The College View - Issue 5 - Vol XVIII

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Wednesday, 30 November, 2016

www.thecollegeview.com Vol. XVIII, Issue 5

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Staff member ‘made homeless’ following Incorporation Aaron Gallagher Editor-In-Chief @AaronGallagher8

A DCU member of staff and their son

were made homeless following the Incorporation Programme, which saw the Church of Ireland College of Further Education among others amalgamate into the university this year, according to Independent TD Richard Boyd-Barrett.

The staff member, who has stated their wish to remain anonymous, continues to be employed by DCU following the amalgamation. They had lived according to a previous accommodation agreement for a number of years while working for CICE before being forced to leave.

Boyd-Barrett, an Anti-Austerity Alliance–People Before Profit politician and TD for Dun Laoghaire, told the Oireachtas on October 25th that a former staff member of CICE was evicted from their accommodation by the college.

He said that prior agreements had been established between the person with CICE to live in nearby accommodation with their son and that assurances were made that these employment agreements would carry through into Incorporation this year.

Addressing the Minister for Education, Boyd-Barrett said: “As a result of the merger of the former Church of Ireland College of Education and other training colleges with Dublin City University, a person and their son have now been made homeless following eviction by the college from the person’s accommodation despite assurances that accommodation, which had been part of their employment arrangements with the college, would continue to be provided.”

Minister Bruton said a small number of disputes had arisen in DCU during the Incorporation Programme. However, he added that as various industrial relations proceed-

ings were being undertaken it would not be appropriate for him to comment on the dispute at this time.

A statement on behalf of DCU disclosed that as negotiations were ongoing it would also not be appropriate for the university to comment further. It said that mechanisms within CICE and not of DCU were dealing with ongoing accommodation negotiations between staff and the college.

“Prior to the completion of Incorporation, discussions were undertaken between the Church of Ireland College of Education and its staff housed in rental accommodation on the campus in order to facilitate alternative arrangements in advance of the closure of the College,” it read.

Another source inside the university said the dispute had nothing to do with DCU at all.

The staff member in question declined the opportunity to take questions from this paper, therefore the specifics of their accommodation agreement are as of yet unknown.

Speaking to The College View, Boyd-Barrett noted that legal proceedings could be taken by the staff member in the near future in the hope of coming to a fair resolution.

“The point is that they had a legitimate expectation that, as part of the transfer, the accommodation agreement they had with CICE would carry over to DCU,” he said.

Stating that the person had nowhere else to stay following eviction, he said they were dependent on friends and family for housing.

He added that the staff member’s trade union was now involved in the dispute to find a solution.

“My sense from talking to the person is that they just want somewhere to live that is affordable, which can rectify their current homeless status”, said Boyd-Barrett.

“I think they would be happy with that.”

Rebecca Lumley News Editor @RebeccaLumley1

THE referendum proposing changes

to the Students’ Union constitution has been called off, following a decision made at last week’s Class Rep Council. This comes after class reps convened for an emergency meeting, where they voted to reject SU President, Dylan Kehoe’s interpretation of the current constitution, which allowed the Executive to call a referendum at their own behest.

The Executive came under fire from class reps last week due to their decision to call the referendum, without first gaining approval at CRC, as is standard practice. The referendum was rejected at the emergency meeting on Thursday, November 17, with the issue finally being laid to rest at CRC the following Wednesday.

Enda Kenny was a guest at the Helix last week where DCU celebrated the completion of its Incorporation Programme. Credit:DCU

News

Sport

Opinion

Features

MacCraith refuses to comment following SOOCD criticism 3

Annual RAG Rumble held in Pat’s

Haters will hate—can Twitter stop them tweeting?

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The challenges women in leadership face

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Referendum cancelled as Executive is over-ruled

Confusion Some confusion surrounded the decision at the emergency meeting, however, with CRC Chair Callaghan Commons believing the rejection of the President’s interpretation by class reps was invalid. Similarly, upon hearing of Council’s decision, Returning Officer Cat O’Driscoll, believed she did not have the authority to cancel the referendum.

This confusion hinged on the interpretation of an article in the current SU constitution, which states that a referendum may be called at the request of the Students’ Union Executive. Both the returning officer and the Executive believed that they could do so without bringing it to a vote at CRC. At the beginning of Wednesday’s meeting, Commons said that he would not accept the decision made at the emergency CRC. Continued on page 3

Gaeilge

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Mo thaithí le nealtrú

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Editorial INSIDE

AARON GALLAGHER

Arts Hamilton has taken theatre by storm Read more on page 3

Lifestyle Gifts for Him & Her Read more on page 6

News

J1 applications increase ahead of Trump’s inauguration Read more on page 4

Editorial Team Editor-in-Chief: Aaron Gallagher Deputy Editor: Aidan Geraghty Production & Layout Editor: Scout Mitchell Deputy Production & Layout Editor: Hannah Kelly Production Assistant: Stephen Keegan & Daniel Troy

Deputy Video Editor: Ciara Moran Illustrators: Laura Duffy, Zoe Ryan Online News Editor: Clara Hickey Chief Sub-Editor: Bríon Hoban

Sub Editors: Enda Coll, Kyle Ewald Elsa McEvoy, Conor O’ Doherty, News Editor: Hayley Halpin & Gavin Quinn, Fionnuala Walsh, Rebecca Lumley Lauren Ennis, Lucy Mangan, Katie Deputy News Editors: Paul Dwyer, Gallagher, Oisin McQueirns, Liam Brein McGinn & Kyle Ewald Ashton, Diana Elena Oprea, Zainab Boladale, Sadhbh Kennedy & Aoife Opinion Editor: Shirley Donlon Marnell Lifestyle Editor: Amy Lawlor Deputy Lifestyle Editor: Michelle Martin

Contacts

Features Editor:Shauna Bowers Deputy Features Editor:Orla O’Driscoll

news@thecollegeview.com

Irish Editor:Cal Ó Donnabháin Deputy Irish Editor: Áine Marie Monk

opinion@thecollegeview.com

Sports Editor: Aidan Geraghty Deputy Sports Editor: Patrick Lynch

sports@thecollegeview.com

Arts Editor: Stephen Keegan Deputy Arts Editor: Emer Handly Images Editor: Daragh Culhane Deputy Images Editor: Laura Horan Video Editor: Leanne Hanafin

editor@thecollegeview.com features@thecollegeview.com gaeilge@thecollegeview.com

Printed by Datascope, with the DCU Journalism Society Thanks to Sportsfile, SLC, Office of Student Life Logo design by Lauren McConway

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

P

resent to the naked eye yet totally invisible, they are the faceless occupiers of city centre doorways, park benches and dark alleyways.

It is the time of year again when the issue of homelessness finds its way into the mainstream media and political agenda, as it has done and will continue to each and every November and December.

Cold nights knocking on our door heralds the season of giving upon us, urging our humanity to look beyond ourselves to those afflicted members of society, at the very least in the form of a hot meal or extra sleeping bag.

But as we know homelessness means far more than simply living on the streets. It encompases those living in hostels, emergency accomodation, 24-hour cafes, and in cars and shelters all around the country.

It represents those who have been failed by a State which owes them an obligation to care for their bests interests, and in doing so has deemed them undeserving outsiders to the day-to-day priorities of governance.

Unlike Christmas, homelessness is not confined to a seasonal occurrence. For many it is a life’s sentence and a cross to burden night and day, 365 days a year.

Last week the Irish Times ran a feature which followed a Simon Community team of volunteers who set out on one of its nightly runs armed with warm clothes, food, flasks and sleeping bags.

The accompanying video offered moving and powerful footage of those afflicted. An interview with one man took place during which time he was informed of the passing of his mother.

“Homeless people have to live in public. Their profoundest tragedies unfold in front of strangers,” it read.

On Friday December 3rd and Saturday December 4th DCU’s Media Production Society will broadcast for 24 hours straight to raise money for the Peter McVerry Trust, which aims to reduce homelessness and the harm caused by drug misuse and social disadvantage.

It is the astonishingly noble acts of charity such as these which show more love and attentive care for

people who have been made homeless, than any of the failed policies of those elected officials whose responsibility it is to find them a safe place to live.

This year’s 24 Hour Broadcast has been made possible thanks to an unending list of students and volunteers who aim to raise thousands of euro for those in need.

But more than anyone it has been made possible by the profound bravery of Laura Horan, Deputy Images Editor of The College View, who’s story of battling homelessness has ignited national coverage of the issue and in so doing has brought awareness and realisation to people around the country of how circumstance can propel anyone into homelessness.

“It’s something that I never thought would happen to me in the first place”, says another man in the Irish Times’ video.

A society can only be judged by how it treats its most vulnerable members. In its election manifesto this year, Fine Gael said it aims to end homelessness in Ireland by 2021 by ensuring new social housing units form part of the Home First policy, increasing Rent Supplement levels to support vulnerable households, and by using the National Mental Health Authority to assist homeless integration.

Figures released this month show that the number of homeless families in the capital is still increasing, with 2,110 children currently living in emergency accommodation.

As the numbing bite of winter continues to spread, the crisis of homelessness in Ireland remains, with volunteers and charities such as the Simon Community and the Peter McVerry Trust maintaining their noble battle to warm the hearts of those on the streets, offering them the chance at a brighter tomorrow.

You can donate to the Peter McVerry trust at pmvtrust.ie/donate and can watch this year’s 24 Hour Broadcast at dcumps.com from 9pm on Friday December 3rd.

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NEWS CRC rejects Kehoe’s interpretation

Rebecca Lumley News Editor @RebeccaLumley1 Continued from page 1

This was not received well by class reps who had attended the emergency meeting, with Jacob Byrne, who stood in as chair at said meeting, saying it was “completely unfair.”

“All of us feel so disheartened that what we talked about and agreed upon can be nullified by email,” he said.

Interpretation by action James Nolan, a former faculty representative, argued that by instructing the Returning Officer to call the referendums, the President had made an interpretation by action. This was supported by Steven Conlon, who served as the Returning Officer for four years and attended Wednesday’s meeting at the request of a class rep.

Conlon described the situation as a “shit show” and overturned the idea that the Executive can call a referendum without consulting CRC. He stated that the Executive only have the authority to request a referendum, as is supported by precedent.

Conlon said that while the SU President interprets the constitution on a day to day basis, CRC is the “supreme interpreter of the constitution.”

Called off After 90 minutes of discussion about the President’s interpretation of the constitution, Kehoe verbally confirmed that he believed the Executive could call a referendum.

This confirmed and validated the motion put forward at the emergency meeting and with agreement from the Returning Officer, cancelled the referendum on constitutional change.

A motion to create a constitutional review committee, put forward by Séan Cassidy, was then passed. This committee will examine the constitution in detail and will be elected at the next CRC. The remaining referendum regarding USI affiliation will still go ahead and will take place between December 1st and 2nd by way of electronic voting.

President MacCraith refuses to comment following heavy SOOCD criticism

Hayley Halpin News Editor @hayleyhalpin1

DCU President Brian MacCraith maintained his silence following a recently published report that heavily criticised the DCU-backed Diageo-funded Stop-Out-Of-ControlDrinking campaign, of which he is a board member.

President MacCraith is one of the original 17 members on the board of the campaign. MacCraith, along with other board members signed off the SOOCD campaign Action Plan, of which DCU Professor of Political Communication, Kevin Rafter prepared a draft report.

The report, published by the Public Library of Science (PLOS ONE), found that the campaign meets the needs of the alcohol industry. It lists all campaign board members, along with how many interviews each have participated in and/or articles or blogs written by them, in relation to the campaign. It confirmed that

MacCraith has not participated in any interviews or has published any comments about the campaign since its inception in 2015.

The College View contacted the DCU Communications and Marketing Department on numerous occasions by means of email and phone calls and requested a response from MacCraith to the criticism within the report. However, MacCraith refused to provide direct comment in relation to the request.

