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24 October 2014 thegryphon.co.uk

Jake HookemNews Editor

• ‘I’m now thousands of pounds in debt’ • ‘I trusted them’

Victims of a million-pound fraud scamhave spoken to The Gryphon about ‘an easyway to make money’ that has left them‘thousands of pounds in debt’.

Since initially reporting on the issue on10th October, The Gryphon has since learntof the scale of the scam - perpetrated by afirm which called itself ‘JBI Systems’.

The company is thought to havechanged names several times over the yearsin which it operated, but The Gryphon un-derstands that students at Leeds taken inby the scam dealt with the company underits ‘JBI’ name.

The company offered students thechance to make £50 by signing up forphone contracts.

The acquired phones would then bepassed on to JBI Systems, who would thenprocess them and lend them out to businessusers for a fee. Any bills then incurred onthe contracts were to be paid to the victimsin advance of their phone bill.

However, in May this year, the companystopped making the payments to the vic-tims, but the phone bills kept coming in.

The Gryphon spoke to one victim of thisscam, who said,

‘I realise how naïve I was, but it was afriend of a close friend who suggested theidea to me, and I trusted them.

‘I initially got £300 and thought it wasgreat, but after a couple of months pay-ments stopped, while my bills just kept oncoming. I’m now thousands of pounds indebt.’

‘They told me that it was legal, an easyway to make money. They pushed the ideaof being able to get money now and howyou could no longer be drowned by studentdebt.’

Once the students had signed up, theywere encouraged with a further £50 foreach other person they could recommendto get signed up.

However, not all victims feel the same.

>> Continued on page 5

Abla KlaaNews Editor

More white students have receivedoffers at the University of Leeds thanBlack and Minority Ethnic (BME)applicants, according to figures obtainedby The Gryphon.

The statistics revealed that ‘of thenumber of BME students applying, only42-44% of BME students were offeredan undergraduate place’ between 2010and 2012. In contrast, over 60% of whitestudents were offered a place.

The findings also showed that it was

less likely for BME students to obtainhigher degree classifications. Accordingto the most recent figures from 2012to 2013, 84% of white undergraduatesobtained a 1st or 2.1 degree in contrast to68% of BME students.

LUU’s BME campaign coordina-tors Johnny Philomen said, ‘We believethat at least part of the problem mustlie within the admissions departmentsof universities, and that they shouldactively challenge cultural biases theymay have. Involving more BME staff inadmissions processes may go some wayto addressing this problem.’

In a response, the University’s Equal-ity & Inclusion Manager Maria Pervaizsaid, ‘the percentage of BME undergrad-uate students registering at the Universi-ty has increased from 12% to 14.2% overthe last four years. This is not to say wedon’t have an issue at Leeds, howeverwe need to take a step back and analysethe number of BME students applyingand accepting first before looking at theimpact on admissions data.’

Non-EU students were not includedin the data.

Scamming uncovered:victims share their ordeal

Application stats reveal 20%race gap

2

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Contents

This issue of the Gryphon is dedicated to BlackHistory Month. Black history does not begin andend with Atlantic slavery. It spans all areas ofthe globe, encompassing royalty, ancient Nubi-an pyramids (which predated Ancient Egypt byseveral hundred years), great inventors and artists,and a myriad of cultures, languages and religions.However, over the centuries, Black history has beensuppressed, misrepresented and whitewashed.Exhibit B, the controversial event at the Barbicanwhich was ultimately shut down, springs to mindas an example of the way in which Black historycan be reduced to troubling representations. Whogets to tell our histories? How should they be told,and which parts? Even now, there are huge gaps inthe history we are taught in school, with too manychildren growing up unaware of the contributionsBlack and diaspora communities have made tosociety.

Contents Editor’s Letter3-7

8-10

11-13

14

15

16-17

19-24

News

Features

Comment

Debate

Letters

Science

Sport

Tweets of the week

Editor-In-Chief ~ Jasmine AnderssonAssociate Editors ~ Phil Mann, Ste ToppingNews ~ Abla Klaa, Charlotte Mason, Jake Hookem and Greg WhitakerFeatures ~ Ruby Lott-Lavinga, Brigitte Phillips and Vickie HeskethComment & Debate ~ Philipa Williams, Ella Grittiths and Ella HealingScience ~ Alice Hargreaves-Jones and Michael OwenSport ~ Adam LeRoux, Peter White, Alex Bowmer and Euan CunninghamHead of Photography ~ Sam BroadleyPhotographers ~ Lucie England-Duce, Alice Greenfield, Will Stanley, Anne Wyman andSam LewisIllustrator ~ Danny WilsonDesigners ~ Frazer Sparham, Ben Sandin and Sophia Kossoski

Mensch’s take on the tragic news from Ottawa. We presume she doesn’t mean John Bercow here.

Still got it.

None of us in Gryphon HQ can work out if this is serious.

But it is important to look to the future, as well asthe past. We must make sure that forums existfor Black and other ethnic minority students toshare their ideas, and bring fairer representationsof themselves to light, as well as working towardsthe equality that people have fought for. There arestill inequalities and prejudice in the world, andwe as students must continue to strive towards asociety in which BME people are respected, andtheir achievements are recognised and celebrated.Groups such as the LUU BME Students Campaignexist to do that.

Johnny, Wandia and Naomi

BME Students’ Campaigns Coordinators

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

News 3

St Andrews foam fightHundreds of St Andrews University

students attended a mass foam partyin the school grounds this week. Theevent was part of a 600-year-old ritualat the Scottish university. The annualfoam fight is held on ‘Raisin Monday’ inhonour of the end of ‘Raisin Weekend’.The weekend sees senior students in-flict initiation tasks on their new recruitof first-year students.

Emily Willson

Southampton bottles itA student at Southampton Solent

University had to be rescued by firefight-ers after getting her head suck in a bottlebank.

A friend bet the female student £10and a Big Mac that she couldn’t fit herhead into the hole during a night out.

She eventually managed to free her-self with the help of a fire service worker.

A fire service spokesperson said, ‘I im-agine she was looking for more drink’.

Greg Whitaker

Pussy Riot at Cambridge UnionRussian feminist and political pro-

test band ‘Pussy Riot’ is to speak at theCambridge University Students’ Union inNovember.

The group were sentenced to twoyears in jail in 2012 after performing a‘punk prayer’, calling on the Virgin Maryto ‘put Putin away’.

A Cambridge spokesperson said, ‘Thisis very exciting news, especially for aninstitution that tends to invite old, whitemen’.Charlotte Mason

King’s SleepCoat to help the home-less

Innovative students at King’s Col-lege London have developed a ‘Sleep-Coat’ for the homeless. The project wasinspired by a society president’s workwith the homeless in Alaska. He said,‘We don’t want to promote sleepingon the streets but we do want to offeran emergency service’. A prototype isbeing made to be handed out acrossLondon’s homeless shelters.

Emily Willson

Campus Watch News from campuses around the country

The University of Leeds is planningto spend more than £200m on severalbuilding refurbishments mostly startingnext year.

A large amount of this estimated fig-ure is to be spent on refurbishing the Ed-ward Boyle Library, which will boast newfacilities such as larger teaching roomsand more flexible study spaces.

Following a survey conductedamong students from the University, therefurbishment project also aims to fix cur-rent problems with the heating, lightingand ventilation systems in the library.

A user of the library who wished to re-main anonymous told The Gryphon, ‘I sus-pect the Edward Boyle Library achievedits environmental targets by never turningon the heating no matter what.’

The plan also includes better digitalinfrastructure and the integration of theSkills@Library, VLE and Portal teams intoa new ‘Skills Zone’.

Edward Boyle is not the only buildingset to be refurbished. A public auctionwill go take mid-February 2015 to find acontractor for the renovation of the LeedsUniversity Union building, with the worksplanned to finish by December 2016. Mostoffices will remain operational during therefurbishment.

This is one of the largest developmentprojects that the university has undergonesince the 1960s. An investment of £375mhas already been made on capital pro-jects with major constructions includingthe Liberty Building and The Edge, whichcost £12m and £20m respectively.

Edward Boyle toget a major refurb

Student shoppers have been offered acracking opportunity to win £10,000 bycorrectly guessing the code to a cash-loadedsafe at the Merrion Centre.

The competition, which offers one luckywinner the chance to a ‘debt-free, stylish,student lifestyle’, is the centre’s biggest everstudent giveaway.

Participants must break the six-digitcode, encrypted by an independent adjudi-cator, to be in with a chance of claiming toprize.

Merrion Centre Manager Susan Mendozasaid, ‘Our competition is the ideal opportu-nity for us to welcome our existing young

shoppers back as well as attracting new stu-dents into our shopping centre for the firsttime’.

She added, ‘After choosing their six luckydigits, everyone who takes part in the chal-lenge will take the potentially life-changingwalk over to the safe in an attempt to enterthe winning combination in their quest toget their hands on £10,000.’

However, students have been urged notto get too excited as the chances of winningare literally one in a million.

Head of Mathematics Professor AlastairRucklidge said, ‘The Merrion Centre will al-most certainly be able to hang on to their£10,000’.

The competition closes at 4.30pm today.

£10kCharlotte Mason

News Editor

Valeria Popa

Controversial car hire service Uber is tofile an application with the City Councilto start operating in Leeds, amid protestsfrom licensed drivers.

The firm, established in 2009, hasrapidly expanded its business and nowoperates in over 200 cities worldwide.

The service uses a downloadable app,through which users can order and payfor the taxi service.

However, Uber’s expansion into an al-ready crowded market has led to protestsfrom licensed operators that the compa-ny is not a legitimate service, and is notabiding by the guidelines that ‘traditional’operators are bound by.

Taxi drivers belonging to the tradeunion Unite held a picket in Kirkstall to

highlight the concerns of members, whofelt the service to be unregulated. Uberhas faced similar protest in the past,when drivers brought congestion chaos tocentral London.

Uber however resists the contentionthat it is not conforming with regulations.The company boasts of stringent back-ground tests. Leeds City Council has alsosaid it will deal with the service in thenormal way in which firms are licensed.

