensive private security firm to patrol the campus. The SOAS Spirit exclusively reported in April that SOAS spent £661,632.23 on external security on campus over the previous twelve months.

Sandy Nicoll, the SOAS UNISON branch secretary, said the presence of private security on campus was ‘completely unnecessary’ and ‘intimidating.’ He said the core problem was ‘prioritisation’ and that the university shouldn’t be keeping staff on short-term contracts and bringing in agency workers. He said SOAS needs a ‘core workforce.’ Especially because UNISON won a battle to be directly contracted by SOAS, and not outsourced to private companies in 2018. Nicoll highlighted casualisation - keeping workers on short-term contracts is a major problem at SOAS. He said the university should ‘treat people properly.’

“Our wonderful colleague, friend, comrade and tireless Branch Secretary, David Lunn, has reached the end of his latest contract after around 15 years on successive fixedterm contracts at SOAS.”

Nicoll said students are ultimately the group that will suffer most from the lack of prioritisation of staff, stating ‘university working conditions and learning conditions are together,’ as ‘effectively the same thing.’ He said it was ‘unacceptable to dump more debt on students, because of mismanagement.’

Indeed, many students support the strike. SOAS Justice 4 Workers, a student-led activist group that supports UNISON, said standing with workers is important to them because, ‘we must ensure that all members of our community are cared for, respected, and treated with dignity’ and that service staff, ‘are as much a part of SOAS as our professors and fellow students.’

Workers at SOAS are feeling the pressure of job insecurity at a time of rising inflation and cost of living. Lunn’s case shows how casualisation creates an unstable working environment for staff. UNISON’s Nicoll said that if things don’t change, the current system will be ‘unable to survive.’

The State of the Metropolitan Police

Nicholas Pratley, BA History

On the 5 September 2022, Chris Kaba was fatally shot by a firearms officer. The car he was driving was identified by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) as being linked to a shooting the previous night. At around 10pm his car was rammed, and he was killed by a single bullet through the windscreen. The father-to-be was unarmed.

The officer - known under anonymity as ‘NX121’ - has been charged with murder. He was later released on bail and notified of a possible trial date on 9 September 2024 by Mark Lucraft KC, Recorder of London. In response, 300 Metropolitan Police officers briefly stood down from firearms duties. They were temporarily covered by officers from other police forces, with discussions taking place as to whether the army could be used as a backup for armed response.

Since 1990, the charity Inquest has recorded 1,871 deaths during or following police custody or contact. During this time, there has been one successful charge for manslaughter and none for murder. The ten unsuccessful prosecutions include the high-profile cases of Jean Charles de Menezes, Ian Tomlinson, and Azelle Rodney.

An illustrative case, fortunately unfatal, is that of Alfie Meadows. At the 2010 student protests he was struck by an officer carrying a baton and sustained a brain injury. Meadows was prosecuted three times for violent disorder and acquitted in 2013. He later brought proceedings against the police which were halted by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) until 2019. A panel then concluded that he had been hit by an unidentified Metropolitan Police officer. After thirteen years wait while he has finally received settlement the officer cannot be prosecuted.

These events are fueling a crisis in public confidence in the police, highlighted this March by the Casey Review. Commissioned in March 2021, after the rape and murder of Sarah Everard by a serving officer, this found the Metropolitan Police to be institutionally racist, homophobic, and misogynistic, with discrimination ‘baked into the system.’ Shocking examples of this included one Muslim officer having bacon stuffed in his boots and a Sikh officer having his beard cut.

The report also detailed sexual harassment and assaults, most often covered up or downplayed, with one-third of women reporting sexism and 12% saying they have been harassed or attacked at work. It also highlights how already low levels of convictions for rapists have been made worse by lost and destroyed evidence, with fridges holding rape kits being broken and in one case being contaminated by a lunchbox.

The Metropolitan police and their latest commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, do not accept that these issues are ‘institutional’ - arguing that as political language it is unsuitable; a view which is shared by the Home Office. The chair of the National Black Police Association said, ‘The commissioner

is wrong to once again fail to accept that the Metropolitan is institutionally racist.’ Baroness Louise Casey has also said that it should also accept that it is institutionally corrupt.

Currently, over 1,000 officers are suspended or on restricted service. On top of this, 100 officers have been sacked for gross misconduct, up by 66% from last year. This increase in suspensions and sackings follows the convictions of former officers David Carrick (a serial rapist) and Wayne Couzens (a murderer). Following Carrick’s conviction there have been reviews into 1,600 claims against officers of domestic or sexual violence. While no action has been taken so far, 450 of those are still under review.

Already in special measures by the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, it is expected that Mark Rowley will have three years to turn the Met around or face it being broken up. Details of a new London Policing Board have been revealed by Sadiq Khan in response to the Casey report. This will monitor and scrutinise reform within the force, including cultural reforms set out in the Casey report.

The Metropolitan Police was founded in 1829 on the ‘Peelian’ principle of ‘policing by consent’. YouGov has shown that in 2020, an average of 70% of respondents to their surveys thought the police were doing a good job, with 21% thinking they were doing a bad job; this September these figures were 51% and 42% respectively.

“Mark Rowley will have three years to turn the Met around, or face it being dismantled.”

A survey conducted in 2022, by the London Mayor’s Office for Police and Crime, shows a 49% confidence rating in the police at a local level, down from 55% in 2021. Trust in the police and their ability to treat everyone fairly fell at a similar rate. In the midst of this crisis Suella Braverman has stated that police ‘mustn’t fear ending up in the dock’. Rather than combating underlying issues she has prioritised a review into political activism in the police, such as taking a knee as a gesture against racism.

Far from their founding principles and mired in scandal, Sir Mark Rowley holds the responsibility to combat the racism, misogyny and corruption exposed in the Metropolitan Police. While the pressure to reform has come largely from the Mayor’s office, whether individual officers or the institution as a whole will be held to account remains to be seen.

A group of Met officers stand around at a protest. (Credit: Tania Monica)

Smoking Bans and A-Level Reform: Tory Policies Announced at Conference

This year’s Conservative Party conference has revealed a series of new policies and potential agendas for the party in the run-up to the next election. Amongst those discussed was a new set of restrictions on cigarette smoking, following New Zealand’s example of a complete ban on cigarettes for anyone born after a certain year. Alongside this was a proposal to replace A-Levels and T-Levels, with English and Mathematics to now be taught up until the age of 18. Far more controversial was the cancellation of the HS2 railway’s Birmingham to Manchester route, with the money instead being reinvested in smaller public transport projects.

The conference comes at a time when Tory Party support and confidence in the Prime Minister is at an all-time low. The Independent reports that only a quarter of the electorate claimed that Rishi Sunak would make the best Prime Minister at the next election. Following the conference, this dropped to one in five voters. Likewise, 13 years of Tory governance - alongside issues to do with the handling of Brexit and scandals like Partygate - has led to the party being projected to lose 154 seats at the next general election.

The Party’s dire straits were acknowledged by Sunak at the conference, but the mood and tone remained hopeful. Sunak’s set of new policies followed his claim that ‘It is time for a change - and we are it.’ The controversial cancellation of the

Northern leg of HS2 fed into this, with former Tory Prime Ministers David Cameron, Theresa May, and Boris Johnson all criticising the plans to cancel the project. Likewise, the plan to scrap T-Levels, a Tory party initiative, was seen by some observers as another attempt to remake the party’s image.

The planned scrapping of A-Levels and T-Levels - to be replaced with a new ‘Advanced British Standard’ which covers more subjects - was meant to demonstrate Sunak’s commitment to long-term governance; the plan will supposedly take more than a decade to introduce. Following teacher strikes earlier this year and a recruitment and retention crisis for those who teach key subjects like Maths and English, the government also proposed a doubled bonus for new teachers of upwards of £30,000 over the first five years of their career. No comment was made as to where the extra £600 million needed to finance this move would come from.

At the conference, Sunak engaged in what the Guardian writer, Helena Horton described as ‘culture wars,’ focusing on the supposed ‘war against motorists’ rather than serious policy. In the light of the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election, where the Conservatives held onto their seat by campaigning against ULEZ, the Tory party has increased its rhetoric against calls for greater environmental action. This was on full display at the conference, where the Net Zero Secretary, Claire Coutinho,

Sunak Shortens HS2

At the annual Conservative Party Conference, Rishi Sunak outlined several new government policies that he plans to implement in the next parliamentary session. Among these announcements was the scrapping of the Second Phase of the ‘High Speed 2’ (HS2) transport project, intended to improve transport efficiency and connectivity between London and the North of England.

On the final day of the conference, Sunak announced that HS2 would be heavily dialled back, limited to Phase One of the project between London and Birmingham. The rest of the project, including the high-speed rail line intended to connect Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds, will no longer go ahead. Justifying the decision, Sunak cited doubling costs, numerous delays in construction, and the time it would take for the project to be completed, with the second phase of the project expected to be operable by 2035 at the earliest. ‘The facts have changed,’ Sunak stated; ‘The right thing to do when the facts change is to have the courage to change direction.’

As a replacement for the HS2 project, Sunak assured Conservative party members, MPs, and the public that he would ‘reinvest every single penny, £36 billion, into hundreds of transport projects in the North, Midlands, and across the country.’ This replacement project - referred to as ‘Network North’ - is a collection of new projects declared by Sunak including funding road schemes; upgrading and resurfacing of roads (across the UK, not specifically the North); increasing connectivity between Northern Ireland and Scotland; building a tram in Leeds; and a rail hub in the Midlands. However, Transport Minister Mark Harper later claimed these were just ‘examples’ of potential replacement projects.

While this may have the support of some Conservative MPs - such as long-standing critic of HS2, MP for Buckingham, Greg Smith, who, in a response to the news stated ‘I’m delighted… HS2 has been shown up for the white elephant that it is,’ and called for the added scrapping of phase one of HS2 - many MPs and former Prime Ministers from both the Conservative and opposition parties have expressed their disagreement with the cancellation. Former Prime Minister David Cameron, whose government first announced the project in 2012, tweeted: ‘Today’s decision on HS2 is the wrong one. It will help to fuel the views of those who argue that we can no longer think or act for the long-term as a country.’ Boris Johnson, who was a supporter of the project during his time in office and under whom Rishi Sunak served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, publicly agreed with Cameron’s condemnation of the announcement, simply stating ‘I agree.’

Many Labour politicians have also expressed their disagreement, including Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham who expressed his concern that, ‘it would leave the north of England with Victorian infrastructure probably for the rest of this century… that is a recipe for the north-south divide to become a north-south chasm, the very opposite of the levelling up.’ Labour leader Keir Starmer further condemned the HS2 Project as a ‘complete fiasco’ that wasted billions of pounds. However, he also stated that he could not promise that the decision to scrap the HS2 project would be reversed under a potential Labour government.

Concerns have also been raised regarding the future of the government-acquired land intended for the project, which was obtained via compulsory purchase orders and includes over a thousand homes and large areas of

accused Shadow Energy Secretary Ed Milliband of being a ‘radical’ to whom ‘Net Zero was a religion.’ Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, echoed this sentiment claiming that belief in Net Zero and other environmental causes were a ‘luxury belief.’

“Sunak’s set of new policies followed his claim that ‘It is time for a change - and we are it.’”

The final question many will have after the conference relates to whether these speeches were merely platitudes, and how many of these proposals will actually make it into the Tory’s next manifesto. With vague promises from Sunak and his cabinet and existing policies being scrapped, the party is in a worse position than it was before the conference in the eyes of the electorate. 47% of voters claim they would vote Labour, as opposed to 24% who said they would vote Conservative. If the party is to maintain their 13 year-long hold on parliament, something more substantial than a smoking ban and A-level reform may well, therefore, be necessary.

woodland. This has been a long-standing point of controversy for conservation groups and environmentalists, who have criticised the project over its increasing habitat loss and carbon emissions. Some, like The Wildlife Trust, have therefore urged the government to ‘stop and rethink.’

“Sunak cited doubling costs, numerous delays in construction, and the time it would take for the project to be completed,”

Sunak had already permitted much of the land intended for use for HS2 to be sold off. It is likely that this will be to private sector developers and not given first resale options to original homeowners, nor given protected area designation for environmental protection. This has again raised concerns by environmentalists and politicians, including from the Labour Mayor of Liverpool City Region, Steve Rotheram. He referred to the cancellation of the Manchester leg of HS2 as, ‘Bad for the environment. Bad for the economy.’

Lilac Carr, BA Politics and International Relations

London Liverpool Street Station (Credit: Archie Thomas)

Jacob Winter, BA Politics and International Relations

Niger Asked France to ‘Leave My Country’ Following Military Coup

Following a statement released by their Ministry of the Armed Forces, France is withdrawing the approximately 1,500 French troops stationed in Niger. The French Ambassador in Niger has also departed from the country. This action follows a military coup in July, which ousted Nigerien president Mohammed Bazoum, who had been in power since the 2021 presidential election.

French President Emmanuel Macron denounced the Military Junta controlling Niger that came to power following the coup, demonstrating support for the ousted President Bazoum. Macron stated; ‘We do not recognize those who carried out the coup.’

The Military Junta increased pressure on Macron to dispel French troops from the country, resulting in the ‘end of French military cooperation with Niger.’

France originally stationed their troops in Niger to aid in combating jihadist groups. According to Al Jazeera, the Sahel region is now an ‘epicenter of violence’ because of the active presence of militia groups associated with ISIL (ISIS) and al-Qaeda.

Emmanuel Macron stated; ‘We’re in Niger because we were invited by Niger and several other countries in the region to come help fight terrorism.’

France has been present in the Sahel for hundreds of years, reflecting a colonial legacy. Analysts from the BBC explained France’s responsibility for the instability in the region. Despite their independence, France has remained an influential actor in its former colonies in West Africa, consistently supporting the rule of pro-France leaders in the region.

