Too many students are being asked to survive systems that were never built with them in mind.
These are dire times especially if you are part of a marginalised community. Student life is met with so many financial hurdles and challenges, and marginalised students who are POC, Muslim, disabled and/ or LGBTQ face even greater challenges.
Right now community is more important than ever before. At Goldsmiths we have a diverse student body (with over 40% of students being international students) however there seems to be a limited sense of community. We have over 10,000 students and it is naive to think that everyone knows each other, however I want to make an effort to make sure there are more community events, better education within the campus on liberation issues that face us in the current world and an open line of communication between the Students, SU and Faculty.
We cannot address these issues by stating support for the liberation of marginalised identities without taking meaningful action. Token gestures-such as occasional posters or emails directing students to Wellbeing when they or their families face housing insecurity or homelessness or worse- are not solutions. During recent far-right “protests” in London, the university failed to communicate risks, offer guidance on areas to avoid, or acknowledge the threat to student and staff safety.
This is one example of how clearer communication and proactive protective measures could have supported our community.
There is also a lack of resources for students who have a difficult relationship/lack of access to familial support unless the student is classified as estranged. I will work with the university to figure out ways in which students facing issues can receive better support.
I believe meaningful representation comes from lived experiences. As a neurodivergent Egyptian/Syrian student who has struggled with mental health during my time at Goldsmiths, I understand the challenges of navigating university in these circumstances. It can be isolating, and I want to ensure that no student feels alone and that their voices are heard.
• I will do whatever I can to make sure students that need institutional support from the university due to discrimination and systemic issues get the care they need.
• I will ensure an open line of communication between students and staff students in these liberation categories.
• I will make sure that there is better education on issues students are facing, including discrimination based on race, religion, gender, sexuality, disability and immigration status, as well as mental health, cost-of-living pressures, class inequality, consent and sexual violence, transphobia, and institutional barriers that disproportionately affect marginalised students.
• I am committed to making sure that students’ mental health and wellbeing is better looked after including addressing academic burnout, loneliness/social isolation and also better education on harm reduction/substance misuse (which is inevitable at a university).
• I will and foremost prioritize lived experience and give students an opportunity to educate others on issues that they face in these times via events and workshops whilst also working with A Particular Reality.
I have already set up interventions within the music scene I am involved in by creating an all POC hardcore punk collective that is pro action in order to educate and give a voice to those who feel a lack of representation in the generally white washed music scene, we recently did a community Iftar. I will carry this attitude and hunger for representation onto my work as Welfare and Liberation officer.
Vote Malik for action, accountability and a university that truly shows up for its students.