Speaking to The Gryphon, Fourth yearPhysics student Michael Owen said, ‘Uberis great. The app is so much easier to userather than booking in the normal way.Whenever I’ve used it, it’s been really effi-cient’ He added, ‘If it comes to Leeds andis good value, I’d definitely use it over thecurrent private hire companies.’

Phil MannAssociate Editor

Sam Lewis © Uber move to Leeds

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

News4

The University has warned of a noto-rious phishing email scam after studentsat another institution were targeted byfraudsters who obtained their bank de-tails.

A message displayed on the Portallast Wednesday read, ‘We have becomeaware that a sophisticated phishingscam, concerning an email that appearsto be from Student Finance England, hastricked some students at another Univer-sity into divulging both personal and fi-nancial details’.

The news comes after students at YorkUniversity became victim to a fake emailthey believed to be from the loans com-pany.

Speaking to The Gryphon, Head ofIT Services John Grannan explained, ‘Wesubscribe to a central service which alertsus to any phishing emails, which we canthen block.’

He described phishing as ‘an on-going

battle’, adding, ‘Nothing is 100% secure, butwe do take data protection very seriouslyhere’.

This newspaper understands studentsare regularly targeted by phishing scams,with several cases of fraudulent StudentFinance England emails reported withinthe last few years.

Mr Grannan said, ‘Phishing is big busi-ness. If you email 10,000 people and tenreply, you can make a lot of money fromthose ten people’.

According to Action Fraud, studentscan be deceived by emails sent around thethree main loan instalment dates in Sep-tember, January and April.

Fourth-year English and History stu-dent Hannah Woodhead told The Gryph-on, ‘I have received fake emails pretendingto be from SFE. I think it’s really disgracefulthat it’s still a problem after a year’.

The IT Help Desk advises, ‘Neither theUniversity nor any other reputable organi-sation will ever send you emails asking youto input, confirm or validate account and/or personal details’.

Students warned ofphishing scam

Charlotte MasonNews Editor

Crime has fallen by seven percent inthe past year, The Gryphon has found.

Statistics for Leeds Inner North Westshow that 6,449 crimes were reported be-tween January and August 2013, com-pared to just over 6,000 for the sameperiod this year.

The most common crimes in the stu-dent area are anti-social behaviour andburglary.

Burley is the region’s crime hotspot,accounting for 17% of offences in the area,with Headingley reporting 15% and HydePark 10% of crime, according to latest fig-ures.

West Yorkshire Poliåce recently an-nounced that the county’s overall crimerate had fallen by 4% over the past year,with house burglaries down by 15% and

448 fewer thefts from people.However, the statistics show that sex-

ual offences are on the rise nationally.PhD student Rehan De Motte, whose

house was recent burgled, told The Gryph-on, ‘I do feel safe in Hyde Park, but nowwe make sure that the doors are boltedand the windows are closed. We haven’thad any problems since then’.

The University’s Police Liaison OfficerPC Matt Guy told this paper, ‘We needpeople to come forward about crime andbelieve that the Police will take it serious-ly. It’s never anyone’s fault that they aresubjected to crimes like assault’.

PC Guy advised, ‘Plan your journey.There’s night buses and taxi services,walk on a main road where it’s well-lit, bewary of your surroundings, and you aregoing to be safe’.

Leeds crime rate falls

Munya Saati

Lucy Connolly

Leeds University Amnesty took astand for human rights on Friday, withblindfolded students demonstratingmethods of torture in the Union.

Seven students took part in thedemonstration, wearing red blindfoldsand holding instruments such as drills,irons and hammers that are still used fortorture today.

The society aimed to highlight theexistence of torture in 144 countries.

Speaking to The Gryphon, Presidentof LUU Amnesty International Wil Hut-ton, explained, ‘We hope the protest willget a response from students and makethem more aware that torture still ex-ists’.

Although torture is illegal through-out most of the world, procedures suchas electric shock, sleep deprivation and

forced suffocation are still used in coun-tries such as Morocco, Nigeria and Uz-bekistan.

LUU Amnesty International hasbrought attention to several high-pro-file cases, including that of Ali Aarras, aBelgian-Moroccan extradited to Moroccoon terrorism charges in 2010. Accordingto Amnesty International UK, Mr Aarraswas electric shocks to the testicles, sus-pended from his wrists and burned withcigarettes.

Second-year Law student, Jo Bulli-vant Clark, who took part in the protest,said, ‘The thought of other human beingsbeing subjected to torture gives me thechills. Being free from torture is yet an-other thing we take for granted. I thinkit’s our obligation to speak out againstit’.

An LUU Amnesty anti-torture peti-tion has attracted 163 signatures.

LUU Amnesty stage anti-torture protest

Rachel King ©

West Yorkshire Police ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

News 5

A Police investigation has beenlaunched after a student claims her drinkwas spiked at Mission nightclub.

The first-year Business Managementstudent was taken to hospital by herboyfriend who was concerned when shebegan acting ‘out-of-character’.

The student had been attending theFull Moon event at Mission last Thursdaywhen it is believed her drink was tam-pered with. She believes the interventionmay have happened with when her groupof friends bought a pitcher to share.

An officer who assisted the womansaid she displayed effects similar to thoseof ketamine.

Speaking to the newspaper, the stu-dent, who wished to remain anonymous,explained, ‘I’ve only been in Leeds a shorttime, but I’ve never known anyone who’shad their drink spiked’.

This paper understands bouncers hadsearched clubbers at the door. However,Police are currently working to identify amale who was seen acting dubiously inthe nightclub.

Woman spiked in nightclub

The University’s Police Liaison Of-ficer PC Matt Guy told this paper, ‘Drinkspiking is rare. However, there’s easier ac-cess to legal highs nowadays which canbe used to incapacitate people’. PC Guyadded, ‘We are seeing more reports ofthis from members of the public’.

Union Welfare Officer Freya Govustold this paper, ‘It’s awful to hear that this

Students have gone head to head thisweek in a Union debate about whethereducation should be free.

Six panellists took part in the discus-sion on Wednesday, tackling issues suchas government spending, apprenticeshipsand the affordability of studying for adegree.

The debate comes following Ger-many’s decision to scrap tuition fees inall universities starting this academicyear.

LUU Education Officer Tom Dix-on, the debate organiser, explained, ‘Icampaigned on the idea that the Unionshould engage people more in the nation-al movement. NUS have their own FreeEducation policy and I think it’s impor-tant to us as LUU to understand if ourstudents feel the same. Obviously, havingproposed the motion, it’s my hope theydo’.

Union debates Free EducationSome students argued the Govern-

ment should make education a higher fi-nancial priority, although others claimedthat free university degrees may be un-sustainable.

Third-year International Politics stu-dent Harry Shotton, who was on thepanel, told this newspaper, ‘Many youngpeople in the UK cannot afford the risingcosts of education andsimply can’t do the uni-versity course, vocationalcourse, or apprenticeshipof their choice’.

He added, ‘LeedsUniversity Union sup-porting free educationwould be a positive stepin the campaign for ahigh quality educationsystem that caters forall young Brits, helpingto tackle increasing so-cio-economic inequality,and boost social mobil-

Describing the running of the or-ganisation, one said,

‘I believe some did know what theywere doing, but others only knew to anextent that what they were doing wasnot legal but had no idea of what theextent was.

‘They were like us, taken in by theidea of easy money. I do not believethat they knew the full situation andwere not told everything by their supe-riors at JBI Systems.’

It is thought over 1000 studentsnationwide were scammed, and somevictims have been critical of the way inwhich phone companies have handledtheir cases.

The Gryphon also learn that thosepreyed on by JBI Systems would oftenreturn the phone to the company with-out knowing any of the details of thecontract, meaning that when trying tocontact the phone provider they hadno knowledge of which phone contractthey actually wanted to cancel.

When asked how JBI Systems dealtwith the problems, a victim said,

‘All they had was a “customer ser-vice” email, which just kind of told uswhat we wanted to hear. It said thingslike “you’re on our list of priority ac-counts” but nothing ever came of it,neither did an apology.’

The Gryphon understands that thisweek approximately 50 students havebeen interviewed by police as part ofa nationwide effort to gather informa-tion. It is not thought any of the stu-dents interviewed in this round weretreated as suspects.

Phonescamrevealed“They were like us, taken in by

the idea of easy money”

>> Continued from front page

Suhail Dhanji

Abla KlaaNews Editor

ity, as well as being an investment in thefuture of the country’.

A Fourth-year Politics student said,‘The huge increase in students going touniversity has created a much larger bur-den to the tax payer. It’s surely not un-reasonable to suggest that those with theability to do so are able to contribute tothe cost of university education’.

Anne Wyman ©

has happened. If anyone else has con-cerns about their safety or needs support,please contact our Advice Centre’.

Students are advised to avoid leavingdrinks unattended and stay with friendson nights out.

The Gryphon contacted Mission for astatement but did not receive a responsein time for printing.

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

News6

The Digest.Breaking down the stories that matter.

Paralysed man walks again after‘pioneering therapy’

A man who was paralysed four yearsago has been able to walk again thanks toground-breaking treatment.

Darek Fidyka, 40, was paralysed fromthe chest down in a knife attack in 2010,but after surgery can now walk with the aidof a frame.

The treatment was conducted by Pol-ish surgeons in collaboration with scientistsin London and involves the use of cells inthe nose being implanted into the patient’sspinal-cord to encourage nerve growth.

Fidyka said that being able to walk oncemore was like ‘being born again’.

Hugh Baillie-Lane

Gunman shot and killed soldier interrorist attack

A soldier guarding the CanadianCapital’s National War Memorial waskilled in a suspected terror attack onWednesday.

Gunfire was also exchanged insideCanada’s Parliament building, where thegunman was killed after Police stormedthe building.

Canada had raised its terror threatlevel just hours prior to the incident fol-lowing a hit-and-run attack which killeda soldier and injured another.

Parts of Ottawa remained in lock-down on Wednesday. An investigationhas been launched.

Danny Anderson

Oscar Pistorius sentenced tofive years

Oscar Pistorius has been sentencedto five years in jail for the ‘culpablehomicide’ of his girlfriend, Reeva Steen-kamp.