Anti-French sentiments have been growing in Niger and in other former French colonies across the Sahel. BBC interviewed a Nigerian who said; ‘Since childhood, I’ve been opposed to France… They’ve exploited all the riches of my country such as uranium,’ showcasing a personal anti-French sentiment and mistrust in their motives for occupation.

Military Juntas are also present in Mali and Burkina Faso, holding strong opposition to the French presence in their countries. BBC reported; ‘Allegations that President Mohamed Bazoum was a puppet for French interests were used to legitimise his removal from power.’

‘There’s an anti-French sentiment to be exploited,’ said NPR reporter Eleanor Beardsley. She explained that there are other actors, notably Russia, who have gained influence in the region.

BBC suggested the catalyst for the coup was President Bazoum’s plan to reorder the military and remove Abdourahmane Tchiani, former head of the National Presidential Guard and current head of the state, from his position. Tchiani had previously led an attempt to overthrow Bazoum during a military coup in 2021.

Tchiani expressed in a public statement the reasons for the coup, citing the previous government’s economic shortcomings and failures to combat terrorism and generate stability in the country. ‘The security approach today has not brought security to the country despite heavy sacrifices,’ said Tchiani.

Nigerien activist Maikoul Zodi pointed out in an interview with Deutsche Welle that he considered France’s official military withdrawal a ‘clear victory’ because of Macron’s previous stance that he would only comply under

a directive from Bazoum. He said; ‘Now the Nigerien people have shown that Niger belongs to Nigeriens,’ demonstrating his belief that this is a celebratory event for Niger.

After France’s promise to withdraw troops, Niger’s National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland stated; ‘We celebrate a new step towards the sovereignty of Niger,’ exhibiting that imperialist and neo-colonialist forces are no longer welcome on Niger’s national territory.

Although they have faced backlash for the coup, including the withdrawal of funding from the US and European Union and economic sanctions from other African states, the Military Junta remains in power in Niger.

Whether Niger’s regime change and expulsion of the French military will lead to more peace and stability for the nation is debatable, with Fair Planet calling out the risk of exacerbated terrorism in the region. ‘The celebration may not last long,’ said Mutaru Mumuni Muqthtar, a Ghanaian political analyst, in an interview with DW

‘Niger does not have the capacity to propel itself to prosperity, to stability, to ensure the sustained gains against the threats that it is currently dealing with,’ added Muqthtar.

In sharing their perspectives with DW, Nigeriens noted that regardless of the challenges faced by the country, they aim to reclaim Niger and take steps forward without France. A resident from Niamey expressed anti-French sentiments; ‘They haven’t been able to eradicate terrorism, so they have ulterior motives.’ Another resident from Niamey expressed his view, ‘The French military must leave immediately because we really don’t need them’.

Activist Ali Idrissa said with DW; ‘We will remain vigilant and ensure that a clear withdrawal plan is developed to do justice to our task.’

Sophia Agosta, BA International Relations

(Credit: AFP via Getty Images)

(Credit: Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

Fear in East Asia as Japan Releases Filtered Nuclear Wastewater

Kristi Greenwood, BA Japanese

Chinese customs stated all imports of Japanese seafood would be banned ‘to protect the health of consumers’.

Japan’s decades-long plan of releasing nuclear wastewater into the ocean, equal to 500 Olympic swimming pools, has finally begun. The wastewater has resulted from the cleanup project of the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, led by the Japanese government and TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power). The 9.1 magnitude earthquake that caused the seawater contamination hit eastern Japan in 2011, killing over 18,000 people and triggering a tsunami that struck a nuclear power plant, causing the largest nuclear disaster in Japan.

NATO and The International Nuclear Agency have approved the nuclear wastewater release plan and reviewed the science. Yet neighbouring countries are responding with strong reactions, including a Chinese ban on all Japanese seafood.

So is the Water Safe?

TEPCO stated that the water has been filtered of 62 radioactive elements via their Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS) to meet global standards. The ALPS water is further diluted before it is finally released. However, the water will not be entirely radiation-free due to the residue of tritium that no present-day technology can remove. Tritium is not harmful in small doses.

Mr. Jim Smith, a professor of environmental science at the University of Portsmouth stated, ‘Tritium is a very weak radiation emitter making it much

less dangerous than other radioactive elements.’

That said, tritium is highly fatal when ingested in large doses. The Japanese government reported that the predicted radiation people would be exposed to due to the release of nuclear wastewater is less than 0.00003 millisieverts per year. This is a small fraction of the average radiation dose sustained by a typical individual living in Japan, which is 2.1 millisieverts per year.

There has been widespread national and international criticism of the wastewater release plan since the document was released by TEPCO. Only 53% of the Japanese population supported the plans, according to a survey conducted by the newspaper Asahi Shimbun in August 2023.

Local fishers in the Fukushima area are concerned that their reputation will be tarnished and the Japanese fishing industry affected negatively as a result. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters, ‘I promise we will take on the entire responsibility of ensuring the fishing industry can continue to make a living, even if it will take decades.’

In Korea, climate activists and environmentalists vocally opposed the plan, with 16 students being arrested outside the Japanese embassy after protesting the release of the wastewater in late August. Fishmongers in Korea reported a rush of customers and panic buying of sea salt the day before the wastewater release as fears of sea salt being affected by the nuclear wastewater grew.

The Korean government responded; ‘We have assessed that there are no scientific or technical problems with the plan to release the contaminated water.’ This stance could be seen

as a sign of attempts at strengthening Korea-Japan relations. China issued a statement from the General Administration of Customs stating all imports of Japanese seafood would be banned ‘to protect the health of consumers.’ China is the biggest buyer of Japanese seafood, accounting for 40% of all sales. The ban will thus take a substantial toll on the Japanese economy. Experts have noted that the ban is perhaps politically fueled rather than one of genuine concern. Fears and disapproval of the plan have caused tensions in Japanese-Chinese relationships, culminating with a brick being thrown into the Japanese embassy in Beijing in late August.

Yoshimasa Hayashi, a member of Japan’s House of Representatives and former Minister for Foreign Affairs, told reporters in Tokyo; ‘We would like to urge the Chinese government again to take appropriate measures immediately.’ This comes during an increase in the number of racist prank calls being reported by Japanese businesses from Chinese numbers.

Prime Minister Kishisida along with three other Ministers were seen eating a variety of sashimi, sea bass and octopus caught in Fukushima’s waters to prove the safety and quality of Japanese seafood. Japan’s Minister of Agriculture, Ichiro Miyashita, has been promoting the consumption of Japanese seafood. Miyashita was pictured in Kuala Lumpur, eating scallops with celebrity Amber Chia - signalling the safety of their products to a wider market.

Despite the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirming that the wastewater release would have a negligible impact on the environment, marine life, and human health, critics and the general public are not convinced and this will likely remain a contentious issue for years to come.

Pakistan Requested More Boohoo Factories Despite Poor Labour Conditions

The caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan, Anwaar-alHuq Kakar, has asked the British fashion retailer Boohoo to increase its presence in Pakistan despite the company’s reputation for poor working conditions and pay.

The invitation comes following a period of economic distress in Pakistan, with inflation at a record rate of 36.4%. According to the chairman of the Boohoo Group, Boohoo is interested in cementing its presence in Pakistan, including its linkages to Radio Pakistan.

Boohoo has a long history of poor labour conditions in many of its factories around the world. The Guardian reported in 2020 that workers were making the equivalent of 29 pence an hour for their labour and sometimes working up to 24 hours a day. Following the investigation, Boohoo suspended this supplier, but accusations of poor labour conditions have continued.

Campaigning group Labour Behind the Label has accused the company of ‘regularly violating requirements for minimum wage and labour conditions,’ while paying their employees the equivalent of 68 pounds a month.

Boohoo’s ventures in Pakistan have led them to join

the Pakistan Accord, an agreement that establishes a framework for workplace safety in the garment industry which employs 45% of the country’s workforce.

The guidelines from the Pakistan Accord invite investment into the country while also protecting labour rights for an initial term of three years. This comes after Boohoo faced accusations of abandoning its factories in Leicester following allegations of modern-day slavery among suppliers that worked for them, choosing instead to favour suppliers in Pakistan.

The Sunday Times revealed that the supplier for Boohoo in Leicester, Jaswal Fashions, was operating with no extra hygiene provisions during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. An anonymous worker also raised concerns surrounding pay, telling The Sunday Times, ‘I can expect an hourly pay of £3.50, despite the national minimum wage being £5 more than that.’

The clothes in the Leicester factory were from Nasty Gal, which is owned by the Boohoo Group. A foreman said: ‘These motherfuckers know how to exploit people like us. They make profits like hell and pay us in peanuts.’ After the investigation, Boohoo cut ties with 64 suppliers in England and intended to move their business to Pakistan.

Boohoo’s shift to Pakistan has drawn mixed reactions from Pakistani labour activists. Zehra Khan, General Secretary of the Women’s Workers Federation of Pakistan, said: ‘There is a need for investment, and Boohoo should invest in Pakistan. Many workers have been fired since COVID-19 and workers can’t make ends meet in this unprecedented inflation, but Pakistan should make policies which ensure that businesses flourish, and the policies should be pro-workers and employees and employers.’

Jacob Winter, BA Politics and International Relations

Prime Minister Anwaar-al-Huq Kakar (centre) and Executive Chairman of the Boohoo Group, Abdullah Kamani (Credit: @GovtofPakistan)

Affairs editor: Amelia Casey-Rerhaye

Foreign Affairs

Gaza Has Given its All - What Now?

Anonymous

A few days ago, I entered a mosque in the centre of Amman, Jordan, to perform the evening prayer. As we finished, a thunderous mass of voices arose from within and around the mosque; a rallying call to action as people began to pour out of the hall. This was a tempest brimming with anger and energy.

It was not until I stepped out of the mosque, a few moments later, that I discovered the source of the noise. Men, women, children - even elderly grandmothers, shakily waving their fists whilst tottering on their wooden canes - their voices are woven into a symphony of chants, singing of resistance and determination. From horizon to horizon were endless banners of red, black and green, like a vast ocean with no land in sight.

I did not realise until an hour later that I had stepped into what had been Jordan’s largest rally since the Arab Spring. After the evening prayers, over 10,000 Jordanians descended

into the city centre, in expression of their support for their fellow Palestinians, demanding for the border between Jordan and the occupied West Bank to be opened. It was one of many rallies that have now taken place throughout the Middle East in response to ongoing events in Palestine.

Over the last week, Gaza has gone from the world’s largest open-air prison to its largest extermination camp. Following a surprise military offensive by Hamas, the Israeli regime has responded with an iron fist, cutting off the strip’s access to water, electricity and fuel, bombing key entry points to prevent humanitarian aid convoys, and bombarding schools, hospitals, and ambulances. Every single hour, a family is displaced or decimated by incessant airstrikes and white phosphorus bombs. None are spared, whether mothers, fathers, sons, daughters or even infants, barely weaned off their mother’s milk.

Surrounding Arab states are now subject to the full brunt of

“None are spared, whether mothers, fathers, sons, daughters or even infants, barely weaned off their mother’s milk.”

public anger for their inaction and perceived collaboration with the regional enemy. As a genocide takes place on their doorstep, cracks are beginning to show within surrounding regimes. In Egypt, the religious institution of Al Azhar, a mouthpiece for the military dictatorship, issued a religious ruling urging Arab states to take whatever means necessary to protect Palestinians in Gaza. In Jordan, demands to open the border grow day by day, with rallies swelling by the thousands as sons request permission from their parents to partake in fighting the occupation, if the border with Israel is opened. Saudi Arabia was also forced to change their stance with public pressure - originally focused on condemnation of violence on both sides, they later released a statement condemning the Israeli occupation and called for the restoration of Palestinian rights. On the other hand, Iran, its regional allies (Syria, Lebanon and Iraq) and various militias (Hezbollah, the IRGC and others) have contradicted themselves and their pro-Palestinian rhetoric over the last few decades. Assad’s regime is too busy focused on flattening its opposition in Idlib; Hezbollah has limited itself to small skirmishes on the northern border with Lebanon, and other militias have made empty threats to involve themselves in the conflict if the United States carries out direct attacks on Palestinians.

Gaza has once more been abandoned by those who promised it support. Its only hope of support now lies in the people of the surrounding region, who, through their growing outrage and resentment may make or break history in the coming days. Just like the early hours of Saturday 7th, we must expect the unexpected.

‘If one day, a people desire to live, then fate will answer their call.

And their night will then begin to fade, and their chains break and fall.’

- Abu Qasim as-Sha’abi, “The Will of Life”

Tens of thousands of Jordanians and Palestinian refugees demonstrate in Amman’s old town in support of Palestinians under siege in Gaza (Credit: Jordan News Agency)

IDF Raids Birzeit University, Again.

Amelia Casey-Rerhaye, BA Arabic

On the night of the 24th of September, Birzeit University posted a video of between ten and twenty Israeli Defence Force (IDF) vehicles leaving their campus. The video was taken after the IDF raided the Birzeit student council building, arresting eight students, including the current council president, Abdul Majeed Hassan.

“According to the Right 2 Education campaign, over 2000 students have been arrested since 1983. 80 remain in jail today.”

Later that day the University posted pictures to their Instagram account of the disruption caused to the council quarters, where chairs can be seen upturned and paper strewn

across the room. A statement was posted alongside the images in which the university condemns the IDF for gross violations of customs and documents that criminalize the attack on academic facilities. The statement also describes how the university security was forcibly overpowered, and their mobile devices confiscated, going on to list the students who were detained: Abdul Majeed Hassan, Amr Khalil, Abdullah Muhammad, Ahmed Awaidat, Yahya Farah, Mahmoud Nakhla, Hassan Alwan, Abdullah Abu Qiyas.

