[Ssf] welfare meeting/uni sf, some thoughts

dave thompson mpower0 at yahoo.com
Wed Dec 1 11:48:51 GMT 2004


Hello, first thanks to all who helped with the welfare
meeting, I have some things to say on the event
itself. but it will take time to formulate. Briefly, I
will say: attendance very disappointing, content,
excellent, productive and empowering, outcome,
promising, but to be decided. Are there any notes
written up yet?. 

Anyway to Student SF’s 

First of all, it is good that young people at the uni
want to get together to create a new network. However,
I do think a solely uni based SF would be a retrograde
step and not really in keeping with the inclusive open
focus of the sf movement. I also think it would be
possibly be the first one in the country if not Europe
to become unilateral. To me the strength of the SF
movement is its breadth and its inclusivity .The fact
that it can embrace people from 16 to 60+. A student
based sf would imo, (I’m open to challenge) focus on
student based issues and inevitable be drawn into the
pointless, (I know I’ve been there), battles between
NUS and more democratic forces. For instance, it would
be doubtful if an Uni SF would get involved with a
welfare meeting, few students at sat event, or a local
strike, (though it has happened in the past.) Perhaps
what worries me more is that it gets caught up in the
faux radicalism of many a student group: which
promises the earth, and delivers nothing , whilst
burning out its adherents. Hopefully,  we are
different to that.

The students in Liverpool have recognised this and are
attempting to facilitate a broad based Liverpool
social forum. Students, Why not challenge current
orthodoxy in these things and become part of a wider
SSF. Encourage students to get involved in more local
concerns, they do live here for three years minimum
after all. and most of the activists seem to stay
here! I would also be interested to find out who is
involved in the setting up of the group and if there
are any political groups/sects involved.  Btw, there
are a fair few students who lurk on this list, come on
lets hear your views on the subject, what do you
think?

Regards 

Ps, I am fully aware that if they want to set up a uni
SF, that is their prerogative, but it is good to
debate the issues. 






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