The killing occurred in the ear-ly hours of Valentine’s Day last yearwhen Steenkamp was shot three timesthrough the bathroom door at theirhome. Pistorius insisted he thought hewas firing at an intruder.

His defence had fought for tenmonths imprisonment, with the remain-ing sentence under house arrest.

Pistorius was cleared of murder, butwill enter prison immediately.

Sarah Nevard

Boko Haram to bring backschoolgirls

Boko Haram has said it is to releasethe 219 schoolgirls it has held captive forsix months.

The Nigerian government an-nounced a ceasefire with rebel fightersfollowing weeks of negotiations, medi-ated by neighbouring Chad.

The Nigerian government remains‘cautiously optimistic’ about theoutcomeof the deal.

Boko Haram, which means ‘Westerneducation is forbidden’, kidnapped thegirls from a school in April. The groupaims to overthrow the government andform an Islamic state in Nigeria.

Danny Anderson

Guardian ©

The University has become one of thefirst UK institutions to pledge support toa campaign promoting the rights of tech-nology workers.

Electronics Watch is an independentorganisation which campaigns for work-ers’ rights in the technology industry,pressuring companies to improve facto-ry conditions with European purchasingpower.

The news means Leeds will have in-fluence over contracts with manufactur-ers to push for better industry standards.The University joins Edinburgh as oneof the first four UK affiliates of the Eu-rope-wide programme.

Student-led campaign People & Plan-et has claimed that conditions in somefactories amount to ‘sweatshop’ labour.

Twenty-three Chinese workers atPC-manufacturer Foxconn have commit-ted suicide within the past nine years.

The group claims, ‘This series of sui-

cides is a result of the desperation felt byworkers due to the obscenely long hours,‘army-like conditions’, ritual humiliationsin front of colleagues and repression ofunion rights’.

One in five computers sold in Europeis bought by a public sector body such asa university.

Electronic Watch states, ‘Despite themodern and clean image the industryhas, the working conditions are often ap-palling’.

The University’s Director of FacilitiesManagement, Dennis Hopper said, ‘Weare committed to improving the sustain-ability of our supply chain and Electron-ics Watch gives us the opportunity tosupport meaningful change, in an indus-try that suffers from poor working con-ditions’.

Electronics Watch aims to begin in-specting technology factories next year.

Robert Cohen

Uni pledge to boycott‘sweatshop’ electronics

Milenio © Canadian Press/Marc Grandmaison © Life Is Savage ©

Image: QZ ©Image: QZ ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

News 7

Rachel Reeves is the Labour MP for LeedsWest and is the Shadow Secretary of Statefor Work and Pensions. She has held bothpositions since 2010.

On Thursday she came in to the Uni-versity of Leeds to give a talk to Labour-Soc, and The Gryphon spoke with her afterthe event,

You recently agreed that there was a‘strong case’ for handing control of JobCentres over to local councils, do you thinkthis would help students after they grad-uate?

I think that the best thing for students ishaving a top level careers advice service intheir university, rather than going to job cen-tres. I think that university careers servicesshould be properly resourced to ensure thatpeople know about the options available forthem. The problem with job centres is thatthey often don’t have that sort of specialisedsupport.

The policy of the Blair government was toensure that 50% of young people went toUniversity. Many feel that different skillsets require alternatives to university ed-ucation, but the current trend is that it is

essential to finding work. As a result, itcould be argued that degrees have becomedevalued. Do you agree?

At the moment, less than 50% do go, Ithink that the priority should be to ensure thatthose young people who don’t go have properinvestment in their skills and training. The vastmajority of students who don’t go to univer-sity get little or no investment in their skills,so what I would like to see is a growth in thenumber of apprenticeships and better fund-ing for Further Education and colleges. I thinkthis would ensure that there is an alternativeto university, and that the forgotten 50% arealso given the skills and opportunities that theyneed to build for their careers

What are you planning to do to ensuregraduates find work quickly if a Labourgovernment is elected?

This is not for graduates but I think it’simportant to say. To help young people, wewould replace Job Seekers Allowance with ayouth allowance. This would reward youngpeople who go to college to get skills andtraining, rather than just getting paid for sign-ing on. The allowance would apply for 18-21year olds that don’t have a level 3 qualification(A levels or a vocational equivalent) and wouldgive them financial support for staying on atcollege. We would also like to have a compul-sory jobs guarantee. This would be a promise

that any young person who’s out of work fora year would be guaranteed a job that’s pay-ing at least the minimum wage, for 25 hours aweek. This would last for 6 months, and wouldbe funded by a bankers bonus tax and a re-striction on pension tax relief.

Do you feel the proposed HS3 rail linkbetween Manchester and Leeds wouldincrease employment in Leeds?

Well, let’s get HS2 out the way first! At themoment HS2 isn’t due to come to Leeds until2032 and so HS3 has no advanced proposalsfor it. I think the best game in town at themoment is the improvement to the links acrossthe north between Liverpool and Hull, whichwould cut journey times across significantly.Politicians in the north have been working onthis problem for years, but we do need to bedoing more to improve the connectivity be-tween the major northern cities. We shouldalso work on including northern towns in railimprovements, so we can also ensure peopleliving in areas such as Huddersfield and Hali-fax can get into Leeds and Manchester quicklyto access jobs and opportunities.

Do you support the Leeds trolleybusscheme currently being planned?

Yes I do, but in my constituency that’s nota huge issue.

How can cities like Leeds match the powerand ‘draw’ of London as the UK’s financialhub? - Do you agree with the findings ofthe Royal Society’s City Growth Commis-sion who this week recommended morepowers for cities like Leeds?

I think that we should devolve more powerto northern towns and cities. Lord Adonis hasrecommended devolving £30bn of funding fortransport infrastructure, skills and employmentfunding which i think is a good idea. I thinkthat local leaders can make better decisionsfor how to use that money than politicians andcivil servants in Whitehall.

Given Labour’s proposals to raise the min-imum wage to £8 per hour to try andbridge the gap between the rich and poor,do you feel unpaid internships are fair?

Well, unpaid internships are already illegal.I know some firms still use them and that isnot acceptable. I think that if you are doinga job you should be paid for it and protectedby minimum wage legislation. I’m in favour ofpeople being able to do work experience, butI think that if you’re doing it for any lengthof time and you’re expected to turn up at settimes and have set tasks then you should bepaid for doing the job. Otherwise, young peo-ple who have rich parents are going to havemore opportunities and I don’t think that’s fair.

The Gryphon meets Rachel Reeves MP

Jake HookemNews Editor

Image: Phil Mann ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

8 Features

‘I don’t actually see the difference thatBlack History Month makes’

Naomi Anderson Whittaker

When I managed to pin ElormHaligah down for a chat, he was justabout to begin chairing The GreatDebate tour, which he now runs. Nowin its fifth year and with 60 dates onits calendar, the seven week event hasbeen a great success, and is part of aplan to get students - particularly thosefrom minority backgrounds - more intopolitics.

After studying Politics, Elorm workedon policy issues for various politicalfigures including David Lammy (aTottenham Labour MP, now planningto run for London Mayor), and Notting-hamshire’s first black female Mayor,Merlita Bryan. Elorm now heads up theMidlands branch of Elevation Networks,an employability charity. As well ashelping young people to find work andinternships using their partnershipswith firms like Deloitte, Teach Firstand Escada, Elevation networks offerstraining and leadership developmentprogrammes. They also run a VisibleWomen campaign to get women intomale dominated industries such as sci-ence, finance and engineering.

Elorm advises students looking toimprove their job prospects, with a focuson voluntary work; hardly surprising ashe previously oversaw the developmentof the National Citizen Service acrossDerby and Nottingham. He maintainsthat NCS is a great way to get youngpeople aged 16 – 17 thinking about waysto improve their communities, and togain focus and enthusiasm. He says thatthe projects carried out vary hugely. ‘I’ve

had some people that have renovated oldpeople’s homes. We’ve had some peoplethat have raised money for charity, we’vehad people running a publicity cam-paign to raise awareness about issuesgoing on in their area. Its attitudes likethat that can actually change society.’NCS has links with the government’scontroversial ‘big society’ vision.

I am assured of the benefits, evi-denced through the changes Elorm seesin the people he works with. ‘I cameacross someone that was on our pro-gramme. He was a troublemaker. Whilehe was on the programme, he matured.We all have talents, and we can usethem negatively or positively. It was real-ly good to see how he started to channelthem and start pushing in a positivedirection’.

So, are the government going to rollout this scheme nationwide? ‘Eventual-ly, it is the government’s aim to makeit compulsory.’ Doesn’t the name ofthe programme and nature of what’sinvolved allude to negative connotationsof punishment and community service?And, is it not just another excuse to en-gage in ‘responsibilisation’, taking awaybasic public services unless they areearned through ‘good behaviour’? Elormsees the programme as almost a rite ofpassage, similar to ones seen in othercountries which symbolise the beginningof maturity. ‘In the UK, we don’t haveanything like that. Can you think ofanything?’ I mumble something aboutproms, (although I never had one). Butcan social or cultural rituals of enteringadulthood really be conflated with thegovernment’s national service scheme?He points out that it helps young peopleto mature by allowing them to leavehome for a couple of weeks, working ontheir independence.

Elorm understands the issues withNCS becoming compulsory, but saysthat it is a shame that ‘a lot of schoolscurrently don’t recognise it as some-thing that is really valuable.’ Although

many young people were forced to doit by their parents, by the end of it theyfelt it was the best thing they had everdone. He adds that the NCS scheme,and volunteering in general, promotesvaluing your community, which he feltwas lacking during the London riots.‘You’re not going to damage somethingthat you value’.

But does a lack of valuing your com-munity stem from frustration and dis-engagement with politics; as sense that

your government doesn’t represent you?‘This is a struggle that a lot of youngblack people have. I ask them, ‘are youinterested in politics?’ Straight away, no.Politics is like a swearword. But whenyou ask them, do you want a job? Doyou care about the fact that your mum’snot well? Do you care about the rubbishon your street? They say yeah, of course.So I say this is all politics. But peopledon’t make the connection.’