IDF presence on the university campus is not an uncommon occurrence. According to the Right 2 Education Campaign, 28 IDF raids have taken place over the past 20 years. Only once before has a president been apprehended, in March of 2018 during the first daylight raid, in which IDF forces entered the campus disguised as students. The president was imprisoned for four years for ‘administrative charges.’ 12 other students were injured during this raid. Further violence was inflicted in a more recent raid in January of this year, in which five students were arrested, and one shot.

In a protest that took place on the 25th of September,

students gathered to denounce the arrests of their classmates and what is viewed as an attack on their right to education. A source attending the university who was present during the protest recounted the emotional weight of the situation to me: ‘You could feel the anger; for them, it’s their classmates, it’s their colleagues, it’s their friends’. The source wished to remain anonymous, cautious of what it would cost them to speak openly on the subject. Teachers and students alike were present to show their support.

However, the source also mentions that the rest of campus and university life carried on as normal around the rally; ‘Oddly enough it just felt like part of life, there were a lot of students not protesting and just going to classes and passing by.’ The normalcy unsettled her.

According to the Right 2 Education campaign, over 2,000 students have been arrested since 1983. 80 remain in jail today. The fate of the eight arrested students from this raid is, as of yet, still unknown. Since the recent turmoil in Israel and Palestine, the Birzeit University campus has been shut, and our source is unable to get further information.

Travellers Eager to Make Up for Lost Time during China’s Extended ‘Golden Week’.

Gunda Pavilonytė, BA Chinese

This year’s ‘Golden Week’, centred around China’s National Day, coincides with the Mid-Autumn festival resulting in a 10-day long holiday from September 29th to October 8th.

This is one of the first breaks since the complete lifting of the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions by the Chinese government, allowing unrestricted travel. A total of 826 million outbound and inbound journeys were made during the longer-than-usual holiday break, equivalent to 85.1% of the average number of trips made in the same period in 2019. Although signalling a gradual rebound these figures are significantly lower than the official state predictions of 896 million trips and 782.5 billion yuan in domestic tourism revenue.

Last year, since China’s international borders were closed, its citizens opted for more remote travel destinations, sparking a domestic tourism boom. Among these is a fourth-year undergraduate student, Malika, from Kazakhstan: ‘Most places in the cities were closed, you had to get tested in order to go anywhere, it was very inconvenient, so me and my friends went around smaller villages and nature destinations instead since there was nothing to do in the cities and less likely of getting infected.’

Following the extended strict COVID-19 shutdown, citizens are now eager to embark on ‘revenge travelling’, looking for ways to see as many destinations as possible on a tight yet cheap schedule.

Although the rebound from the COVID-19 lockdown has been relatively strong, the pandemic has caused some longer-lasting economic disruptions. Rising unemployment rates, a property market crisis and weaker local currency have all caused the travel industry to go through a ‘transitory period’, as consumers are looking for more budget-friendly destinations, predicting the trend for the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday season.

‘[During the Pandemic] many tourist places have become very deserted. Since China is so big many chose to stay here during the holidays, take the opportunity to visit their families and participate in festivities and events after four years of lockdown. You can sense people’s enthusiasm to travel again!’ says Mika, a postgraduate student from Beijing.

“Citizens are now eager to embark on ‘revenge travelling’, looking for ways to see as many destinations as possible on a tight yet cheap schedule.”

Regarding cross-border journeys, those fortunate enough to afford it, are opting for cheaper leisure destinations abroad. This is further accelerated by the exemption of temporary visas by countries such as Thailand and the United Arab Emirates, aimed to revive the country’s damaged economy.

This new strategy is said to set the tone for other upcoming holiday periods, as the competition to attract Chinese tourists amongst countries in the Southeast Asian region intensifies. Rebound international travel by Chinese tourists would greatly favour many tourist-dependent businesses, as spending by mainland Chinese tourists before the pandemic concluded more than any other nationals when abroad.

Tourists on the Great Wall of China (Credit: Kevin Frayer/ Getty Images)

Taiwan’s Presidential Election 2024: Taiwanese Trump Enters the Race

Taiwan’s next presidential election could not be coming at a more sensitive time in Cross-Strait relations. Any general election held on the Island always brings uncertainty in terms of regional stability - but this one is different.

On the 13th of January 2024, people will decide who is to replace the current president Tsai Ying-wen. Their decision could lead to turbulent weeks of unprecedented military pressure from the superpower neighbour, China. A likely scenario may be one similar to what was seen last September, which saw the highest level of military exercises, including dozens of warships, fighter jets and drones. China views Taiwan as a rightful part of its own territory – a claim the Island rejects. Although President Xi Jinping has promised reunification, by force if necessary by 2027, relations between Taiwan and the USA have nevertheless strengthened at an unprecedented level.

“Gou, the richest man in Taiwan, launched himself on the political stage as ‘an alternative to war.”

Last year, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, shook the status quo with her historic visit to the Island. To make things more problematic, Vice President William Lai, the current favoured candidate in the upcoming election as reported by My Formosa Poll, paid a visit to the USA earlier this August on his way to Paraguay.

In this scenario, the current candidates officially consist of: Vice President Lai of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih of the Kuomintang (KMT), Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) and Independent Terry Gou. Currently, according to My Formosa Poll, polls indicate a lead held by Lai (DPP) of 36.7%. He is then followed by Ko (TPP) with 19.4% and Hou (KMT) with 17.7%. Lastly, Gou’s approval rating stands at 6.2%.

Terry Gou, the founder of Foxconn (the world’s largest manufacturer of iPhones) - also known as the Taiwanese Trump – announced his candidacy earlier this August. Like many of his billionaire counterparts, Gou has no experience in politics to date. After failing to win a nomination from the KMT, he is currently the only independent candidate in the race.

Gou, the richest man in Taiwan, launched himself on the political stage as ‘an alternative to war’. His rhetoric blames the DPP and President Tsai for bringing the Island to the brink of war with its neighbour and promises to not ‘turn Taiwan into the next Ukraine’ if elected. He argues that the only current solution to peace is the strengthening of economic ties with China.

Unlike the DPP – the only party with a political agenda leaning toward Taiwanese independence - Gou’s understanding of Cross-Strait relations is influenced by his own background in business. Although Foxconn’s headquarters are based in Taiwan, most manufacturing occurs in China. In fact, some concerns over his candidacy arose from the influence China could have on Taiwanese policymakers if he’s elected president – a possibility Gou refuses.

His approach to politics has proven rather unconventional in recent weeks. To secure signatures to officiate his independent candidacy, he set up a scheme by which for every 100,000 signatures obtained he would donate NT $10 million (approximately £250,000) to his own charity Father Gou’s Hope Foundation. If elected president, one of his proposed solutions to Taiwan’s falling birthrate – one of the lowest in the world - would be for the government to give couples a pet per child born. Gou’s proposal comes in light of pet adoption rates rising exponentially with the potential of surpassing the current birth rate.

Although Gou’s prospects of winning the race seem unlikely as of now, his presence is nevertheless pivotal in Cross-Strait relations. His candidacy is very much favoured by China and other Taiwanese businessmen who operate across the Strait, but his promises of peace are not guaranteed. Last month, in honour of the anniversary of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, a documentary titled Chasing Dreams was released where soldiers are seen professing their loyalty by stating their willingness to die for their country in the event of an invasion of Taiwan.

His candidacy constitutes yet another pro-China alternative, which seems largely unpopular among voters. The low trend in his approval rating only strengthens the DPP’s chances of securing another 4-year term. At the same time, his candidacy has left the KMT with a fragmented electorate, lessening the chances for the conservative party to win. It comes as no surprise that a figure like Terry Gou appeared in the Taiwanese political scene as the trend of tycoons entering elections started in America in 2016.

Carlotta Busetto, BA Chinese

Terry Gou at a campaign rally in Kaohsiung, Taiwan (credit: Jameson Wu, ASP Getty Images)

Aiehsa Akenzua

SOAS Student Union Refurbishments Causes Shock, Disappointment, and Anger Amongst Student Body

Sam Landis, BA Social Anthropology and International Relations

As students returned to the SOAS campus for the onset of the 2023/24 academic year in late September, an air of grief and grievance overtook many as they discovered their freshly ransacked Student Union (SU). Long considered a safe space home to vibrant political expression, community events, fruitful conversation, budding friendships, and frequent late-night dance sessions, the walls once covered head-to-toe with writing and artwork currently lay bare, and the rooms formerly filled with immense feelings of possibility and potential largely remain empty, the hollow smell of fresh white paint now the most presiding characteristic of the once vibrant refuge.

The SOAS SU, consisting of the (formerly conjoined, now separated) Junior Common Room (JCR) and SU Bar, has been gutted and refigured into an unrecognisable space under the direction of SOAS and SOAS SU management. Flashy renovations, not just limited to SU spaces but widespread across the entire campus, include a completely remodelled bar equipped with brand new furniture and lighting fixtures, a stage and upgraded sound system, and a refurbished smoking area with tiled walls, potted plants, fairy lights, and new cement floors; the transformation of the former ‘Russel Room’ into a new SU office, also equipped with new furniture and fancy lighting fixtures, bathroom additions, and room dividers; fully refurbished bathrooms across all levels of the Main Building; and many smaller projects. In the process of re-fitting our SU, the sea of posters, flags, drawings, quotes, stickers, and writings which gave the SOAS Student Union its feelings of warmth, comfort and contrast compared to other UK student unions were removed, and any attempt to replace them has been met with hostile reactions from security, including an instance on 10 October which saw a SOAS student harassed and threatened with removal for putting up posters critical of SOAS director, Adam Habib.

While the exact amount spent on these refurbishments is presently unclear, they surely cost the University a hefty amount of money, and come at a time not only when SOAS’s last recorded financial statement in 2022 displayed a deficit

of over £20 million (Source: SOAS Financial Statement, 202122), but also as SOAS has consistently refused to offer adequate concessions to workers throughout decades of wage disputes and strike actions. Last year, SOAS withheld 100% of wages from staff members partaking in the University and College Union (UCU) marking and assessment boycott, and dismissed SOAS UCU branch secretary, David Lunn, from his job. Furthermore, they refused to negotiate with UNISON staffers (as they have done for years) striking to secure higher wages, English-as-a-second-language classes, and an end to workforce casualization — all pressing financial situations intimately bound to the survival and well-being of staff members which SOAS chose to withhold monetary resources from. Malena, a former SOAS student and long-term member of the Justice for Workers Campaign - a group which organizes around staff working concerns, particularly those of the SOAS cleaning team - said: ‘Coming back as a former student, it feels very disorienting and confusing. I don’t really understand how an institution that has, on a yearly basis, stated cases of bankruptcy and lack of funds in order to justify not bringing workers in-house, not raising their salaries…can invest in these nonsensical reforms of the Student Union.’ A large Justice for Workers mural was one of many painted over during the refurbishments. ‘The place looks like a dungeon,’ she said.

The attempts to suppress and (literally) white-wash forms of political expression within the SOAS Student Union, in addition to new bureaucratic ticketing systems which limit access to the SU bar due to capacity restrictions following the removal of the staircase which formerly conjoined the JCR with the bar, have transformed feelings of community and cohesion into exclusion and fear. ‘It seems so scary to go in there…I felt like, am I even allowed to go in?’ asked an MA Post-Colonial Studies student who wished to remain anonymous. ‘It was a communal hub, it created the heart of SOAS…Today, it seems like such a sterile space.’ The financial implications these new capacity restrictions will have on the SOAS Bar remain unclear but appear unfavourable — especially given that the bar was still under construction until the very end of welcome week, one of the most profitable times for campus businesses.

While the physical division of the JCR and SU Bar was a change requested by those hoping to access a communal and social space without the presence of alcohol, a useful

and positive adjustment, the lack of consideration given to students’ opinions regarding the rest of the refurbishments is evident. Despite SOAS’s increased aims to inundate students with channels through which to provide feedback and obtain official student representation positions, the once completely democratically elected, student-led and operated SU — composed of four full-time sabbatical officers and various part-time volunteer officers — has undergone drastic structural changes in recent years which have significantly lessened the ability of students to make independent decisions regarding the functioning of SU spaces. In addition to the four sabbatical officers, the SOAS SU now employs eight full- and part-time non-student, non-elected staff members including a CEO, Student Engagement manager, and Finance and Office manager. These figures have amassed significant levels of responsibility and power, and frequently make decisions without assessing the concerns of students.

Gioia Scazza, a third-year undergraduate student and last year’s Co-President of Democracy and Education for the Students’ Union, expressed that although they and other sabbatical officers made their opposition regarding the refurbishments clear to the SU’s CEO during a consultation, the changes still went ahead. ‘They told us that because we were only there for one year, our opinion was not as relevant…They knew that the [sabbatical] team was opposed to covering up the graffiti, and they did it anyway. They waited until the end of our mandate to do so, and they waited to do it until no students were on campus.’ Citing the impact of neoliberal educational reforms on the rising suppression of radical political thought on university campuses across the UK, Gioia noted that the eradication of student artwork and writing across SU spaces is ‘an attempt to erase our thoughts and our opinions on SOAS, on global politics…which is exactly what we thought this school was for.’ As SOAS continues to market its curriculum as decolonized and social-justice-oriented to attract ‘leftist’ students while simultaneously destroying campus spaces embedded in alternative, revolutionary and anti-capitalist ideologies, the rampant contradictions of the university remain on full display.

‘How is it possible for us to express ourselves when they are creating such a neutral space?’ asked Gioia. ‘As if the ‘School of Oriental and African Studies’ could ever be a neutral space, if you know what I mean.’

