Year: 2016

“No prospect” of Freedom of Information exemption at universities, says Straw

Written by Charlie Spargo on 1st February 2016. Posted in News.

Former Justice Secretary Jack Straw, currently sitting on the commission reviewing Freedom of Information (FoI) legislation, has said that there is “no prospect” of universities being made exempt.

Straw has said in response to complaints by universities that the playing field needs to be levelled, that extending the legislation to those private institutions competing with mainstream universities could be a better method of ensuring fairness.

Many universities responded to consultation on the government’s Green Paper on education by saying that they supported the exemption of Higher Education institutions, due mainly to the costs of implementing that Act.

Nicola Dandridge, of Universities UK, gave evidence to the commission, stating that universities are “subject to bureaucratic requirements that other players in that market are not,” and that the disclosure of salaries through FoI could discourage good candidates.

“I think our primary point is there should be a level playing field. There is not a desire to lack transparency.

“What we are proposing is that there should be a review as to the application of the act… which takes into account the circumstances of both the private providers and traditional providers.”

She claimed that the implementation of FoI costs institutions an estimated £10 million a year. Straw, on the other hand, put the cost at only £144.93 per request—in other words, “not backbreaking.”

The case for a “level playing field” universities want might be compelling, but there was nothing to convince the commission that exempting universities was necessary.

“I think there is no prospect of this happening.”

The other option would be to “look at whether the private institutions are standing in the shoes of public institutions and should be covered by the Act,” said Straw.

Student media has used the Freedom of Information Act to reveal certain less than honest activities of universities or their staff. Recently, Bristol’s Epigram paper won the Student Publication Association’s FoI award for revealing that the retiring Vice-Chancellor and his wife took a £20,000 two-week trip to Australia and Asia funded by the university.

The Mancunion covered news last year, uncovered by a request submitted by the Fossil Free Campaign, that the University of Manchester retained £40 million in investments in fossil fuel companies.

Manchester 53rd in top 100 LGBT*-friendly workplaces

Written by Merle Streck on 1st February 2016. Posted in News.

The University of Manchester has been ranked 53rd in Stonewall’s top 100 employers for LGBT*-friendly workplaces.

A total of 12 universities were included in the list of Stonewall’s top 100 employers. The Stonewall group evaluates organisations across the country and provides a list compiled from submissions to the Workplace Equality Index in order to ascertain which institutions are the best workplaces for lesbian, gay or bisexual employees. About 400 organizations entered the 2016 Index. As part of the evaluation, employers are assessed on ten areas of employment practices in which 50,000 employees take part in a survey about gay-friendly policies in the workplace.

Ruth Hunt, Chief Executive at Stonewall, announced in the report that the Workplace Equality Index is taking significant steps in becoming more trans-inclusive: “Through consultation, feedback and gathering best practice, we’re developing a great sense of trans experiences in the workplace which will only continue to grow, and we’re fully committed to helping you drive trans-inclusion in your organisation.”

Responding to this recent development of the Work Place Equality Index becoming more trans-inclusive, Claudia Carvell, who currently works at the LGBT Foundation and finished her postgraduate studies at the University of Manchester in September 2015, says: “Whilst Stonewall’s 2016 report states that the ‘Top 100’ index has taken the ‘first steps to becoming trans inclusive,’ there’s inconsistency throughout the survey criteria as to whether it refers to inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT), or whether this is just about lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) inclusion.

“This is key because on a whole, trans and bisexual people tend to experience high levels of discrimination, both inside and outside of the LGBT community.”

The Security Service MI5 was awarded Employer of the Year 2016 and has moved from 134th place to first place within six years. Out of the 12 universities, Cardiff University was placed 20th on the list, followed by Swansea University on 36th place, Teeside (44th), Birmingham (50th) and Essex University a joint 53rd with the University of Manchester.

Carvell also comments on Manchester’s listing as a “gay-friendly” university: “It is definitely positive that attention is being paid to how inclusive workplaces are and that universities are being included in the ‘Top 100’.

“From my personal experience as an undergrad and postgrad student at the University of Manchester, I definitely believe that the University of Manchester deserves to be on the list—many of the staff I had the pleasure of being taught by were openly non-heterosexual and all of the staff—both academic and otherwise—that I ‘came out’ to in one way or another, were accepting.

“Throughout my degrees, I also worked as a University of Manchester member of staff in a bar on the Fallowfield campus: I was ‘out’ the entire time and felt completely supported by my colleagues.

“I think the work being done by the Equality and Diversity department and the LGBT staff network contribute significantly to the inclusive nature of the University of Manchester for staff and, by extension, students. On top of that, Manchester is a more ‘gay-friendly’ city than many other places across the UK—largely due to the sense of community enabled by Canal Street and the volume of LGBT voluntary and community sector organisations we have to choose from.”

In her statement to The Mancunion, Natasha Brooks, the University of Manchester Students’ Union Diversity Officer, said: “It’s fantastic to learn that the university has been placed within the ‘Top 100 Employers’ again and that the score has increased this year.

“It is important that this acknowledgement is recognised and I hope that the university continues to take an active approach to address the ongoing issues that both LGB staff and students face as there is still a significant amount of work to be done. Furthermore, it is particularly promising to hear that Stonewall is working to include gender identity criteria.”

Nonetheless, according to Carvell, there is still progress to be made: “Anyone that works in this field knows there’s still a long way to go. Just tune in to the campaigns and debates happening across campus regarding the need to diversify our curriculum, our staff network and our student cohort—something that can only really occur if there is a genuine commitment towards equalising opportunities. Additionally, it’s important not to conflate the idea of being ‘gay-friendly’ with actually being inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people.”

The news of the university’s ranking within Stonewall’s top 100 employers comes conveniently in time for the LGBT history month in February, with events across the UK dedicated to challenging homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. The 2016 National Festival of LGBT History Conference will take place between the 25th and 28th of February and will take place on the campuses of both the University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University.

A University of Manchester spokesperson said: “Each year it gets harder to get into the Stonewall Top 100, so for the University of Manchester to have again made the list is a tremendous testament to our welcoming environment and the hard work of our ALLOUT LGBT Staff Network Group in compiling the index submission and carrying out many other activities which contribute to equality and diversity on campus.”

Re-bunking the myths of veganism

Written by Jessica Chow-Lau on 1st February 2016. Posted in Features.

1) Aren’t humans meant to eat meat?

We are omnivores by evolution. When the ancestors of modern humans began consuming meat 2.6 million years ago, the size of their brains increased. The evolving of the organ that differentiates humans from other organisms is closely associated with meat’s rich nourishment and the complicated act of hunting. Harvard biological anthropologist Richard Wrangham agrees that hunting and cooking food is what transformed ancient genes to current ones. Calorie-dense food made our brains grow and supplied the appropriate energy to spread our genes. Our ability to consume a wide variety of Earth’s bounty ensures that extinction is never a threat. Because hunting and cooking requires co-operation, eating meat socialised us and led to the origins of today’s societies. Humans’ omnivorous quality is one of our greatest survival advantages.

2) What is actually wrong with farming animals?

There is nothing wrong with farming animals as long as the animal does not suffer. I doubt that anyone would defend factory farming and agribusiness’s horrific way of raising livestock. But the proliferation of sustainable farms that treat animals with respect from birth to death make eating meat an ethical possibility. A free range cow that turns nutritionally insignificant grass and sunlight into condensed calories is a far cleaner option than fossil fuel powered tractors harvesting soy for heavily processed, soy based, vegan friendly products.

3) But what about health? Is it true that vegans are nutritionally deficient?

Human nutrition is a complicated thing. This is how companies can make so much money selling dubious health products to the public. A diet that will give one person continuous energy will give someone else a headache. What should be eaten for optimal living will vary from person to person. The one recommendation all physicians give is to have a balanced diet. Even pro-vegan Dr. Joel Fuhrman believes that running on a 100 per cent vegan diet can result in “suboptimal levels” of nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA, iodine, and zinc.

The myth that red meat and animal fat cause cardiovascular diseases is based on the 1953 Keys study that actually shows no causation between the two and has led us defenceless against the true culprit: sugar.

