Comments on: Why won’t our Union campaign for LGBT rights?

By: DBL

DBL — Thu, 08 May 2008 00:21:40 +0000

While I pretty much entirely agree, if the “At the last GM, around 200 assorted students who have never done anything to help build the union” didn’t turn up, no meeting would have happened yet again. While I deplore their selfish self-interest, not even Go Green would have been passed. Nor would the military motion without them, as it wouldn’t have been discussed. They scored a moral victory, but frankly, if they didn’t turn up, it wouldn’t have passed anyway. They managed to get enough opposition together, those who supported it couldn’t. As for Love Without Borders, it’s a vicitim of extremely apathy and laziness. Things that need to, unfortunatly, be addressed first.

By: Anarchyisorder

Anarchyisorder — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:18:07 +0000

It certainly isn’t cunting state of affairs comrade, you’re quite right. =D.

I think Katan is largely correct regarding the last GM, but that dosn’t explain why this issue isn’t seen as important enough to get quorum any other time. It’s particually noteworthy that when Love Without Borders has been the first item in the priority ballot for a GM, it’s attendance has been little short of embarrassing.

Endemic homophobia? Lack of political will by the SU Exec?.

Maybe both, but this needs sorting out.. Now im presently witholding the temptation to rant, so i’ll be blunt and basic..

Student Union politics, as characterised by this university is agonisingly mundane. Real politics, discussion and democracy gave way along time ago to political point scoring, sectarian battles and slanging match playschool politics. What this university has become is an alienating game of who can muster the most friends to defeat or bolster a particular motion. No wonder it’s difficult to get university students to rally against tuition Fees, something that should be as easy as getting people to, well, condemn homophobia.. oh wait..

By: John Higgins

John Higgins — Wed, 07 May 2008 13:02:11 +0000

“the people who walked out have much the same views as the people who are on the exec next year-against free education, for the war”

YES!! Here’s the link, just in case you missed it: http://www.manchesterpolitics.co.uk/jenko-free-education/

By: katan

katan — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:31:31 +0000

yeah i agree with you rob, its a disgrace that the motion has yet to be passed. I also think that its time we stopped being afraid of ‘pointing the finger’. At the last GM, around 200 assorted students who have never done anything to help build the union, or pass through the motions you yourself comment are laudable, arrived simply to wreck the place. They simply turned up to vote down progressive policies and then STOPPED discussion of gay rights by all walking out on mass.

Sadly, the people who walked out have much the same views as the people who are on the exec next year-against free education, for the war, refusal to ever have anything to do with previous anti racism campaigns and campaigns which have fought the uni over our education rights.

This is why building general meetings now must go hand in hand with opposing the people who walked out of the last one. after all, the same people who stopped discussion of gay rights also blocked the union’s free ed campaign. So its time we realized that plenty of issues bring us together and that there wont be much advance on gay rights without also transforming the union back into one that fights for all of us.