Rents, racism and the climate: why student activists have more to fight for than ever | Ilyas Nagdee
The youth strikes for climate action earlier this year saw thousands of young people walk out of their classrooms across the country and on to the streets to demand a response to the global climate catastrophe. This shone a light on the power of young people to mobilise and agitate for change.
Students have campaigned on the price of accommodation at Durham, for a decolonised curriculum at Leeds Beckett, and for space to pray at Cardiff. They’ve tackled the lower grades that BAME students receive relative to their white peers at Aston. They’ve also occupied buildings over racism at Goldsmiths, gone rent striking in Bristol, and challenged the Prevent Duty at Leicester. Students countrywide have urged their universities to divest of arms companies, human rights abusers and fossil fuels. Student politics is on the rise and with the future of higher education being reshaped before our eyes, there’s never been a more exciting time to be involved.
Many people think of student politics as protesting and picketing in the rain, which frankly isn’t true. Student politics is a venture which introduces you to passionate people from across the globe hoping to make a positive difference in the world. It helps you establish a group of friends with whom you will debate, discuss, argue, teach and learn.
Ilyas Nagdee
My time at Manchester and at the National Union of Students taught me that student politics has created a generation defiantly rejecting the status quo and challenging inequality. It’s easy to get involved: get to your freshers’ fairs and see what you might be interested in, whether it’s the living wage, affordable accommodation or campaigning for a liberated curriculum. If you’re unsure, most campaigns and activist groups have meet and greet events over the first week or two, so head to those to get a feel for what’s best for you. As the year goes on, new groups will pop up in response to incidents on campus or wider society – don’t be afraid to get your hands stuck in!
Late last year, I was able to hear the phenomenal Asad Rehman (director of War on Want) speak and he said the key part of being a “student activist” isn’t the student bit – it’s the fact you’re an activist, who just happens to be a student. So, think beyond A-levels, apprenticeships and degrees, and take part in creating a just world.
Ilyas Nagdee is a former black students’ officer at the NUS
Pick up the placard: student campaigns
Activism is alive and well in 2019. So what are students protesting about?
Climate emergency
Students demanded urgent action earlier this year as they joined Extinction Rebellion protestors on the streets of London. They also care about sustainability more broadly: students signed #TheLastStraw pledge, which stopped more than 40 students’ unions using plastic straws this year.
Costly housing
Students also continue to fight against extortionate accommodation fees. This culminated in a national day of action against the student housing crisis on 6 March. In Bristol, more than 150 students reportedly withheld payments to the university in protest at the cost of halls and called for increased transparency in the rent-setting process. The protest led to results: the university has promised to reduce the accommodation costs for hundreds of students.
Decolonising the curriculum
This campaign continues to be a significant topic inside universities. The movement challenges the structural legacies of colonialism and racism and demands more diverse representation on course modules. With BAME students less likely to get a first or a 2.1 than their white peers, students are also asking their universities to become more inclusive and equitable. Suzanne Bearne