Student Broad Left

This February marks the 9th annual LGBT History Month.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans History Month was initiated in 2005 by Schools Out – an organisation that campaigns against LGBT discrimination in education – in the wake of the abolition of Section 28, the Tory amendment that prevented the “promotion of homosexuality in schools” for 15 years. This Tory amendment created the invisibility of LGBT people within schools and created an environment where homophobia, biphobia and transphobia were allowed to run rampant.

Anyone under the illusion that LGBT discrimination no longer exists need only look to the homophobia surrounding the debate on gay marriage.

The Women’s Officer at Sheffield University Students’ Union is leading a campaign to stop Sheffield City Council from approving an application to open a new Lap Dancing Venue in Sheffield City centre, just minutes away from the University campus.

Fighting the proliferation of lap dancing clubs is central to the fight against sexism in today’s society.

Lap dancing clubs normalise the sexual objectification of women, create ‘no go’ areas for women and are a form of commercial sexual exploitation.

Hundreds of lap dancing clubs have been allowed to open over the past decade – main-streaming the idea that it is acceptable to view women as objects – to be bought by men. This main-streaming of the sexual objectification of women in turn feeds the oppression, exploitation and violence against women which is so rampant in British society.

Students at Birmingham University are campaigning against the redundancy facing Dr Jose Nafafe, a highly-respected lecturer, the only Black permanent member of academic staff in the university’s sociology department and the only specialist in ethnicity in the department.

How to take on the Tories’ attacks on education and build a progressive anti-racist, anti-imperialist student movement was discussed at the Student Fightback 2012 Conference, organised by the Student Broad Left and the National Black Students’ Alliance.

By Aaron Kiely, NUS NEC & Campaign Manager for NUS Presidential Candidate Kanja Sesay

This week at NUS National Conference, NUS Liberation Officers Kanja Sesay and Vicki Baars succeeded in transforming the agenda within NUS to take on the Tories’ cuts and challenge racist scapegoating.

The National Conference of the National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) took place last weekend at Liverpool Guild of Students. The conference provided the opportunity for anti-cuts activists to come together and plan strategies for taking on the Tories’ ideological assault on education and wider society. The conference was by no means perfect, but a number of progressive policies were passed which should provide the basis for creating a more inclusive, representative, diverse and effective anti-cuts force within the student movement which is also better equipped with arguments to smash the Tories’ claim that “there is no alternative” to cuts.

Tory Mayor of London Boris Johnson is refusing to join a debate on ‘Women in London’ hosted by the Fem 11 Conference tomorrow. The debate will be attended by other Mayoral candidates for the 2012 elections and 1,000 people.

The NUS Women’s Campaign is urging students to tweet at @mayoroflondon asking him why he will not join the other candidates at the only hustings especially on women’s issues. We suggest you add in the hashtag #sackBoris to your tweets.

img src="http://studentbroadleft.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Progressive-Students-Conference-20111-114x150.jpg" alt="" title="Progressive Students Conference 2011" width="114" height="150" class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-1962" /> Final agenda for the Progressive Students Conference 2011  Read more

Student Broad Left is proud to support founder of the Bring Back EMA Campaign and NUS NEC member, Matt Stanley, for NUS Vice President Further Education. Here we share his draft manifesto and initial supporters list. Please contact Matt directly to add your name to his supporters list and volunteer to join his campaign team.

"I am pleased and excited to announce that I will be standing for NUS Vice President Further Education at this year’s NUS National Conference, taking place in Sheffield this April.

I’m standing to turn NUS around. We need a national union that fights to defend students against the enormous assault we are facing from the Tory-led government.

As NUS VP Further Education I would take the fight to the Tories – uniting our movement behind a serious campaign to force a government u-turn to bring back EMA. I stand for an NUS that actively builds massive opposition to cuts and fees – and for the student movement to link up with other progressive movements in fighting racism, inequality, climate change and war.

The anti-choice group, Alliance of Pro-Life Students, is launching their “first year of student pro-life outreach” with a posh party the likes of which few students can realistically afford. Join Abortion Rights to show them what we think of them toasting our rights away with overpriced champagne and canapés!

The Posh-Party-Picket for Choice takes place on Wednesday 16 January 2013 at 6.30pm. Outside the Thistle Hotel, Marble Arch, Bryanston Street, W1H 7EH.

Student Broad Left was delighted to welcome Sinn Féin’s Senator Kathryn Reilly to speak at ‘Student Fightback 2012’ on Saturday 13 October.

She spoke in a session called ‘Europe Against Austerity’ and outlined what the alternative to failing austerity policies which are leading to rising unemployment and declining living standards for ordinary people across Europe. Kathryn explained that instead of savage cuts, we need investment to create jobs, economic growth and to protect vital public services that the majority rely upon.

The next Student Broad Left national planning meeting takes place on Saturday 30 June, starting 11am prompt (feel free to come any time from 10.30) at Conway Hall, central London.

The meeting will be an opportunity to discuss how we can continue to build campaigns against cuts, fees, racism & war and for liberation, equality and international justice.

Next month (April 2012) up to one thousand student representatives from across the country will meet in Sheffield for the NUS National Conference to decide the next steps for the student movement.

Top of the agenda at this year’s conference will be whether or not the NUS should lead a united, national campaign against cuts, fees and privatisation by organising a first term national demonstration.

Last year the vote for a national demo was extremely close, with anti-cuts students narrowly losing the motion by 15 or so swing vote. With the Tory-led government charging ahead with attacks on students it is clear that the fight to defend education is far from over. And there is no doubt that whether or not NUS should organise a national demo will be a key dividing line at this year’s national conference.

The NUS Women’s Campaign, which represents millions of women students nationally, has made a decisive intervention this week, which could swing the vote at next month’s NUS Conference.

This is a guest post from Matt Bond who sits on the NUS NEC as the Disabled Students’ Campaign 2nd place rep.

Fifteen months ago as the Tory-led government took office I remember sitting in the living room of my old flat shuddering, thinking about what would lay ahead for disabled people. I knew of course the assurances that were coming out of the mouths of Cameron and other assorted Tory malcontents about making sure the most vulnerable in society would be protected from the cuts was nothing but bile.

How to build the fight back against the Tories’ attacks on students and the majority of society was discussed at the Progressive Students Conference, organised by the Student Broad Left and the National Black Students’ Alliance.

Student activists from over 20 colleges & universities rallied at the University London Union on Saturday 22 October to hear from a broad range of speakers including Guardian journalist Gary Younge, award-winning comedian and UK Uncut activist Josie Long, author Owen Jones, Jeremy Corbyn MP, student leaders and representatives from progressive campaigns and struggles.