Do you really care?

Do you really care?

Whilst it’s easy to get caught up in the banner waving, slogan shouting populist movement against the proposed increase to tuition fees, does the large turnout at the anti-fees rally earlier this semester mask the fact that students at Queen’s are simply too lazy to actively take any steps to protect their own interests and the interests of their fellow students?

Far too often at events organised at Queen’s over the last number of years, be it by the SU, clubs and societies or even by the university itself, students have consistently show a phenomenal degree of apathy towards the issues which, for probably the only time in their life they can taking a leading role in shaping policy and direction of an important public body (as let’s face it who really expects Stormont to change the world). At far too many events you’re more likely to see a tumbleweed slowly meandering across the room than you are to see students actively engaging in real and meaningful issues.

 For instance at this week’s debate between MLA’s representing the political parties of Northern Ireland students were given first hand an opportunity to talk to the people who shape policy in the areas which most affect us and convey any problems or suggestions which we have to our elected representatives. Even when presented with this golden opportunity most students displayed a remarkable ability to remain indifferent, yet I’m sure these are the same students who were first out of class at the protest against the Browne report. Only it seems that when students can see a tangible impact on their ‘drinking fund’ will they bother to escape the weekly pilgrimage to the Eg, Bot or wherever else to do something meaningful with their limited time at university.

If you take the previous sabbatical elections at Queen’s, to use the VP for Welfare election for example, Adam McGibbon was elected with 1,700 votes.  This represents only 14.7% of the students eligible to vote on QOL, yet it’s almost a certainty that at least 90% of students at Queen’s were on a computer that day, be it their own or at the library etc. This begs the question of why not take only a few minutes out of your life for one day to contribute to your university as opposed to spending hours blankly staring at facebook or some other such meaningless example of modern day crap. Are we really more interested in reading other peoples musings over fleeting social events in contrast to the affairs which have a direct and long lasting impact on all students across campus?

If the movement against fees is to have any sort of legitimacy then action must start from the ground up, and that means students are going to have to spend less time nursing hangovers and spending more time standing up for their beliefs because unless action is taken now future generations will be left with such a heavy financial burden that it will destroy the university experience in its entirety.

And this is not to absolve current and past student representatives from blame for the horrendous degree of political apathy which permeates even faculty at Queen’s. As an example, when contrasting the amount of advertising given to political events with social events (case in point being the odious Harry Potter themed night at the union) then how are students to be encouraged to attend when the important event is being advertised on a small and insignificant black and white poster, lost amidst the inane babble and sickeningly ostentatious posters and flyers which cry out ‘come on and get pissed’. Even the events themselves are examples in how to destroy the momentum built up at a national level, as across Britain students have been repeatedly taking to the streets and staging sit in protests. Contrast this to Queen’s were we had a ‘nice’ civil debate instead, excellent for those who attended but significantly less impactful that the most populace movements of other universities. Whilst I personally enjoyed the political debate, surely with only a matter of weeks to go until the key vote on the fees question (compared with the months such a vote will take in the Assembly), Union representatives should be focused more on engaging students as a show of strength to those in power both in Westminster and Stormont. Although I don’t know exactly why Queen’s utterly failed to stage any type of sit in protest, or any form of protest for that matter, in conjunction with those happening across the UK recently, perhaps the Union representatives should evaluate their positions and see if their allegiances lie with the students they are supposed to represent or maintaining the status quo within the university which has, over successive years bred the apathy which plagues students today.

This isn’t a criticism of student leaders as given the sheer unwillingness of QUB students to participate then it makes their jobs extremely hard. However, to use a football analogy, it is not the crowd who are responsible for how the players perform but the performance of the players which engages the crowd in the game. If the players play poorly, then the crowd goes silent and the drifts to a dull conclusion.

Doubtlessly Queen’s masses of armchair students will be unperturbed by the indifference with which they themselves have become entrapped in, yet these are the people on whom the fate of future generations of university students across the UK are relying upon to oppose the draconian burden which they will have thrust upon them. After looking at the turnout in successive elections, events and general participation in all things student related, the sad truth of the matter is that the post-2012 generation don’t stand a chance.

By Sean Ashford