The Great Debate Tour is a platform

Elorm Haligah, from youth employment charity Elevation Network, talks to The Gryphon aboutemployment inequality, the importance of volunteering, and being president of Nottingham ACS.

“

“

You’re not going todamage something

that you valueElorm Haligah ©Elorm Haligah ©Elorm Haligah ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Features 9

for helping people to make that connec-tion. It puts students ‘in the same roomas decision makers’. How, though, doesthis event work towards changing thepolitical environment thesenewly-inspired people will be enter-ing? How does it get their views to thepeople who matter? ‘At a lot of panels,there are elected officials. Students canactually voice their opinions and con-cerns, and some of these MPs actuallysay, you know what, we need to takethis into consideration.’ This year, thetour culminates in a panel event inparliament, clearly this event allows stu-dents to take their views to people withinfluence. The Great Debate has furtherplans to launch a report this year, basedon the views expressed. Elorm seemskeen to make the tour inspire action, aswell as discussion.

Elorm also notes the importance ofgetting involved while at university. Hewas president of the African-CaribbeanSociety at Nottingham University. It’s agreat way to gain confidence and net-work, he says. After all, ‘your networkis your net worth’. Often, I suggested,

it can seem daunting to put yourselfforward for being a society president,but Elorm recommends jumping in. ‘Iwas very active at university in termsof campaigns for the BME network ingeneral, and involved in a lot of mentor-ing initiatives as well. This helped me todevelop skills that enabled me to workwith senior figures. They saw transfera-ble skills and said, you know what, let’stake him on!’

The issue of graduate unemploymentcomes up and we discuss, among otherthings, a 2012 study that showed UKBME graduates are 60% more likely tostill be unemployed 6 months after grad-uating, and, on average, are required tosend out twice as many applications asother candidates before securing a job. Isuggest that these statistics make for apretty bleak outlook. He nods and notesthat affirmative action for women andother minority groups is encouraged, butnot compulsory. ‘Racism still exists’ hesays. He mentions a study done by theRunnymede Trust. ‘If you had a sur-name like mine, you were considerablymore likely to be unemployed. They did

a test and submitted applications whichwere completely the same, but with dif-ferent names, and the [applicants] withthe African or Asian surname weren’tinvited to interviews.

‘Having said that, if you look at a lotof BME graduates, a lot of them havereally good jobs coming out of univer-sity. But I think sometimes, especiallycoming from an African background,there’s a massive emphasis on academ-ics. And that doesn’t always work. It’sreally important to diversify your skillset.At the end of the day, an essay doesn’tdetermine your intelligence. That is whyvolunteering is so important.’ And it’sanother way to avoid internships whichyou have to pay for, sometimes as muchas £3000.

Finally, he extols the virtues ofenterprise. “So many people could turntheir passions into business. A lot ofbusiness is just a problem that’s beensolved”. His final advice is to studentsis to take every opportunity, work hard,and don’t be afraid to get a job in anarea which has nothing to do with yourdegree.

Before saying goodbye, I askedElorm what Black History Month meantto him, and for a moment he pauses. ‘Idon’t actually see the difference blackhistory month makes,’ he says. ‘A lotof the time, and this is a flaw in theeducation system, we associate blackhistory with slavery. Black HistoryMonth shouldn’t be the be all and endall of our education about these issues.There’s so much more. But at thesame time, if we focus so much on thetriumphs that our ancestors had, andthe struggles they may have faced, wekind of forget what’s happening today.History does affect today, but we actu-ally need to look at what is happeningnow as well and that’s what The GreatDebate Tour is about.’

Elorm was president of the African-Carribean Society at Nottingham University in 2009/10, a position which boosted his confidence

“ “It’s really importantto diversify yourskillset. An essay

doesn’t determine yourintelligence.

ACS ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Features10

Stephanie Uwalaka

Black History Month calls for a reflection on the richhistory of a range of cultures. It reminds us how muchhas changed and progressed, both here in Britain andworldwide, and how interwoven our histories are. Formany students though, the notion of cultural identityand diversity is a complex issue.

When becoming acquainted with new people,some of the first questions we may ask are ‘What’syour name?’, ‘What do you study?’ and ‘Where areyou from?’. At a university where people have comefrom all over the world to study, thislast question could refer to a person’shometown, where they were born oreven their heritage. This raises variousother questions on how you conceptu-alise your own identity, the manner ofthe question asked and how you chooseto answer it.

While abroad this summer, I wasintroduced to a group of friends-of-friends, and after chatting for a bit wasasked ‘Where are you from?’, to which Ireplied ‘London’ as it’s where I was bornand grew up. However, I was askedagain and again by the same new ac-quaintance I had made, and found myreply ‘London’ was met with a confusedand unsatisfied ‘Right’. I later realisedthey probably meant to ask where Iwas from ‘originally’, and why I havethis mixture of features that make melook the way I do. I also realised I hadreplied with my hometown, not out ofignorance to my background, but because I felt that Ihad been asked the wrong question.

The phrasing of a question therefore is important inasking individuals about their identity. To ask ‘Whereis your family from?’ or ‘What’s your background?’ isperhaps a more sensitive and considerate way to respectthe identities of an individual and to learn about a per-son, without causing any confusion in an environmentwhere people can come from a variety of places andmake others feel that their origin can be interesting toothers. It’s not ideal that people ask, but if they’re goingto ask, then it should be phrased in the right manner.

In the same way, when these questions do get asked,does this imply a sense of rootlessness? Does this disre-

gard someone’s heritage? Or does this make Britain feelmore like an integrated nation?

Nicole, an International Development student at theUniversity of Leeds, spoke to The Gryphon about herviews on ethnicity and diversity at university. ‘I thinkthat people will ask where you’re from out of curiosity,but I also don’t think that there’s a good representa-tion of ethnic minorities in higher education. AlthoughI don’t feel like I’m in a minority at uni , it is [evidentthat] there is one.’

Another student from Bradford, with a Pakistanibackground, said, ‘It can be a bit annoying when people

ask where exactly you’re from because essentially I’mBritish, but because I look different I’m assumed to befrom somewhere else. It can feel like prying dependingon how you ask, but I am happy to answer most of thetime.’

We decided to go around campus, investigatinghow random people reacted after being asked ‘Whereare you from?’ Most replied with their hometown withinBritain, some asked ‘what do you mean, backgroundor hometown?’ and some replied with their ethnicity ornationality straight away. All participants were open toanswer the question.

This brings us to the question of how people chooseto identify themselves. On a national scale, the 2011 Na-tional Census carried out by the Office for National Sta-tistics was the first survey to question Britons on theirnational identity. The results showed that 96.2 percentof people identified with an English or British identityalongside any other ethnic identity, with 29.1 percent ofthose identifying as British with any other identity. Somost of the population, even those from various ethnic

backgrounds, identified themselves as British or Eng-lish. The demographic of Britain is changing, and hasbeen for decades, but British identity is still strong andprevalent in society.

According to the last census carried out by ONS, 86percent of Britain is Caucasian, with 14 percent makingup other ethnic groups. The census also states that Brit-ain is becoming ‘more ethnically diverse’, but this is notreflected on university campuses across the UK.

A report published in 2013 by the Equality Chal-lenge Unit on equality in higher education found thatonly 19 percent of UK resident students were British eth-

nic minorities, and the ‘degree attainmentgap was highest in England’, so in 2013 itwas harder for BME (Black and MinorityEthnic) students to achieve a first in theirdegree than other non-BME students. Inaddition, there has long been controversyas to the number of British ethnic minori-ties getting into Oxford and Russell Groupuniversities, particularly those outside ofLondon.

Nevertheless, according to a Race intoHigher Education report, British ethnicminorities made up 11.3 percent of studentsat the University of Leeds in the years2007-2008, which is small but growing.The report also states that ‘the proportionof ethnic minorities at university exceedstheir share of the 18-24 year old populationin the UK’ which rather positively reflectsthe presence of ethnic minorities in highereducation on a national level.

The Equality Challenge Unit, a bodywho work to bring about long-term change

and progress in racial equality in the workplace, pro-duced Equality Charter statistics which demonstratethat more ethnic minority students (22.4 percent ofthem) are in taught post-graduate education. The ECUalso affirm that ‘all individuals have multiple identities’to account for further diversity in their findings. Noteverything, especially something as subjective as identi-ty, is black or white.

The face of Britain is changing. The world we live inis changing. With the increasing interconnectedness ofpeople and places, we will see increasing diversity in theUK and further afield in years to come. So the next timesomeone asks where you’re from, know that its one stepcloser to the wider population gaining an understand-ing of the multicultural society we live in and gettingto know and understand you better as a human being.Being asked ‘Where are you from?’ should be asked ina manner of polite curiousness and interest in order tointegrate, to understand and to appreciate cultures otherthan your own and to begin to identify with them.

‘So... where do you come from?’As a black or ethnic minortiy student, navigating a dual or poly identity can be complicated.The Gryphon explores diversity, curiosity and equal representation on campus.

I later realised they probablymeant to ask where I was from

‘originally’““I later realised they probably

”University of Leeds ©University of Leeds ©

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Comment 11

intellectualism is a white pursuit, andconversely that black life is anti-intel-lectual, needs to be destabilised.

This hierarchical thinking has along-standing history that has main-tained white hegemony, inside and out-side of academia. To disrupt this, blackrole models and representation need tobe present; indeed, this was a key rec-ommendation of an NUS black students’survey.

In terms of knowledge production,we must be aware of the limitations of

intellectual canons that silence blackvoices. If we assume that knowledgeproduction is a primary aim of highereducation institutions, then we must askwhether it is sustainable for educationto continue to ignore contributions ofblack staff and students.

The racialised barriers are also ev-ident in ethnocentric curricula. Black

“”Comment

Why we must strive for academic diversity

Morgan FreemanRichard Jarram looks at whyBlack History Month is so impor-tant

EbolaSamuel Lewis talks about thedisparity in media coverage onEbola

AcademiaRemi Salisbury discusses blackunderrepresentation in academia

Recently, there has been anupsurge in attention paid tothe higher educational expe-

riences of BME (Black Minority Ethinic)students and staff.