Just like subsisting on meat alone is foolish, so is the belief that vegetables are unquestionably healthy. Like any living thing, plants have defense systems against predators. Plants naturally produce poisons without the aid of applied chemicals (pesticides). They are not sentient beings, but like animals, they are biologically inclined to stay alive and perpetuate their species. For this reason, raw cabbages like broccoli, cauliflower, and kale contain compounds that—if not counterbalanced with enough iodine—could lead to hypothyroidism, slowing hormone production. Eating spinach for the sake of attaining iron will only be possible after the vegetable is cooked. Spinach contains oxalic acid, and when eaten raw, will combine with the plant’s iron to form a molecule too big for humans to digest. The acid is denatured when the vegetable is cooked—which we can then eat in order to obtain iron.

Studies have not concluded whether the health difference between a whole foods based diet that includes a small amount of meat, or a vegan diet is significant enough to advocate one over the other.

4) Surely we can still eat meat if it can be done more humanely?

No food is completely free of death. While unintentional, the accidental killing of small animals in fields used for cultivated plants does occur. Oregon State agricultural scientist Steven L. Davis calculates that the number of small animals killed to grow crops is high enough to justify using more land to raise large ruminants rather than edible plants. If veganism is chosen on the basis of overall suffering, one has to consider that there would be less pain if large mammals were also eaten. Davis concludes: “Humans may be morally obligated to consume a diet from plant-based plus pasture-forage-ruminant systems.”

Whilst many of us are at least familiar with the word “halal”, its strict killing procedures should be mentioned. A small prayer is said as a reminder to give thanks before a sharp knife makes a deep incision into the trachea and jugular vein (front of the throat) for the quickest death possible. An animal must never watch the slaughtering of another animal and the sharpening of the knife must never be done within the animal’s sight. Halal meat does not exist in the same domain as a factory farm as the abhorrent conditions do not comply with the stress-free experience that animals must have before dying. Though difficult to stomach, knowing where our food comes from is crucial to fully appreciating our meal.

That being said, there is an option that does not involve any animal giving up its life. New Harvest is a non-profit organization spearheading the field of cellular agriculture. They are in the process of developing milk, egg white, and meat products in vitro (cell culture) rather than from an animal. Because cells are capable of multiplying in nutrient-rich environments, they can be taken from live farm animals without the act of killing. But not all mediums need to include animals. In biomedical research, most cell cultures have been made using animal blood. Taking it one step further, their researchers are now using sources like plants and micro-organisms to grow cells. Isolated cells are immersed in nutrients, allowing them to multiply and increase their protein content. Resulting cells will be used just like a boneless, skinless, chicken breast; or if you prefer, sausage, hamburger, or chicken nuggets. Cultured meat is analogous to how bread, cheese, yoghurt, and wine are made: they all involve processing ingredients derived from natural sources. Muufri milk and Clara Foods egg whites are estimated to be on the market within the next few years.

5) So what about plants that are living organisms too?

Plants are not sentient, and neither are sea molluscs (oysters and mussels). For some animals, what it means to feel pleasure and pain cannot be reduced to a yes or no answer. But sessile bivalves (organisms that are unable to move and simply open and close their shells) have such simple nervous systems that while pain might be registered, they are unable to differentiate good from bad stimuli. Since they filter out excess nitrogen, mollusk cultivation improves water quality and has a minimally negative (no) impact on their ecosystems. There exists a philosophical road for when any animal’s pain becomes our understanding of pain—it just does not involve oysters and mussels.

We bring these animals into existence. Without us they would have no life.

The suffering of animals is wrong, there is no debate about that. When animals die in the most ideal ways however, we have to consider that the farmers are helping them continue on their species, caring for their young, and giving them a life where they would not have to worry about predators. It involves more than just their death. There are a couple things we should reflect on before that final moment of killing. Do we agree that the moral choice of doing the greatest good for the greatest number of people is right in this situation? Are we willing to divide the world into what is worthy of being sparred the inevitable and what is not worthy? Each person needs to recognize that their meat came from an animal that had to be killed. Animals can willingly and knowingly walk into the slaughterhouse themselves, but it all comes down to those final moments. Death comes to all of us, it’s just a matter of how and when it comes.

6) How does veganism help the environment and humanity?

The idea that meat production is to blame for climate change is false. As the gold standard of global warming monitors, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has said in 2006 that emissions from all of farming (tractors, agrochemical production, tillage, etc.) was 10 per cent to 12 per cent of global emissions. As of 2014, the UN Environmental Program asserts that the number for all of agriculture is 11 percent—with cattle being a small percentage of that. World agricultural carbon dioxide emissions result from clear cutting of woods, or deforestation. Brazil—the country experiencing the most deforestation—has their tropical forests cut to make way for soybean fields. These are then shipped for food products and animal feed. But since cattle are mostly raised on grass, farmers and ranchers buy no soy and cannot be blamed for these emissions. According to the Organic Consumers Association, soybeans from Brazil can be traced to tofu and soy milk sold in American supermarkets.

Zimbabwean ecologist and environmentalist Allan Savory’s Holistic Grazing theory suggests that ruminants (antelope, bison, cows) create healthy grasslands when they are kept in groups and are moved from place to place—by naturally digging up grass and leaving manure. According to Savory, this allows grasslands to thrive, preventing the erosion of topsoil. Their nutrient-rich manure promotes deeper root growth of grasses, absorbing and retaining water and carbon dioxide. Moving these herds would require cowboys, bringing jobs to the farm country.

As factory farming hurts the Earth, so does destructive agricultural practices that hurt the land. Irresponsible practices can be replaced with perennial polyculture. This means that plants wouldn’t need to be replanted every year (preventing erosion), and multiple crops would be planted in the same area. Benefits of polyculture include (but is not limited to) a reduced susceptibility to disease, leading to the decreased use of pesticides, and increased biodiversity in said area. When vegans simply blame the meat industry for environmental problems, they are drawing attention away from more pressing issues within their own community.

Livestock provide critical food and cash for the global poor, many of whom live in places where plant crops cannot be grown. And in terms of helping humanity, migrant workers picking vegans’ fruits and vegetables under harsh circumstances render their claims for having a lower carbon footprint fallacious.

7) How much difference can the actions of one person really make?

Each of us can make some difference. Our generation was raised on that belief and it’s especially pertinent now that we can make our own choices. If vegans (or anyone) are telling people to vote with pounds through consumption choices, people will think that is all that is required of them. The public will believe that by just switching brands or watering their lawn less, it will help our environmental situation. Just being a vegan—while nice—is not enough to change public policy. Vegans are not entitled to the claim that their lifestyle helps the environment, the economy, animals, humanity, or (unless prescribed) their own health. The only thing vegans can affirm is that they perceive death differently from us.

Vagina Monologues: Preview

Written by Jennifer Sterne on 1st February 2016. Posted in News.

The Students’ Union Women’s Campaign are once again presenting a production of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues, every night a 7:30pm from the 8th – 10th February. The production will take place in Academy 3 in the Students’ Union.

The Vagina Monologues is based on Eve Ensler’s ‘vagina interviews’ conducted with 200 women from across the world, gathering their tales and giving a voice to each of their individual experiences as women.

Each monologue aims to take on part of the feminine experience, covering subjects such as sex, love, rape, menstruation, female genital mutilation, masturbation, birth and the common names for the vagina. The running theme of the monologues is how the vagina can be a tool for female empowerment and how it embodies feminine individuality.

Jess Lishak, Women’s Officer of the Students’ Union, told The Mancunion that they decided to run another production this year due to the “huge success of last year’s production.”

Tickets are £5 each, with all proceeds going to help fund the student support worker set up at Manchester Rape Crisis to provide specialist counselling to women students who have experienced sexual violence.

Manchester Rape Crisis (MRC) is a confidential support service for women who have been raped or sexually abused.

Last year’s event sold out in hours, so they’ve added an extra night and increased capacity to ensure more people have the opportunity to see it this time around.

There will also be new monologues written by the cast members as well, so if you were able to see it last year, it is definitely still worth coming again.

Tickets can be bought at the Student Union reception or through their website. For any enquiries or specific access needs, email [email protected].

This play comes with trigger warnings for discussions of rape and transphobia

Review: The Danish Girl

Written by Leah Slater-Radway on 1st February 2016. Posted in Film.