The Politics of Distraction

Roxanna Brealey, BA History and Politics

It was to the surprise of many students that the SOAS Student Union Bar was refurbished over the summer break posing questions on the purpose of it all. It appears that in such a politically driven university, the SOAS administration has to divert attention away from any recent controversies. This affliction can be coined as the ‘politics of distraction’ and is used to divert attention away from more pressing issues by redirecting the populace to other affairs. Perhaps this was the case for the refurbished student bar? This spectacle can also be seen on a much larger scale. In fact, it is operating in full force within the Conservative Party and has led to the absolute degradation of the UK political sphere. Whilst evident for some time, this political tactic was clearly defined at the recent 2023 Conservative conference, hosted in Manchester. It seemed that the main motivation of this conference was to weaponize marginalised communities as a diversion, rather than addressing the countless difficulties this country faces. For instance, Foreign Secretary Braverman viciously attacked immigrants as if they were the root of all problems in British society. In an attempt to fearmonger, Braverman stated that there would be a ‘hurricane’ of mass migration and that it was her aim to ‘deter bogus asylum seekers.’ It is simply inhumane to demonise individuals who travel great distances across dangerous oceans to escape conflicts, not to mention hypocritical as the UK does not offer a visa

route for the purposes of travelling to the UK based on asylum. Prime Minister Sunak’s closing speech at the conference further solidified the use of the politics of distraction. This time by targeting the transgender community. Sunak stated that ‘we shouldn’t be bullied into believing that people can be any sex they want to be,’ once more stoking the UK’s war of ideologies to shift the electorate’s attention towards the 0.5% of the population (2021 Government Census). It has been noticed by many that scapegoating the Trans community is concerningly high up on the Conservative agenda, when it ought not to be. Not when Home Secretary Braverman advised police to crack down on pro-Palestine protests, or with Prime Minister Sunak’s popularity hitting a record low. The reasoning behind this new political tactic is clear. The Conservative Party has little to show from their 13 years in power. They no longer have Corbyn or the ‘Get Brexit Done’ campaign to retain their legitimacy and to distract people from core issues such as the cost-of-living crisis and the record-high NHS waiting lists. Instead, they shift the blame of the wrong-doings of this country on marginalised groups when the clear danger to this country is the incumbent government. The war of ideology is now the only way in which they can derive any authority to rule and if they win the 2024 general election, we will learn that the politics of distraction is a successful political tactic. It may feel as if there has been a jump between the refurbishment

The Facade of Objectivity: We Can Do Better

Aminah Hashmi, BA Politics and International Relations

I’ll just come out and say it: the pretence of objectivity hinders good journalism. Good journalism is not just presenting ‘what happened,’ it contextualises the event and helps people understand why it matters. The preoccupation with keeping to ‘complete impartiality’ in news reporting conceals the fact that bias is inevitable - writers are not detached from the world they write about. What we accept as ‘impartial’ are perspectives that serve the status quo and a historical dismissal of the perspectives of those not in power: minority ethnic and religious groups, the LGBT+ community, and immigrants to name a few. Student journalism especially should not hide behind the contrived front of objectivitychances are, the readership of the student newspaper wants the student perspective. Good journalism goes beyond the regurgitation of the basic facts of an event, it provides context and analysis and goes beyond ‘What happened?’ to ‘What does this mean?’ We can’t really be impartial when we answer the latter question - it’s inevitably shaped by the context of where the individual is coming from.

I feel like every field I’ve encountered has had this strange idolisation of ‘objectivity’ as an ideal to strive for. In social sciences, researchers value quantitative research more than qualitative research because of that same facade of objectivity valued in journalism. This comes from the natural sciences where a central truth is achievable when studied objectively.

By definition, an objective view of a social event is

impossible. Anyone who has taken a research methods class can tell you that facts about the social world are not impartial statistics. Facts are collected, chosen, and distributed by people. Which facts are emphasised, how (or if) they are contextualised, and what information they omit are all influenced by bias hidden under the label of ‘objectivity’. Journalism itself is a decision-making process, everything from what event is newsworthy to who we choose to quote is a choice informed by bias. Historically, the people making those decisions were those who benefited and furthered the interest of the status quo - white, middle-class men. When the image of an impartial news piece is held too high in esteem, it conceals this decision-making process. The fact is, by trying so hard to make a news piece ‘neutral’, what we are actually doing is restricting the perspectives of those who don’t fit into the criteria of the status quo.

Being a credible news source is not about pushing for the image of impartiality. Every major news organisation has a perspective, whether or not they acknowledge it. The pursuit of objectivity comes from a place of insecurity and the need to be taken seriously by those who made ‘neutrality’ an ideal. In 2021, the BBC quit Stonewall’s diversity scheme over fear that it would affect people’s perception of the impartiality of BBC journalism on LGBT+ issues. Was that an impartial move or one that supports the biases of existing power structures? Building trust between an organisation and its readership is more effectively achieved by being transparent about biases than by claiming complete impartiality. A more valuable journalistic approach acknowledges that neutrality is not something achievable and instead is transparent about

of the SOAS Student Union Bar and nationwide politics, but the foundations are alike. SOAS may have refurbished the bar to distract the student community away from larger issues that lie within the institution in the same way the government is utilising culture wars to distract the electorate away from larger issues. This phrase coined the politics of distraction is a danger to UK politics as it has full potential to blind some of the electorate from ever truly holding the government to account for the numerous blunders they have committed.

the perspectives that inevitably inform their reporting. Journalism that embraces perspective enriches news reporting and analysis without compromising credibility.

To be clear, this is not to argue that every news piece becomes an opinion piece. It is instead an argument to remove strict ‘objectivity’ as the guiding ideal of journalism when it is not only impossible but harmful. Being transparent about perspective makes for a more credible news source than an image of impartiality. In student journalism, this is especially true. Student journalism gives a voice to perspectives not found in mainstream news coverage mainly because there are not as many hoops to jump through to be heard. People who find themself underrepresented in the staff rooms of major news outlets are more likely to be represented in student journalism, especially at SOAS. Pushing for ‘complete impartiality’ in news reporting in this context is counterproductive to good journalism when the insights of students are part of the appeal of a student newspaper.

What I’m trying to ask is: can we stop getting caught up in making sure that journalism is perceived as objective and start embracing the diverse perspectives that can enrich news reporting?

Rishi Sunak speaking at the 2023 Conservative Party Conference in Manchester (Credit: Flickr)

Feminist Masterpiece or Giant Informercial?

Melina Tavakoli Moghaddam, BA Politics and International Politics

Though Greta Gerwig may have broken the Hollywood glass ceiling by becoming the first billionaire female director, one can assert that she did not leave much room for future generations of women to follow in her footsteps.

As Mattel’s behemoth of an advert, Barbie satirises the basic antagonisms women face in their daily lives to illustrate how ‘it is literally impossible to be a woman.’ These words, directly extracted from America Ferrera’s ‘light-bulb moment’ monologue and thus, embellished in a liberal feminist fashion, are supposed to serve as a catharsis or rather, as an attempt to unionise the female sex amidst our shared struggle. We can resist the beauty standards that Barbie herself set if we just put our minds to it, right? It’s not like there are only five lines shared between the only two ‘curvy’ Barbies in the film. Mattel’s history with curvier dolls must also not be forgotten; it’s not like the release of new body types in 2016 was due to their profit crash in 2015. Nevertheless, we can all be beautiful as long as we attack the patriarchy together, and Barbie is only selling us products such as her Bikini Serum because she too, is a victim. She too experiences hyperpigmentation, regardless of her plastic exterior.

Beyond the shallow feminism that Gerwig ensures to instil within the movie, our director forgets to nod to the reality behind the making of the dolls. The dedicatory montage of the female cast and crew may have been a tearjerker, but what’s more, the predominantly female labour crew in Mattel factories have no time to shed tears due to their working conditions. Dirty water, dirty dishes for their food, hair and cockroaches in meals are merely the start of

what female workers have to endure alongside verbal abuse from male line managers and barely a liveable wage without overtime. So I pose the question, can the film even be artificially feminist when Barbie’s very existence stems from exploited women? At least Robbie Brenner, the president of Mattel films, agrees that Gerwig’s film is ‘not a feminist movie’. So much for hiding the fact that it is an advertisement!

When exploring what a capitalist ploy Barbie is, it is imperative to also refer to its impact on the climate crisis. The focusgrouped inclusion seeks to speak to every woman that has lived ever (with the spotlight still on stereotypical Barbie) yet does not acknowledge how this would equate to a higher number of doll purchases. Never mind the 25% increase in sales in the USA during July and August, imagine how each individual 182gram Barbie doll will result in 660 grams of carbon emissions. Seems that the world shortage of pink paint was not enough for Gerwig, she had to boil the planet at twice its current severity.

I guess we ought to commend Gerwig for sparking debate about misogyny at the very least. Women were finally presented with the opportunity to discuss their experiences further than they already had. The government dictated upon our bodies first, and now men with no real worldview argue that the latter is not Kenough. Forget misogyny, Barbie is an assault on men, according to Piers Morgan. So, thanks for fighting for the ‘I’m Just Ken’ dance sequence Gerwig, and thank you for enlightening the world on the forces of patriarchy which offered us a career-best Ryan Gosling adjacent to discourses on how attractive Margot Robbie is.

After dishing out an introductory piece of buzzwords prevalent in the study of feminism amalgamated with 2015 Tumblr quotations, any affiliated Oscar nomination should read as ‘best infomercial of the year.’ Aspiring female directors will not only struggle in the industry to earn back any form of respect, but it is also questionable whether their career prospects are possible within the era of global boiling that Gerwig does not pay mind to.

When Poptimism Goes Too Far

Ella Dorn, BA Chinese and Linguistics

‘Here come the girls!’ proclaimed a Guardian article this summer. ‘All-female K-pop groups conquer Britain.’ The author chided ‘British music snobbery’ for its snub of the Korean scene, taking a girl-power view to praise the genre’s female stars in their newfound prominence. Attentive readers may have wondered what led the Guardian, with its facade of concern for worker’s rights, to publish something so uncritical about an industry rife with misogyny and abuse.

K-pop stars generally operate on ‘slave contracts’; often working for years without pay in order to reimburse their management for periods of gruelling idol training. Many make their debut on the demanding scene as minors, sparking debate about child labour and sexual exploitation. Female idols are notorious for being put on starvation diets, and most are banned from entering into relationships with the opposite sex. Only in exceptional cases are idols given a say in their own music. Something within culture journalism has gone very wrong.

Poptimism has spread over the past thirty or so years to establish itself firmly within the legacy press. The old stereotype of a pretentious male rock critic no longer holds water. Critics at Pitchfork are just as likely to praise the newest Taylor Swift release as they are to write about underground and indie albums, and they assume by default that the former is written and produced with just as much poetry and intention as the latter. This is not necessarily a bad thing. It is, of course, unfair to write off a cultural product because of its association with the wrong race, sex or class. In their

heyday, the Beatles attracted swarms of screaming teenage girls - had critics given up on them on this account, we would have lost out on masses of interesting music writing.

Poptimist re-evaluations bring new insight into our cultural canon, allowing us to reshuffle our knowledge of music history. Britney Spears’ Blackout album, released shortly before her public breakdown in 2007, was once slated due to its association with tabloid gossip. It is now known for its dark and innovative production, influencing several contemporary artists. This new scope simultaneously widens the pool of people who are allowed to become critics - as an early-career culture writer, I recently made my own legacy debut with an article for i-D about the genius of Madonna.

Music no longer needs to be anti-establishment to garner critical praise. But have some journalists and outlets slid too far into the establishment, falling into the clutches of exploitative entertainment industries? Where do you draw the line between poptimist criticism and simply parroting the narrative emailed to you in an album’s press release?

This dilemma may well be a side-effect of journalism’s brave new online world, where revenue comes click-byclick, and where critics bump shoulders with readers - and music fans - on social media. Perhaps the main danger of this overlap with internet fandom is that it compromises a writer’s integrity. Would you heap undue praise on something if the resultant byline gained you a new

audience, or added to your present-day cultural capital?

Fandom is interesting to study from afar and to write about in an anthropological sense. However, critics should keep their distance. Contemporary pop writing can be just as worldexpanding as the rock criticism of decades past - but it should remain critical and mediated, as all the best coverage is, by a writer’s eclectic personal tastes and ethical quandaries. What the Guardian misses in its coverage of K-pop is that there is a whole world of power and exploitation beyond its cheerful curtain. Poptimism fails when it refuses to uncover it.

K-pop girl group Blackpink perform in Seoul (Credit: RAS 99/ Youtube)

Margot Robbie in the Barbie movie (2023) (Credit:: Jaap Buitendijk)

http://soasspirit.co.uk/category/features/

FEATURES EDITOR: Anisah Mahamoud

Features

BHM Contributions Beyond Slavery

Eden Folkes, MA Migration and Diaspora Studies

Every year it’s the same story, ‘Let’s talk about Black history’ which has almost become synonymous with ‘Let’s talk about slavery.’ The options in October for students across the nation during history lessons are discussions and PowerPoints about Black trauma and suffrage.

Introduced by Akyaba Addai Sebo in 1987 and inspired by African American Carter G. Woodson who created Negro History Week; every October, we Britons are given a chance to celebrate, share, and understand the impact of Black heritage in the UK and across the globe. However, in recent years, the British school curriculum has been under scrutiny for its portrayal of history, particularly in the context of slavery and abolition. The Black Curriculum 2021 Report states that the current curriculum ‘systemically omits’ Black history and takes a ‘White, Eurocentric stance.’ While it’s crucial to educate students about the dark period of history, the focus on these aspects has started to overshadow the positive contributions made by Black British individuals in various fields.