This is evident in the organisationand popularity of last year’s ‘Blacknessin Britain’ conference; the subsequentestablishment of a Black Studies Asso-ciation, the establishment of the BlackPhD Network, and increasing pressurefor Black studies courses to be taught atinstitutions across the UK.

Inspired by our US counterparts, theUK has witnessed the ‘I too am Oxford’and ‘I too am Sheffield’ campaigns, andevents at the University of Surrey andthe University of Central London.

Through events such as the forth-coming ‘Is academia the place for me?’here at Leeds, this momentum must bemaintained.

There is a startling underrepresenta-tion of BME staff across universities;there are only 85 black professors acrossthe UK and only 17 of these are wom-en. Research and activism has begunto shine the light on the experiences ofBME staff. Black academics often oc-cupy precarious positions. Scholars de-scribe a brain-drain, particularly in so-cial sciences, with a significant numberof scholars leaving for the US.

Those that have left have attributedtheir decision to experiences of racism,low career prospects and research agen-das that marginalise race.

The cultural theorist Paul Gilroysuggests that ‘The idea of being a blackintellectual seems a bizarre oxymoron inEngland’.

We have to consider the messag-es that such underrepresentation andmarginalisation transmits to students,as well as wider society. The idea that

Remi SalisburyPhD Ethnicity and Racism Studies

R.Salisbury@leeds.ac.uk

voices are, too often, marginalised toissues pertaining to race. In 2009 theNUS Black students campaign foundthat 41% of their respondents felt thattheir curriculum failed to ‘reflect issuesof diversity, equality and discrimina-tion’. Across disciplines, despite valuablecontributions by scholars of colour, westill see core modules with reading listsmade up solely of white male academ-ics. We must consider which voices areprivileged, by who and why.

The overwhelming whiteness of ac-ademia that too often leaves BME stu-dents feeling alienated and marginal-ised means that we need to continue toreflect on, and critique the limitations ofthe current system; limitations that seestriking disparities in attainment andretention rates.

With education increasingly impor-tant for social mobility, and thus politicalrepresentation, equitable employmentand an equitable society, interventionsmust be made at every level. In High-er Education we must disrupt the whitecurricula, the white staff and the whitestudent body that sees the black bodybecome a body out of place.

We must challenge the system-

atic marginalisation and the institu-tional racism that continually seesblack students reporting lower rates ofsatisfaction with their education.

We must also challenge the ad-ministration processes that see higheracceptance rates for white students.

Attributed to a racial bias towardsBritish sounding names, this is particu-larly pertinent in elite institutions suchas our own.

With all the racialised barriers inearlier stages of education, and in widersociety, we must ensure that we workto improve the experiences of thosestudents that do make it to universityand hope this leads to an increase inthe number of black academics. Thiswill only be brought about by consciousefforts from the black student body.Whilst we must not obscure the diversi-ty in experiences within the BME group,we must find spaces to discuss ourshared experiences. That’s why eventssuch as the forthcoming ‘Is academiathe place for me?’ and the formationof groups, committed to continual ag-itation, are integral to any progressiveaction.

We must disrupt the whitecurricula, the white studentbody that sees the black

body become a body out ofplace““We must disrupt the white

””body become a body out of

blogspot.com

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12 Comment

Ebola is scary. In the pastweeks, we have been re-peatedly informed that it is

a deadly disease that has killed, andcontinues to kill people on a worryingscale. What ought to be challenged,however, is the coverage by some newsagencies of the outbreak.

It has been compared by some tothe racist presentation of AIDS; theepidemic in the 1980s saw in a peri-od of intense public anxiety towards adisease that had, previously, beensimply a distant problem in a distantcountry. Ebola has been the foremostinternational concern in the minds ofmany for months now, with constantyet detatched coverage of a lethaloutbreak in some faraway coun-try- a safe distance from the West.Recently, however, the Telegraph pub-lished an article entitled “Ebola fears onthe cocktail party circuit”, with a pic-ture showing two white people ‘air kiss-ing’, demonstrating, quite clearly, wheremedia priorities lie.

Some American news reporters

Samuel LewisClassicscs13sl@leeds.ac.uk

Ebola doesn’t discriminate; why should we?

have employed a rhetoric that likensthe threat of Ebola to an invasion froman enemy nation. “Ebola has landed onAmerican soil”, the headlines scream;the outrage is palpable. In front of theWhite House, there have been protestsby demonstrators in bio-hazard suits

carrying pickets declaring ‘STOP THEFLIGHTS’. When a disease is presentedby the mainstream media showing al-most exclusively black victims, hysteriaamongst the white West seems to en-sue. It has become such a widespreadtopic that there is even a range ofHalloween costumes that have recentlybecome available.

So why this disparity in the treat-ment of the disease by the media? Whyis the explosion of Ebola in the publicmind treated as a way to make a quick

profit and a joke by some, whilst alsobeing lauded as the end of days? InSierra Leone, Ebola is now killing 20people per day, but in the West, itwould seem that mocking is the appro-priate reaction- that is, of course, untilit finally landed on our own turf.

Constantly there are calls for moreto be done. Ebola has spread mostquickly in areas where people livein close proximity, as it is spread byperson to person contact, and while itmay not discriminate by race or nation-ality as to whom it infects. the coverageby the media certainly does.

As soon as a white Westerner isinfected, the news seize it. By follow-ing these minority of cases closely, themedia are able to build up a picture ofa more immediate threat to Westernnations. There have been officially onlythree cases of Ebola infection within theUS and - whilst the disease is by nomeans a source of competition - withthe African death toll at approximate-ly 12,000, the media favouritism seemsalmost laughably obvious. In fact, many

people choose to ignore the sufferingof poverty stricken countries in Africamost of the year round. For the privi-leged white West, we can turn off thetelevision when a charity advert comeson and escape the unspeakable star-vation and disease depicted; somethingwhich, for millions of people, is a realitythat is preordained and unavoidable.

However, when a problem that af-fects black people in developing coun-tries begins to threaten white peoplein Western countries, suddenly every-one wants to know more. Stories aboutdisease are incredibly emotive and vis-ceral, with daily updates of the victimsand their deteriorating health.

Yet there are subtle and some not-so-subtle suggestions of blame withinthe stories. Thomas Duncan, a blackWesterner, was initially turned awayfrom a US hospital when complainingof symptoms. Whilst it may not be theimmediate assumption that someoneoutside West Africa has Ebola, criticsargue that a white person with insur-ance would have received better treat-ment. However, Duncan, who tragicallydied from the infection, faced criminalcharges for suspicion of ‘intentionallyexposing the public’ to Ebola.

On the other hand, white health-care workers who had become infect-ed were flown back to Western nationsfor treatment. Some treated them asheroes, whilst others questioned thereasoning behind bringing an infect-ed person to a non-infected country-surely this should also be deemed as‘intentionally exposing the public’?When a problem is isolated to a distantand foreign community, most peopleare more willing to ignore it, but thingsbecome very different when the issueseems closer to home.

The reality is that treating Ebola asa hot button race issue is not as simpleas saying that the coverage has beenracist. There is, however, a deep distrustby some of a disease that springs upin the poorest black communities. Thiscarries with it a wealth of rhetoric thatplays on the fears of those who turn ablind eye to global suffering, and onlyspeak up when that suffering seems asif it may become their own.

“Ebola has landed on Amer-ican soil”, the headlinesscream; the outrage is

palpable“““Ebola has landed on Amer-

””scream; the outrage is

wikipedia.org

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

13Comment

How do we end racism? By re-fusing to talk about it.

This is Morgan Freeman’s view on so-cio-economic inequality in the USA, andprobably why he gets so peeved off aboutBlack History Month, as he evidently didwhen asked about the subject in the inter-view on CNN in June this year.

Who would have expected that theVoice of God, a man who could, with themusic of his vocal chords, charm a snake,or untie a Gordian knot solely with thepure power of speech, would dismiss thetopic of racism in such a blasé fashion.

His very superficial, and typically con-servative argument runs like this: individu-al strength of will is the determining factorof success in life, and race is no longer animpediment to personal objectives sinceslavery was a quirk of the ‘olden days’.

For Freeman, indulging in overtly racialdiscourse - as Black History Month doesby focusing society’s cultural lens on blackhistory - we are only entrenching the cat-egorical racial differences between Blackand White communities that we wish toeliminate. Apparently, we create the prob-lem of racism by talking it into being.

Firstly, this is just an invalid argu-ment. Secondly, if this were true, maybewe should just stop talking about climatechange, or overpopulation, or global ter-rorist threats because - well, we just creategreenhouse gases and entire populationsand terrorists by talking about them.Actually, Mr. Freeman’s excellent turn-a-blind-eye approach reminds of my littlenephew, who thinks that by wrapping hispalms around his shut eyes that somehow,miraculously, myself and everyone in the

room, including the room itself, just sud-denly cease to exist.

We are clearly not living in a post-ra-cial world. Many statistical studies reveala glaring structural socio-economic ine-quality in British (even more so in Ameri-can) society wherein black ethnic minoritygroups are statistically at a disadvantage.A recent study done by the Jobs Econ-omist think tank showed that, in 2013,black youth unemployment was at 45per cent as opposed to the modest 7-8per cent unemployment rate amongst thewhite demographic.

You cannot controvert a fact by refus-ing to talk about it: and that’s why BlackHistory Month is a positive phenomena.

Change is initiated by conversation. Ifyou look at the progress of the civil rights

Black History Month: why it mattersmovement you’ll find that the causes ofemancipation began within the culturaldomain, the world of discourse and rep-resentation. It is within this world that acommunity identity and solidarity wasfound. Writers like Aimé Cesare and

Frantz Fanon, with their ideas, laid downthe historical foundations upon which fu-ture leaders like Martin Luther King andMalcolm X stood.