In the past year we’ve seen transgender issues feature prevalently in the news (Caitlyn Jenner’s Vanity Fair cover, just to name the most obvious), and The Danish Girl marks a more serious focus on one of the early pioneers of gender reassignment surgery, Lili Elbe.

We meet Einar (Eddie Redmayne) and Gerda Wegener (Alicia Vikander) living as husband and wife in a rather symbolically bare, grey apartment in Copenhagen. It’s his wife, Gerda, who in the film is seen to almost spark Einar’s desire to explore his inner femininity, when he willingly accepts her request to fill in as a life model in a portrait of a dancer. The ensuing scene showing Einar learning how to properly put on a pair of stockings and ballet shoes is acted gracefully by Redmayne, with the focus on his spectrum of facial expressions, and hands tracing the outline of the dancer’s dress, drawing you into the complexity of the character’s emotions.

A large part of the film from here focuses on the pair developing the character of ‘Lili’—finding her the right wig, makeup and clothes, and taking her out to various social events under the disguise of her being Einar’s cousin.

Gerda is portrayed through Vikander’s performance as a dominant, sexually-adventurous spouse who seems quite turned on by her husband’s desire to be Lili more and more, and charts her progression from accepting to helping Einar become who he believes he truly is. She goes on to paint a series of provocative (and sometimes nude) portraits of Lili, which sees her success as an artist climb, and the pair consequently move to the city of grace and femininity itself, 1920s Paris. It was testament to director Tom Hooper’s focus on imagery that the couple’s matrimonial home went from the dark, empty Copenhagen apartment, to a vibrant and open Parisian dwelling, where Lili lives more freely.

The experiences of both characters coming to terms with the fact that Lili is here to say is what presumably has set Vikander and Redmayne up with notability and nominations. Redmayne manages to tackle Einar’s struggle with embracing femininity in a controlled and soft manner. Particularly noteworthy is the scene seeing Einar strip down naked in front of a mirror, as he comes to terms with who he really is and what he thus needs to change of his appearance. Redmayne’s performance focused on Lili’s development of ‘feminine’ body language, with a lot of coy smiles, face-framing and hand-twisting. And whilst I think he tackled an obviously difficult role in a gracious manner, I found the incessant focus on Lili’s smile (etc.) a tad overdone.

One of the most poignant moments in the film is where the couple begins talks with an innovative surgeon on undergoing what was then experimental sex reassignment surgery. “I believe I am a woman,” Lili proclaims to the doctor. “I believe it too,” Gerda supports.

This begins to highlight the importance of Gerda in Lili’s transitioning, making Vikander’s role highly significant and in my view, more resonating than that of Redmayne’s.

Overall, The Danish Girl isn’t a film I’ll necessarily be eager to watch again (but then again no films where I can’t really connect with the characters will top my ‘must re-watch’ list)… Nonetheless, the acting and cinematography is beautiful; however, the film probably doesn’t do justice in its drama of the soul-searching to the struggles that I’m sure the real Gerda and Lili faced.

3/5

Pursuing a healthier version of yourself this year?

Written by Eva Katz on 1st February 2016. Posted in Lifestyle.

Provided that you’ve been making the most of home cooking, free alcohol and a lengthy distance between you and your uni gym, you’ll probably be embarking second semester with a little poor cushion for the pushin’. But never fear, Student Shred is here. Set up by a student for students, the company’s founder Tom Burns understands the strains and struggles that student life puts on the body and caters this first-hand knowledge into amazing advice for his clients, and for you lucky readers.

Let’s not kid ourselves, a run in the freezing Manchester rain isn’t an overly appetizing thought. So you’ll be relishing at the news from Tom that cardio really isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. Instead, he recommends weight and resistance training. For women, this may seem a little daunting, especially to those who’d rather not emerge from the gym resembling Arnold Schwarzenegger, but Tom asserts that muscle training is actually the key to achieving the curves and shape that so many strive to achieve. However, Tom is also a big advocate of the more unusual forms of cardiovascular exercise. Take sex, for example. Apart from feeling pretty darn good, Tom asserts that it will not only “lower stress” and “increase confidence”, but your sex drive will also increase and thus, your performance, too. Not to mention the increased flexibility…

For those who want to burn fat, Tom asserts that “nutrition accounts for 80% and training 20%”. No matter how much you train, if you’re eating badly you’re unlikely to achieve the chiselled body you desire. So if you’re a student who has chosen not to add cooking to your list of life skills, then this could be a bit of a wake up call. Tom is big on cooking and counts it as an essential part of achieving optimum fitness on a student budget. To those with untrained taste buds, many super foods may seem like tasteless, vile and expensive things unlikely to grace your store cupboard in the near future. But with the right knowledge, Tom asserts that eating healthy doesn’t have to break the bank and can taste good, too. There’s no need to completely sacrifice those post-exam booze binges and cheeky Chicken King meal deals. Tom admits that “your favourite wine or alcohol may not be the right choice” but advises spirits with non-carbonated drinks as a healthier alternative. For combating a hangover, he recommends consuming a nutritious meal prior to your night out and regularly drinking water in between drinks.

There is a popular belief that carbs are bad. But in reality, they’ve just been given a bad name by a select few. They’re essential to maintaining healthy energy levels, especially if you’re exercising regularly. But which carbs are good and which ones are not?! Well, that all depends on their glucose levels. The glycemic index categorises carbs in the order of how fast they release glucose into the blood. High glycemic foods such as bread, sugar, honey and chocolate (and basically every other food that’s too tasty to be good for you) are BAD. Not so bad for you are the foods belonging to the medium category: pasta, white rice, fruit and potatoes. The best of the bunch however are the low glycemic foods which include: nuts, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, sweet potatoes, vegetables and oats.

So now you know what to eat and how to train, but fat loss isn’t solely dependant on food and training—particularly if you’re female. Sleep, hormonal cycles, stretching and motivation are all major factors. So sleepless nights from either partying, last minute revision or essay prep could be more damaging than you thought. The trick is to get into a routine. But don’t be too hard on yourself— as with all things in life, it’s all about balance. A social life is also of great importance, but it’s not all about big nights out and sharing a Domino’s pizza. Try and integrate your new active lifestyle into your social life—go cycling, walking, or join a class with a friend. Ultimately, there’s no need for a triad of unattainable New Year’s resolutions, but instead, a single aim to pursue a healthier version of yourself this year.

If however, you’re in need of a little extra inspiration, then why not try out Student Shred? Tom offers nutrition and exercise programmes catered around student living’s needs and expectations, as well as budget!

For more information, contact Tom Burns on: [email protected], or visit his website: www.studentshred-co-uk.com

Interview: Jeffrey Lewis

Written by Henry Scanlan on 1st February 2016. Posted in Music.

Since first hitting the so-called “anti-folk” circuit in 1997, Jeffrey Lewis has been staking his place as a fringe icon with a steady drip of lovingly crafted records and comics. The man described by Jarvis Cocker as “the best lyricist working in the US today” has always been honest and open as a songwriter, and equally so as an interviewee. But when we fired over a few questions via email to the New York folk hero recently, we could hardly have expected the brilliant 3,000-word manifesto he fired right back. What followed is essentially a Jeffrey Lewis guide to reconciling dignity and success as a modern musician.

You seem to have been able to attain and maintain a position of neither scary superstardom nor commercial failure. Is this the perfect level of success?

In many ways it seems to be a good place to be, much better than being overexposed and over-rated. I feel like I’ve still got a long way to go before everybody’s tired of me, because most people have never heard of me, that’s a very different position to be in than somebody who has already gotten a lot of press exposure, magazine covers, TV appearances, all of that stuff, I feel like once an artist gets that level of exposure it’s sort of like you’ve had your day, and everything you do after that can be viewed as some sort of decline. So you’re better off with a very slow climb, rather than a quicker climb, which could lead to a drop. Actually none of that stuff matters at all, the only thing that matters is touching something, reaching something, artistically, that generates the spark of excitement and discovery that makes something great. You have to constantly leave your comfort zone to get to that place; so if your comfort zone gets too comfortable it’s harder to challenge yourself to be great.

Have you ever had the option of ‘selling out’? And is that an unthinkable thing for you to do?