MacCraith was also unavailable each time his office was contacted in relation to the issue.

Ex-board member, Dr. Ciara Kelly spoke to The College View about her reaction to the report: “It is always going to be the case that the drinks industry like the tobacco industry will act in their own best interests which is why stakeholders in public health must stand firm and act in best interest of the people and their health without being swayed by their lobbying,” she said.

Professor Kevin Rafter, told The College View that he “prepared a draft report for this group based on existing publications and material they supplied”. A press release from the SOOCD campaign states that “the action plan includes a three-stage research project led by Professor Kevin Rafter.”

The College View went on to ask Rafter on three occasions for comment on the criticism of the report.

He did not wish comment as his “involvement was limited to preparing a draft report.”

rte.ie

SOOCD was set up by Diageo, the multinational alcohol company, who invested €1 million into the campaign. Fergus Finlay, Chief Executive of Barnardo’s chairs the campaign. David Smith, Managing Director Australasia of Diageo and board member of the campaign resigned following an array of negative media coverage of the campaign.

However, Diageo did not pull their funding.

On March 5th, Fergus Finlay Chief Executive of the SOOCD campaign stated on the Ray D’Arcy radio show that “we’ve more or less completed a literature review. We’ve a very substantial report written, by a professor in DCU.”

This confirms that on March 5th, 2015 the report was written. At this point, David Smith, who was Country Director and Chairman of Diageo Ireland at the time, was still a board member of the campaign. The action plan states that “this report has been prepared independent of Diageo”.

Diageo Ireland provided €20,000 support for ten student scholarships under the DCU Access programme, in 2010. The largest of its kind in Ireland, Access at DCU assists students from disadvantaged backgrounds continue their education to 3rd level.

The SOOCD was launched as a five-year plan. However, social media activity has ceased and the campaign’s website is inaccessible.

DCU SU warn students against assignment alternatives Lauren Ennis News Reporter @thecollegeview

Laura Horan

STAFF and academics at Dublin

City University have recently become aware of companies advertising the sale of assignments to students on their campuses.

The issue was brought to the attention of DCU officials following the findings of a number of posters advertising to ‘have your assignment done for you’ on the campus grounds.

The services advertised by outside companies offer to write full assignments for students at a rate which was not stated on the posters, however, “it isn’t cheap to get an assignment done,” said James Donoghue, Vice President for Academic Affairs, DCU. The posters have since been removed from DCU campuses but there

have been cases where students were away from the whole aspect of learncaught availing of these services. ing in college,” said Donoghue.

These alternative routes put stuFor students “to pay all that mondents at risk of plagiarism and “takes ey when you can get caught in the

long run and there’s no way back, would be a really rash move as opposed to seeking help down other avenues,” he said.

The DCU Students’ Union are currently working to discourage the use of these resources within the university and “encourage students to come talk to (them) if they’re struggling as opposed to going down this line of online help from outside parties,” said Donoghue.

The college offers a range of support services for students who may be struggling during assignments times.

Donoghue encourages these students to make use of the writing centre, Student’s Union and academic support staff available within the college if they need extra help.

“I can completely understand that students are stressed during assignment times and stuff like that but there are other ways of going about it, we are always here to help,” he said.

NEWS

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J1 applications increase ahead of Trump’s inauguration

Paul Dwyer Deputy News Editor @thecollegeview

WITH the J1 visa applications hav-

ing opened on the 17th of November, students across many campuses in Ireland are signing up to spend a summer abroad next year.

Ireland had the fifth highest number of J1 visas with 10,000 students who travelled stateside last summer.

These figures are up by 20 per cent from last year with 8,000 students having completed their J1 in 2015.

According to State Department data, Ireland consistently receives the fifth highest number of J1 visas, just behind large countries like Germany and Brazil. Per capita, however, Ireland comes out on top by far.

“The numbers (for Ireland) are high and will continue to be high,” said Keri Lowry, the State Depart-

Jack Reynolds dcu.ie

ment’s deputy assistant secretary for private exchanges.

Out of the 14 J1 programmes offered, the most popular is Summer Work Travel (SWT). The 2017 SWT programme costs on average around €499 to cover recruitment assistance, vetting employers, scheduling embassy interviews and processing all of the applicants paperwork. This doesn’t include flights, travel insurance or living costs stateside.

Changes were made to the J1 application last year where students now have to source a job before they can travel to the US. In the past students had a period of three weeks when arriving in America to find a job.

USIT recently held an information talk in DCU last Thursday in the Henry Grattan building outside Bank Of Ireland where they addressed some of the questions and concerns that students had about applying for the scheme.

Camp USA Promotion and Sales Executive at USIT Ireland, Samia Jalal, described how many applicants had been contacting them worried that the J1 scheme would be changed or put on hiatus now that Donald Trump has been elected as president.

“Trump isn’t actually in power yet and everything is already sorted for this summer. People are contacting us asking if things are effected but they’re not.”

held last week and focused on giving equal representation to all students with regards to their collective identity from a cultural, religious and sexual orientation perspective.

The week was held for the first year and hopes to encourage all DCU students to embrace and respect each other’s individuality.

‘Alternative-Right’ Welfare and Equality Officer, Cody Byrne, stressed the importance of holding such a week, particularly at a time when white supremacist, Islamaphobic and homophobic groups such as the ‘Alternative-Right’ have begun to receive a political voice across the globe.

dcu.ie

Aaron McElroy News Reporter @thecollegeview

THE number of international stu-

Programme Assistant in the DCU International Office, said that there are benefits to both DCU and the students coming to the college.

“International students pay higher fees, and the college sees this as a way to get extra money for resources. As well as that, if students are looking for an English speaking college, they see DCU and Ireland as an attractive option.”

Over a quarter of all postgraduate international students in DCU

Rachael Kellegher News Reporter @thecollegeview

DCU SU’s Diversity week was

Number of international students on the rise

dents studying in DCU for the full academic year 2016/2017 has increased over previous years, according to figures supplied by the institutional Research and Analysis Officer in DCU. The amount of full time Undergraduate and Postgraduate students from outside of Ireland rose when compared to the same figures for the 2015-2016 academic year. Undergraduates were up 3.1 per cent from 902 to 930, while postgraduates increased 3.45 per cent, with 539 this year against 521 last year.

Poland was the country from which the most undergraduate international students arrived. 95 Polish students registered for the full academic year this year, making up just over 10 per cent of all the international undergraduates at DCU. 91 students came from the United Kingdom this year, the second highest number. For the 2015-2016 year , theUnited Kingdom was highest at 88 students.

Paul O’Dwyer, International

Diversity week a first in DCU

this year are from Saudi Arabia, with 145 registered to study here this year. This is a 57 per cent rise in the number of Saudi Arabians in DCU over the same time last year.

Indian is the second most common nationality of international postgraduates; 85 Indian students are studying a postgraduate course in DCU full time for the 2016-2017 year.

For the previous year, it was again Saudi Arabia and India that had the highest number of post-

graduates studying in DCU, with 92 and 73 students respectively.

Paul put this down to the scholarship systems in Middle Eastern countries, and the work of recruitment officers on the ground there.

“The Saudi Embassy helps to administer scholarships that cover tuition fees and accommodation costs, and we have recruitment officers for the Middle East who travel to fairs,” he said.

Political voice “It’s sad that this is getting a political voice and is being represented in our global community but that’s why it’s important to have weeks such as this,” Byrne said.

As part of promotion for the week, black and white mug shot posters were on display on both campuses with each picturing a different student holding up their own unique identity. One trans-gender student who took part said what it means to know that DCU accepts him for who he is.

A safe environment “Knowing that the SU has done everything in its power to make my four years at DCU as safe and comfortable as possible for me has been really amazing and made my college experience so wonderful. I think it really sends a message that DCU can be a home to you, no matter who you are,” Benji Foley, final year Applied Languages and Translation Studies student said.

Tackling stereotyping Cody also said that they intended to tackle the issue of stereotyping by encouraging student engagement throughout both the Glasnevin and St. Patrick’s Campus.

“The problem is we rely on these stereotypes which may prevent us from establishing relationships with others. We’re hoping to challenge stereotypes and acknowledge head on the fact that prejudice reduces contact and that contact reduces prejudice.”

Mock wedding cancelled The week also consisted of a number of preorganised events, one of which was supposed to be a mock wedding between DCU and NUI Maynooth. This was cancelled, however, after a Maynooth student was attacked and severely injured last week.

NEWS

DCU study reveals homophobic bullying in primary schools

Shirley Donlon Opinion Editor @ShirleyDonlon

A recent DCU study carried out by the National Anti-Bullying Research and Resource Centre (ABC) found that half of primary school principals in Ireland have dealt with homophobic bullying.

The study, which analysed 238 responses from primary school principals nationwide looked at whether the principals had experienced homophobic bullying in their school and if they considered it to be a major problem.

Director of ABC, James O’Higgins Norman, believes that the issue of homophobic bullying in primary schools is damaging to children and young people from various perspectives.

“Firstly, as a society we aim to include people of diverse backgrounds including LGBT and so this type of bullying in schools works against our educational and societal aims of inclusion”, he said.

“Secondly, this type of bullying sends a message to children and young people who are not LGBT that they must also comply with a narrow

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Public Ploicy Institute Wales

view of normality.”

According to the study, in 11% of cases principals said they had dealt with homophobic bullying on a weekly or monthly basis while one in six principals indicated that they had dealt with the problem at least once during the school year.

Speaking about the difference between homophobic bullying and other types of bullying, James said, “All forms of bullying can be devastating but identity based bullying like homophobic bullying or racist based bullying focuses on an aspect of the person that cannot be changed and is intimately bound up in who they are so it can cut very deep into a person’s mind and well-being.”

“Parents and teachers need to work together to ensure that they speak with young people and address this type of bullying and language if it occurs in school or at home”,

MPS 24 Hour Broadcast to No further be in aid of homelessness inquiry into Sean Óg Cairns

Niamh Dunne News Reporter @thecollegeview

DCU Media Production Society

will host its 7th annual 24 Hour Broadcast in aid of the Peter McVerry Trust, on December 2nd Every year MPS organises this event to fundraise for a specific charity. This year MPS is fundraising for the Peter McVerry Trust, a homelessness charity. This was suggested to the MPS committee by Deputy Events Officer Laura Horan, who was homeless as a child. Last year they held the broadcast in aid of Jigsaw, a mental health charity.

Horan said she wanted to share her story because the “24 Hour Broadcast could raise much needed funds for the homeless”.

“I wanted to make it clear in my story that anyone can be homeless and you can come from any background but no matter what you can grow from it and have an amazing life,” she said.

To promote the broadcast, MPS released a simple two-angle shot of Horan talking about her experience of being homeless as a child. Within hours, the video quickly gained traction online, being published by Her. ie and LovinDublin.com. Following from this, major national news outlets such as Irish Times and Irish Independent published the story.

Chairperson of MPS, Sarah McLaughlin, said she was shocked when she saw how much attention the video was getting. Now a viral hit, the video currently has 42,000 views.

There is a wide variety of shows

media ownership, says Taoiseach

Katie Caden News Reporter @thecollegeview

due to air on the broadcast. Some of the shows include An Idiot Abroad, Impractical Jokers, Countdown and A League of Their Own. There are also original shows by some of DCU’s own such as Huns of Dublin and That’s Like the Rules of Feminism. There are also parodies of TV shows such as Gogglebox DCU, The Great DCU Bake-off, the DCU Toy Show and the BNL (Broadcast

Night Live).

Last year MPS raised €5000 for the Jigsaw foundation and they hope to achieve the same goal this year.

The broadcast will be streamed live on DCUMPS.com on Friday December 2-3rd, beginning at 9pm.