By dedicating one month in a year tofocus on cultural topics of race, you arenot entrenching a racial division; you areopening up the conversation and debatefrom out of the academy and out intothe wider public, increasing awareness ofpolitical and historical controversies, andenhancing cultural integration. I’m notpersonally and directly affected by the di-aspora, but in virtue of being British, thisnarrative is just as much part of my tra-dition and historical identity as the War ofthe Roses is.

Awareness of a problem is the firststep towards finding a solution. By silenc-ing the debate, you are simply acting outthe dialectical ostrich that sticks its head inthe sand to win an argument.

Richard JarramEnglishen11rj@leeds.ac.uk

Apparently, we create theproblem of racism by talkingit into being...maybe, then,

we should stop talking aboutclimate change, or overpopu-

lation

85black professors in the

UK

12,000people have died from Ebola

so far

88,000recorded racist incidents inUK schools between 2007

and 2011

““Apparently, we create the

problem of racism by talking

””climate change, or overpopu-

filmweb.pl

14Debate

butions and achievements of black peoplethroughout history.

It is a small cry into the abyss of thepast that resurrects figures that have beenomitted from historical accounts. It isabout honoring the legacy of those acrossall fields of human accomplishment, fromliterature to science to sport, who just sohappen to be black. BHM allows us all toacknowledge a rich culture and a peopleof resonating influence. It displaces theidea that black history is only rooted in

coercion and persecution.History gives us roots, it adds to our

identity and we can draw power and pridefrom things that may be long gone, butnot forgotten. BHM explores the fact that

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Do we still need BlackHistory Month?Black History Month has been celebrated and observed annuallyin the UK since 1987. The month is intended to celebrate the inputand presence of black individuals in this country’s history, but hasbeen met with mixed reviews of criticism and praise. This week,The Gryphon Debate asks if Black History Month is still relevent inmodern Britain.

Why should black history beconfined to just one month?

Though any kind of rec-ognition of the oppression that black peoplehave faced throughout history is important,this is something that should be ever presentin people’s minds. To confine is to diminishimportance and marginalise. Specifying asingle month for black history suggests thatfor the other eleven months of the year ithas lessened relevance.

Ideally, we ought to celebrate this side ofour history every month.

Morgan Freeman, when questionedabout Black History Month in an interviewon American television, labelled it ‘ridicu-lous’.

He ended his discussion of the topic byclaiming that ‘I don’t want a Black HistoryMonth. Black history is American history.’

The same applies to the UnitedKingdom. Dividing black history from the

No Sophie Bell

YesYou’re going to relegate my

history to a month?Such were the powerful and

surprising remarks made by Morgan Free-man when he put forth his views on BlackHistory Month (BHM).

Some people may say that in Britainwe do not need Black History Month tothe same degree as in America. It is truethat the black experience differs from onecountry to another, especially when con-sidering the very different backgrounds ofcolonialism. Ask a black Briton about theirorigins and they’ll say Nigeria, Jamaica,Ghana etc. Asking an African-Americanthe same question will be met with muchless certainty. Black British citizens are ar-guably the most assimilated group in ourmulticultural society. So why do we stillneed BHM?

The purpose of Black History Monthis to recognise and celebrate the contri-

Debate

there were indeed black faces in as An-cient Greece and Victorian England. Itoffers people the chance to learn aboutindividuals who look like them and haveachieved success and contributed to to-day’s society.

But BHM is not just about educatingthose with a black heritage; it gives chil-dren of non-black origin the opportunityto explore part of the past that is oftenignored.

Ian Thomas, an organiser of the of-ficial guide to BHM 2014, tells me that“black culture and black history influ-ences us all. Black History Month bringseveryone together, from communities allover the country, to celebrate somethingdifferent.”

My African ancestry was never ex-plored at school, and yet my Italian herit-age was. I learnt about Ancient Rome, ofMussolini and Abyssinia and much more.

However, I did not know the names ofMaya Angelou, Mary Seacole or IgnatiusSancho until my father gave me a bookon black history. I had a list of namesand yet no clue of their place in whatI already knew of history or how theyexisted in relation to theircontemporaries.

Black history should not be confinedto October, quietly jammed in before themain autumn event of Halloween, butBritish history is irrevocably entwinedwith black history.

However, it is often represnted throughthe distorting screen of oppression ratherthan one of glory.

As long as the mainstream histo-ry curriculum nurtures the idea of twoseparate narratives, Black History Monthremains meaningful, enlightening andultimately relevant to all.

Olivia Nwabali

history of other races is segregation.An article in The Guardian during

last October’s Black History Month washeadlined ‘Black History Month can onlybe declared a success once it’s redun-dant’.

The writer, Andrea Stuart, commentsthat, ‘Indeed, much of what we designateas black history is in fact simply Englishhistory – stories we should all rememberand acknowledge.’

The problem seems to be that peoplecontinue to be uneducated in all aspects

of English history and therefore ‘black his-tory’.

The fear of being politically incor-rect and/or racist prevents people fromdiscussing and therefore becoming awareof racial issues of the past.

Andrea Stuart furter stated of thisissue that ‘slavery and colonialism is aghost that still haunts modern Britain,because we have never fully exorcised it.’

Eager not to offend, people see aproblem with raising such topics, which

contributes therefore to the segregation ofblack history. It needs to be assimilated,

If we seek an equal representa-tion of history, we should notbe narrowed into calling history‘black’ or ‘white’...

not separated.If we seek an equal representation of

history, we should not be narrowed intocalling history ‘black’ or ‘white’.

Returning to a point made by MorganFreeman in the interview discussed, theway to get rid of racism is to ‘stop talkingabout it’. This is a powerful argument canbe applied to this debate of Black HistoryMonth.

By continuing to have ‘Black HistoryMonth’, we continue to name black historyas something different and extraneous tothe rest of our country’s history. Historiesof all races are equally valid and impor-tant. For all to be recognised, none shouldbe singled out.

“There were indeed black facesin Ancient Greece and Victori-an England...”

1500s - the century whichsaw Britain’s black communityofficially recorded. There has beena black population in Britainsince the Roman Empire.

Illustration: Danny Wilson

““If we se

””history

““idea tha

“The

””Victori-

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Science16

The idea of wolves wandering awindswept landscape is one straight outof a George. R. R. Martin novel, an im-age now synonymous with the northernreaches of Westeros and the Starks ofWinterfell. However, as the topic of ‘re-wilding’ Britain has once again raised itsfurry head, the cinematic northern wil-derness depicted in the TV series Gameof Thrones could soon be witnessed alittle closer to home.

There was once a time when apexpredators, such as wolves and bears,were prominent features of a wild anduntamed British countryside. But as hu-man civilisation increased and expand-ed within Britain, these animals weretargeted and, ultimately, eliminated fromour shores. Today, ecosystems withinthe UK continue to experience declinesin biodiversity, a situation indicative ofa growing global problem. As a result,most of our large mammals and the

Rewilding Britain: hungry for a home

majority of our native forests have nowbeen lost.

This has prompted a growing interestin rewilding initiatives as potential toolsfor improving the biodiversity of nat-ural habitats. The basic principle ofrewilding involves the reintroduction offormerly native plant and animal species,

to return the land back to its historicwild state. This is by no means a newconcept, with its potential application inBritain previously discussed on numer-ous occasions during the last 15 years.However, the well documented successof the Yellowstone rewilding project, andthe consequent film How Wolves ChangeRivers has given more weight to its ar-

gued implementation.The rewilding of the Yellowstone

National Park, which is situated in theUnited States, first began in 1995 whenlarge scale carnivore restoration was im-plemented. The project saw the reintro-duction of wolves, as well as increasednumbers of grizzly bears, to control the

feeding habits of the elk populationwithin the area. Extensive scientificresearch has shown that the project hasbeen successful in increasing biodiver-sity, with the reassertion of a dominantpredator in the area allowing local plantsand tree species to re-establish. Thisprocess, known as a trophic cascade, hasallowed different species of flora and

fauna, which would have otherwise notsurvived during increased elk grazing, tobe successful.

Closer to home, there have beenpositive early re-introduction trials fornumerous species within the EuropeanUnion, including the likes of wolves,bears and bison. Although it is tooearly to tell what level of success willbe achieved, these positive moves havebeen attributed to the growing collab-orative efforts for wildlife protectionexperienced in Europe. These jointendeavours have, understandably, drawnattention to conservation within the UK.

Well known author, journalist andenvironmental activist George Monbiothas become the unofficial figureheadbehind the move towards rewilding, fol-lowing his latest book, Feral: Searchingfor Enchantment on the Frontiers ofRewilding, published in 2013. In a recentinterview with National Geographic hestresses, ‘By bringing back what biolo-gists call keystone species – species that

Dougie Philips

Today, ecosystems within the UK continue toexperience declines in biodiversity, a situation

indicative of a growing global problem

The Guardian ©The Guardian ©

““Today, ecosystems within the UK continue to

““

indicative of a growing global problem

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Science 17have an impact on other species and areecological engineers, creating habitatsfor other species – you kick-start thesedynamic ecological processes.’

His high profile support of rewildinghas played a vital role in promotingthe growing discussions within the UK,spreading its message to members ofthe public previously missed in pastyears. Clearly the UK has been leftwanting, compared to the rest of Europe,with regards to biodiversity; a pointrecently highlighted in last month’sEnvironmental Audit Committee’s report,which gave the area a damning review.It would therefore be fair to suggest thatBritain has excelled at talking the talk,but been found lacking in the walkingdepartment. But, as Monbiot maintains,‘Talk precedes action’.

The rewilding of Britain would focuson unpopulated areas of highland, cur-rently low on biodiversity. Any projects

undertaken, especially those involvingapex predators, would involve localcommunities throughout the process.This will ensure that concerns over theirlivelihoods and, perhaps more impor-tantly, their safety are properly attendedto. When thoughts turn to wolves andbears roaming the countryside, fear isan understandable emotion to have.However, why should we be scared ofanimals in their natural habitat? Witha proper understanding of their behav-iours, and appropriate monitoring, thereis no reason why the UK cannot beginto reproduce the success experienced atthe likes of Yellowstone.