Depends what you mean, I do remember in 2001 when Rough Trade offered me that first album contract, just to put out The Last Time I Did Acid I Went Insane, to make a CD of songs from my tapes, and pay me a $1,000 advance, and have the CD come out in stores on the Rough Trade label, that seemed like a step into the “commercial” music world that I was unsure of taking. I considered not doing it, keeping my musical path completely separate from the world of labels and distribution, and just sticking with recording my songs on to cassettes and selling them for $3 at my gigs the way I always had, very cheap and very home-made, and then leave the rest of it to pure word-of-mouth, that seemed purer and more natural.

In retrospect, I think the decision to work with Rough Trade forced me to up my level of quality. The awareness that more people were listening forced me to stop messing around as much and start giving myself a higher standard of quality. Prior to that I was much more of a mess, the recordings were sometimes unlistenably low-fidelity, and the live concerts were more full of unrehearsed songs. I didn’t even have a tuning pedal for my guitar in those early years. I’d spend so much time on stage being out of tune or trying to re-tune my guitar, stuff like that. So that first “sell out” of putting stuff out on Rough Trade was probably a good thing for me. Artistically, it made me place higher value on what I was doing, and try not to mess up as much. But other than that, I have no interest in commercializing my material.

So I’m guessing you wouldn’t let your songs be used in adverts?

I don’t need the money! I’m able to pay rent and eat and buy some records, so why would I want to let my songs be used to sell somebody else’s ideas other than my own? I’ve turned down various offers from commercial interests, stuff for car commercials or jeans, I try to avoid that stuff in any way that I can. It’s crazy that even at my tiny level you get pounced on as a potential billboard.

When you play some little festival you get an email like “Every performer playing at this festival gets a free pair of this particular brand of jeans! All you have to do is tell us your size, and wear the jeans on stage during your set, and you can keep them!” And I’m like, what is this? Am I a homeless naked person walking around wearing a barrel? Do I have to go through the humiliation of being somebody’s sandwich board just for the sake of me getting a pair of pants? First of all, I already have pants, and if I want another pair of pants I can just buy them. Second of all, you want me to advertise your stuff for you and you’re not even offering to pay me? You expect me to be so grateful just for the chance to own a free pair of of pants that I’ll pimp your product for you?

It’s crazy how people just take for granted that you are supposed to be excited about advertising any random product they throw at you. Even when it’s some higher-budget car commercial thing, I just don’t need it. Of course, if I really needed the money, or if somebody I loved was sick and I needed to money to pay for their treatment or something, then it would be a different discussion, there might actually BE a discussion. But without actually needing it, there’s no reason to even enter into a discussion about it. I don’t hold it against artists to do this stuff—The Fall is one of my favourite bands and there have been commercials that use their music, but they probably needed the money, or whatever, I don’t know, it’s not any of my business really. It doesn’t affect my love for the band. It’s a personal decision. I’m lucky that I’ve been in a position where I can afford to just stand on a high-horse and spout off about this, maybe later in my life things might change and I won’t feel so casual about pointing fingers and yapping.

How has Manhattan changed over the years that you’ve been there, and how do you feel about it?

All cities change over time, and when you’re 20 and you realize your city is a lot different from how it was when you were 10, you feel indignant about it, and you complain a lot. But by the time you’re 30, and you realize it isn’t even the same as it was when you were 20 or 25, you start to realize this is just the constant process of change that happens everywhere, all the time. You could talk to somebody in San Francisco, Berlin, Dublin, Beijing, Tel Aviv, Manchester—everybody would have similar complaints. There is basically zero chance that you could ever find a city anywhere on earth where people wouldn’t have similar complaints, over a similar period of time.

I don’t mean to suggest a pure fatalism, because there are things that are worth organizing and fighting to preserve. I don’t believe in the “invisible corrective hand of capitalism” or the “democracy of the free market” or self-serving rich-person ideological crap like that. There is definitely a tremendous value in having tenant’s organizations and historical preservations and zoning laws and rent regulations and a whole lot of other protections for people and neighbourhoods and families and small businesses. I would much rather see strong regulations for all of that stuff, and fight for better laws and protections for that, rather than just throw up my hands and say “oh well, things change, don’t complain about it.”

How’s the music scene in Manhattan these days? And more generally what are you listening to?

I don’t listen to much modern stuff, in general. I can’t hear most modern performers as artists, I just hear them as business people. It doesn’t matter how good the band is. I know too much about the machinations behind the music, and I know how over-thought their recording process is, how much they are second-guessing what they think would be successful. I know how much their stage-show is a pre-scripted theatrical piece based on a set-list that they play basically exactly the same way every night, with a sound engineer who knows what song is coming next and what levels to adjust the sound to in order to have it sound the way it does on the album.

Isn’t that a little pessimistic?

I can’t help it! I can just picture them in negotiations about what kind of commercials their music needs to sound good for, or how to master their album so that the sound quality is good enough to potentially be included in a movie soundtrack or a video game. I don’t look around me and see anybody I can believe in as an artist.

The motives are so petty to me. In fact, the motives look petty to me even if it’s a band of hedonists, who don’t care about business but just care about getting drunk and getting laid. It’s very rare that I get a sense that somebody is aiming at some kind of higher creative star in the sky, something that I can emotionally feel like devoting myself to. If somebody is successful it basically already rules them out as somebody I can believe in.

I know that’s a pathetic standard because it makes me sound like a curmudgeon. But the best concerts I’ve seen are usually the small ones, the act playing at an open mic who blows my mind because she’s playing her song live for the third time and not the three-hundredth time, the band recording made by a band who has no idea what mastering is, etc., etc.

This is not to say that there’s no such thing as a well-crafted piece of brilliant art, made by a brilliant visionary artist, who is also able to be smart and successful and aware of how to conduct themselves in the world of business. But it’s not the norm. That was a very long answer and not even quite on topic! You’ve caught me in a ranting mood. I’m probably just ranting on and on because I’m procrastinating on other work I need to do today so I’m stretching out this interview.

Was Manhattan a quick record to write and produce or was it a long time in the making? Do you prefer your albums to be spontaneous and imperfect, or careful and laboured over?

Manhattan was about 15 days of work to record, but stretched out over about 6 months, and that was a very good process, allowing me to think quite a bit about what I was doing. But the previous album Jeffrey Lewis & the Jrams was done in one single day, and in general I think too many albums are thought about too much nowadays, it’s much harder to do an album without thinking. Everybody has too much opportunity to re-think and over-think.

I think an album should be perfect either way—either perfectly off-the-cuff and carelessly constructed, or perfectly thought-out and carefully constructed. It’s that vast middle-ground where it’s not enough of one side or the other, that’s when you end up with a mediocre album, and that’s what too much stuff ends up as.

Are you a better musician now than you’ve ever been before?

I’ve gone up and down. I’m definitely way way better now than I was when my first albums were coming out, but I’m probably not at my peak now because I think I was better during times when I was touring more relentlessly. There are finger-picking patterns and guitar solo stuff that I can’t do now as well as I know I could do them at certain points in the past, but it seems to come and go.

It’s the same with my art: when I’m drawing a lot I’ve got sharper skills, and then if I don’t draw as much I have to fight my way back up to the higher levels I was at before. In general I think you keep getting better at stuff the more you do it.

Over 15 or so years in the ‘biz, have you seen a lot of other musicians/artists around you give up and find new jobs? Were you ever close to doing the same?

Every time I make an album I feel like it’s the last one, because I don’t have any good stuff left over, and I can’t imagine how I could ever write another song, and I despair, then I write ten stupid songs over the next year and nothing is worth holding on to and I despair more and feel convinced that I’m cooked.

Then somehow I end up on the other side eventually, with new material that I feel great about, and excited about, and I feel better than ever. Maybe one day that will stop happening, and then I’ll just rot away and come to a halt when I’m tired of the old songs and not excited about the new songs. I hope not.

Kudos to Nudo

Written by Eva Katz on 1st February 2016. Posted in Food & Drink.

Nudo greets its punters (largely made up of suited and booted professionals, looking for a bite on-the-go) with a front resembling pre-assembled food giant, Pret A Manger. The wall is adorned with lines of soup tubs and a colourful assortment of sushi boxes; so enticing that they would leave a sushi lover feeling like a child in a sweet shop. The queue snakes almost to the door; Oxford Road’s Nudo is clearly a popular lunchtime haunt for many.