People can donate money by visiting the DCU MPS during the broadcast and clicking on the link to mycharity.com

FURTHER inquiry into the controversial topic of media ownership in Ireland will not be conducted, according to An Taoiseach.

Social Democrat Catherine Murphy recently raised her concerns in the Dáil about the purchase of the Celtic Media group

by Independent News and Media (INM) which was approved by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission. This is seen as problematic as the INM will now control five national newspapers and 28 regional papers around Ireland, considered a clear example of media ownership concentration.

“While media concentration is an issue in its own right, the ownership of such a large proportion of our print broadcasting and digital media by someone who has consistently used the courts to create a chilling effect on journalists and other media outlets has to be questioned in the most serious terms,” said Murphy while addressing Enda Kenny.

Findings from an unpublished report for the European Commission which stated Ireland is

susceptible to “high risk” of ownership concentration in the media has sparked a national discussion which puts certain personalities in the limelight.

Sinn Fein MEP, Lynn Boylan launched a report which magnifies the lack of variety in the hierarchy of Irish media and examines its plurality in October.

“An ‘independent study’ commissioned by a leading member of Sinn Féin? Hardly,” said Denis O’ Brien.

Denis O’Brien, a man who is said to have more money than God, owns a significant minority stake in INM which publishes the Irish Independent, the Sunday Independent, The Herald, the Sunday World and the Belfast Telegraph. In addition, he has capital in the commercial radio sector, as chairman and principal shareholder of Communicorp.

O’ Brien, with all his eccentricities like suing the satirical website ‘Waterford Whispers’, may have masked a growing problem with Irish media.

Liberty global, the company that owns the cable group Virgin Media has recently bought UTV Ireland as well as TV3. A topic which Dr. Roddy Flynn, a professor at Dublin City University who carried out research for the EU commission report, stated was an issue that needed more attention in relation to media ownership.

NEWS

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Trinity joins League of European Research Universities

Lydia McKay

Lydia McKay

Backlash following UCD President’s proposal Kyle Ewald Deputy News Editor @thecollegeview

Katie Gallagher Sub Editor @thecollegeview

TRINITY College Dublin joined the

League of European Research Universities this month as the first Irish university to join the network.

The league is formed by a net of Europe’s best research universities including Oxford and Cambridge and is known to play a significant role in creating EU policy and research programmes.

Trinity and the University of Copenhagen were the first additions to the league in ten years. Universities are evaluated on the volume of their research, funding, impact and other measures before acceptance.

Minister for Education Richard Bruton said the collaboration is a major accomplishment for Ireland not just Trinity itself, and at a fitting time when there has been recent concern of the falling of Ireland’s top universities in international rankings.

“It’s not all about the rankings though,” said Trinity computing student Matt Carroll, “It’s also giving [Trinity] a huge amount of opportunities and a voice to contribute to European research policy.”

Trinity is not the only school in

the network concerned about international ranking. Oxford University, who was recently ranked number one in The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, has been predicted to lose this status by its vice chancellor Prof Louise Richardson.

Richardson, an Irish-born citizen, told a national conference on the Easter Rising in Galway that she anticipates the 15 per cent of non-EU students and 17 per cent of non-EU staff to decline as a result of Brexit.

She explained that this could have a positive effect on Irish universities if British academics chose to leave their current universities due to wor-

ry of their EU research funding being cut.

While gaining British academics is a positive effect for Irish students studying in their home country, there are still 11,000 Irish students studying in the UK who could be negatively affected by Brexit. EU students in Britain are guaranteed EU fees for the next year, but after that “all bets are off”, said Richardson.

“It is a real challenge to British universities,” she said to the conference, “We are trying to make the British Government see sense about this, but they are unable to give away their negotiating position.”

THERE has been backlash among the students and staff of UCD following the President of UCD, Andrew Deeks’ proposal to remove Latin from UCD degrees and graduation ceremonies.

Last week, at the UCD Academic Council which meets and deals with changes to academic issues once per semester, President Deeks proposed to remove Latin from the UCD graduation ceremony.

The proposal resulted in opposition from students and staff, but Deeks claimed in a document from a University Management Team working group that his motives was ‘to reflect the global engagement of UCD’.

‘The current Latin parchment is in line with the academic tradition of the NUI. It can, however, burden students with translation costs, in particular international students. It can also be perceived as out of step with UCD’s role as a globally engaged University,’ the document claimed.

The Education officer of the Students’ Union Lexi Kilmartin requested a vote should be taken on the issue but claimed that the President refused to hold a vote.

Kilmartin explained, “President Deeks refused to call a vote, despite myself and a member of staff explicitly asking for one as opinion in the room was very vocal against the proposal”.

The motion was opposed to by both staff, students and the Student’s Union with Graduate officer Cian Casey labelling the president’s actions as an abuse of power.

‘We are very unhappy with the process. He isn’t going through the proper channels, it’s very dictatorship like … Academic Council is a decision-making body, it’s all heads of schools and their opinions were completed disregarded,’ Kilmartin stated.

UCD degrees have been awarded in Latin since their inception under the National University of Ireland but from 2017 onwards UCD degrees will be written in English only, differing from most university traditions, including Trinity and Harvard.

“This is an issue which undermines the integrity of the Academic Council and suggests that President Deeks does not care to listen to the very vocal opinions of his staff and elected student representatives,” Kilmartin concluded.

A spokesperson for President Deeks did not respond by the time this was published when asked for his comments regarding the backlash.

USI Aims to register 10,000 student voters once again Better Georgia

Brein McGinn Deputy News Editor @BMCGINN123

WITH the potential of a general election being called at any moment due to an uneasiness within government, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) said they have helped just under 7,000 students become eligible to vote within the last week.

This is yet another campaign led

by the USI to add pressure to any future government to increase expenditure for student interests in party manifestos.

Last year, the all-Ireland student’s union aimed to get 10,000 new students on the Register of Electors before the recent general election and having surpassed that number in the campaign, the USI have decided to aim for 10,000 more in order to keep up the drive for enhancing the voter numbers of students, especially with the big question mark of student loans on the horizon.

USI President Annie Hoey wants to get rid of the sentiment that ‘my vote won’t make a difference’ within some students’ mentalities as the contrary is often the case.

She said, “It is always important for young people to register to vote and have their democratic say. Hopefully young people are going to be here for a little bit longer, it is their future that the decisions are being made during these general elections

so they should be proactive about registering to vote and getting out and actually voting.

“I think we saw in the last general election that two or three votes did actually make a difference for the last seats so it is actually very important to go out and vote.”

Hoey says that the USI will be ready to adapt if an election is called suddenly and will help students to travel to Garda stations to register to vote, but with under 7,000 students already becoming eligible in this year’s campaign, she isn’t worried about reaching the goal of 10,000 this time around.

She said, “We did 10,198 or something in 24 hours the last time, this time, we’re doing it over a longer period.

“We’ve a little bit of time between now and the general election so we’re fairly on our way to get the extra 3,000 between now and whenever it is called.”

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NEWS New scheme to benefit Leaving Cert students Ciara Moran Deputy Video Editor @thecollegeview

AROUND 1,000 more Leaving

Certificate students will benefit from recent changes to the Reasonable Accommodation at the Certificate Examinations (RACE) scheme.

The changes came following controversy outlined in a report from the Office of the Ombudsman for Children Niall Muldoon which was critical of the way that some students who received reasonable accommodations for Junior Certificate were not getting them for Leaving Certificate.

The provisions of the scheme aim to allow students to complete their exams without their disability preventing them from demonstrating their true academic ability, while at the same time not being given any unfair advantage. Dyslexia dyspraxia and dysgraphia are some of the most common disabilities catered for. The State Examinations Commission began a review of the RACE scheme in 2015 which is now complete.

Two significant changes arose as a result. Firstly, from 2017 onwards, reasonable accommodations provided to students at Junior Certificate will carry through to Leaving Certificate based on confirmation by the school of the continuing need.

Secondly, the category of ‘Specific Learning Difficulty’ will now be known as ‘Learning Difficulty’, meaning students will no longer be required to provide a diagnosis to avail of RACE. The SEC will accept the school’s judgement meaning schools will not need to undertake additional testing. This will result in candidates with general learning disabilities having greater access to the scheme.

Deadlines have also been put in place to prevent young people not receiving a final decision about whether or not they will receive accommodations until very close to the exams. The closing date for schools to apply for the RACE scheme is the 9th December, with a decision being given before the end of February 2017.

In order to ensure all schools are treating students fairly and consistently, the SEC will check a sample of schools each year. The SEC have also been involved in bringing details of these changes to schools with the National Educational Psychological Service, meeting with over 2000 school staff in over 750 second level schools, briefing them on changes to the scheme for this year.

A long running perceived shortcoming of the RACE scheme has now finally been addressed as a result of the recently announced changes.

8

UCC hosts 25th annual USI Pink Training

USI

Zainab Boladale Sub Editor @ZainabBoladale

THE 25th USI Pink Training took

place in University College Cork from November 25th - 27th.

Pink Training is the largest student training event organised by USI and it brings together students from 24 colleges all over Ireland.

It facilitates workshops aimed at students interested in learning about their sexuality and gender identity and enables them to promote education, inclusion and understanding about the LGBTQ community.

23 members from DCU LGBTA attended Pink Training including DCU SU welfare officer, Cody Byrne. A new addition to the annual event is a ‘Lip Sync Battle’ which is being promoted as a non-alcoholic icebreaker between all the colleges.

The event is being credited to DCU LGBTA Chairperson, Melissa Kavanagh.

When questioned about her previous Pink Training experience, Kavanagh said “When I first came to Pink Training in first year I didn’t know the terms for being Trans, I didn’t know anything outside of being lesbian or gay but the knowledge I got that weekend really helped me.

It really motivated me to get involved in the student union and to be more engaged in DCU as well.”

“This year’s Pink Training had the largest lineup.” said USI’s Vice President for Equality & Citizenship, Síona Cahill, “It’s packed

with 40 speakers and 51 workshops, with an incredible range of speakers and material being covered. Brand new additions to the lineup include workshops around being LGBT and having a disability, developing public speaking skills, getting involved in politics, dating as a trans person, as well as seminars detailing experiences around HIV as well as discus-

sions relating to PrEP in Ireland.”

When asked about the importance of the weekend, Kavanagh said “I think it’s really important for the LGBT students to have their own space. While they can all be in their own LGBT societies, to have an event that brings all the societies together makes them a minority in a majority.”

Some of the weekend’s speakers were, Director of Amnesty International Colm O’Gorman, Senator Jerry Buttimer, Former Mr Gay Ireland and HIV activist Robbie Lawlor, Creator of Ireland’s ‘Bliss’ festival Beth Wallace, and GLEN’s ‘LGBT Role Model of the Year’ Dena Lawrence, from Microsoft.

Drama Soc Panto plays on merging of St Pats and DCU Niall Farell

Liam Ashton Sub Editor @thecollegeview

THE DCU Drama Society’s pan-

tomime took place last night in the auditorium of St Patricks campus.

‘North Side Story’ is the first DCU panto which has been held outside the Glasnevin campus since the incorporation took place earlier this year.

The Drama Society put their own college spin on the Broadway classic ‘West Side Story’ to tell the tale of the two campuses which become intertwined when a ro-

mance emerges from members of each of the campuses- Diarmuid and Mary.

One difference to the set up this year is the volume of auditionees for acting parts, which proved to be troubling for pantomime producer and final year communications student Michael O’Keefe.

“Although this made our cast-

ing decision harder, it was a pleasant headache having such an incredibly talented bunch of people to cast from,” he said.

One of the problems faced when rehearsing and organising the pantomime was the selection of locations to meet in between the two campuses and not having one definitive base. It has provided a new dimension to the drama society.