Education plays a vital role in shaping societal perspective and understanding. To ensure a well-rounded and inclusive education, it is essential to balance between educating on the history of slavery and abolition, as it was a turning point in history. Acknowledging, studying, and understanding the struggles that led to abolition is essential for developing empathy and promoting a just and equitable society. Yet, simultaneously, we should be celebrating the remarkable achievements of Black British people and those of the African diaspora to society, and their contributions to the arts, sciences, and politics, and supporting the welfare system.

Delroy

Maryam Mohamed, BA Korean and Politics

I know that you’ve paused in your tracks to pet a wandering cat. I know you’ve paused to watch a firework spark violently and die out slowly. I know you’ve hesitated to walk past the latest sale. I know you’ve stopped and taken time to tend to a text message in the middle of a bustling street. Meanwhile, on the side sits something you missed. Delroy.

Delroy who sits quietly, not asking for attention but solemnly sitting in a sea of books. Books that have been left on the side of the street, like him. Books that have been walked past, like him. Books that have been rained on, like him. Books that want a second chance at life.

I first noticed Delroy whilst sitting in Pret, comfortably enjoying an overpriced meal. On the other side of the thin glass that separated the cold street from my hot coffee, Delroy sat down. I watched as he laid out his books across the floor and watched longer as both his books and he became part of the concrete ground, everyone walking past him as if he was as empty as the glass I saw him through. In an age where the grind-set is the new mindset and looking down on the working class is the template for every ‘motivational’ preacher, I turn your attention to Delroy.

Delroy became homeless after a tragic house fire and, despite pleading for the council’s help, was left on the streets as many

The contributions of Black British and African-American scholars and inventors are extensive. For instance, Evelyn Dove, the first Black singer on BBC radio, broke cultural barriers and opened doors for the likes of Little Simz, Raye, and Mahalia. Claudia Jones is not only the founder of Europe’s biggest street festival Notting Hill Carnival, but also an activist and the founder of Britain’s first major Black newspaper, The West Indian Gazette. Then there’s John Edmonstone, the man who taught Charles Darwin the skill of taxidermy, the same skill Darwin used to preserve birds that were the foundation of his ideas about evolution. Incorporating these narratives into the curriculum can cultivate a deeper appreciation for the diverse contributions that have shaped modern Britain. The racial bias in the British curriculum is particularly concerning given the current social-political context where racial tensions and discrimination are still prevalent. For instance, within the Metropolitan Police, the stop and search rate per 1,000 people for Black individuals stands at a staggering 167.2, compared to Asian (34.1) and White (37.4) individuals, according to the Home Office. The NHS suffers from an increased maternal mortality rate for Black women, and London, a multicultural epicentre, has many boroughs entering a period of gentrification. This has resulted in an increase in the displacement of original businesses that were vital to many ethnic households, and families being forcibly displaced into cheaper more deprived areas resulting in the breakup of communities.

“In October the only options are discussions on Black trauma and suffrage.”

Claudia Jones (Credit: Wikipedia)

To address the concerns regarding the curriculum’s current imbalance, activists, educators, and policymakers should consider revising the curriculum - acknowledging reports like The Black Curriculum report and social phenomena like gentrification to ensure a comprehensive and inclusive view of history and its impact on society today. This includes attention to the abolition movement, civil rights, and the contribution of all Black people in all aspects of life.

The British school curriculum holds immense potential to impart knowledge and shape perspectives. By striking a balance between educating about the history of slavery and abolition while celebrating the contributions of Black British individuals, we can create an education system that fosters inclusivity, empathy, and a deep appreciation for the diversity that defines our society. Education should empower students to stand against discrimination and work towards a future where everyone is celebrated for their unique contributions, regardless of their background. By acknowledging and celebrating the contributions of Black Britons and members of the African diaspora, we can create a more inclusive society that values diversity and promotes social justice.

“Delroy’s motto and message is ‘The world is your oyster.’ So here I am, using the open oyster of this page to help Delroy and his story reach just a little bit further.”

are. Sitting together on the pavement, he emphasised, ‘We do not live in a caring society. You can only look out for yourself.’ I wish I could counter his opinion, but the reality lies in the rising rates of homelessness, consistent funding cuts, and a 26% rise in rough sleeping in 2022, reports Crisis. Delroy felt the neglect of the world first-hand after almost dying from prolonged urinary retention. Delroy recounted with distress the way in which the NHS had abandoned him due to his lack of a fixed address. ‘I was put on waiting lists and waited years to get what was a life-saving surgery,’ he says. ‘They gave me no healthcare. I was left to survive and in that time I could’ve died.’

In spite of having suffered the hell of homelessness for three years, Delroy continues to embody optimism. Every day, irrespective of the weather or whether or not he will be noticed, he sits along Balham’s high street, with his books. ‘Whenever someone helps me, I’m grateful. I ask them their name to thank them personally.’ When I visit him, Delroy has never asked for money or even food. Delroy asks me for books. Books on business, maths, economics, science, and music theory. Not just to sell but to read. Delroy’s thirst for knowledge and his insatiable appetite for life left me valuing mine just that much more. Now in his sixties, Delroy recalled his youth as a young

Black man and his dreams of going to university like me. He calls out universities at the time for racial prejudice and vividly remembers the feeling of being treated as a secondclass citizen. Now he’s trying to make up for the education he missed. The gap in education is no stranger to the streets as, according to the Literacy 100 Charter and Report, at least 50% of homeless people lack basic reading and writing skills.

Delroy continues to fight the cruelty of discrimination as a homeless man, often subject to degradation and harassment. Nevertheless, Delroy told me with a shift in tone, ‘I haven’t given up on my dream of being a musician.’ He notes his time in a band when he was younger and despite acknowledging that ‘most musicians don’t make a lot of money,’ Delroy’s passion for music is authentic and evident. After a few visits to Delroy, he came to me with some good news - the council finally gave him a room in a shared accommodation. ‘It’s the first time the council’s ever helped me in three years.’ Big Issue revealed in 2022 that at least 30,000 people in the UK have waited 10 years or more for social housing. However, Delroy revealed that the accommodation didn’t give much privacy and wouldn’t allow him to practice the guitar.

‘I’m not free,’ he sighed. Three short words encapsulate the profound feeling of all of those at the very bottom of our struggling lower class, not knowing where their next sleeping spot will be. Delroy is not just a friend of mine but of the world. With a drive and resilience that is invaluable to not just the workforce but to the community. Delroy’s motto and message is; ‘The world is your oyster.’ So here I am, using the open oyster of this page to help Delroy and his story reach just a little bit further.

ANALYSIS: The UKIP-isation of the Conservative Party

Felix Flanagan, BA Politics

The biggest headline to come from the recent Conservative party conference in Manchester was certainly the dismembering of HS2. A perhaps even more significant takeaway, however, was the focus on ‘culture war’ issues. Views once reserved for far-right Tory backbenchers appeared at the forefront of the agenda. From Rishi Sunak’s attack on the trans community to Suella Braverman’s warning of a ‘hurricane’ of mass migration to come, it appears that the party has made a significant shift towards the right.

One surprise to come from the party conference was the appearance of Nigel Farage, surrounded by cameras and eager crowds of young Conservatives. The former leader of UKIP and the Brexit Party officially attended in his capacity as a presenter for GB News. However, many commentators agree that his presence marked something more significant. Just days after the conference, Farage was asked about the possibility of him re-joining the Tories. He did not rule this out, following up with, ‘Once they’ve lost the election, then I think my influence over where they go might be rather bigger.’ In another interview he was questioned on whether he believed the Tory party had moved towards him or vice versa, ‘I haven’t changed. I haven’t moved for years. I’ve been utterly consistent

for 20 years on the things that I believed and campaigned for.’ Reflecting this policy shift, former Conservative MP David Gauke said that when he was elected he was one of the Party’s right. Yet, he continued that the shifting ground beneath his feet had landed him now on the left wing of the party.

Beyond the prevalence of Farage and his potential to rejoin the Conservative party, some have pointed to the similarity between contemporary Tory policy and former UKIP views. One of UKIP’s pledges echoed at the recent party conference by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, was the idea of cutting the size of the civil service. Though hardly a novel idea to the party’s right-wing, ideas like this taking the forefront at the conference once again, point to a rightward swing in the party.

Another example is the implementation of an Australianstyle points-based system to manage immigration, found in UKIP’s 2015 manifesto and enacted by Boris Johnson’s government. The Conservatives, and formerly UKIP, have also both launched attacks on green policies. Following backlash from ULEZ, it appears that Sunak believes that showing that he is ‘on the side of motorists’ will justify his backsliding on climate commitments and win over voters.

The Prime Minister’s turnaround from the slick, pragmatic Chancellor to avid culture warrior was seen in his speech to the conference where he stated; ‘we shouldn’t get bullied into believing that people can be any sex they want to be. They can’t.’ Again, links can be drawn to Farage, who vocally supported Trump’s ban on Transgender people serving in the military.

Matthijs Rooduijn, a political scientist at the University of Amsterdam, said of Braverman’s speech; ‘This was a populist, radical-right speech like you’d get from Le Pen in France.’ The Home Secretary later suggested that the Human Rights Act, which incorporates the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) into domestic

Black Liberation in ‘White’ Scandinavia

Scandinavia. A small corner of the world, known for its hostile weather, Vikings, and wealth. The image of the three countries has been shaped by the likes of Frozen, Midsommar, and HC Andersen. What all of these have in common, is a dazzling whiteness, almost reminiscent of the snow that covers large parts of Scandinavia in the winter months.

What might surprise some is that Norway, Sweden and Denmark all have well-established Black movements. As we celebrate Black excellence this Black History Month, it is crucial to deconstruct common misconceptions. Is Scandinavia really homogeneously snow-white? The short answer is no, and in order to shift this view of Scandinavia, we must look to both the present and the past.

Following the murder of George Floyd, the organised Scandinavian Black Movement flourished. Students were especially central. The main organisers behind the BLM protest in Oslo on June 5th 2020 were the organisations African Student Association and Afrikans Rising in Solidarity and Empowerment (ARISE). The BLM protests in Sweden were also led by young people, such as Aysha Jones. She was the initiator behind BLM Sweden, according to SVT, the Swedish equivalent of the BBC. The momentum surrounding the protests rejuvenated old Black organisations and started up new ones. One example of the latter is the Afro Danish Collective, founded in the wake of the 2020 Copenhagen BLM protests.

However, many Black organisations had already existed for

decades. The Swedish organisation ‘Afrosvenskarnas Riksorganisation’ (The National Organisation of Afro-Swedes) was founded in 1990, and, according to their website, they gather the African diaspora to fight against Afrophobia. Similarly, the Norwegian NGO, the ‘MiRA Resource Centre for Black, Immigrant and Refugee Women’ was started in 1989. MiRA is also patronised by the Norwegian Queen, according to their website.

The fight for Black liberation in Scandinavia has a deep history and can be drawn all the way back to the countries’ participation in the slave trade. Overshadowed by the British, French, and Belgian participation, many tend to forget that all Scandinavian countries actively took part in colonialism and slavery. Many slaves also revolted against their Scandinavian ‘owners’. The 2023 Danish film Viften depicts one of these revolts. In 1848, slaves rebelled on the island of St. Croix, then in the Danish West Indies.

A screening of Viften is part of the programme at this year’s Black History Month in Norway. Celebrating its five-year anniversary this year, the festival highlights the Afro-Norwegian diaspora’s history, art, and culture. This year’s theme is the ‘Art of Creating History.’

Michelle A. Tisdel is a research librarian at the National Library of Norway, the initiator of ‘Lift Every Voice,’ a project that aims to document the history of Norwegian antiracism and the project leader for Black History Month Norway. One of the figures that Tisdel has focused on in her research is Ruth Reese (1921-1990), an African-American-Norwegian singer, author, and activist. Reese moved to Norway in 1956 and was already vocal about issues concerning Black

legislation, be renamed the ‘Criminal Rights Act.’ The ECHR has long been criticised by UKIP, and now too by the newly mainstream right-wing of the Conservative party.

Researcher Charlie Ellis has called this phenomenon the ‘narrowing of the British Conservative Mind.’ He suggests that the right of the party has ‘hubristically overinterpreted’ the Brexit result and recent electoral success, leaving them overconfident with the popularity of these right-wing views with the public. Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee has suggested the certainty of defeat at the next election has ‘liberated the party to lurch further to the right.’ Some, though, believe that the Conservatives are not right-wing enough. One individual interviewed outside the British National Conservatives conference, organised by a right-wing US thinktank, claimed ‘it’s not really a right-wing government. It’s very liberal and it follows the Labour party maybe five or ten years behind.’ Columnist Andy Beckett has suggested that both Labour and the Conservatives have been shifting rightwards, but that this has been the default in the run-up to elections since Margaret Thatcher, as swing voters are assumed to be Conservative on social issues. The majority of political commentators, however, seem to agree that there has been a clear shift to the right in the party over recent years.

TLDR; News suggested that Sunak has two options if he is to win the next election. One depends on him arresting this rightward swing, which could help unify the party and attract centrist voters. However, political analyst, Jon Henley suggests that Conservatives have begun to embrace ‘textbook populism,’ indicating a return to the centre is unlikely. The other pathway to electoral victory given by analysts is for Sunak to double down on his right-wing credentials. It was, after all, not him but his predecessor Liz Truss who was elected by the party. Truss found early popularity for her reverence for tax cuts. Perhaps, if Sunak committed to doing the same, it could appeal to the party’s base and win over voters.

people in 1958. ‘She was strongly affected by her upbringing. Her family fled from Alabama due to racial violence and settled in Chicago. There, she was surrounded by everyday activists, as segregation still was a matter of fact in all of the US,’ Tisdel explains by phone from her home in Norway.