Astonishingly reasonable prices are the wasabi on the California roll here. But there’s a catch; the usual Japanese adornments one would expect to find within reach on their table come at a price. You do of course, get a small sample of soy and wasabi in your Nudo box, but for those who enjoy the Airwaves-like sensation of wasabi to be mellowed by the sweet and sour tang of pickled ginger, there will be a charge for the privilege. In consideration of the deliciously low price tag on the sushi boxes themselves, one really cannot complain; after all, good sushi is not the cheapest lunchtime treat.

Fast food is the game in this restaurant and, as such, the setting is a little cold and oddly unwelcoming to those who might wish to eat in. For those who wish to grab and go, the service is quick and efficient and the place has the air of sophistication and cleanliness that instils a sense of confidence into the quality of your meal; though the cool blue interior is not the place you want to stay in for a leisurely green tea for hours on end.

That’s not to say, however, that the sushi is anything less than flavourful morsels of seafood and rice combos. Cool, fresh fish on a base of sticky white rice, the nigiri hit the spot. What’s more, their combinations are endless, ranging from vegetarian to swordfish for the more experienced. Alternatives such as the King Prawn Miso Soup Ramen are plentiful, and considerably filling for their rather unobtrusive price.

For food on the go, Nudo is a fresh Eastern alternative, good enough to tear you away from that dull sandwich lingering in your lunchbox. But for those who wish to enjoy their sushi at leisure, take out is recommended to allow you ample opportunity to appreciate good sushi in comfort.

Pangaea recovery

Written by Eva Katz on 31st January 2016. Posted in Lifestyle.

There’s always a comedown of sorts from Panagaea, from the vibrant transformation of our dreary university, to the lack of constant euphoria. But starting the New Year, still mourning the end of the university’s finest festival is frankly not ideal.

Get up

Although your body and mind may be in a state of fatigue, emerging from your stinky bedroom is advisable. Honestly, there’s only so much mindless television you can watch until your brain just doesn’t comprehend it anymore.

Go for a walk

The gym may not be a good idea, unless you consider staring at a weight stack—wondering what it was you intended to do with them for about half an hour into your so-called exercise. A walk, on the other hand, is far more manageable—wrap up warm and take in the fresh winter air.

Watch a childhood classic

Whether you’re a Disney lover, a Harry Potter fan or even a Lord Of The Rings buff. Let’s face it, these fictional worlds are often a fine alternative to the harsh reality of the day after.

Get social

Wallowing alone in self pity is never a good idea. The joy of having housemates are the hungover recollections of the night before in the most comfortable room in the house.

Eat up

Although your stomach may be oddly silent for once, don’t be fooled—food is still needed for you to get through this already difficult day.

Make it fruity

A natural sugar high and some vitamins will give you the boost you need to wash off any stubborn face paint.

Students for Europe launches nationally and locally

Written by Marcus Johns on 29th January 2016. Posted in News.

With the EU referendum fast approaching, students across the country have set up the Students for Europe campaign within the wider European Movement organisation.

On Saturday 20th of February, the Students for Europe campaign will be launched at an event in London, where NUS President Megan Dunn and Young European Movement President Susi Navara will speak to activists whilst training will be provided by Britain Stronger in Europe, NUS, and Universities UK.

Students for Europe is a cross-party organisation that aims to galvanise students into action, ahead of the referendum. Moreover Universities UK, which represents vice-chancellors across the UK, has decided to openly campaign for the UK to remain in the EU.

The Manchester Students for Europe campaign has been formed under the national Students for Europe umbrella. The campaign will be campaigning at universities across Greater Manchester, working with student campaign groups and student branches of political parties.

The local group is further planning events in collaboration with the University of Manchester and MMU’s Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence, an interdisciplinary forum in the School of Social Sciences for the promotion of research and teaching about Europe.

Clifford Fleming, Campaign Director at European Movement, told The Mancunion: “The European referendum will be one of the biggest decisions for our generation. Students for Europe is a collective of activists across the country making the case that being inside the EU is better for our rights, our jobs, our freedom of movement, the environment, for international peace and our future.

“We’ll be mobilising student groups across the country in the lead up to the referendum and we want you to get involved. Students overwhelming favour being in the EU, and we need your help to share our voice.”

Inquest records suicide at University of Salford over grades

Written by Marcus Johns on 29th January 2016. Posted in News.

A student at the University of Salford in Greater Manchester died after being disappointed with her second year grades and grieving the death of her great-aunt, an inquest has found.

Samantha MacDonald, 20, was studying Human Biology and Infectious Diseases at the University of Salford and lived in John Lester Court Halls of Residence. She was from Dukinfield near Ashton-under-Lyne in Tameside, Greater Manchester.

Samantha jumped from her bedroom window, 120 feet from the ground, after a night out with her friends in Manchester’s Gay Village, where they were turned away from AXM Club for being too drunk. They returned to their flat, and went into their rooms at around 4am. At 5:40am, Samantha was found outside where campus security unsuccessfully attempted to resuscitate her.

The medical examiner recorded that Samantha had 206 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millimetres of blood—just over two and a half times above the legal limit for driving.

At the inquest into her death, police revealed they had found a diary in which she had listed her likes, her dislikes, and her dreams in life. She intended to pursue a PhD and “make a difference” in the world by curing diabetes. After receiving a 2:2 in her second year exams, it appears that she had felt that she could no longer achieve her goals.

She had written notes to her family, which police found in Samantha’s bedroom and Police Coroner’s Officer Alison Park said that the handwriting may have been affected by the amount of alcohol she had consumed that night. Police also recorded that she had searched for ‘funeral songs’ on Google at 5:39am.

Shortly before she took her own life, Samantha’s great-aunt died; it is said that Samantha was very close to her. Along with her disappointment in her grades, the inquest believes that Samantha had entered a bout of undiagnosed depression.

The inquest heard that she had not requested help for her mental health issues from her GP or the university’s counselling service.

The inquest recorded her death as a suicide, Coroner Jennifer Leeming added: “”One way of looking at the consumption of alcohol is that it was a way of giving her the courage to perform the act she had in mind.

“I can imagine there is no greater pain than the loss of a child.”

Samantha’s father, Stephen MacDonald, spoke at the inquest, saying: “Sammy was very focused at university and really wanted to get a first. She did extremely well during her first year and was just short of the mark she needed for a first. She did well in her coursework but seemed to struggle during exams.

“After second year, she got a 2:2 which really knocked her confidence.

“As far as we were aware she was very focused on completing her degree and working in science afterwards. We were so proud that she was making new friends and a life and a future for herself at university.

“I now think she did commit suicide. In one letter she says she had written the letter 100 times. I don’t know if she intended doing this at the start of the night but maybe the reason she got drunk is maybe to go through with it.

“One of the letters said she had been hiding her depression from us.”

If you need confidential support or advice, you can contact Nightline, whose number can be found on the back of your student card or contact the University of Manchester’s counselling service on 0161 275 2864

The British obsession with Higher Education needs to stop

Written by Luke Williams on 29th January 2016. Posted in Opinion.

The recent move by David Cameron to abolish maintenance grants for university students has led many to suggest that universities have made it more difficult for prospective students from poorer backgrounds to attend. The grants will be replaced by repayable loans, meaning graduates will be leaving uni with even more debt. The money will still be available for those who need it and the social stigma towards those who don’t attend university will continue to feed young school-leavers into the Higher Education realm. However, the prospect of an increasing amount of debt will not change this.

The current situation in the UK is the idea that everyone who finishes Sixth Form or college should go to university and those who don’t will be limited in their career. This needs to stop.

A lot of young people are sold down the river by the promise that university will be a guarantee of a well-paid job. This is simply not true and many students only realise this once the rose-tinted glasses of adolescence have been crushed by graduate prospects. Many students lack interest in their degree and can’t wait for it to finish. 8.2 per cent of students drop out before finishing their course. This is likely as a result of the ill-prepared decision to jump onto the university bandwagon.

For one, attending university in England is more expensive than anywhere else in the world. This is because all degrees are met with the same tuition fee. Higher quality degrees at world-class institutions are just as expensive as all other degrees. In America, the tuition fees are weighted based on the institution and quality of the qualification. The increase of tuition fees across the board in England in 2012 led to questions of whether a lot of degrees are actually worth it.

