‘Israeli Apartheid Week’ events face cancellations

The recent cancellation of a number of on-campus events slated to take place as part of ‘Israeli Apartheid Week’ (IAW) appears to presage a significant change in the way institutions are dealing with the issue. A week-long program raising awareness of what its supporters see as ‘settler-colonialism’ in occupied Palestine, IAW activism has seen the […]

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Swastikas on-campus at Cambridge (Update: Swastikas found at other universities)

Update 13/02/2017: Since publication, further reports of swastikas being found on campus have come from students at the University of Exeter and University College London.  Student Rights has learnt from a number of students at the University of Cambridge that a spate of anti-Semitic incidents have been reported at the prestigious university. According to the […]

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Challenging Prevent at UCL

On Wednesday 30th September, Student Rights attended an event at University College London (UCL) entitled ‘Challenging Prevent: Defending our universities, communities and civil liberties’. The event formed part of the NUS’ launch of a Prevent helpline, whose purpose according to leaflets distributed at the event is to “support students and student union officers” and fight […]

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Student Rights on campus

Last week, Student Rights’ National Organiser, Elliot Miller, gave on-campus presentations in Exeter and Leeds focusing on challenging extremism and opening up debate on the Prevent duty. On 23rd November, Miller gave a presentation focused on the myths and realities of the Prevent duty at the University of Exeter Atheist, Humanist and Secular Society (AHS). […]

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NUS disaffiliation campaigns gaining momentum

Yesterday, students at the University of Newcastle overwhelmingly voted to leave the National Union of Students (NUS). This news comes only days after the University of Lincoln Students’ Union announced it was leaving the NUS, after students voted 881 to 804 to leave. These results are a damming indictment of NUS President-elect, Malia Bouattia, whose […]

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Student Rights at the University of Nottingham

Last week, Student Rights’ National Organiser, Gray Sergeant, visited universities across the Midlands, meeting up with students from the University of Nottingham, the University of Leicester and the University of Warwick. On Wednesday evening, Gray spoke at the University of Nottingham Agnostic, Secularist and Humanist (UNASH) about extremism and free speech on campus. Students at […]

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Students plan NUS disaffiliation over presidential vote (Update: Students at more universities raise

Update 22/04/2016: Individual members from student societies across the political spectrum at the University of York (UoY), including the “Labour Club, the York Tories, the UoY Lib Dems, York UKIP, York Greens, PalSoc, York Liberty and York Union”, have announced that they will be working together to write a motion demanding York University Student Union […]

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Right2Debate motion passed at Exeter

Yesterday, the University of Exeter’s Student Union (SU) adopted ‘Right2Debate’, a policy designed to protect free speech while ensuring extreme and intolerant views are challenged. Rather than banning speakers, the policy will require event organisers to balance platforms when speakers who violate the SU’s safe space policies, are invited onto campus. It also requires these […]

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Moazzam Begg challenged at the University of Exeter

Here at Student Rights, we have often highlighted the need to ensure extremists face challenge on-campus, and encourage students to debate speakers with extreme and intolerant views. Unfortunately, this doesn’t happen enough. Unbalanced platforms and hostile environments which suppress views different to the panellists often result in students’ voices being marginalised. On Tuesday, students at […]

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Student Rights at Exeter Debating Society

Last Friday, Student Rights National Organiser Gray Sergeant spoke at the University of Exeter Debating Society on the motion ‘This House Supports No Platform Policies at University’. Here he outlines his opinion on the topic. On being invited to attend this debate, I spoke for the motion despite my increasing frustration with overzealous student unions […]

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