“Having so many people from Pats meant that we had to try and split rehearsals 50/50 between Pats and DCU, which logistically made it harder than in previous years, but on the whole, the amalgamation has been a positive one in terms of drama.”

While the incorporation project, ‘the new DCU’ is still in its first year, one positive outcome of it has been the amount of material available to writers Peter Dineen and pantomime director Caoimhe McGowan, providing a lot of comical content.

“The amalgamation has proved handy, in that it’s provided lots of comedic opportunity for the Panto and it’s integral to the storyline,” said O’Keefe.

The cast of thirty performed to a full-to-capacity auditorium in St Pats which incorporated the typical audience participation that comes with Christmas pantomimes.

9

OPINION

Haters will hate, but can Twitter stop them tweeting?

Ciara Del Grosso Bates discusses the recent deactivation of Twitter accounts in an attempt to combat hate speech

I

n an attempt to combat hate speech, Twitter recently deactivated dozens of alt-right accounts including @RichardBSpencer, alt-right spokesman and founder of white supremacist think-tank, NPI. Twitter’s actions were criticised by altright members, naturally, but also by others accusing the company of interfering with freedom of speech.

The constitutional right refers to government, not Twitter. But did they violate the ideal of freedom of speech? It is not absolute freedom. One exemption is “false or malicious defamation of racial and religious groups”.

Was this what led to the mass-delete?

While we can not read their tweets, those banished still have presences online.

Like the NPI website, which claims non-whites are inferior and supports not just the expulsion of illegals but all immigrant descendants (except Europeans- presumably those whose ancestors didn’t lay-over in South America.)

The NPI and its magazine, also banned from Twitter, tries to package racism as respectable research, probably for credibility.

But even without overt racial slurs and suggestions of lynching, the message is still hate.

These voices are free online, and though unpleasant, it lets the public see whether accounts were deleted because of hate speech or,

say, political dissent.

The deleted alt-right can still preach to their choir, but they can not offend those who do not seek them out.

Social media, on the other hand, spreads far wider. So far, Twitter have just lopped off the tip of the white supremacist iceberg, but they also introduced new measures for people to deal with abuse: essentially by muting it.

At home, at the height of the troubles, cross-border media had their own censorship conundrum. The governments’ bans on broadcasting terrorist groups were sometimes seen as ridiculous. In one film documenting the Maze prison, the BBC had to use a voice actor for an IRA spokesperson to complain about the sausage rolls served.

Some suggest banning the hate speech, not silencing the person. But what if hate-mongers have offensive comments censored and inoffensive comments allowed?

Do they become normalised, whitewashed?

Would we forget why the man is imprisoned, if we only hear his plea for bigger sausage rolls?

It speaks volumes that in the final days of the election, Trump’s aides (reportedly) banned him from using Twitter- to protect him from his own too-free speech.

Someone suggested bringing extreme opinions into the fold, at a recent journal-

ism conference.

But attempting to “involve” every viewpoint is not fairer- the most extreme minorities often shout loudest.

Including every viewpoint leaves us with a distorted picture and insults victims of discrimination.

While those of us who still have our Twitter accounts may believe all people are equal, all opinions are not. It is the media’s job to shine a light on the dark corners, not toss a megaphone down every gutter. This has long been the job of journalists, but as the divides between media weaken, social networks are faced with a difficult choice. Can they act as editors for a newsroom staffed by everyone? And when or how is it right for them to do so?

Zoe Ryan

How far have we come with youth political rights?

From Brexit, to Repeal the Eighth, to the Vote Yes campaign, youth politics

W

ithin the last two years alone, the political voice of this generation’s youth has grown from a gentle breeze to a roaring wave in a sea of voices. It seems as if many of the recent referendums and elections have been turned into a generational battle.

Take Brexit for example. When Britain was preparing for the referendum to leave the European Union this Summer, it was clear that the competitive enemy for the Leave campaigners were students and young professionals. Boris Johnson, a key political supporter of the Leave campaign addressed youths directly in his victory speech.

“I want to speak directly to the millions of people who did not vote for this outcome, especially young people, who may feel that this decision involves somehow pulling up the drawbridge, because I think the very opposite is true’.

More recently this month in the USA, 55pc of 18-29 year olds, voted for Hilary Clinton to no one’s surprise. Popular icons among those age groups included Kendall Jenner, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga who showcased their support through social media using the hashtag ‘#I’mwithher’.

If you checked your newsfeed daily and it

Trinity News

was filled with memes, jokes, ‘#I’mwithher’ and ‘news articles’ with numerous claims of sexism from Donald Trump, you too would be surprised at his victory. However, if you paid attention to polls, un-biased coverage and policies, you may not be.

When Trump blamed Clinton for the North

American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the younger generation picked up on the ridiculousness of it all. NAFTA was an agreement voted in 61-38 by the Senate back in 1993. It would be unfair to blame just one person, yet alone that person’s wife, for the catastrophe it was.

However, NAFTA was consciously signed into law by then President Bill Clinton, so yes, he is part to blame. It caused the loss of about 1 million U.S jobs particularly in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. And surprise, surprise, all four of these States voted republican.

The younger generation led the Yes vote all the way to parliament on our own soil here last year, in the Marriage equality referendum.

Student Unions and individuals alike campaigned vigorously to get their peers to put themselves on the voter’s registry in order to have their say in a matter true to their hearts.

This year a lot of the same momentum can be seen with the Repeal the eight amendment campaign. The chances of walking around campus and crossing paths with those infamous black jumpers are sky scraping.

One month before the Yes vote (luckily) passed 120,000 people under the age of 25 still hadn’t registered to vote. The National Youth Council of Ireland (NCYI) appealed at only two weeks ago and urged young people to register, once again.

So yes, while wearing the Repeal jumpers is fantastic for raising awareness to a truly important matter, it means nothing without your vote.

10

OPINION

Double standards in societiys’ attitude towards drugs Bríon Hoban takes a look into DCU’s attitude towards drugs through its strict no tolerance policy and questions why DCU does not prioritise helping students suffering from drug addiction.

BRÍON HOBAN CHIEF SUB EDITOR

D

CU has a zero tolerance drug policy. Those found to be in possession of any illegal drugs will be severely penalised and perhaps even face prosecution.

The university also has a dedicated student bar on its Glasnevin campus. While most dangerous substances are outright banned, alcohol is sold in copious amounts to students every day.

NuBar is not owned by DCU, and it is not being alleged that the university is in any way profiting from the sale of alcohol to students.

The existence of the student bar is merely indic-

ative of the double standard towards dangerous substances that exists in this country.

One must be mindful that the possession of drugs is illegal in Ireland. One must be sympathetic to the fact that a university which relies on state funding probably cannot afford to adopt anything but a black and white approach to drugs.

The issue is that a zero tolerance drug policy results in those suffering from addiction going without their university’s help. When a culture of fear is cultivated, people are less likely to seek assistance.

So be it if DCU imposes a blanket ban on drug possession on its campuses, but it should not blind itself to the potential addictions of its students. We only need to examine DCU’s alcohol policy to see how easily this problem could be addressed.

The webpage detailing DCU’s drug policy is less than fifty words long and contains a link to drugs.ie. The webpage detailing the alcohol policy is three times longer and features a PDF of a 650 word official policy document.

The alcohol policy is focused not on the prevention of students consuming alcohol, but rather on ensuring they do so in a safe and responsible manner. One of these attitudes is better than the other.

A drug policy based on student safety rather than strict enforcement would be better for the student body, but again DCU may be hamstrung by the laws of the land. There is, however, one very easy change the university needs to make.

Laura Horan

The alcohol policy webpage features a link to DCU’s counselling and personal development services, specifically to a page about alcoholism.

The drugs policy webpage features no such link.

This is an egregious example of an institutional oversight and recklessness towards the health of DCU students. There is no justifiable reason for a link to the university’s counselling service being absent.

The counselling and personal development services exist to help the students of DCU with their personal problems. Helping students with

drug addictions certainly fits their job description.

Coping with a drug addiction is not something that anyone should have to do on their own. It is irresponsible of DCU to ignore this issue and not make the most basic of gestures towards helping people.

The webpage about DCU’s student bar is three times longer than the one about its drug policy. Helping students with drug addictions does not appear to be a high priority for the university.

Please, mind the gap year

The number of students taking a gap year before college is increasing and taking the year out seems to be becoming very successful, writes Emily Crowley.

IRATEXAS

W

e have all experienced a time when we were sitting in a classroom, a lecture hall or at work and heard the loud ringing of a fire drill. According to a survey carried out by the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI), some schools have up to five fire drills a year while the majority of schools run fire drills two to three times a year.

leave immediately after the alarm sounded they replied, “It’s only a drill. I have stuff to be doing”. One said, “I don’t have time for fake drills”.

Of the twenty students I spoke to, all of them took some or all of their belongings with them, ignoring the fire procedure of leaving all items behind.

An average of 36 people per year have died from a fire in Ireland, from 2005 to 2014.

The majority of these fires happened in the home, and three out of the ten of them began in a bedroom.

Many of the students agreed to having a relaxed reaction when they hear the sound of a fire alarm. They will either stay where they are if they are in a public building or take their belongings and leave.

It is possible, that the over procedure of drills in schools, has made students too accustomed and relaxed with fire drills now. So, now they do not react in an urgent or serious IRATEXAS way.

The current legislation of the Fire SerThere was a fire drill several weeks ago vices Act of 1981 and 2003 states that owners on DCU campus. I observed peoples beand occupiers have a ‘duty of care’ to provide haviour during the drill and later questioned reasonable safety measures for their premises. some students on how they reacted to the drill. Additionally, they must prepare and provide The majority of people in a room without a appropriate fire safety procedures to ensure lecturer remained in their seats, continued to the safety of persons on such premises. do their work or chat with friends. Students So, how can the excessive use of fire only left the building when staff came around drills be regarded as an appropriate fire safety urging them to evacuate. procedure if it is making students be less When asking students why they didn’t responsive to an actual fire alarm or drill.

“

A lot of parents discourage their children from taking gap years in the fear that they will fall out of the habit of studying Personally, I would respond to an alarm a lot faster if it was something I had never heard before, but had been informed about what to do when i did hear it.

The amount of drills should depend on the level of risk in the building, according to Safelincs advice on the importance of fire drills.

Although the excessive use of fire drills can make people disregard them, they are important. They are necessary to test alarms and ensure that other equipment work, such as fire door retainers and LED emergency lighting.

According to statistics provided by fire services across the country and published by the Department of the Environment, cigarettes were suspected as the leading cause of fires followed by electrical appliance.

11

GAEILGE

Cúis Conspóide na gCuarán

Tarraingíonn Jordan Hussain ár n-aird ar an ábhar conspóide is déanaí ó thaobh an dath de: Péire chuarán sa Phortaingéil

Jordan Hussain Scríbhneoir @thecollegeview

T

á an t-idirlíon trína chéile arís mar gheall ar phictiúr uaslódáilte go Twitter de phéire cuaráin a bhfuil i siopa sa Phortaingéil. Ar an dromchla níl aon rud as an ngnáth fúthu seachas, b’fhéidir go bhfuil siad mealltach ach is é dath na gcuarán ábhar spéise an phobail faoi láthair.

Ar an 27ú Feabhra 2015, uaslódadh grianghraf de ghúna don idirlíon, le dath an ghúna ag cruthú conspóide i measc pobail an idirlín.

Nuair a chonaic daoine é, bhí slua a chreid go raibh sé dubh agus gorm ach slua a eile a mheas go raibh sé bán agus ór. I ndiaidh cúpla lá dúradh go raibh sé beagnach 50% a cheap go raibh sé dubh agus gorm agus 50% a cheap go raibh sé bán agus ór.