Studies suggest only a quarter of student loans will be fully repaid, which also questions the government’s decision to carry on charging so much for a university education. Most graduates end up having their debts written off and the government will recoup less than it has bargained for. The assumption is that the recent decision to abolish maintenance grants and introduce more loans is an incompetent attempt to plug the vacuum of money appearing in government purse strings.

The lifting of a cap on university attendances has meant that many courses will accept more applicants. The problem lies with the fact that a rise in the number of academic staff at such universities does not occur beside this. This creates a seemingly ever-increasing pattern of over-subscribed courses and rising student-to-faculty ratio. The lifting of the cap has made courses cash-cows for university funding, in some cases.

The Labour government’s vision of higher education for all has given an impression that there is no other option. The transition of the traditional polytechnic universities away from vocational qualifications to traditional degrees has meant that there is now a gap where high-quality vocational qualifications could once be achieved. The expansion of Higher Education in Britain has only caused the value of a degree to decrease, with an even greater need for graduates to have much more than a qualification at the end of university.

Of course, young people should be allowed the option to study at university and the diversification of university applicants is promising. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t limit the numbers of students at universities. University should be available to all, but that does not mean all should go to university.

The stark reality is that less than half of graduates have a professional job six months after graduating. The shortfall in graduate jobs has meant that there is now an expectation that employers should look for graduates to fill a role that doesn’t need a graduate. This further limits the prospects of those who haven’t gone to university and will force more school-leavers into a system that is currently not working.

Graduates are a vital part of the workforce but we don’t need so many. A rise in student numbers has not been met with a rise in graduate jobs. There should be a focus on producing graduates where they are needed.

Apprenticeships are pushed by the government but university is often seen as the better option. The current state of vocational qualifications means many feel that A-levels and university are the only choice. There needs to be an emphasis on the benefits of the alternatives to university and a clear basis for vocational excellence.

A widely-recognised standard for apprenticeships would attract more young people onto such schemes rather than developing a false sense of self-righteousness because they’ve attended university. Education has become a box-ticking exercise for school statistics, with careers advice emphasising the belief that the only route to a successful career is through university.

Schools instead need to highlight that not going to university doesn’t make you a failure, and break away from the extensive feeling that not having a degree will limit your career.

Review: Wit

Written by Charlie Spargo on 29th January 2016. Posted in Theatre.

“It is not my intention to give away the plot, but I think I die at the end.”

Julie Hesmondhalgh plays Dr. Vivian Bearing, a stern and independent Professor of 17th century literature, who is diagnosed with stage IV metastatic ovarian cancer. “There is no stage V.” Wit covers, in a single unbroken act, her last days, hours, and minutes as she comes to terms with her mortality and observes the comparative differences of art and science—highlighting the contrast between the subject she is a doctor of and that of the doctors who treat her.

Among this darkness is a lot of comedy. Wit is comic, and you find yourself laughing during some of the most emotional scenes, often due to Hesmondhalgh’s perfectly placed dry delivery, maintaining her attitude that years of dealing with those less intelligent than herself have taught her almost to the end. Margaret Edson’s Pullitzer-winning script as well somehow manages to convey the indignity of her suffering with the respect it deserves, whilst injecting enough, well, wit, to a subject that rarely makes one laugh.

Hesmondhalgh’s performance is truly stunning—head shaven and feet bare, Julie flawlessly pitches the character between vulnerability and bravado, spending the whole play’s 100 minutes on the barren, circular stage, performing in the round with the audience watching her from all angle—meaning that she had to move continuously, helped only a little by a rotating stage and clever lighting.

Dr. Bearing’s specialty is metaphysical poetry—particularly that of the poet John Donne—that which addresses some of the largest questions humans have conceived: life, death, and God. Even at the end of her life, however, she realises that all the poetry in the world can neither save her nor make her passing dignified. At the same time, the brute force of science and medicine is no more successful, putting her through more pain than she has ever been before, as her doctors subject her to eight weeks of full-dose chemotherapy. She feels like she is more research than a patient to be saved.

In the end, it is neither her life-defining literature nor lifesaving chemicals that win out, but compassion, that of the kind nurse who sits with Bearing while she screams in pain, dignity finally gone, gives her an ice lolly, and talks through the choices available to each patient if their heart stops—resuscitate and continue the research, or pass on to be peaceful. You also witness her only visitor, her old draconian literature professor, sit with Vivian and read her a children’s book, just like those she loved aged 5.

In short, Wit was perfect, a play of contradictions capturing completely the fear and indignity that are the results of cancer, whilst also making all present smile and laugh and sympathise with all the characters. They truly deserved the standing ovation they received at the end of the performance.

As humans, should we play God?

Written by Colm Lock on 29th January 2016. Posted in Opinion.

For once, the content in an article of mine is not political, but instead an appeal to humanity. The world is heading towards an increasingly perfectionist trend with the possibility of designer babies not far away. The chance to choose your child’s hair colour, eye colour or even gender might—to those control freaks amongst future parents—be a welcome change to all this confusing biology. You might well find this concept of designer babies abhorrent, and so you should; but the good news for now is that it is just a concept. However, there is already something along these lines happening in the UK today that is just as horrible. I speak of the systematic termination of pregnancies where the foetus is found to have Down’s syndrome.

It was recently reported in The Telegraph, and other publications in the US, that the future of people with Down’s syndrome in our society is under threat. The figures are most disturbing and if true, paint a rather grim picture; where some 90 percent of pregnancies where the foetus is shown to have Down’s Syndrome are aborted. Now, I am not some rabid pro-life activist of the sort you might find in America. Obviously it is the parents’ choice. But I find the fact that people would terminate a pregnancy purely because the child will have Down’s syndrome saddening. Why do people feel it is necessary? Do they think it is because a child with Down’s syndrome will enjoy a lower quality of life?

Maybe it’s because they believe some of the other big myths of Down’s syndrome like those with it will “die young” or “be forever a child”? Well, while people with Down’s syndrome did in the past have a less than average life span, thanks to modern medicine they can now face a much longer and happier life than before.

But what about them being supposedly childlike? First of all, how many adults still enjoy watching SpongeBob SquarePants or Adventure Time? I think you will find there are quite the multitude who still do. So can we say that any of us really abandon our childhood?

Secondly, if you ever need further evidence to counter this myth, look no further than to the fine example set by Mr John Franklin Stephens—a 30-year-old man with Down’s syndrome. Back in 2012, during a presidential debate, a political commentator named Ann Coulter wrote a tweet using the word “retard” in a most derogatory context. What followed was a nothing short of brilliance as Mr Stephens— a Global Messenger for the Special Olympics—penned an open letter to her explaining why she was wrong, and in doing so, he proved that he is head and shoulders above her, and many others, in terms of the sensitivity shown towards the disabled.

Another shining light in the Down’s syndrome community is Madeline Stuart, the first ever model with Down’s syndrome. She is not only a role model for young disabled people all over the world, but she is also just one of many reasons why those who dismiss people with Down’s syndrome are wrong. There have already been actors with Down’s syndrome in film and TV, and while they might not be able to complete a doctorate in astrophysics, they can sure as hell be valued as active members of society.

Then of course there is the pettiest and downright insulting myth that they will be “embarrassing” as children. Well I challenge you to find a child who isn’t sometimes a little embarrassing. One of the best parts about childhood is that you are not yet bound by social conventions so you can behave as freely or as embarrassingly as you choose.

People with Down’s syndrome are, in my experience, some of the happiest, friendliest and affectionate people I have ever met; and a lot less judgemental than most. They can have jobs, contribute to the economy, to culture and make the lives of those around them happier and fuller.

Where would it end? Do we then start to then abort all foetuses that have dwarfism? If there were no people with Down’s syndrome in the world, I would not have a sister. I would be one of two children, not one of three. It is a reality that I would not want to face and a reality that people should not seek just because they believe the false myths regarding those with Down’s syndrome. We have no right to deny these people a chance at life and if you think you do, then it would set us on a dangerous path towards a supposed perfectionist view of humanity. I say humanity’s imperfections are what makes it perfect and it would be detrimental to us all if they were to disappear.