‘Reese brought her experiences from her upbringing and from her later engagement in anti-racism with her when she moved to Norway, originally to perform classical and African American music.’ Reese was a successful singer, who toured many places in Europe both before and after settling down in Norway.

‘Ruth Reese was definitely a pioneer. What makes her special, is not her experiences with racism in Norway. There were other Black singers in Norway at that time, who probably also went through some challenges. Reese is special because she actively fought against global racism.’ Through multiple opinion pieces, two books and travelling lectures, such as Racial Hatred and Democracy (1960), Reese was one of the first Black people living in Norway to introduce antiracism and Black liberation to the population. In her lectures, she also performed multiple musical pieces. Reese wanted to show that African American music was not simply entertainment, but an expression of the ‘African American heritage, suffering, and resistance,’ according to Tisdel.

Scandinavia. A small corner of the world, full of Black excellence, activism, resistance and endurance. Shaped by the likes of Aysha Jones, Michelle A. Tisdel and Ruth Reese. This Black History Month I celebrate the brave Black women who are and have been fighting for their liberation in Scandinavia.

Left: Conservative party leader Rishi Sunak. Right: Former UKIP and Brexit party leader and GB new host Nigel Farage (Credit: Shutterstock)

Anon Yu Henriksen, BA International Relations and Korean

Free Meals, every Day. Who, Why and How?

Anon Yu Henriksen, BA International Relations and Korean

‘Do you want anything to drink?’ The first question that greets me as I approach the trolley standing right outside the SOAS gates exudes generosity. This SOAS staple is heavily used by our student body, myself included. Although, I am always left with a full stomach and a brain full of questions. Why are we offered free lunch every day? Who are these people? Where is the food from?

Being offered a drink at the trolley is not a normalcy, but rather an act of additional hospitality. Ibragim Demessinov, the man behind the act, hands me a Pepsi Cola after I have accepted his offer, and starts telling me about the free meals. ‘Today alone, I estimate that we have given out roughly 500 warm meals here at SOAS. I know that from counting the paper plates that are left.’ Demessinov used to work as a Data Analysis Chief Expert for the government in his home country Kazakhstan, and I see a connection between his last occupation and his analytical approach to the stacks of paper plates balanced on the trolley. Demessinov swapped data models and government offices with delightful meals and generous offers and now works full-time as a volunteer for the charity Food for All. It is this charity that is responsible for the free lunches at SOAS, as well as in many other places in London. In total, Food for All provides people with around 3,000 meals every day. As I spot what seems to be a religious symbol on the trolley, I ask Demessinov whether Food for All holds any religious or political affiliations. He answers that the founder

“In theory, your free-of-charge vegetarian stew might have been cooked by a ‘finance bro’!”

was a follower of Hare Krishna, a religious movement founded in the USA. Demessinov further comments that he himself is part of Hare Krishna. Adherents of the group follow strict principles, amongst them, Demessinov mentions bans on meat, drugs, alcohol and premarital sex. However, it is important for Demessinov to stress that Food for All has a diverse set of volunteers who follow many different religions. Demessinov also says that the aim of the charity is not religious, but is to provide food for anyone, no matter their background. This is also why all of their meals are vegetarian. ‘We want our food to be accessible to everyone, no matter if they are Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, vegan, or vegetarian,’ he says, alluding to different religious and dietary restrictions on consuming animalistic products. As lunchtime approaches, students line up to get their free meal. Some UCL students can also be spotted, revealed by their brightly coloured blue lanyards. Enjoying the typical stew, many might not consider the lengthy process behind the meal. All of the produce is donated by different sponsors - Tesco being one of them - and turning the produce into a warm meal includes a lot of work in the early hours of the day.

Every morning, Monday through Friday, Food for All’s fulltime chef opens their Euston-based kitchen at 6:30 a.m. In order to cook for 3,000 Londoners, the chef is accompanied by

volunteers from a plethora of different workplaces. Demessinov describes the atmosphere in their kitchen as ‘cooperative’. Some days, the atmosphere can also be quite corporate, with suitclad employees from companies such as Goldman Sachs and Barclays occasionally volunteering in the kitchen. In theory, your free-of-charge vegetarian stew might have been cooked by a ‘finance bro’! After the dishes are finished, they are transported in big insulating boxes on trolleys, rickshaws, and cycles.

When asked, Demessinov disagrees with the notion that there are other groups in society that could benefit more from receiving free meals than students: ‘You are one of the most important parts of our population. However, you are also a group that needs to be looked after, and sometimes receive some extra help.’ Demessinov additionally gives an anecdotal angle: ‘In an interview, Steve Jobs said that the only thing that kept him and his health afloat during his student years was the local Hare Krishna temple, where he could eat free and healthy meals. This shows how big an impact free meals can have on students, and later on society at large. Maybe the next Steve Jobs is here at SOAS, having our free meals?!’

As the time approaches 2 p.m., the queue to the yellow trolley shortens, and the insulated boxes are almost emptied. The three volunteers can let their sleeves down and conclude another day of feeding SOAS with free and accessible meals. What awaits is some hours of rest, before the same cycle repeats, to our and 2,500 other Londoners’ delight.

PS: For anyone who still has not tried the free meals, test it out every weekday between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.

From the Archives: Afrasian and How We Changed for the Better

Gabriel Mullins, BA History

Much has changed in the last 60 years, but there has been a common thread at SOAS- the existence and incessant publication of our student newspapers. We have access to many in the British Library and our own special collections - their morphology is complicated, moving through the decades from newsletters on carbon paper to coffee table magazines for turtleneck-clad mid-century academics and finally to the website or recycled news sheet this is rendered on. However, when looking for a way to examine where we have come from as an institution, Afrasian (published 1961-75) stands out as a colourful (yet monochrome) microcosm of college life in years past, and an interesting opportunity for reflection on both an institutional culture lost to time and our capacity as a collective to change.

The Afrasian of the early 60s abounds with descriptions of ‘college hops’ (late licences), rowdy debates, many, many sporting defeats and nominees for ‘Miss Fresher’, amongst other incidences of gratuitous misogyny. It is awash with a certain brand of British cynicism - to a modern reader it is painfully 60s. Simultaneously, it does make some serious attempts to engage with international affairs and justice for the student body. Reporting includes ‘Digs and The Colour Bar’, Oswald Mosley’s invitation to speak at the union, the University of London’s attitude to Immigration Controls, and developments in politics and current affairs both domestically and around the world. Its commentary is generally progressive and international but only to a point - when congratulating SOASian Ismail Balogun in Issue No.2 for his election as a national delegate to the WUS, the paper completely fails to mention the scale of his achievements as one of the first Black delegates.

Emeritus Professor Hall (S.E. Asian History) is quoted in issue No.4 as saying, when referring to the difficulty of persuading white British students to take S.E. Asian History, ‘After all,

these are the students we are interested in.’ Today, this comment would be a genuinely outrageous news item - a resigning issue - and might even make the national papers. However, Afrasian consigned the quote to a sarcastic joke in ‘Saying Of The Week’. This could be simply reflective of the conservatism of the British establishment, and thus the University at the time, but it certainly has something to do with the fact that the paper, despite taking writers and staff from around the world, was still written from a perspective that was mostly white, male, and middle class. Social justice pieces were sometimes presented as main stories but social issues such as racism itself were simultaneously rarely the focus of discussion, even if alluded to in reports of union meetings and campaigns. The tension was clear between the traditionalism of the school and the progressivism that the institution’s very existence demands.

“The tension was clear between the traditionalism of the school and the progressivism that the institution’s very existence demands.”

By the late 60s, things had changed. The magazine had been dressed in a glossier, artsier jacket and bawdy gossip columns and tales of drinking and squash-club-bound debauchery had been replaced by long-form poetry and page-long bibliographies. The radicalism of the years leading up to and during international university protest movements wasn’t to be wholly reflected in Afrasian, though, as student organising moved to newsletters and zines and the functioning of the students’ union broke down in the face of corruption and apathy. This left Afrasian as more of an academic journal published on behalf of the SU than a newspaper. Simultaneously, the university that produced it was changing as well. SOAS had received a deluge of funding following the recommendations

of the Hayter report, and a new building for the library was soon to be under construction. The concentration of government funding for the study of Africa and Asia into SOAS meant that its research output increased and the school’s profile grew. Afrasian was to be read in university staff rooms and professors’ solariums around the world, from Princeton to Nairobi. In embracing more modern practices, international academia, and government money, had SOAS lost something of its soul and was this seen in the transformation of Afrasian? The short answer is no - and good riddance to what was there.

Eventually, Afrasian sunk and resurfaced once more in the 70s as a more radical, student-oriented journal, publishing innovative articles and setting the world to rights in a way that is more similar to today’s SOAS Spirit, but without much of the levity and diversity of content that would make it actually readable. As this article stands this leaves it to us to imagine for ourselves how change came about, knowing that it is possible and hopefully taking away the fact that sometimes, we need to change completely in order to meaningfully move on - a lesson that would be particularly useful to some university administrators today.

Greece Wildfires: A Summer of Catastrophe and Conspiracy

Felix Flanagan, BA Politics

This summer, Greece was ravaged by the worst wildfires since records began. Throughout the summer many parts of the country faced the perfect storm of high temperatures, dry conditions, and strong winds. The issue of the fires has understandably become a point of contention in Greek politics and society however, on a recent visit to the country I was shocked to learn the degree to which stories of arson dominate the narrative surrounding the fires, rather than climate change.

Michail, a fourth-year Political Science student in Athens, told me that the conspiratorial nature of the discourse has existed for at least four decades. It is instead the nature of these conspiracies that has changed. What began with stories of sheep farmers clearing land for grazing and Turkish spies hellbent on damaging the Greek tourism industry, he says, has morphed through Greece’s recent history of economic decline, political scandal, and migrant crisis. This has resulted in conspiracies of land grabs by wealthy elites, government plots to clear land for redevelopment, and the scapegoating of migrants and refugees. The conspiratorial discourse has been further inflamed by politicians and media, with the minister of Civil Protection blaming ‘lowlife arsonists’ and newspapers reporting on stories of illegal migrants committing arson and police impeding local efforts to tackle the blazes. Mrs Panagiotis, an elderly woman who took us when we found ourselves stranded by the wildfires, informed me that her son, a police officer, also told her that the fires were started by illegal migrants. Greece’s main opposition party SYRIZA has warned that the right-wing government are militarising this anti-migrant sentiment to distract from their shortcomings in disaster prevention. This is of course conjectural,

but it is true that in Greece 92% of the budget allocated to the wildfires went into suppressing the fires, with just 8% being spent on prevention, states UNDRR’s PreventionWeb. Gogó, another Greek student I spoke to, told me these antimigrant conspiracies are more prevalent in rural areas and closer to the Turkish border, where the migrant crises have been most visible. On the other hand, the majority of young, educated Greeks like herself believe that the wildfires are part of a government conspiracy to clear land for wind turbine farms.

“As Greece battles unprecedented wildfires, it is stories of arson and conspiracy that have captured the country’s popular imagination, rather than concern from the climate crisis.”

The flames of this particular conspiracy have been fanned by stories of corruption surrounding the Mitsotakis family, a political dynasty that has been in power for 145 of the 200 years since the establishment of the modern Greek state. Alexandra Mitsotakis, the Greek prime minister’s sister, is Head of the Convergences Greece Forum which lobbies for sustainable development in the public and private sectors in Greece. This connection has given impetus to stories that the government has allowed these fires to rage to clear land for wind turbines. Far-right journalist Giorgos Tragkas wrote on the matter; ‘The Mitsotakis quasi-state is emerging from the flames burning Greece.’ Despite many outsiders seeing these views as far-fetched, it seems that Greek audiences have been perceptive to this type of rhetoric.

Stories of conspiracy aside, analysis from the World Weather Attribution has suggested that the recent wildfires in Europe and America would have been ‘virtually impossible’ if not for human-caused climate change, which they estimate made the heatwaves 2.5C hotter in Europe this summer. Despite this confidence from scientists, a culture of conspiracy and misleading information from media and politicians, following decades of political and economic turmoil, has left many Greeks incredibly mistrustful. This focus on blaming individuals over the climate crisis also allows politicians to get away with inaction on disaster prevention and combating climate change. Michail, the Greek student I spoke to, said he was struggling to see any way to fight the spread of these conspiracies.

The issue, however, is not entirely unique to the region. Around the world, we are seeing misinformation and conspiracy blurring the lines of reality and posing a significant danger to global efforts to reduce climate change.

South Africa: The Rainbow Nation Divided

Joel Bennett, BSc Politics, Philosophy, Economics

The 27th of April 1994 remains a momentous date in the modern history of South Africa. Referred to as ‘Freedom Day’, it marked the advent of the first multi-racial and universal election in the nation, simultaneously signifying the end of the apartheid regime, one of hate and intolerance. So began a period of reconciliation. Attempts were made to come to terms with the nation’s colonial past and the starkest economic inequality, which kept much of the black majority in invisible bondage, even despite overtures to social change. Almost 20 years later, the dream of an equitable society is far from realised; social unrest and economic collapse challenge the nation, political outsiders seek to disrupt the establishment, wildfires rage and blackouts are common — two in three young people are out of the job market and one in three for the general population. Many have nothing to do but articulate their discontent with a system that promised so much but has given so little.