Tá an rud céanna ag tarlú anois ach le péire cuaráin. Chuir cuntas twitter “positivedemi” an pictiúr de na cuaráin ar an suíomh ar an Déardaoin, an 17ú Samhain leis an gceist i bPortaingéilis leis “que cor voces tao vendo?”, a chiallaíonn “Cén dath a fheiceann tú?”. Thosaigh daoine mórthimpeall an domhain ag argóint faoi na dathanna a chonaic siad.

Bhí sé éagsúil ón ngúna, áfach, de bharr go raibh réimse níos leithne de dhathanna le feiceáil ag daoine an uair seo. Rinne ‘mirror.co.uk’ pobalbhreith a chur ar bhonn agus socraíodh go raibh 5 péire de dhathanna le feiceáil ag daoine.

Thíos tá torthaí an tsuirbhé: Gorm agus Donn -18% Gorm agus ór – 24% Liath agus gorm – 10%

tú dath eile nó meascán eile.

I mo thaithí féin, nuair a d’fhéach mé ar den chéad uair chonaic mé go raibh siad bán agus ór agus níor smaoinigh mé rófhada faoi ach nuair a bhí mé ag scríobh an ailt seo d’fhéach mé ar ais orthu agus chonaic mé gorm sa lár.

Tá an t-idirlíon faoi láthair ag argóint, agus fiú timpeall an choláiste cloiseann tú cairde ag argóint faoi dhath na gcuarán agus ag tabhairt amach faoina chéile, nach bhfuil siad den tuairim chéanna.

Mar sin, céard é an scéal leis an ngúna agus anois leis na cuaráin?

An draíocht é? An bhfuil cúis na conspóide go bhfuil méid mór duine dathdhall? Tá an freagra i bhfad níos teicniúla ná sin agus mar a chreid slua mór, tá an eolaíocht ann lenár múineadh.

Tá tréithe suimiúla á roinnt ag an bpictiúr den ghúna agus na cuaráin atá an-tábhachtach go bhfeicimid orthu chun go nochtaítear an chúis go bhfeiceann daoine dathanna difriúla óna chéile.

An chéad tréith á roinnt acu ná go bhfuil an íomhá riastartha, nach bhfuil sé go hiomlán soiléir agus dá bharr tá an íomhá níos deacra na dathanna a aithint.

Rud eile atá ait faoin dá ghrianghraf ná láidreacht an tsolais.

Tá an dá ghrianghraf an-gheal, na cúlraí ach go háirithe agus tá sé sin an-tábhachtach sa tslí nach mbíonn dathanna áirithe léirithe agus go bhfeiceann daoine difriúla dathanna difriúla.

Níl sé foilsithe go fóill cén dath go hiondúil a bhfuil na cuaráin ach tá seans ann go bhfuil siad bán agus ór, de réir daonáirimh de. Tar éis cúpla lá den ghúna a bheith ag taisteal mórthimpeall an idirlín, tháinig sé amach go raibh sé dubh agus gorm.

An fáth go mbíonn mistéir ann ó thaobh na dathanna de ná go bhfuil rónochtadh sa ghrianghraf, go bhfuil cothromaíocht an dath báin chomh olc sin sa ghrianghraf agus dá bharr

@positivedemi (twitter)

“

Éiríonn sé níos suimiúla nuair a bhreathnaíonn tú orthu i ndiaidh tamaill, áfach. Den chéad uair feiceann tú dath áirithe amháin, mar shampla Bán agus Ór, ach tar éis uair nó tamall níos faide seans go bhfeicfidh tú dath eile nó meascán eile.

tá bob buailte ar ár súile.

Tá sé soiléir go bhfuil an fhadhb leis na cuaráin cosúil le sin, ach in áit an rónochtaithe don dath bán tá sé ar na dathanna dorcha.

Ach ag cur na heolaíochta ar leaththaobh, tá sé fós an-suimiúil le feiceáil go dtarlaíonn rudaí cosúil le seo, go bhfuil daoine ag breathnú ar an ngrianghraf céanna san áit chéanna in ann dathanna difriúla a fheiceáil óna chéile.

An cheist eile ag teacht amach as an gconspóid seo ná cé mhéad grianghraif eile den chineál seo a bheidh i gciorclaíocht amach anseo.

Bán agus ór – 41%

Focail na seachtaine

Meascán dathanna – 7% Tá sé soiléir ó na staitisticí sin go bhfuil daoine den tuairim go bhfuil níos mó ná díreach dath amháin ar na cuaráin. Tá claontacht ann do bhán agus ór cinnte, go bhfuil tromlach na ndaoine faoin tuairim chéanna faoi dhath an choisbhirt. Éiríonn sé níos suimiúla nuair a bhreathnaíonn tú orthu i ndiaidh tamaill, áfach. Den chéad uair feiceann tú dath áirithe amháin, mar shampla Bán agus Ór, ach tar éis uair nó tamall níos faide seans go bhfeicfidh

Cuaráin - Sandals Conspóid - Controversy An Phortaingéil - Portugal

Cúnamh - Help/Assistance Freagrachtaí - Responsibilities Néaltrú - Dementia

12

GAEILGE

Mo Thaithí Le Néaltrú Lena clann ag déileáil le cás néaltraithe, pléann Méabh Riordan a ndeacrachtaí agus breathnaíonn sí ar a mamó agus í ag troid leis an ngalar.

Méabh Riordan Scríbhneoir @thecollegeview

B

eidh mo sheanmháthair ochtó hocht mbliana d’aois Dé hAoine agus tá néaltrú uirthi. Beidh muid ag ceiliúradh a breithlá an tseachtain seo agus ag cuimhneamh ar an mbean a raibh aithne againn uirthi roimh theacht an ghalair Alzheimer . Ba bhean neamhspleách í i gcónaí, le freagrachtaí na clainne fágtha di agus gan ach sé bliana déag slánaithe aici. Anois, de bharr an néaltraithe braitheann sí ar mhaireachtáil chuidithe chomhthimpeallach. Ní ullmhaíonn sí béilí níos mo, ní féidir léi dul ag siopadóireacht ina haonar agus ní dhéileálann sí lena hairgead féin. Mar a deir speisialtóirí, tá sí ‘in a state of profound mental confusion.’

Bíonn comharthaí le feiceáil inti i gcónaí: dímheabhair, í gan a bheith in ann cuimhneamh ar thascanna laethúil, fadhbanna a réiteach, malairtí theanga agus iompraíocht.

Le himeacht aimsire éiríonn an mearbhall níos doiléire. Thosaigh mearbhall ar mo sheanmháthair leis an teilifís, í ag labhairt faoina bheith ag freastal ar chóisir leis an bhfoireann aisteoirí ‘Corononation Street’, ag

dul i ngleic le mangaire drugaí nó drong coirpeach nó ag cur a teach ar dhíol chun páirt a ghlacadh sa chlár ‘A Place in the Sun’, ach d’éirigh sé dáiríre nuair a tháinig síorimní uirthi.

Thug sí faoi deara nach bhfuil gach rud i gceart nuair a d’fhiafraigh sí de mo mháthair; ‘An bhfuil m’aigne ag dul in olcas?’

Tá caoga cúig míle duine in Éirinn ag maireachtáil le néaltrú. Tá tionchar ag an ngalar ar leath mhilliún teaghlach Éireannach, de réir an tsuímh idirlín Feidhmeannacht na Seirbhíse Sláinte. Ní thuigeann duine as gach ceathrar cad is néaltrú ann, nó ‘an galar díchuimhne’ curtha air uaireanta, dar leo. An tsainmhíniú oifigiúil a thugann an FSS air ná: Is réimse d’airí é de ghalair inchinne.

Téann sé i bhfeidhm ar an meabhair, an iompraíocht agus tascanna laethúil a dhéanamh as do chumas féin.

Ceapann cuid daoine nach mbíonn an néaltrú in aon duine faoi sheasca bliain d’aois, ach tá deich faoin gcéad de dhaoine ag maireachtáil leis an ngalar faoi sheasca. Tá ceithre phríomhchineál de néaltrú ann agus tá ceithre céad cineál eile den ghalar aimsithe ag eolaithe agus dochtúir, ach gan ainm curtha orthu. Is é Galar Alzheimer an ceann is cáiliúla agus an chúis is coitianta de néaltrú le dhá thrian de chásanna cúisithe aige. Is de thoradh barraíochta próitéine san inchinn an Galar Alzheimer nach

ligeann di feidhmiú i gceart. Foilsíodh ‘World Alzheimer Report’ sa bhliain 2015 agus dúradh go raibh beagnach 47 milliún daoine timpeall an domhain ag streachailt leis an néaltrú. Tá na figiúirí seo ardaithe agus feictear go gcuireann sé an-bhrú ar sheirbhísí sláine na tíre.

Labhraíonn Phil Hope, iar-aire cúraim na Breataine, faoin chostas ar an domhan sa phodchraoladh ‘The New York Academy of Sciences.’ Is í aidhm na sraithe ná tuiscint níos fearr a fháil ar na galair bainteach leis an néaltrú. Nochtann Hope go raibh an costas domhanda 604 billiún dollar orainn ar mhaithe le cúram néaltraithe agus ní ansin a stopfaidh sé. Tá sé geallta ag rialtas na Stáit Aontaithe Meiriceá go mbeadh trilliún dollar eile ag dul chuig an ngalar roimh 2050, ó thaobh eolais de agus staidéar a dhéanamh air, ag léiriú nach bhfuil an dóthain eolas againn ó thaobh an tseadáin de.

Tá roinnt seirbhísí ar fáil in Éirinn do na hothair agus dá gclanna. An dá phriomheagraíocht ná ‘Cumann Alzheimer na hÉireann’ agus ‘Feidhmeannacht na Seirbhíse Sláinte’(FSS). Tugtar uimhir fhóin cabhrach ar an gcéad shuíomh ina theannta le lárionaid laethúil, eolas ar ghrúpaí tacaíochta, clubanna sóisialta, seans don othar iontráil chun go bhfaigheadh siad faoiseamh agus conas cúntóir baile a fháil cabhrú tim-

peall an tí. Áfach, déantar dearmad ar chlinic cuimhne a lua, áis iontach do dhaoine ag maireachtáil le néaltrú agus iad níos óige ná 65 bliain d’aois. Is clinicí neamhspleách iad ar leis an aidhm comharthaí a aithint go luath agus malairtí a dhéanamh ar an ngalar agus cúnamh a thabhairt do dhaoine faoi thionchar an néaltraithe.

Níl ach seacht n-ionad déag in Éirinn, le seacht lárionad bunaithe i mBaile Átha Cliath.

Tugann an FSS cistiú do na clinicí, agus cheapfá go mbeidís saor in aisce do na hothair, ach cinnte go bhfuil breis airgid ag teastáil. Níl ach ionad amháin bunaithe san Iarthar, i gcontae Mhaigh Eo, na ceantair mórthimpeall uirthi, Contae na Gaillimhe, Dún na nGall agus Ciarraí, gan clinic cuimhne ar bith ar fáil agus ar a laghad dhá mhíle duine le néaltrú tréigthe i ngach contae ag an gcóras in ainneoin an luacha agus rath a thugtar ar na clinicí seo, de réir ‘Dementia.ie’. De réir píosa déanta ag ‘The Irish Times’, thug an FSS deich milliún euro do Chumann Alzheimer na hÉireann sa bhliain dhá mhíle is a trí déag.