As the nights begin to draw in, thewords of Ned Stark become fitting,‘winter is coming’, though it still begs thequestion: will the wolves be joining aswell?For more information visit www.yellow-stonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm

Chances are you’re vaguely awareof the internet. You may also be awareof words like ‘dial-up’, ‘broadband’ and‘DSL’ which are usually thrown aboutby computer technicians, movie hackersand computer salesmen. Now there’s anew term in the computing vocabulary:‘fibre optics’.

So what exactly are fibre optics, andmore importantly, why should you care?Fibre optics are essentially thin glasscables that carry information in the formof light over long distances. They‘re theFerraris of the digital world and currentlythe fastest method of transferring digitalinformation.

Using light for communication isn’t anew idea. The semaphore line, inventedin 1792, used light signals at the top ofa tower which could then be seen byanother tower which sent the signal tosubsequent towers. Just picture the scenein Lord of the Rings where they lightthe flaming beacons along the moun-tains and you’ll get the basic idea.

Next up was the electric telegraphin 1832. As the name suggests, it usedelectricity to send information downmetal cables and was the first system toallow messages to be sent all around the

world.After that, things didn’t really evolve

at a great pace. The world seemed con-tent with information carried by electricalcables. Then, in 1966, the world’s firstfibre optic cable was made and becamecommercially available a while later in theearly 2000s.

Since then, they’ve becomeincreasingly popularwith most inter-net providers.You’ve proba-bly no-ticed theleafletspiling upon yourdoormatadver-tising‘super-fastfibre opticbroadband’.

However, anylarge scale improve-ment tothe internetnetworks in the developed world is slowbecause of the old metal cables that arequite literally entrenched in those coun-tries. The largest fibre optic projects aren’t

focused on replacing these old cablesin developed countries, it’s much easierto lay shiny new ones in the developingworld.

Despite slow speeds and notoriouslyhigh prices, there is huge demand forinternet access in Africa. There are cur-rently 240 million Internet users across

the African continent, withthis number increasing

by seven times theglobal average

between 2000and 2012.

Africa(excludingEritreaandWesternSahara)is linked

to Europe,America

and Asia by 16cables running

under the world’soceans. As of2014, a signifi-

cant number of projects to lay fibre op-tic cables in the developing world havebeen completed, with many more on theway. One such project is Google’s ‘Project

Fibre Optic Internet: Are we too slow?Evan Canwell Link’, which aims to provide a fibre optic

network for Uganda’s capital city, Kam-pala. A cynic may say Google’s targetingof emerging countries is a shamelessdrive to increase the number of peopleusing their products. However access tothe internet is a great enabler and pro-vides many benefits such as education,new opportunities and business links.African countries have the potential toskip the developed world’s Stone Agecopper cables and move straight ontofibre optics, which could grant them thehighest internet speeds in the world.

These days we expect everything towork instantaneously and feel outragedwhen webpages take more than a fewseconds to load. Fibre optics provide away for the internet to continue to workat the light-like speeds we’ve come toexpect. Although it’s virtually impossibleto predict major technological advancesbefore they happen, it’s hard to see howinformation travelling at the speed oflight could be improved.

Having endured painfully slow,screeching dial-up connections, we knowthere will definitely be an improvementin the way we access the internet in thefuture. Whatever form this may take,you can be sure fibre optics will beinvolved.

Wolves in Britain- After the Norman invasion,some historians write thatrather than being executed,criminals would have toprovide a certain number ofwolf toungues annually.- Wolf attacks on livestockbecame such a problem thatJames I of Scotland passeda law in 1427, requiring threehunts a year during cubbingseason.- King Edward I (1272-1307)ordered the extermination ofall wolves from his kingdom.- Official records state thatthe last British wolf waskilled in 1680 although,some tales insist that onewas seen as late as 1888. An Anglo-Saxon wolf hunt illustrated in

Thomas Miller’s The British wolf-hunter

A cross section of an underwater fibre-optic cable

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Sport18

Greg WhitakerFootball

In a week when a statue of ArthurWharton, the world’s first blackprofessional footballer, was unveiled atEngland’s St George’s Park, the questionof racial equality in British footballhas once again been forced backonto the agenda.

At the beginning oflast season, there werefour black managersacross the fourprofessionaldivisionsin England(Hughton, Powell,Kiwomya andInce). Fast-forward12 months, and at the

start of the 2014/15 season not one of the92 English League clubs was managedby a black manager. How is this possiblein a country where around 25% ofprofessional players are black?

A fortnight ago, the Football Leagueannounced that a review into the under-

representation of black, Asian andminority ethnic (BAME) managersand coaches in British football isto get underway.

One potential solutionto the problem of under-

representation comesfrom American

Football.In 2002the NFLintroducedthe‘Rooney

Does British Football need a ‘Rooney Rule’?

Nancy GillenComment

From Jesse Owen winning four goldmedals in the 1936 Berlin Olympics -countering Nazi propaganda claims of‘Aryan racial superiority’ - to the 1968Olympics Black Power salute protestingagainst racial discrimination, racism hasalways been an issue in sport.

In today’s diverse and multi-culturalworld of sport, racism should be anout-of-date idea. Sport encompassesall ethnicities; what matters is ability.Indeed in English football, there hasbeen improvement since the 1980s,when bananas thrown on to the pitch,monkey gestures, racist jibes by playersand discriminatory chants from thestands were commonplace. Nowadays,around 25% of professional playersare from Black and Minority Ethnicbackgrounds. With a more acceptingsociety and campaigns by organisationssuch as Kick It Out, racist incidents infootball are now few and far between.

Nonetheless, the fact that it happensat all shows that racial discriminationhas not been fully stamped out ofEnglish sport. A prime example is in

2011, when Chelsea’s John Terry andLiverpool’s Luis Suarez were bothaccused of racially abusing anotherplayer. The fact that two prominentplayers were accused of discriminatorybehaviour in the modern game showsthat although progress has been made,there is still a racist undercurrent inEnglish sport.

It must be said, however, thatEnglish sport is a considerable distanceahead of other parts of Europe interms of the number of displays ofracist behaviour and the subsequentpunishments handed out. Only at thebeginning of this month did a racistdemonstration at a football matchin Bulgaria stun people around theworld. Supporters of Levski Sofia heldup a banner with the words “Sayyes to racism” emblazoned across it,mocking Uefa’s well-known anti-racismcampaign, and were fined less than£8,000. If this obviously discriminatorydisplay was a standalone event it wouldbe bad enough, but football in EasternEurope has been rocked with scandalafter scandal, resulting in growingconcerns about holding the World Cup2018 in Russia, just as there were aboutEuro 2012 in Ukraine and Poland.

Rule’. Spearheaded by PittsburghSteelers’ owner Dan Rooney, therule made it compulsory for all NFLfranchises to interview at least oneminority ethnic candidate ‘in good faithand with an open mind’ when lookingto fill any head-coach or generalmanager vacancy.

It paid dividends almostimmediately. Prior to 2002, in the 80years of professional American Footballin the US, the NFL only saw 6 BAMEcoaches. Since 2002, that number hasdoubled and is expected to rise seasonon season.

September 2013 saw Pittsburgh faceMinnesota at Wembley in the annualNFL away day. In a spectacular match,it was easy to overlook that both head-coaches were black. Incredibly, thiswas the first time two black managers

from any sport had faced each other atEngland’s national stadium.

Although the concept of introducingthe ‘Rooney Rule’ into British footballhas been discussed as recently as lastyear, both the Premier League andFootball League seem reluctant to act.

In 2011, Premier League CEORichard Scudamore said, ‘If peopleare good enough, then they will getchances,’ while just last month JoseMourinho agreed, ‘There is no racism infootball – if you are good, you get thejob.’

So, does British football need a‘Rooney Rule? Put it this way – 125years on from Arthur Whartonbecoming the first black professional,the statistics suggest that Britishfootball is still very much institutionallyracist.

Manchester City midfielder YayaToure has even suggested thatAfrican players should not attendthe tournament after he was raciallyabused playing against CSKA Moscowlast year. The carefree attitude of manyEuropeanofficialsintensifiesthe problem,with manyincidents goingunpunishedor just simplybeing denied.

Racistcommentsmade earlierthis year by theowner of theLos AngelesClippersbasketballteam, DonaldSterling,showed thatracism inmodern daysport is notjust confinedto football. It

The issue of racism is never far from the surface within sport, and with this week’s issue com-memorating Black History Month, The Gryphon looks at the current sporting state of affairs.

Will racism ever be eradicated from sport?appears that around the world, racismis still a problem in sport. Progress hasbeen made, especially in England, butthe fact that incidents of racial abuseare still occurring shows that more mustbe done.

Real Clear Sports ©Real Clear Sports ©Real Clear Sports ©

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

Sport 19

First of all, congratulationson Yorkshire’s recent success.How does it feel to have captainedyour home county to their first Champion-ship title since 2001?

It’s immense. The support has been overwhelming - youdon’t realise how well-supported the teamis until you win something like we havedone. I’ve been playing for Yorkshire sinceI was 10 years old and to finally lead theteam to a Championship was a dreamcome true.

What went right this year after finish-ing second in the previous campaign?

We didn’t perform badly at all last yearand it wasn’t a case of us throwing itaway. I think Durham won it rather than we lost it, butwe did learn some valuable lessons. I think we learnthow to concentrate on the process – we didn’t getcarried away with where we were at any stage this year.Obviously, the lads had one eye on the League and itwas my job as Captain and the job of the managementgroup to make sure that they didn’t get ahead of them-selves. We used the old-fashioned stance of taking itgame by game, session by session, ball by ball and weset each other little targets as we went along to makesure that we didn’t get ahead of ourselves.

Who were the stand-out performers this year?

The two lads opening the batting – Adam Lyth andAlex Lees – were fantastic for us all season, averagingnearly 80 for the opening stand. Jack Brooks got 60-odds wickets in his first full Championship season andwas vital for us. Adil Rashid really came into his ownlater in the season when the wickets were really dryand then there’s Ryan Sidebottom, who also had a greatseason for us. You could name all of the team really –there have been stand-out performers throughout andit’s truly been a team effort from start to finish.