The path to national liberation was a long and hard-fought struggle for the politically disenfranchised Black, Indian, and mixed-race populations. They possessed no legal means of engaging in political discourse following the formal codification of the apartheid state by the National Party in 1948, whereby the sphere of officialdom and politics became a white-only affair. Thus, political power had to be asserted through industrial action, militant agitation, and grassroots organisation. Naturally, the response of the state was violent and heavy-handed. The massacring of 69 unarmed protesters at Sharpeville in 1960, the murder of AZAPO founder Steve Biko in 1977, and countless other illegal raids on anti-apartheid

groups marked an era of injustice and violence. As a result of sustained pressure on the state apparatus from such groups, the situation would begin to look untenable for the national government as the 80s drew to a close. Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC) party would be elected in coalition with South African Trade Unions and the Communist Party in ‘94. His presidency would bring about a new permanent 1996 constitution, setting into law freedom from discrimination, racism, and the guarantee of further democratic freedoms. The constitution was a major step forward and defines the identity of the Rainbow Nation to this day.

“The path to national liberation was a long and hard-fought struggle for the politically disenfranchised Black, Indian, and mixed-race populations.”

Despite the significant progress made in the social sphere, the economic situation was and has been dire. Before 1994, the working-class population faced economic exploitation from domestic landowners and industrialists, due to the scepticism of foreign capital towards the apartheid system. The South African people undoubtedly face a raw deal as an ever-growing comprador-kleptocrat class envelops the government, Eskom and other key economic institutions. Polling for the upcoming 2024 election has caused major losses for the ANC and major gains for the opposition group, the Democratic All (DA). Within this general dichotomy lies the socioeconomic

divisions characterising the electorate: the support base of the DA is primarily Afrikaans-speaking white, and elderly, whereas the ANC has traditionally drawn on the predominantly Black majority. Polling so far has shown as much, many voters feel unable to vote for any alternative to the ANC.

Despite a bleak outlook, there are certainly causes for optimism. A nation often compared to South Africa in economic terms is Brazil. In the early 2000s, when many of the comparisons were made, the two countries shared many of the same issues: high levels of racial and economic inequality, state-led corruption and public service inequalities across the board. Despite this, the two countries have taken very different paths: the Presidency led by Lula da Silva (2003–2011) and his Workers Party administration implemented radical anti-hunger programs, favela development initiatives, redistributive economic policy and public sector investment through the hand of the state. Results demonstrate how much of an unparalleled success these policies were; child malnutrition went down by 46% in his first term alone. Progress akin to that seen in Brazil is more than possible in South Africa - the country possesses huge economic potential in the form of a burgeoning, youthful population, vast reserves of raw materials and a base of over 1 million educated and politically active students desiring social and economic change. To compound hope, the country is a key player in the BRICS group (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), a melange of the world’s foremost emerging economies that collectively offer an alternative to global US hegemony by facilitating economic development independent from the imperial core. Such strategic partnerships will play a key role in the future development and the nation.

Elefsina, Greece July 2023: A young boy points at a helicopter fighting the Mandra forest fires. (Credit: Shutterstock)

Five Horror Films to Watch This Black History Month

Alina Edwards, BA Liberal Arts

When we think of horror movies, we often think of films like Scream, Halloween, and The Exorcist—all movies that only feature white characters. However, Black writers, directors, and actors have been innovating the horror genre since day one, long before Get Out hit our screens. Here are five essential horror films that highlight Black voices, spanning a fifty-year cinematic history.

1. Us (2019) dir. Jordan Peele

Jordan Peele released Us only two years after Get Out landed in theatres and shook audiences to the core. It is, according to this reviewer, ‘just as worthy of attention as Peele’s debut, and is guaranteed to have you glued to your seats in terror.’ The film follows Adelaide (Lupita Nyong’o), a woman scarred by a traumatic event in her childhood, as she and her family are tormented by mysterious doppelgangers who set out to destroy them. Complete with an enormously talented cast—led by an astounding performance from Nyong’o—and a series of petrifying twists and turns, Us is a modern cult classic within the genre. Rating: 5/5 stars

2. His House (2020) dir. Remi Weekes

In this Netflix original debut from director Remi Weekes, a Sudanese couple arrives in the United Kingdom, having fled the turmoil of their mother country. When they are accepted into asylum and placed in government housing, they are overjoyed— but they soon discover a darkness lurking behind the walls of the house, one that is tied to the past they have tried so hard to forget. While the film does offer genuine scares for its audience to indulge in, keep in mind that His House has a deeper purpose beyond providing the cheap thrills that cinematic horror is known for. This is a film that excels in leaving its audience moved by new understandings of trauma, positionality, and belonging— its relevance today cannot be understated. Rating: 5/5 stars

“Black writers, directors, and actors have been innovating the horror genre since day one, long before Get Out hit theatres.”

3. Blacula (1972) dir. William Crain

A staple film of the 70s Blaxploitation wave and a sleeper horror classic, Blacula follows Mamuwalde (William Marshall), an African prince from the 1700s who is transformed into a vampire by Count Dracula and wakes up hundreds of years later in 1970s Los Angeles. The film reincorporates all of the best

tropes of the vampire genre into a freshly imagined horrorthriller, with hints of detective fiction and romance sprinkled in. Other elements, such as the supporting cast and the score, contribute to a campy atmosphere that makes for terrific fun. However, the real star of the show is Marshall’s Blacula, the first Black vampire to ever appear on screen. Marshall embodies the role with incredible grace, crafting a character that is both a formidable creature of the night, whilst also a tragic figure haunted by loss. Rating: 4/5 stars

4. The Blackening (2022) dir. Tim Story

If anyone still thinks the horror comedy is dead, they haven’t seen The Blackening. Seven friends, a remote cabin, and a killer itching for revenge: What could possibly go wrong? Screenwriter Dewayne Perkins, who also plays a major role in the film, is no stranger to the art of satire, and his writing especially shines when the satirisation of dangerous tropes in horror— such as the one Black character always dying first—takes centre stage. The crew behind The Blackening know all too well that we need pushback against conventions that audiences have become too comfortable with. As a result, the film becomes an exercise in self-awareness, exposing all of the

tired beats in horror films to new forms of ridicule. Hilarious at one moment and thrilling the next, The Blackening is both an entertaining slasher flick and a significant step towards the centring of Black stories in horror cinema. Rating: 4/5 stars

5. Night of the Living Dead (1968) dir. George A. Romero

Arguably the first major zombie film in the history of horror cinema, Night of the Living Dead is one of the most popular low-budget films of all time and a classic fearfest. It is a movie defined by firsts, as it is also the first American horror film to feature a Black protagonist. At a time when most Black characters on American screens were only written into stories that deal with race—think of Sidney Poitier in Look Who’s Coming to Dinner—Ben (played by Duane Jones) is simply a man stuck in a terrible situation with people who keep making terrible decisions. He is a staple figure in the history of Black horror and is certainly one of the most iconic protagonists of the zombie genre, period. The film would not be what it is without Ben at the centre of it all, but for those who are mostly here for the scares, it does also offer a handful of truly terrifying moments—from brain-eating, to stabbing, to everything in between. Rating: 4/5 stars

The title sequences of Blacula, Us, His House, The Blackening, and Night of the Living Dead, from left to right.

Penguin: A Moving Show of Migration, Disability, and Joy

Lucy Nolan, BA Social Anthropology

This one-man show follows Hamzeh Al Hussien in a captivating retelling of the events of his life so far. As a disabled migrant fleeing Syria in search of safety, Hamzeh’s physical and emotional journey is one of hardship, dignity, strength, and selfacceptance. Penguin is a dynamic and inclusive experience, performed in English and Arabic with subtitles for both. The story flickers between three distinct times or locations; his native Syria, the Za’atari camp in Jordan, and Newcastle. Hamzeh’s passionate performance, along with the voice of his brother offstage and audience participation, fully immerses the audience.

Penguin is almost entirely made up of anecdotes where difficult memories are interwoven with touching and funny ones, with Hamzeh often sharing moments which are ‘a good memory to think about.’ Hamzeh’s frequent experience of prejudice and mistreatment meant he often avoided situations where he would be exposed to large numbers of people. The belittling nickname Penguin stuck with him; we see Hamzeh grow to shrug off the face of ableism, and reclaim, as well as redefine, the name. His physical difference is no longer something he is ashamed of, with his presence shining across the whole stage; jumping and dancing on the tables in a hilarious reenactment of his first time in a club. Being the only person on the stage, with no distractions and nothing to hide behind amplifies these powerful moments; we are locked onto Hamzeh as he finally relishes being seen. Such moments, as well as vignettes of everyday life, humanise refugees and remind the audience that they are ordinary people in extraordinary situations, making scenes of bullying, ableism, and military violence even more shocking and upsetting. He laments, ‘We never thought it would be us’ in a refugee camp. Hamzeh educates the audience on a Syria we have never known, one the media doesn’t show us - of life before the war, and life that continues despite the war.

Each story has ample time to unfold, allowing the audience to get to know and empathise with Hamzeh and his unique experience, something the British media does not do. At one point he tells us on average how many people live in one tent, how many tents in a row, how many rows in a section, and how many sections there are. We come to the figure of 84,000. The media often speaks of migrants using metaphors of natural disasters, such as a ‘flood’, ‘swarm’, or even ‘hurricane’, which anonymises

and in turn, dehumanises these people. Each of them has a different history, dream, and passion. Hamzeh speaks of his friends and cousins he has lost, and his mother who is still in Za’atari camp. When does the migrant journey end? The struggle certainly doesn’t end on arrival, as racism, ignorance about refugees, and ableism persist, meaning the UK is not the safe haven many expect or hope for. However, as Hamzeh demonstrates, there is a place and purpose for everyone.

“Vignettes of everyday life humanise refugees and remind the audience that they are ordinary people in extraordinary situations.”

One such way to support this is by establishing and protecting safe spaces for creative exploration by overlooked communities, such as those who grew up in care, disabled people, and migrants. This is always important, but especially now as the leaders of our country continue to promote and pass antiimmigration bills, stoking ignorance and a sense of danger among the public. Whilst there are no more performances of Penguin in London, there are in other locations around England. Curious Monkey ‘are a theatre company of sanctuary,’ who share the stories of underrepresented communities in their own creative expressions. Watch this space (and Penguin)!

What did we learn from Sex Education?

Amy Kan, BA International Relations and Japanese

This article contains mentions of sexual assault.

If I told you that the first sex scene of this show happened within 45 seconds, would you have believed me? Sex Education holds a label of being unique and eccentric in that regard, with extremely blunt depictions of discussions involving sex.

It has frequently been in conversations as a contemporary Gen Z show, featuring identities, minorities, and problems that have so often been avoided or misrepresented in the entertainment industry. There is never just one token character, and the inclusivity in the teenage lifestyle portrayed is realistic and unlike what other shows often have on offer. Nearly all the main characters do not fit a stereotypical identity, revealing that everyone has problems to work through.

“The standout feature of this season was its ability to effectively convey to the audience the significance of ensuring accessibility for all and the issues that can arise from everyday societal barriers.”

The fourth and final season of Sex Education was released in late September 2023. It follows the main characters adjusting to their last year at school amidst various obstacles thrown at them; with each character going through a journey of

discovering what it is to be a teenager with identity problems. The season further explores topics including postpartum anxiety, disabilities, both visible and not, and how they can be accommodated in places like schools, as well as a personal journey with religion and sexuality. Personal struggles of transgender characters who experience problems that are commonplace in society - like waitlists for referrals or expensive treatments for private sectors - are also addressed.

A prominent character in the show with a well-developed storyline was Aimee (Aimee Lou Wood). In season two, a sexual assault incident occurs and she is convinced by her friend, Maeve (Emma Mackey), to report it to the police. This represents the unfortunate reality of the lack of charge available from authorities - but does not remain an isolated event. Throughout the final season, the memory remains casually intertwined with Aimee’s story, helping her to heal herself through art. The representation of girlhood and empowerment is prominent, though cliques are also not forgotten in this universe of bullying, rumours, and gossip.

The discussions of toxic masculinity (depicted by a straight white man) are created in the earlier seasons, and then developed and worked on in subsequent ones. A major example in the show is Adam Groff (Connor Swindells) and his dad, who pushes these expectations on his son. In the new season, the former comes out, saying, ‘I’m attracted to men and women.’ Though his character development challenged conventional norms, this subsided with the growth of an enemies-to-lovers trope as Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) - who later became Adam’s boyfriend - romanticised and excused the relentless physical and verbal abuse Adam gave him, something which was rooted in homophobia. The Groff men eventually work on their

father-son relationship and understand each other after years of pressure, ultimately achieving a comfortable relationship.

Sex Education concludes with a mix of some underwhelming and some satisfying character arcs. When expelled and pushed away from friends, Ruby (Mimi Keene), is expected to be given a final wholesome friendship with Otis (Asa Butterfield), but instead, she receives a blunt apology, and they end up as shallow friends.

Nonetheless, the show has perfected authentic inclusivity. The standout feature of this season was its ability to effectively convey to the audience the significance of ensuring accessibility for all and the issues that can arise from everyday societal barriers

The show ends on a note of peace and sincerity with a heartfelt tone to conclude the farewells of the characters. Played out by Aretha Franklin singing ‘Let It Be’ - the lessons learned during the past four years of the show are reminisced and reflected upon.

‘Penguin’ (Credit: “Penguin”)

Otis and Ruby in season four (Credit: Thomas Wood/Netflix)

‘I call this Girl Dinner, or medieval peasant’

Geneve Harmitt-Williams, BA Social Anthropology and History

Trigger warning: Eating Disorders

Okay, let’s discuss it! A cute little trend called ‘Girl Dinner’ began when women started posting their mismatched meals on TikTok, to show off the random foods they would throw together for lunch or dinner. It was the definition of a lazy meal, and there were some… unusual food pairings. However, as the trend gained popularity, it swiftly veered in a direction that began to praise and normalise eating disorders. Some of the worst videos related to this trend show some women consuming just one can of Coke Zero, a glass of wine, or simply nothing at all.