Chuir Phil Hope ceist shuimiúil sna podchraoltaí ‘Dementia Decoded’ agus d’fhan sí liom: An í easpa airgid an fhadhb nó oiriúint an chórais sláinte claon nua-aimseartha a chur air agus b’fhéidir go laghdóidh an costas ar an gcóras? Grinniú an-spéisiúil ar fad ó thaobh an Uasail Hope de

“

Ba bhean neamhspleách í i gcónaí, le freagrachtaí na clainne fághta di agus gan ach sé bliana déag slánaithe aici. Anois, de bharr an néaltraithe braitheann sí ar mhaireachtáil chuidithe chomhthimpeallach Brooklynn P. (mystorybook.com)

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FEATURES

Homeless children deserve Christmas

I

SHAUNA BOWERS FEATURES EDITOR

t was ten years ago when Laura spent a year and a half in a homeless shelter with her mam.

She lived in Hedigans in town, it has three stories and had families, of up to six people, squished into tiny little rooms that must have only been made for one or two people. The cramped quarters were a far cry from luxury but it put a roof over her head so she did not complain.

There was a kitchen that all the residents could use but if any food was left there unattended then it was taken so Laura remembers having to be very careful, even as

a child. There was a room for the people who ran the shelter, they had a big couch there. It was a luxury to the homeless children who were deprived of natural comforts.

The worst part, Laura recalled, was the ever-present alcoholism and drug addiction. There would be bottles and cans about and an over-powering stench of alcohol.

It was not a place for children, especially not at Christmas time when drinking increases and so does financial strain.

There were 1014 families in emergency accommodation in

September of this year, with 2,065 dependent children also living in emergency accommodation, according to Dublin Region Homeless Executive and these figures are not expected to decline before the festive season.

This is the highest number of families who are without a permanent home in Dublin to have ever been reported. There were also 4,006 adults on their own in emergency accommodation in the third quarter of 2016.

Because of this large increase, the 2016 budget allocated an extra Laura Duffy

40 percent in homeless funding for 2017, meaning there will be €98 million in the budget for homelessness next year.

This funding does not come into effect until after the New Year though, meaning all of these families are going to be without a home for the Christmas period.

There are shoebox appeals and charitable organisations or volunteers are offering free Christmas dinners in order to provide some sort of normality for these families but they are still going to be without a permanent residence this festive season and that is something that cannot be fixed with food or presents.

Spending time with family and friends, eating and enjoying yourself at Christmas can be some of the best childhood memories that people grow up with. If we even take presents out of the equation, the joy of seeing Christmas lights or singing carollers can be an integral part of many people’s childhoods.

In a study, carried out in 2012 by the Ombudsman for children and young people, fifteen children were interviewed about their experiences in emergency accommodation. Of the fifteen children interviewed, five had spent between one and three months in the services while seven had used the services for more than six months. Six children had been in one placement and another six had been in up to three placements.

That is a large chunk of time to be without a permanent residence, to be worried about what would happen if there were a shortage of beds and they cannot find somewhere to sleep. That is a lot of pressure to put on anybody, especially a child whose innocence should be preserved and who should be shielded from the hardships of life.

But what can we do to make sure that these children also receive the Christmas they deserve?

Everybody can chip in by volunteering for homeless charities such as St. Vincent de Paul, the Peter McVerry Trust or the Simon community. Food, toys, blankets all make a difference to someone who has very little.

Luas are filling one of their

trams with shoeboxes on the 8th of December in order to provide as many homeless children as possible with some sense of normality.

Finally, homelessness is not always caused by the misuse of drugs and alcohol, there are many other societal factors that can lead to a person being homeless such as being unemployed or low income.

Laura’s mum, for example, had just come out of a bad relationship and was suffering with ill mental health.

We should not assume that the sole reason for being homelessness is addiction.

“

There were 1014 families in emergency accommodation in September of this year Everybody can help out friends or relatives by allowing them to stay at their houses over during the Christmas period. Christmas is a time for family and friends and we should strip away our prejudices and allow some more love into our homes.

For months, Laura’s mam protected her and led her to believe that they were living in a B&B, rather than a homeless shelter. It was only upon receiving a shoebox, similar to the very one she crafted for homeless children, did she realise that she too was homeless. She was without a real home for two Christmas seasons. She did not receive the Christmas she deserved.

FEATURES

Paws for thought

14

Dogs have always been important, but the mark left when they pass away is indescribable.

ORLA O DRISCOLL

H

DEPUTY FEATURES EDITOR

e arrived five years ago, saved from the promise of a plastic bag and the murky water of the grand canal. He arrived tiny, quiet, and resembling a cloud with a chance of rain.

After a week, there was little change in his personality, but the indulgence offered to him by faces reduced to smiles and silly voices, dictated the impact to come within his new surroundings.

After five weeks, his demolition techniques had reduced four pairs of once uniquely matched slippers to two left slippers, and one right; now just items of forever single footwear.

Over time he became central to the rhythm of the lives of everyone who indulged, or basked in his exuberance; apart from the horses.

They learned a refined technique of passing the hedge of his terrain with a lighter fall of hooves, attempting to sabotage his demented complaining.

His name was Bobby, and 4 weeks ago, he died; from nothing, and it would seem of nothing.

As the winter sun warmed the space where the BBQ used to sit, he had a seizure and ceased to be the bundle of fluff who glued a family together.

The grief that follows the loss of a pet, is an exquisite pain, one that is hard to find recognition for.

Traditionally dogs were not pets, they hunted with the hunter, stood guard with the keepers and were relegated to outdoors. Now however, with social awareness of dog rescues, the reality of horrendous puppy farms and the imprint of the campaign ‘A dog is for life, not just for Christmas’ slapped across car rear windows, there can be no ambiguity in where the dog sits in the order of things.

In Darwinian times, and since, science has speculated on the domestication of dogs; thought to be over 15,000 years ago since our allies became beloved pets, yet dogs still fulfil a vital role as service dogs, guides, searchers, and K9’s.

Liz Campbell explained how taking in an abused stray impacted her life: “I could do nothing but keep and love her, I put her through a lot of vet work and even more physiological healing, but

she didn’t trust anyone but me, cuddles were rare as she was very sensitive to touch... but on walks she came to life, loved exploring with one of my other dogs and really enjoyed digging by the river, even with her crooked leg, she was fast to get the ball, when she learned there was a treat for bringing it back.

“I only had her for 17 months when she died suddenly. Her presence brought me energy to do more to help with welfare cases, topics and campaigns. I think it is a grief that isn’t acknowledged enough.”

Understanding that a family can feel shattered by the loss of a pet, and that grief may express itself at the most unusual time, may be anathema for some; for others the pain just never eases.

Nastro is an 8-year-old Samoyed missing since February, his owners have looked for him every day. A campaign across social media, newspaper articles, and

even TV appearances have been a part of their journey to try and bring Naz home.

They say: “It still breaks our hearts not knowing where Naz is or if he’s still

“

of heart disease, protecting hearts.

For Sandie, whose two golden retrievers died within weeks of each other this summer her heart is broken. Even

It is not that a dog is like a member of the family, a dog is family. even alive. It’s the not knowing that makes it unbearable. All we can hope for is that we might just get lucky some day and he gets scanned by a vet somewhere and makes his way back into our lives.”

A panel of experts from the American Heart Association (AHA) has weighed all the available evidence, and reached a consensus that having a dog likely lowers the risk

the hierarchal way of laying out bowls for food has become painful: “Because you no longer call those two names; Jordan and Molly. They are no longer a part of the pack.” For Sandie, that heartache won’t go away.

Science magazine released a study in 2015, concluding that human-like modes of

communication, including mutual gaze, in dogs may have been acquired during domestication with humans, and this bonding exists between us and our closest animal companions, dogs.

To explain this feeling of loss isn’t easy for most people and this adds to the feeling of not being allowed show how this void of companionship impacts on daily life.

It is not that a dog is like a member of the family, a dog is family.

Digging a hole is a favourite pastime for a dog, digging a hole to put one in is inevitable, but absolutely heart shattering.

Bobby left, bigger, bolder; but still like a cloud with a chance of rain.

Bobby recently passed away but his memory will never leave. Credit: Orla O Driscoll

FEATURES

15 Traversing the globe and broadening your horizons

After just returning home from Canada, Ailbhe Daly explains what travelling can offer you.

Ailbhe Daly Contributor @theDalyAlly

A

S the philosophical Ferris Bueller famously said; “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” With work, college and social lives to maintain, many of us may get into a rut and stuck into the same old routine. While not a revolutionary idea, travelling can be the best way to change things up a little bit and let yourself experience something new.

Ryanair offer cheap flights and often have flash sales when getting a flight for less than a full bus fare is not unheard of. As well as that, Aer Lingus can offer some pretty nifty deals to Europe and even further afield, if you have a little more cash to spend. If you really want to go all out, both Emirates and Etihad operate flights to and from Dublin twice daily to Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. From there, connect-

ing flights to elsewhere in Asia, Australia and islands in the Indian Ocean are easily accessed.

Travelling is unique in that it allows you to cut off from the realities of life and breathe in a different culture. While many of us visited countries like Spain, Portugal and France during our younger years, taking a country in as an adult is an entirely different experience.

When you don’t have somebody else dictating how you spend your waking hours, you end up learning lots about yourself. I recently took a solo jaunt to Toronto to visit a friend. While I had intended on visiting the many museums described in guidebooks, I ended up spending most of my trip wandering the streets in the sprawling downtown with only a vague idea of where I’d end up. It wasn’t something I intended on happening, but I learned short cuts, where locals went for a coffee and things that no guidebook would have ever taught me. Like did you know that there’s a bus that operates from Toronto to Niagara Falls Casino for half the price of the usual buses? I didn’t either ‘til I

“

Travelling teaches you things about yourself that you didn’t know

Zoe Ryan

asked around!

Travelling teaches you things about yourself that you didn’t know.

You get to push yourself to learn new surroundings, orientate yourself in a different city and find the best way to get around. A trip away with your pals can be done cheaply if you stick to hostels or Air B&B and take advantage of the free activities and student discounts that most major cities will offer. If your friends are

The reality of autism

less eager to go adventuring, there’s no harm in going by yourself either and either kicking back and relaxing or exploring to your hearts content.

The beauty of travelling is that you can make it all your own – no two trips will ever be the same. There are almost two hundred countries on the planet, all offering new, exciting cultures and interesting experiences that you can keep as memories. What are you waiting for?

Barry O’Sullivan takes a look inside the Autism Research Group in order to explain how autism can affect different individuals.

Barry O”Sullivan Contributor @thecollegeview

O

ver 300 blue cases damaged with pressure marks, minor tears and creases from laying mainly dormant for years are stacked on the wall. A teddy bear, a dumper truck, miniature aeroplanes and Lego sets sit next to thick compendiums and mental health diagnostic manuals.

This is the office of the Autism Research Group, a team dedicated to analysing data provided by surveys, inter-disciplinary reports and clinical diagnostic tests with autistic children.

The team’s report for the Minister for Children, Katherine Zappone, says that Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) conservatively affects 1 percent of the population. Males are affected 4 times more than females and the condition is ‘more prevalent than paediatric AIDS, cancer and diabetes collectively.’

Approximately 50 to 70 percent of people with ASD have an intellectual disability and over 60 percent will present another mental condition such as attention or anxiety issues. Aggression and self-harm are common behavioural problems.

Inside each case is a DVD recording of an examiner performing a diagnosis along with a file filled out by the child’s parent. On screen, a

boy, labelled as ‘R’, has a rigid demeanour and appears engrossed in a puzzle, and the examiner invites ‘R’ to demonstrate using gestures how to brush one’s teeth.

“A lot of the children find that incredibly difficult to do…” said research assistant Sarah-Marie Feighan. Many barely lift their hand towards their mouth, never mind using words to describe the act.

Imagination can be completely absent for some, and ‘pretend’ is not in their proverbial dictionary.

While ruffling his hair and with eyes pointed at the ground, ‘R’ makes a request: “Can I have some more pieces please?” - This is significant, it means he has vital inter-personal social skills and an understanding of personal space.

“So that was high-functioning ASD, let me show you the other end of the scale.”