UCL student strike action for rent cuts continues

Written by Merle Streck on 28th January 2016. Posted in News.

Students at UCL are threatening to withhold rent payments that could total £250,000 to protest sky-high university accommodation costs.

As part of the UCL Cut the Rent Campaign more than 150 students living in university accommodation are withholding their payments until they achieve their goal of a 40 per cent rent cut.

Since 2009, according to the campaigners, rent costs at the university have risen by about 56 per cent, with Ramsey Hall’s 473 rooms ranging between £158.97 and £262.43 a week.

In an interview with The Mancunion, Pearl Ahrens, an 18-year old first year student in Politics and Eastern European Studies and one of the UCL Cut the Rent campaigners, said: “We think that the rent is too high and that students can’t afford to stay in them and to have a fulfilling university experience at this cost.”

According to Ahrens, if you are a student within the high income bracket you will receive a student loan worth £5,205. The most you will receive as a student in the lowest income bracket is £6,313. Commenting on these figures, Ahrens asserted: “The current yearly rent at Max Rayne, which is a hall that is striking, is £5,433 which falls in between those. With a cut of 40 per cent that would make it £3,260 so that everyone can afford to live in Max Rayne and even more expensive ones.”

London School of Economics is currently working on the Cost of Living Petition also aimed at developing an affordable rent strategy for university accommodation. Although UCL does not have contacts to any other London universities at the moment, Ahrens was not opposed to the idea of seeking co-operation with other student campaigns aimed at tackling London’s “extortionate” rent cost as this would ensure a “more co-ordinated campaign.”

The Cut the Rent Campaign first made headlines last autumn when 238 former residents of UCL student accommodation were compensated with £1,200 each as a result of a student strike which aimed to tackle hazardous living conditions. Students complained of rat-infested housing and their lack of sleep as a consequence of continued construction work outside their halls.

While this strike is seen as a success in the eyes of the campaigners, Ahrens indicated that this next wave of strikes serves to tackle the issue of rent costs on a larger scale. She commented on the strikes last autumn, saying that “even though their conditions were bad, everyone’s rent is high. No matter what the conditions are, even if they were perfect it still wouldn’t be worth the amount of money that we are paying. It’s extortionate. I’m paying £175 a week and my conditions are okay but if you can’t afford £175 then you can’t go to university. It’s pushing people out of access to education.”

Ahrens expresses her disappointment at the university’s inadequate response. Other than withholding more than a quarter of a million of pounds in rent payments, the campaign has also conducted several demonstrations in the autumn term, had a bloc in the education march, and handed in a petition with over 1,000 signatures. Despite these efforts, UCL has not yet conceded to their demands. “So the strike is our last resort,” said Ahrens, “and we are willing to do it again, and we hope that it will win because it won last time.”

She is confident that the strike will be a success and the same can be said for Angus O’Brien. O’Brien, 20, is a second year student in Social and Political Studies and the UCL union halls accommodation representative as well as one of the founders of the Cut the Rent campaign. In his statement to The Mancunion on how confident he feels about the future of the strike, he said: “It is the only way to actually get UCL management to engage with us on this issue and we are expecting them to contact us properly.

“At the very least we’ll have a dialogue with them about how unaffordable it is and how it’s sort of crushing the future of our university that is cutting off people from accessing education here. I always say it’s like an unofficial entry requirement that you have to have a lot more money to actually come.”

In Tuesday’s campaign meeting at UCL’s Students’ Union, current negotiations and future plans for collective action were discussed. Major developments were outlined by David Dahlborn, a 22-year-old Politics and Jewish Studies student and one of the founders of the campaign.

Just several hours before the meeting UCL management had contacted the campaigners asking for a meeting with them. Dahlborn suspected that the campaign had “embarrassed [UCL management] to the point where they cannot defend their position.” Furthermore, he announced that more of UCL’s student halls such as Ramsay and Schafer are potentially interested in pledging to join the strike.

When asked how many strikers have currently joined the campaign in withdrawing their rent payments, O’Brien claimed that “we don’t know the exact figures at the moment, we know it’s over 150. It all got quite confusing because another hall spontaneously did it without us really interfering so we don’t know the numbers from them yet, it could be around 30 – 40.”

In light of this growing campaign throughout UCL’s student campus, Ahrens expressed no doubt that collective action will continue until demands are met by the university. “We’re striking the second term and depending on how it goes possibly a strike in the third term as well.” Furthermore, during the meeting it was announced that the UCL Cut the Rent Campaign will be taking part in the large demo on Saturday the 30th of January against the government’s proposed Housing Bill.

In a concluding statement to The Mancunion, Ahrens emphasised that this campaign highlights the larger issue of housing in London and the difficulty for low income families to access higher education at these costs: “It’s a human catastrophe. Students shouldn’t have to worry about money. It is not fair to make profit off education when some people can’t even afford to be here. It’s a societal problem which is preventing many people from accessing education.”

Out with the old and in with the stylish

Written by Perisha Kudhail on 28th January 2016. Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

With 2016 being a prosperous year in business, who says that it can’t be a prosperous year in fashion as well? With trends from previous years contributing to our sense of style, how do we know what to keep and how to evolve our fashion ways? Here are our stylish top tips for 2016 and how you might just surprise yourself.

It has been said that shoes can make an outfit, and we are advocates of that, so, for you to feel fabulous this year, your footwear has to be on point. Doing a shoes clean-out is one of the most liberating things you can do this year, and it’s all about elegance. Get rid of shoes that you haven’t worn in two years! Even if you think they have a chance, they probably don’t. This year, invest in a pair of day heels. Heels don’t necessarily have to mean discomfort—a good pair of heeled boots or sandals can add the glam to your day look, and what better way to grab a pair than during sale season?!

TRY: Black Woven Peeptoe Block Heel Sandals. New Look £34.99.

Photo: Mango

Now that your footwear is sorted, we can move onto the jackets. The problem that people had in 2015 was that investments were made into fast trends. They were in and out of fashion in no time! Use 2016 to look for a statement jacket which is in season every year. When sorting through your jackets, evaluate what jackets you think give you the look you want. You need a casual jacket, an evening coat, and a day coat. This threesome will ensure you are covered for all occasions, and you won’t need to faff around with what’s in fashion; it’s all about you feeling great.

TRY: Wide Lapel wool-blend coat. Mango £59.99.

Photo: Zara

When it comes to tops, it’s time to ditch the big prints that have been in your wardrobe since high school. Whatever sentiment you have attached to them, disconnect from them and invest in some plain block colours. With these tops, you get to make a canvas on those days when you have no idea what to wear. Teamed with great accessories, you could make the same top look different every time you wear it.

TRY: Long Sleeve Shirt. Zara. £29.99.

Photo: Harvey Nichols

With all this talk about clothes, we can’t forget about the make up! Make sure to throw away all of the out of date products that you have in your vanity case. 2016 won’t be a good year if you get conjunctivitis. This year is all about less is more, so put down your contouring brush and keep it simple with a good bronzer to achieve a similar effect. A light eye shadow with a fabulous volumizing mascara can beat a heavily made over face any day. It’s all about keeping it simple, yet effective. Try a new makeup product or technique, and see how you get along with it.

TRY: Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage. £26.50. Harvey Nichols.

With all these top tips for the New Year, always remember to add your own spin to what you wear. Experiment with different styles and don’t be scared to try something new. You never know, your stylish new technique might be your new go-to. Happy New Year!

Work it

Written by Rebecca Thomas on 28th January 2016. Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

The thought of leaving the student nest for the corporate world is a dark one. Life will be ‘actionable’ and filled with ‘blue sky thinking’; hangovers will be out and Chai Lattes will be in. The sad reality is that faux pas are imminent. The most painless way of transitioning will be to have sartorial confidence: All jobs are different, but the best method is probably to start basic and learn your workplace’s dress vibe over time.

The most problematic of office rabbit holes will involve footwear: graduate roles are at the bottom of the food chain, and the ‘running’ jobs will most likely be slung towards the newbie. Happily, there seems to have been a general acceptance of the merits of flats. Christina Binkley, from The Wall Street Journal, wrote: ‘Long stuck in the purgatory of casual wear, flats are suddenly being promoted for polished occasions.’ The very best are the heeled ballerinas from Zara. A trick of the intern industry is also to wear impressive heels and carry flats in your bag.