“The ‘Girl Dinner’ trend, like the ‘Wine Mum’ trope, normalises women who cope with these patriarchal norms in destructive ways.”

signs of it. Despite this, when the same issue is repackaged as a sparkly hashtag, it somehow makes it acceptable.

At the root of it all, I believe that these lifestyles unfortunately give women a glimpse of what to expect in the future; a potential future in which they will be so busy taking care of everyone but themselves that they won’t have the time or energy to eat. Current research shows that while 63% of women are still doing the majority of the domestic work in shared households, 52% of women are working 31- 45 hour weeks. ‘Girl Dinner’ highlights how the triple shift - a sociological term referring to the unpaid housework, paid labour, and childcare that women are expected to do - affects women’s eating habits. This is setting the precedent for younger women - who are most definitely online - that the toll reproductive labour takes on our daily habits is acceptable and aesthetic.

who do sums ‘their own way’... otherwise known as ‘Girl Maths’. This particular trend is women and their partners mocking their wasteful spending habits, and the justifications that they give themselves to feel better. Let me give you an example: if I buy something and then return it, I’ve made money (which in my opinion, is a fact). Therefore, while this content seems to be relatable, it seems as though the word ‘girl’ is being used as a synonym for irresponsible. Women make up a significant portion of the retail market, and the beauty and fashion industries profit directly from our insecurities. So, although women are being framed as reckless, it’s important to remember that there is always a calculated and deeper meaning to these habits.

Imagine going onto social media to see videos of people praising women who aren’t taking care of their bodies. That content must be extremely distressing and possibly even perplexing to witness since these women are gaining social capital on TikTok for engaging in the same behaviours that others - like those with eating disorders - are criticised and ridiculed for. So now I ask, why are we allowing this to happen? On the very same app, there are so many videos discussing internalised misogyny and helping people recognise

It reflects tropes like the ‘Wine Mum’, the ideal housewife who takes care of the kids, cleans the house, and may even have paid work; all while having a ‘slight’ alcohol problem. Claire from Modern Family is a typical example of this on television. One of the key ways she demonstrates this is by taking on the brunt of the emotional labour of childcare. Meanwhile, her husband gets to be the bumbling ‘fun’ dad who comes in once the actual parenting is completealways leaving Claire distressed and subsequently never to be seen without a glass of wine. These mothers are mocked on sitcoms and their alcoholism is made fun of. However, the fact that these mothers are so unhappy in their lives - and exhausted from bearing the load of childcare and housework that they can’t even manage a moment of sobriety - is not daytime TV. The ‘Girl Dinner’ trend, like the ‘Wine Mum’ trope, normalises women who cope with these patriarchal norms in destructive ways.

We are used to displays of femininity being overlooked and dismissed, most recently the word ‘girl’ is being used to women

As someone who sings ‘girl dinner’ every other evening while preparing a meal (sorry, it’s catchy), it’s time to stop associating the word ‘girl’ with harmful and foolish practices. In the end, all of the underlying meanings fuelling these trends lead to the perpetuation of an unfair standard of living. Which in turn destroys our quality of life through the romanticisation of poor eating habits and alcoholism. We need to set a standard for how women should be treated, and it’s our responsibility to teach each other not to disregard women’s bodies and minds.

A photo of a TikTok ‘girl dinner’ (Credit: @elifskilic)

Modern Family character Claire Dunphy, with a glass of wine in her hand. (Credit: Modern Family/ABC)

Sport & Societies

On Caesar at SOAS With Syria Society

Aaliya Safdar, BA French and Arabic

This article contains mentions of torture, violence and death

Last week, the SOAS Syria Society hosted a string of events advocating for and spreading awareness of the Syrian cause. Alongside the Syrian Emergency Task Force (SETF), the events included a two-part panel discussion entitled ‘Eye on Syria: Past, Present and Future’ with SCAN UK, as well as a week-long exhibition of some of Caesar’s photos with guided tours by Omar Alshogre and Celine Kasem.

The panel discussion included topics of current affairs on Syria, the atrocities that the Syrian regime continues to commit, human rights violations and the war crimes taking place in Syria with accounts from various speakers, including researchers and activists, and a real-life account of ex-detainee, Omar Alshogre. This was a unique opportunity, not only for SOAS but for London, as it brought together international communities working in various parts of the world to unite on one subject – the injustices that are happening in Syria.

Despite what the media may suggest, Syria is not, and has not been for the last 12 years, a safe environment. International laws continue to be broken and overlooked, people are living in poverty and the quality of life is rapidly decreasing. Syria is a country from which millions of its citizens have been displaced – both internally and externally.

The Caesar Files

‘Caesar (a pseudonym) was a Syrian military photographer conscripted by the Assad regime to take pictures of civilians who died in military detention. In early 2011, he began to notice that these civilian deaths were a result of brutal torture and systematic mass murder by the Assad regime, and he started to smuggle the photographic evidence onto a flash drive. Eventually, his life became too endangered and he fled Syria with the flash drive in his sock. Caesar now lives in hiding outside of Syria, but his over 55,000 photographs have shocked the world.

The photos, known as the Caesar File, depict men, women, children and the elderly who were brutally tortured and killed by the Assad regime. As custodians of the Caesar File, SETF works to expose the Assad regime’s flagrant human rights violations by continuing to identify victims, witnesses and evidence that support cases against the regime in countries where prosecution efforts are possible.’

Caesar’s photos brought this catastrophe back to life. Regardless of them being around ten years old, they depict the same reality that thousands of Syrians continue to suffer from today.

Having these photographs on display in SOAS was both an honour and a huge responsibility. They are graphic pictures exhibiting clear signs of torture and violence, and as uncomfortable as they may be to look at, they are a true depiction of what the actions of the Assad regime look like. How can someone care for his people and their safety, yet be responsible for this?

The information about Caesar and his story was taken from the SETF website where you can find out more about the Caesar Exhibit that took place in Senate House.

Attacks on Gaza and Idlib

As the week continued and events went on, so did the injustices. Unfortunately, the media is now realising that this is nothing new. Just over a week ago, the Homs Military Academy was attacked by a drone. This was during a graduation ceremony, a day of celebration for many, and a day of funerals for more. Anyone who knows Syria knows that a celebration for the military is not taken lightly, the area would have had security measures put in place as well as roads blocked for the ceremony. Conveniently, the attack happened just minutes after the Defence Minister and the high-ranking members had left the premises – but why would they leave so quickly on such an important day?

Now the world has finally given some attention to Palestine, after over 75 years, we are seeing Palestinian flags all over social media, and politicians are speaking out on the matter. Palestinians breaking the borders is a moment in history which will not be forgotten and is a huge victory for anyone associated with the Palestinian cause. But with victory, comes violence – as history has taught us. Civilians in Gaza are now being brutally attacked, as they have been for decades, by Israeli forces. Innocent lives are being taken - men, women, children, and indeed any human being that is ‘in the wrong place at the wrong time.’ The SOAS Syria Society stand with the people of Palestine and will continue to defend them until the freedom that they deserve and yearn for finally comes.

But corrupt politicians take no breaks. As Palestine continues to be destroyed and the world watches, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad is quick to act. Soon after the attacks on Gaza, the region of Idlib was bombed. As the world looks one way, dictators look the other. Idlib is a region which has suffered extremely as a result of the Syrian regime. It is an area which has the largest number of internally displaced Syrians and, as it is in such a weak state from the unceasing demolition, is a constant target for the regime’s attacks. We must keep one eye on Gaza and the other on Idlib.

We must continue to fight for justice and rise up against dictatorial and colonial forces which work to silence the voice of the people. As students at SOAS, we all have some kind of privilege, though it may be at different levels, therefore we all have a responsibility and a duty to get involved whenever human rights are being threatened. Spread the word and spread awareness, do not stay silent.

Panel discussion

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Credit: Sana Alabed)

(Credit: Sana Alabed)

Join the Winning Team: SOAS Football Trials See Record Turnout While Badminton Starts the Season Strong

Adam Brocklesby, BA History

Among the many societies that exist at SOAS, some of the most sought-after are the wide array of sports communities. Being the most popular sport in the UK, football is exceedingly popular at SOAS, both competitively and recreationally.

I spoke to the captain of the SOAS Women’s Football team, Lil Benson, regarding their latest successes and the recent boom in Women’s football. Benson emphasised just how accessible football is at SOAS, stating simply: ‘Go to the sessions and then just try your best. It’s less about being brilliant and more about having an attitude where you would like to learn about the sport, about other people. Just go and be yourself and don’t worry too much about it.’

This kind of attitude, as well as the nationwide successes in Women’s football over the past few years, led to one of the biggest trial turnouts in the history of the team. Benson agreed and ventured into her personal experience with the sport, revealing

that while she hadn’t played much football in her younger years, after, ‘the success of the Euros and the World Cup… I think it’s an inspiration for me to have started again and to have seen it.’

Benson also emphasised the accessibility of the team to anyone with an interest in football: ‘We’re really trying to push just as much opportunity to get involved as you can, regardless of when you join the team. If you joined it immediately after the freshers fayre or if you join in January, just opportunities for everyone to just get involved.’

The social aspect of the team is clearly paramount as, when asked how students can get involved, Benson answered: ‘The group chat on Instagram. Join us. Don’t have to play. We go and watch matches and stuff like that and just get involved in football and things outside of simply playing matches.’

It’s never too late to get involved, and you can find the SOAS Women’s Football Club on Instagram at @ soaswfc with a link for the group chat in their bio.

In addition to football, I also asked a representative of the SOAS Badminton team about their society and the intricacies of the sport itself. Played on a court, badminton is a racquet sport where teams of either one or two aim to hit the shuttlecock into the other team’s half of the court. While the feathers of the shuttlecock do increase the drag of the projectile, thus causing the shuttlecock to take longer to fall than a more aerodynamic ball, badminton is not a slow-moving sport. The team asserts that ‘if you’re into a fast-paced, exhilarating sport, badminton is for you.’

The year ahead looks exciting for the Badminton team and

those following it. They aim to hold more social dinners on top of the weekly sessions and the matches that the team plays. They also appear favourite to become a winning team this year and are currently in great form, starting their season off perfectly last Sunday. Playing against London South Bank University, the SOAS team thrashed them in a 9-0 victory with secondyear student Ben Hornby contributing ‘insane jump smashes.’

SOAS Badminton is accessible for all students with weekly social sessions plus extra sessions every Sunday for keen players. The spokesperson I talked with said that Badminton is ‘the perfect way to get to know like-minded individuals and to also make new friends.’ To check out the sessions and for information regarding memberships, socials and team news, head to the @soasbadminton Instagram page.

Celebrating Cultural Richness through the SOAS Societies

Afreen Ahmed, BA International Relations

SOAS is an institution that is recognised for its diverse student body and inclusivity for students from a myriad of backgrounds. Students themselves reflect this diversity by creating societies that reflect the cultures of their homelands, celebrate their distinct backgrounds and unify the student body. This article looks into three popular societies within SOAS and how they conduct themselves in order to mirror the cultural richness of their communities.

Mariem Ofkir, the vice president of the Palestine Society, expresses the importance of having regional societies. Such societies protect minorities and create a safe place to voice issues occurring within certain regions such as Palestine that are not reflected in mainstream discourse. Mariem also highlights the history of oppression that has happened within nations such as Palestine and the importance of celebrating Palestinian people and culture on the SOAS campus. This allows the Palestinian student body the ability to continue to voice their rights and preserve their culture. The role of PALSOC within the student body is a central one as it continues to highlight the changes within the student campus, such as student union refurbishments which Mariem expresses is not the overarching view of the campus. The society focuses on both the cultural and political aspects of the Palestinian regions by hosting cultural nights but also advocating Palestinian voices in times of need. Mariem urges the student body to get involved in the society by supporting Palestinian stories and promoting the importance

of education and unity within the student body of SOAS.

Jibran Khan and Hari Goswami, who are the president and vice president of the Desi society respectively, focus on the unification of the South Asian community. Jibran uses the terms ‘inclusivity and connectivity’ to highlight the importance of interaction between South Asian students and the importance of overlooking small differences in order to work together. The central message of the Desi society is to create a home within the society where individuals of South Asian heritage are able to express themselves freely through speaking their native languages or connecting over similarities in interests and upbringings. Hari also explains how vital it is for students from overseas to have a safe place within the campus and be able to form a new community within the SOAS. The society holds many cultural events such as cricket events and women’s only mehndi nights in order to reach out to multiple groups of students. The society will soon be announcing its anticipated Desi Ball which will mirror South Asian culture at its height through music, food and traditional dress. Both Jibran and Hari urge anyone to join the society and hope that people come with an open mind and are able to be a part of a community that is important to many in SOAS.

Mohamed Zenbou who is the president of the Middle Eastern and North African Society (MENA) at SOAS suggests the notion of cultural appreciation being a vital

“Our societies reflect the culture of students’ homelands, celebrate distinct backgrounds and unify the student body.”

element of the student body as it opens doors for individuals to have a cultural community which they may not have been a part of in the past. The MENA society is one of the more popular societies within SOAS as it reflects a huge proportion of the student body. Despite the slight differences in upbringings and backgrounds, Mohamed believes that it is the similarities between the members of the MENA society that bring students together and form a society that primarily focuses on celebrating culture. This year, Mohamed intends to introduce a new side of the society by bringing a more educational focus that will help preserve the culture of the MENA regions in order to empower students. This will be done by bringing in guest speakers and hosting talks that cover a multitude of topics that resonate with many students. The society also places importance on creating a space for Muslim women within the society by hosting women’s only activities in order for Muslim women to have their own space to connect with each other. Mohammed expresses that anyone is welcome to the MENA society and hopes to continue to steer the MENA society in a positive manner in the coming years.

SOAS Women’s Football Team (Credit: @soaswfc)

SOAS Badminton Team (Credit: @soasbadminton)

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