‘M’ ignores the examiner and races from top to bottom of the room, screaming and flapping his hands vigorously, completely in his own world. He is nine years old and cannot speak a word.

The early years of a child’s life when their brains are still developing ‘are critical to the development of future skills and knowledge’.

Ireland’s ‘significant gap in service provisions’ means that parents spend years on waiting lists for health and education services, even for a diagnosis.

After struggling alone, it’s often

“

The hope is that the power of this research will be enough to lobby for better funding too late and the opportunity for early intervention is missed. “Nobody listened to me for a long time”, said M’s parents poignantly in the case file.

Nervous breakdowns, careers lost and borrowing to pay for private speech and language therapy out of desperation are common hardships for parents. “It’s just heart-breaking”, Feighan said.

The hope is that the power of this research will be enough to lobby for better funding and the implementation of a service infrastructure up to an international standard. Ireland does not need yet another major public health issue to be silenced and ignored. In 2016, ‘competition’ should not be a word used by parents trying to get fundamental services for children with special needs.

Autism is a spectrum, there are varying degrees to which it can affect people.

Credit: Lifehack

FEATURES

16

The challenges women in leadership face At a talk in DCU, Louise Richardson outlines the struggles women face in leadership roles.

Méabh Riordan Contributor @thecollegeview

L

ouise Richardson is

host to an impressive list of accolades, becoming the first woman Vice Chancellor at St Andrews University and being awarded with ‘The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Centennial Medal’ by Harvard. Ms. Richardson has also been named an honorary member of the Royal Irish Academy and has been awarded honorary doctorates by universities worldwide including Moscow State Institute of International Relations.

Professor Richardson’s career has gone from strength to strength and now at its peak, on January 1st, being named Vice Chancellor of the University of Oxford, the first female in over nine hundred years.

Her success has not been without struggle and speaking as part of the ‘Mary McAleese Women in Leadership Lecture Series’ she relays the challenges she has faced, and many women still face, as a woman in leadership.

She recalls Harvard university meetings overlapping with the inconvenient closure of childminding services. It was customary for her

to leave meetings at 4:50pm, race to and from to collect her daughter from childcare while attempting to re-enter the room looking professional, placing her daughter under the table and acting like nothing had happened.

Her attempts to solicit more suitable hours were combatted with: ‘nobody asked you to have a child? That’s your business; it’s nothing to do with the rest of us.’

Every profession is shaped like a pyramid, the higher up you go the fewer women you find. This is strengthened by the interesting interjection that no Irish university boasts a leading woman. The balancing act between career and family is standing in the way. Ms. Richardson remembers independent-minded young women striving to model her choices.

All she was thinking was ‘I am such a fraud because I am hanging on by my fingernails. I don’t want them to know how hard this is because they’re never going to want it.’

She believes sustaining a career while raising a family is much more difficult than it should be with the responsibility to relieve the burden falling largely on women as a society.

Ms. Richardson found there to be a sizeable divide between women with and those without children, women not wanting to associate childcare as a women’s issue. ‘Women felt I moved too slowly, men felt I moved too quickly.’ Her assumption is that if we want more women in leadership

roles it is essential to keep women’s careers alive during these more challenging years.

Louise remembers when leadership was seen as simply a white man in a suit. She remains conscious of being a role model for both young women and young men as she has no doubt that there is discomfort amongst some men around women in leadership hence the importance of becoming accustomed to women in leadership roles. ‘Leadership comes in every colour and gender.’ I am in awe of the woman sitting before me as she closes the lecture with her mantra; ‘there’s a special place in hell for women who don’t support other women.’

“

Every profession is shaped like a pyramid, the higher up you go the fewer women you find

Louise Richardson is proof that although there are plenty of challenges, women can still succeed in leadership roles Credit: University of Oxford

Free Speech frees the mind

DCU Debate Society took the topic of the Eighth Amendment and it spiked massive backlash. an intellectual exercise at this point, people in Ireland have abortions every day’ This wish for discussion to be halted is something that can be seen inN our ever-polarising creasingly on both sides of the political political climate, it is now spectrum, be they left or right. It is an more important than ever to unwillingness to listen to an opinion turn the focus on an open and that is not your own and an assumption educated discussion between that people who do not agree with your people from all walks of life. This, own beliefs are being “offensive” more than anything, was the tone and and “dangerous”. While abortion is the reasoning for the Abortion Debate a highly contentious issue for all, it held by DCU Debate Society on still stands that in order for either side Thursday the 17th of November. to make headway during a legitimate This debate was immediately met Constitutional Referendum, they must with controversy when the Society first be willing to engage in civilised, genuine discourse with each other. released its event page on Facebook due to the nature of its advertising poster. People immediately flocked to the page to express their outrage at not only the poster but for the students involved in the society. Assumptions and accusations were made on the basis of the gender.

The original poster, which was referred to as “an artistic representation of a foetus” by the society’s Vice Chairperson Pierce Lonergan, was then removed due to requests from both students and administrative officials.

However, discussion continued on the page as to whether or not the event should take place at all, with one individual saying that ‘it’s dangerous and offensive to ‘debate’ this issue as

Aoife Horan Contributor @thecollegeview

I

The necessity of this was seen at the debate when an unknown heckler disrupted the Pro-Choice Keynote Speaker psychiatrist Dr Peadar O’Grady with his Pro-Life Rhetoric.

The man, who began with shouting ‘Psychiatrists are evil” and continued disrupting Dr O’Grady until he was removed by security, ended his tirade by shouting an “appeal” to our hearts “We must not murder the little babies” and proceeded to throw a paper aeroplane with a question for the debaters.

This disruption, in what otherwise was a well conducted and informed discussion of two opposing views, highlighted the importance of not only free speech, but for proper debate.

If we were to have these discussions without necessary controls chaos would ensue and rather than the equally abhorrent idea of no speech occurring between all, people would instead be expressing their views without an ear to hear them . Thus, no progress could be made If we wish to progress as both people and as a society it is vital that now more than ever we place our values on freedom of speech and freedom of expression for all. As was aptly put by Debate Society’s Chairperson Seamus Cummins in his introduction to this contentious discussion, “Free speech is fair speech and fair speech frees the mind.”

“

We must place our values on freedom of speech and freedom of expression for all Credit: BreakingNews.ie

17

SPORT

Impressive DCU a class above CIT in Ashbourne Cup first round DCU swept CIT aside with ease in the first round of the Ashbourne Cup Credit: Darragh Culhane

Niall McIntyre Sports Reporter @CVSport

Dublin City University 1-16 Cork Institute of Technology 0-8 Ashbourne Cup first round

T

he DCU senior camogie team got their Ashbourne Cup campaign off to a flying start with a comprehensive victory over CIT last Thursday, November 24th, in ideal weather conditions at St. Clare’s.

Despite a promising start from the Corkonians, DCU were by far the better side and were well deserving of their eleven-point margin of victory.

This was a high paced, physical encounter which initially looked like it would be closer on the scoreboard.

DCU were economical in front of the posts taking the majority of chances that came their way. In contrast, CIT were quite the opposite - firing an unforgiveable eleven wides which was the main reason for their downfall.

DCU manager Mary O’Connell was delighted with her side’s display and will be bullish looking forward to the remaining group games against University College Cork (UCC) and National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG).

“We have got a lot of good players in from last year’s freshers team and have held on to the majority of our players from last year,” said O’Connell. “We have a strong squad who I believe have a legitimate chance in this year’s Ashbourne Cup.” Indeed, DCU are a very well balanced side with a strong defence led by the likes of Eimear Corr, Emer Reilly and Hannah Hegarty. Tipperary woman Kelly Ann Doyle provides energy in the middle of the field while Mary O’Connell and Laura Green dovetail well together to create a potent attacking force that will be feared by any defence they face in this competition.

As for CIT, they will be disappointed with this display and after losing their first group game last week to NUIG their chances of progression to the knockout stages are now hopelessly slim.

It was CIT who started the brighter, thundering into the opening stages of the game with two quick-fire scores from their powerhouse centre forward Katelyn Hickey.

DCU took a while to settle into the game but when they did, they never looked back.

The home side raised five unanswered white flags in quick succession between the fifth and 15th minute with their dynamite attacking duo of O’Connell and Green leading the way.

CIT responded through the live-

wire Linda Bolger who covered every blade of grass from midfield.

However her efforts were not enough with DCU beginning to dominate all over the field.

Mary O’Connell pointed two more frees before Laura Green reacted quickest to a dropping ball in the CIT defence, rounded her marker and stylishly hand passing into the net.

In truth, the game was as good over as a contest after this goal. It was followed up by three more unanswered points, two from O’Connell and one from Michelle Martin, and at this stage you began to worry that this game would turn into a landslide with all the momentum with the DCU ladies.

Credit where credit is due to CIT, however, who displayed admirable character and courage as they stayed fighting to the bitter end of this game. They launched a comeback of sorts early in the second half narrowing the margin down to five points at one stage.

However, DCU were superior all over the field and their supremacy told on the scoreboard as they pulled away in the closing stages. Clare Sexton and Laura Dempsey made positive impacts off the bench while the reliable duo of Green and O’Connell never let up.

DCU will now look forward to the next round of this competition against NUIG and O’Connell’s charges have every right to aim for glory in this com-

petition

judging

on

this

performance.

DCU: Emma Loo, Eimear Corr, Áine Woods, Aideen Coyle, Hannah Hegarty, Emer Reilly, Eve Marie Elliot, Mairéad Power, Kelly Ann Doyle, Michelle Martin, Caoimhe McCrossan, Mary O’Connell, Rachel Harty, Christine Lyng, Laura Green.

Subs: Laura Dempsey for McCrossan (25’), Claire Sexton for Harty (46’), Aoife O’Brien for O’Connell (58) DCU scorers: Mary O’Connell 0-9(5f), Laura Green 1-2, Michelle Martin 0-2, Clare Sexton 0-2, Emer Reilly 0-1f.

CIT: Sarah Quigley, Aoife Walsh, Gráinne Sheehy, Sharon Murphy, Michelle Murphy, Emma Sharpe, Lisa Lynch, Linda Bolger, Rachel Ní Shé, Eimear Reilly, Katelyn Hickey, Rachel Hurley, Chloe Casey, Joy Leo, Karen Lane.

Subs: Nicola O Gorman, Jess O’Shea, Emma O’Donovan, Nicky Cronin.

CIT scorers: Linda Bolger (0-4f), Katelyn Hickey (0-3), Nicola O’Gormon (0-1) Tadhg O’Rourke, 23. Thomas O’Reilly, 24. Eoghan O’Conchúir, 25. Brian Reape.

“

We have got a lot of good players in from last year’s freshers team and have held onto the majority of our players from last year. We have a strong squad who I believe have a legitimate chance in this year’s Ashbourne Cup.

18

SPORT

DCU overwhelm ITT in second half to reach Division Three final DCU lost the possession battle but superior shooting saw them throughout Credit: William Dunne

Gavin Quinn Sub Editor @CVSport Institute of Technology Tallaght 1-10 Dublin City University 1-20

D

Division Three semi-final

CU blew away ITT with a strong second half display to reach the Division Three final on Wednesday afternoon, November 23rd at Thomas Davis GAA club in Tallaght.

DCU found themselves three points down at half time as ITT started strongly in a half that saw both sides wasteful in attack at times it was the hosts that found themselves 1-06 to 0-06 ahead at the break.

The opening exchanges proved cagey as both sides looked to start strongly but lacked a clinical edge in attack. DCU broke the deadlock almost five minutes in, thanks to a point from Paul McNamara.

ITT’s responded with the first goal of the game minutes later, the impressive Darragh Pepper’s hand pass across goal found wing forward Carl Finn who punched into the empty DCU net to give the Tallaght men the lead.