Photo: Zara

Turtlenecks speak: Take, for example, Love Actually. Find your turtleneck niche and flaunt it, and if in doubt, opt for black and look like a successful career panther. Tucking in looks great and will help you feel as though you have your life together: invest in blouses to feed to midi skirts and trousers, either black or tailored. Your bag is your new life and will begin as your only friend; smart rucksacks and citybags will be there for you.

Photo: Whistles

For men, the trend is for attention to detail: London city wear dictates that point collars are out and spread collars are in, and added extras like pinstripe socks and coloured pocket square will give you slick credibility.

Consistently good places to shop for workwear are Whistles, Zara, Mango, and H&M, and aiming to dress like Olivia Palermo is not a bad idea. An alternative to this teething method would be to dazzle your work cohort by becoming a walking statement: in this scenario, make like the queen and hit the co-ords. Wear contrasting prints and don’t apologise.

HOME Pick of the Week: The Assassin

Written by James Moules on 27th January 2016. Posted in Film.

The winner of last year’s Best Director award at Cannes, Hou Hsiao-hsien’s The Assassin is unmistakably an art-house lover’s wuxia movie. Fans of the more action-packed variety of Chinese martial arts films such as Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Zhang Yimou’s Hero might feel let down by Hsiao-hsien’s deliberate and slow-burning approach to the narrative. Nonetheless, what the Taiwanese auteur delivers is, on its own terms, a masterful piece of cinema that stands as one of the finest achievements in visual poetry of the decade so far.

Set in 8th century China, the movie tells the story of the titular warrior (Shu Qi), who has been raised to be a deadly killer. We can see from the beginning that she is a master of the sword, second to none in martial prowess. But after an unwanted display of mercy, she is sent on a mission to kill the military governor of Weibo: A man whom she had been intended to marry, long ago.

No overstatement could possibly be made about the intense beauty of The Assassin. With both the black-and-white and colour cinematography at work in different stages of the film, every viewer is treated to a lavish and masterful exercise in visual storytelling. From the relatively still dialogue scenes to the flurries of violence throughout the picture, Hsiao-hsien delivers an awe-inspiring feat of cinema. Every frame is layered with meaning, drawing us in to a spectacle that is executed with a level of precision and skill to match our Assassin.

Many viewers might be put off the movie by what will undoubtedly be perceived as its agonisingly slow narrative and sparse scattering of action, but it is precisely this deliberate pace that makes The Assassin work so well. Hsiao-hsien hypnotises us with an understated story that finds exactly the right levels of intensity and heightened reality that the narrative demands. The director taps into the mind of our protagonist in her every movement and subtle emotion, and we cannot help but be captives to her tale. Unlike an alarmingly large number of filmmakers today, Hsiao-hsien appreciates the value of subtlety.

Repeated viewing will be essential to fully appreciate a film so nuanced and finely-wrought as The Assassin. The work of a true auteur, Hsiao-hsien succeeds in taking the familiar sights and sounds of the wuxia genre and crafting a martial arts picture worthy of the label of a masterpiece. No true lover of cinema should miss it.

5/5

Top 5: Bowie songs in film

Written by Mark Holland on 26th January 2016. Posted in Film.

5) Zoolander – ‘Fashion’

Bowie makes one of his many charismatic acting appearances in this hilarious send-up of the fashion industry, appearing in a brief cameo as himself. The song only appears momentarily as he unexpectedly appears to judge a walk-off between Zoolander and his modelling rival-Hansel. It’s short and sweet but Bowie’s cameo oozes class and makes for a truly memorable and entertaining scene.

4) Guardians of the Galaxy – ‘Moonage Daydream’

This offbeat space-set superhero caper has a completely killer soundtrack and the use of ‘Moonage Daydream’ from 1972’s Ziggy Stardust is a real highlight. The track featuring lyrics about an alien saving the world from annihilation is perfectly fitting and manages to nail the film’s surreal tone. Who else but Bowie could capture the otherworldliness of the unknown as the ragtag bunch of aliens drift through the galaxy?

3) Frances Ha – ‘Modern Love’

The use of ‘Modern Love’ as Frances gleefully dances her way through New York makes for a gorgeously joyous sequence and the bittersweet lyrics juxtapose her joyous innocence to great effect. Wonderful.

2) Inglourious Basterds – ‘Cat People’

It’s a real testament to Bowie, the master of reinvention, that his music can be used to accompany pretty much anything and can completely elevate it; this is certainly true of Inglourious Basterds. The WWII romp’s soundtrack features the least contemporary pop music of any of Tarantino’s films. But the use of 1982’s ‘Cat People’ as our hero, Shoshanna applies her makeup before blowing up a cinema full on Nazis still somehow manages to completely work and helps gives the pivotal scene an extra dose of glam.

1) The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou – ‘Queen Bitch’

Wes Anderson’s Jacques Cousteau-inspired deep-sea adventure is a real love letter to the Starman and there are plenty of his songs to pick from here (though most of which are covers performed in Portuguese by Seu Jorge). But here, Bowie is put to best use here over the films final shots as Anderson brings together the irresistibly cool union of ‘Queen Bitch’, Bill Murray and one of his signature slow motion walking shots.

How To: Clear Out Your Wardrobe

Written by Sophie Soar on 26th January 2016. Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Every year, my dad proudly tells friends and family how 13 years ago he made a New Year’s resolution and has since never broken it. The same sceptical but congratulatory mutterings begin (prior knowledge of his sense of humour allows all to predict there’s definitely some catch in this comment) and he’ll then explain this is because he chose never to make a resolution again.

In an attempt to find a suitable, and better, annual alternative to my father’s own witty resolution, I’ve tried various approaches: take up the gym (can’t afford the fees), take up running (can’t afford the emotional trauma), give up chocolate (managed it once but never again to ensure sanity), give up Instagram (that lasted all of 20 minutes).

As a result, I keep my sights in the area of my life I can happily spend multiple hours and excessive instalments of my student loan in developing: My wardrobe.

Everyone’s approach may vary, with the most significant difference between the clutter hoarders and the ruthless eBay sellers. I fall somewhere in the middle—too lazy to flog my clothes but too ashamed to stay in possession of that jumper, which then normally goes to my least favourite relative.

However a few methods prove effective in de-cluttering your wardrobe and realistically demonstrating it’s time to let go:

1. Turn your clothes hangers backwards

This makes a lot more sense than it sounds. Many recent articles are providing the same brilliant advice: By turning your clothes hangers backwards, when you replace the item forwards it soon becomes obvious which of your clothes you do and don’t wear.

2. Ignore the likes of Vogue, Elle and Grazia

I’m never normally an advocate of ignoring the Greats, but sometimes their content is best avoided. Instructing us to buy this, wear that, dress this way or follow that trend can confuse the withering fashion follower. Whilst an entertaining read, not only is it unfeasible but also impersonal. Stick to what you love wearing and what you know looks good.

3. Co-ordinate

Whilst I personally disprove of advice to “pick a colour scheme” or categorically “synchronise all items” in your cupboard, it’s always worth shopping with your wardrobe in mind. When deliberating a new purchase, mentally skim through at least your basic items to see what you could wear it with. If nothing comes up, then ask yourself whether you’re willing to invest further in this one item.

4. Haul in some extra help

Grab your nearest and dearest, a bottle of bubbly (or, you know, Sainsbury’s half price Pinot Grigio), some snacks and your self-confidence—this could get brutal. But that’s what your friends are for. Honesty is the best policy and if they won’t tell you, nobody will. Think Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda and Samantha.

5. Don’t be afraid to let go

If the stilettos from your nineteenth birthday are still sitting in the corner of your room, somehow caked in mud and half a size too small, take a minute, say your goodbyes and pluck up the courage to put them in the bin. Realistically, will you ever wear them again?

6. Donate

What could be better than not only having a clear wardrobe, just waiting to be revamped, but also doing a small bit for charity? Having said that, if you have the patience for eBay or Depop, I applaud you and shall advise no further. However for those less patiently inclined, another could love the item much more and the proceeds would also go to a worthwhile cause.

So tidy wardrobe, tidy mind and the perfect resolution you can easily keep for years to come.

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