A beautiful Paul McNamara point off his left boot in response was overshadowed by consistent pressure on the DCU goal as the hosts

increased their lead with two frees from Aodhán Clabby as the game reached the quarter mark.

Fergus English’s short kick outs saw the Glasnevin men dominate possession but they struggled to penetrate ITT’s resilient defence.

Their defence was also put under serious pressure with the hosts’ pace in attack causing serious problems.

The pressure almost told, with half back Kevin McKeown saving an almost mirror image of ITT’s earlier goal off the line. He was taken off temporarily with a knee injury minutes later and resumed in the second half.

ITT’s work ethic and fitness was evident as they kept putting their opponents under pressure. They almost reaped the rewards in the dying moments as a misplaced kick out gifted the Tallaght men a point to lead 1-06 to DCU’s 0-6.

DCU racked up six unanswered points in just ten minutes to make it a completely different game. The Glasnevin men’s class was evident as midfielder Conor Early’s point was followed up by two frees in quick succession by James Cullen.

The hosts’ defence struggled to cope with such pressure as Cullen added another from play, substitute Kevin Hyland and another from Early capped off an incendiary start to the half.

ITT finally got on the board soon after with midfielder Eoghan Boyle’s point was followed another Clabby score. Their momentum was short lived, as Paddy Byrne and Paul McNamara ensured the brief ITT resistance was short lived.

Two frees from Cullen extended DCU’s advantage before Jamie McDonnell pointed a

frankly monstrous 45 to see his side lead by six points inside the last ten minutes with the visitors dominating almost in almost every area of the pitch.

The hosts refused to give in as Clabby was a constant threat in his ability to punish DCU from dead balls but the visitors’ substitutions were effective with Ciarán Madden’s point off his left with five minutes to go ensuring DCU stayed in cruise control and on their way to the Division 3 final.

ITT were handed a lifeline with just three minutes left as a ball over the top presented a goal opportunity but the player was dragged down, the referee awarded a penalty. Aodhán Clabby stepped up to narrow DCU’s lead to just three and give his side a chance at salvaging a result.

The penalty was saved, Fergus English’s diving save to his bottom right corner ensured there would be no ITT heroics in the dying minutes. Under a minute later, James Cullen kicked over his sixth point of the afternoon with a straightforward free to leave no doubt about the outcome.

ITT’s defence fell apart as McNamara started and finished a move that saw him on the end of hand pass across goal and the centre forward punched the ball into the empty net.

Manager Nathan Gavigan was disappointed by his side’s start to the game but was quick to praise his players’ second half performance. “I suppose starting the game in the first half, we started very sloppily. We gave a lot of cheap ball away and I suppose our shooting wasn’t great,”

he said.

“Fair play to the lads, they dug in. We changed it at half time, went more offensive and it worked luckily enough but we’re looking forward to the final now.

DCU will face St. Patrick’s College in the Division Three Final on Wednesday November 30th.

DCU: Fergus English, Eoin Moore, Joe Mulreany, D. Lenehan, Kevin McKeown, Michael McWalters (c), David McAtamey, Jamie McDonnell (0-01: 45), Conor Early (0-02), Dean Halpin (0-01), Paul McNamara (1-02, 0-01f), Paddy Byrne (0-04), Brian McGowan (0-01), James Cullen (0-01, 0-05 frees), Cathal O’Brien.

Subs: Ciarán Madden (0-01) for Kevin McKeown (temp), Kevin Hyland (0-01) for David McAtamey, Ciarán Madden for Dean Halpin.

ITT: Darren Brennan, Jack Milly, Sean Cleary, Austin Kilgallon, Ronan McAteer, Cathal Flaherty, Daniel Galvin, Eoghan Boyle (0-01), David Tyrell, Nathan Nolan, Aodhán Clabby (0-01, 0-05f), Carl Finn (1-00), Ciarán Howard, Darragh Pepper (0-02), C Murphy (001).

Subs: Donal Brady for David Tyrell, Adam Murphy for Carl Finn, Seán Farrelly for Ciaran Howard, Dara Gogan for Ronan McAteer.

SPORT

Multi-talented King focused on his hammer

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King training for Team Ireland. Credit: Irish Examiner

Niall McIntyre Sports Reporter @CVSport

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dam King remembers a summer Saturday about five years ago when he was lying on his couch icing a leg injury he received in a Gaelic football match earlier that day. The injury meant the 16-year-old couldn’t take part in the Munster Athletics Championships set to take place on the Sunday. “It may have been a blessing in disguise, but it was then when my father and I decided I couldn’t keep up football and hammer throwing, I chose the hammer.”

The second year DCU student grew up in Ballinskelligs, Co. Kerry where, like the majority of his friends, a Gaelic football was never far from his hand.

However, it is fair to say that King is not like the majority of his friends. As we chat at his training base at the sports centre in DCU his focus and ambition dominates. “I want to represent my country at the Olympics”. The 19-year-old says so with such assertion and confidence that you would be surprised if he doesn’t.

Indeed the national u15, u16, u18 and

junior hammer throw record holder was a talented footballer having represented his county at u14 level. Middle distance running was another option for the Munster juvenile 800m champion. “I realised that I couldn’t keep up every sport, I decided on the hammer because I was probably better at it than I was at football or middle distance running. My Coach told me that if I worked on my technique, I could become really competitive at it.”

The work he has done on his technique has obviously paid off. “It’s fair to say I’ve travelled to places that a Gaelic football could never have brought me like the three week holiday in China for the world youths in 2014” to places like Azerbaijan and Poland where he finished in 11th place in the World juniors this summer.

The rich history that Ireland has had in the unglamorous hammer throw is easily forgotten. Pat O’Callaghan was a double Olympic Gold medallist in the discipline. King doesn’t have to look far for inspiration with his coach Seán Egan having represented Ireland in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. “It’s great having Sean with me, he’s been there and done that and he’s great for giving advice and inspiration”.

Hammer throwing is one of the most complex sports in the business. King de-

scribes it as “spinning around in circles at a serious speed, while staying in a seven-foot circle and putting (the hammer) in a very narrow sector”. It is not just about hurtling the hammer as far as possible. “Sometimes it is frustrating when people say hammer throwing, ah sure it’s just about being stronger than the lad beside you. It’s a combination of strength, speed, technique and various other factors.”

To be able to compete at this event, training is often and intense. “I train six times a week. Three of those sessions are power based in the gym and the rest are throwing and technique based.

“It’s a lot handier for me now than it was a few years ago when I had to travel two or three hours for training. I have a serious coach and serious facilities nearby here in Dublin. There is a hammer throwing cage five minutes away in Santry and a gym on my doorstep in DCU.” King doesn’t have a moment to spare but you get the impression he wouldn’t want it any other way. “I’m loving life at the moment; a typical day involves waking up for breakfast at around eight before lectures from nine to four.

“I am living in the athletes’ house on campus which is a great environment for me. We generally train at the same time in the evenings, at around six. I’d be back

in the house at around eight when I might do some revision on the day’s lectures followed by stretches before bed at ten or 11.”

Being an elite athlete, King obviously doesn’t have the opportunity to take part in the party and drink-driven culture that is the modern college experience. However it is not something he feels he is missing out on.

“To be honest it’s not something that I’d miss too much, no. We have great craic ourselves in the athletes’ house where I’ve made some great friends. We are all focused and driven to work hard and to achieve. When the opportunity arises to let our hair down out on the town, we’ll do that.”

King’s next big target will be to reach the qualifying standard for the European u23 Championships which take place next summer in Poland.

“I am competing against a standard which is set for lads who are two or even three years older and more physically developed than I am so it is obviously a fairly stiff task. I still hope to make it, however.”

It is this type of unwavering self-belief that leads you to believe that the sky really is the limit for Adam King and his hammer throwing career.

SPORT

INSIDE DCU victorious in Ashbourne first round

Padraig Henry takes on RAG’s Vice-Chairperson Vito Molony Burkein the seventh fight of the night during last week’s RAG Rumble Credit:DCU RAG Facebook

Pistol Pete draws blood but proves toothless William Dunne Sports Reporter @CVSport

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he penultimate fight of this year’s DCU RAG Rumble event had to be stopped after two rounds, due to one of Peter Wade’s front teeth getting knocked out by Thomas Walsh.

‘The Pistol’ Wade started the strongest and comfortably won the first round before Walsh retaliated in the second, at St. Pat’s Auditorium on Monday, November 21st.

Wade’s speed and elusiveness did not phase his opponent who was taking hits remarkably well and began to deliver big hits as the fight went on.

Both fighters’ noses drew blood in the second round before the referee called a halt to the encounter which resulted in the only tied match of the night.

That fight was a perfect lead into the night’s main event between Conor Noonan and Michael O’Rourke.

The ‘Noonetorious’ came out victorious on this occasion by a unanimous decision to delight of the majority of the crowd on the night.

From the walk in, it was clear that this

match was worthy of the main event and the atmosphere in the crowd was replicated in the ring.

Noone started on the front foot landing an early uppercut which O’Rourke couldn’t quite come back from in the first round.

O’Rourke’s nose began to bleed in the second but he hung in, with his reach helping him fend off his opponent despite Noone’s good movement and heavy landing on occasions.

The third and final round had spectators on their feet with excitement as Conor Noone began to pull away ever so slightly.

O’Rourke was gracious in defeat while Noone couldn’t help but give cohost of the night, Siobhán Nic Thaidhg, a kiss in the ring during the post-fight interview.

DCU RAG Chairperson, Aoife Murphy, registered a win over Lucy ‘Mango’ Mangan in the only female contest of the night and becomes the third society chairperson to win their fights in as many years.

Murphy, who had a height advantage of six inches over Mangan, used this asset extremely well and was landing punches inside the first 20 seconds.

However, Mangan kept charging at ‘Sugar Ray’ Murphy but it was not

enough to prevent a defeat in the third fight of the night.

Fight seven of the night saw DCU RAG vice-chair Vito ‘Vengabus’ Moloney-Burke lose out the Pádraig Henry on a unanimous decision.

The fight got off to an even start but Moloney-Burke couldn’t take advantage of his longer reach and was punished by Henry.

The society’s Vice-Chairperson struggled to land shots and got tired as the fight went on, finishing with a busted nose.

The fight previous witnessed Sean Óg Cairns display great movement and timely combinations to record a victory over Daire Healy.

Sean Óg was determined from the first bell and didn’t give Healy a chance to get going early on. Despite Healy’s good third round, Sean Óg won by unanimous decision.

Although he attempted a Conor McGregor-esque post-match-interview, co-presenter Shane O’Mahony cut the interview short saying, “I’m going to stop there before you embarrass yourself.”

The opening fight of the night saw Riain ‘The Rock of Cashel’ Condon record the first win in an entertaining confrontation over Cal Commons.

‘Can’t Cope’ Commons was landing punches albeit not many were damaging

as opposed to Condon who possessed superior power and a strong finish to leave the judges with little decision making.

The subsequent fight didn’t fall far behind in terms of excitement with Danny ‘The Dragon Born’ Quinn winning unanimously over Oscar ‘The Trashman’ Andrews. Quinn did tire as the contest went on but his fiery start set up a series of combinations that got him over the line.

Fight four between Rob ‘The Kaiser’ Kaiser and Calvin McCrea was evenly contested but lacked any big hits in the first two rounds.

However, McCrea’s patience paid off and his longer reach was evident with a strong third round that recorded the fourth consecutive unanimous decision of the night.

The final fight before the break had the only split decision of the night that went to Donal ‘The Crackshot’ Corrigan.

Fight eight between Joseph Kimani Tony and Gerard Egan portrayed two completely different types of fighter, however it was Kimani Tony who came out the winner.

Egan initially struggled with the speed and power of his opponent but rallied in the second round. Egan struggled to land an adequate amount shots and lost out in the end.