How frustrating was it being banned for the lasttwo matches of the season and not being able toreceive the trophy?

It did take the gloss off that day a little bit. As I saidearlier, I’ve been representing Yorkshire since I was 10– I’ve worked so hard my entire career to try and liftthat trophy and not being able to at Trent Bridge wasdifficult. I’ve had a tough time but ultimately we set outto win the Championship and we did that. Joe Root dida great job as Captain and after I got the ban the lads

really stepped up to the plate and gotthe job done.

Regardless of your suspension,you will always be recognisedas having been the captain ofYorkshire when they won the

2014 County Champion-ship. Would you say thatthat is the pinnacle ofyour career so far?

Yeah, it is definitely thepinnacle of my career. To be mentioned in the samebreath as some of the legends that captained Yorkshireto Championships before such as Brian Close and DavidByas is amazing. We hadn’t won it for 13 years, so toeventually get it done is a very proud moment for meand all of my family.

How did you begin playing cricket and what isyour history with Yorkshire County Cricket Club is.Where did it all start?

I was pretty lucky really – I started playing for Gomer-sal and I accidentally turned up for a Yorkshire under-11strial thinking it was a local district trial. God knows whythey picked me - I didn’t get a run until I was13 years old. I was lucky to be one of the onlyones to start my journey from that early onalongside Tim Bresnan.

How aware are you of cricket at theUniversity of Leeds? What do youknow about Leeds/Bradford MCCU?

We see the cricket team around a little bit in trainingand I know some of the management. We usuallyplay Leeds/Bradford in the first game of the seasonand I think they have improved a lot over the last fewyears - they’ve certainly given us a run for our mon-ey and it’s always a good workout for us to start theseason with.

Thinking back to when you were our age, whatadvice would you give to any of our cricketers whoare looking for a career in the game?

I had a bit of a slow start really and I didn’t get muchof an opportunity until I was about 20 years old. You’vegot to be really patient and wait for your chance, butwhen it comes you’ve got to step up and make sure yougrab it with both hands.

Many University of Leeds students know Heading-ley Stadium well now because of the cricket andrugby that is on offer there. How would you urgemore students to get involved?

There are some great deals on for students now. Ithink if people are still around they should get downto Headingley for some of the Twenty20 games nextyear because it’s a great night out. The matches willbe starting a bit later at 7pm and I’m sure it’ll be agreat occasion for students to come along to. The testmatches are always good - you can see on the TV theamount of people that come in fancy dress and havea good drink on the Western Terrace. There’s always agreat atmosphere.

What are Yorkshire’s aims for next season? Willyou be looking to add to your record of Champion-ship titles or will you maybe try to add one-day orT20 success to your recent triumph?

We want to build a legacy now for Yorkshire cricket.We don’t just want to win it one year and not again foranother 13 years. It’s about backing last year up andbeing consistent so we can win as much silverware withthis team as we can. Obviously, international call-upsare going to be key – especially with the West Indiestour at the start of next season – but I still think wehave a strong enough academy with players comingthrough that have the potential to become the nextJoe Root or Gary Ballance. There’s obviously more

expectation as you start to winstuff, but I think we’ve got amature enough squad to reallykeep consistently pushing

for trophies now. I think there’sa fantastic team and work ethic

within the teamand a real

hunger tokeep per-forming.

Following Yorkshire’s record 33rd County Championship title, Captain Andrew Gale spoke exclu-sively to The Gryphon about the team’s recent triumph and his route into cricket.

‘We want to build a legacy for Yorkshire cricket’

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Sport20

Peter White

While it may initially seemextremely attractive and perhaps almostobvious to take the best eligible playersto the next year’s under-21 EuropeanChampionships, I think it is important

that people consider some of theissues that may arise as a result

of taking some of the seniorplayers to the tournament.

Several Premier Leaguemanagers have alreadyvoiced their concernsover the idea; it iscertainly easy to seewhy.

Firstly, RobertoMartinez has suggested

that including big namessuch as Ross Barkley andJack Wilshere would harmthe development of thesenior team and theindividual players asit would effectivelygo against the ideaof using the under-21sto promote players tothe first team. The

concept of theunder-21 team is to

feed the senior side, yet howare the likes of Ben Gibson and Will

Hughes supposed to develop into fullEngland internationals if the likes ofCalum Chambers and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain take their plane tickets tothe Czech Republic. You might arguethat competing in an internationaltournament will provide the first teamwith invaluable experience, howevermany of the players being talkedabout were in the 2014 World Cupsquad and getting them involved willsurely restrict the development ofthe players that got the team to theChampionships in the first place.

In addition, there is the ever-topical tiredness debate. Is it reallyworth the risk of injuring or tiringkey senior team players who willundoubtedly be required for the finalFrance 2016 qualifiers next Septemberand October? As aforementioned,many of the eligible senior stars wereinvolved at the World Cup and twointernational tournaments in twoyears would undoubtedly be taxing -Raheem Sterling needed a rest afterjust 10 games of the season!

As an avid England fan, Ithoroughly wish the final under-21squad every success next summer;however I hope that all of England’selite will be joining me by watching iton the sofa.

Should England stars play in the 2015Under-21 European Championships?

Rhys Stevens

With the ensuing debate ragingabout whether England’s youngsterssuch as Liverpool whizzkid RaheemSterling should be in contention forunder-21 boss Gareth Southgate’s plansfor next summer, the question should bewhat is the harm?

The compelling argument for theirinclusion is in light of Germany’s successat the 2014 World Cup after they honeda core of exciting young-sters from the under-21s andbedded them into the seniorsquad who went on to win the trophy.Casting our minds back to the under-21European Championship final in 2009between England and Germany, sixplayers from that victorious Germanside were lifting the World Cup in Riothis summer, while only ManchesterCity’s James Milner survived to graba senior spot in the England squad.Clearly, allowing youngsters to progresson the international stage as a unitprovides the senior side with valuabletournament experience.

England have some great prospectsin the under-21s including the in-formSaido Berahino and Stoke City’s JackButland, however the presence of figuressuch as Sterling and Oxlade-Chamber-lain will only improve these players as

they will undoubtedly benefit from theirbig-match experience.

I think that in Englandwe often fall victim tobringing a player into thesenior fold far too early,before seeing their progressflounder. PremierLeague bosses,such as Rob-erto

Martinezand Arsene Wenger,have slammed talk ofincluding some of thetop youngsters andhave questioned themotivation of thosewho already have seniorcaps, but this is mainlybased on selfish interest asthey look to protect their players’fitness.

If England want to emulateGerman success within the next decadeor so, the FA needs to put emphasis onallowing all top youngsters the opportu-nity to progress and play for all Englandage groups. The under-21s needs toincrease in importance and not to betreated as an effective B team; other-wise what’s the point in retaining it?

Yes No

In their second game of the season,Leeds women’s badminton 1s securedan impressive 7-1 win over Durham 1s,grabbing their first three league pointsafter a disappointing loss away toLoughborough last week.

In the opening singles matches,Helena Lewczynska showed hersuperiority and skill by winning both

games in relatively quick succession.However, the other single match,

featuring Serena Midha, was more ofa closely fought affair. The first gamewas even throughout, and the tensionrose when the game reached 20-20. After a series of excellent rallies,Midha’s perseverance finally paid off asshe won the game 27-25. Due to thisextension in play, her opponent fromDurham seemed to tire in the secondgame, and didn’t show as much resolve,with Midha obtaining her second

successive win. This excellent formfrom both single players was taken intotheir next matches, which were alsowon, taking the score to 4-0 to Leeds.

The double pairings of HarrietWest with Jojo Minihan and LizzieHunt with Rae Lamour were alsoextremely successful in the majorityof their games, showing excellentcommunication and movement.

However it was in the openinground of double games that Durhamgained their only point. Nonetheless

the match lost was mostly on a levelpegging throughout, and a tightlycontested and tense third game wasnecessary to give Durham their firstpoint in the overall contest after Leedsand Durham won one game apiece.

The team showed that they couldbounce back from the defeat againstLoughborough last week, and bounceback in style. A well-fought 7-1 winagainst a strong Durham side willprovide encouragement for the rest ofthe season.

Durham destroyed in badminton battleNancy Gillen

Women’s BadmintonLeeds Uni 1s 7-1 Durham 1s

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Got another sport youwould like Adam to do?Send an email tosports@thegryphon.co.ukto get to join in.

Sport 21

the home side struggling tokeep up, as the teams headedin at the break with thevisitors 46-26 ahead. Leedsalready had an immense taskahead.

Some of Uni’s best playcame at the beginning ofthe second half. KillianStanley showed some nimblemovement in the paceybreakaways, finishing themoff in style with a number oflay-ups. Their dominationhad many of us thinking thata comeback may have beenon the cards. Teesside haddifferent ideas however, andscored a number of basketstowards the latter end of thequarter – leaving Leeds with little hopegoing into the final period.

Leeds had all but accepted that theywere heading for their second defeatof the season. Nevertheless, Teesside’s

Gryphons still searching for elusive winafter second defeat on the bounce

complacency in the final quarter meantthat, unfortunately, this was the onlyperiod of the match that Uni outscoredtheir opponents. Overall, the Gryphonsgave a good performance that would

have left them feeling uplifted, despitethe outcome. The side face lower-leagueBradford next time out in the cup, amatch the team will be desperate to winin order to get their form back on track.

This week’s sport of choice wasfencing. Now I don’t know about you,but when I think about the sport Ithink about scenes from Pirates of theCaribbean or Game of Thrones, wherethe gladiatorial competition of two rivalsis conveyed with such grace and artisticflair to create an oxymoronic spectaclefor the onlooker to behold.

Sports Hall 1 in The Edge may notbe the most spectacular of surroundingsin comparison, but watching the moreexperienced fencers in action wascertainly more dramatic. Looking on atthe toing and froing of each pair alongthe piste, as points started cautiously andthen sprung into life, was almost likewatching a Shakespearian masterpieceunfold.

The Bard himself was also a keenfencer and after donning the cottonsand mesh mask attire, I could feelmyself being transported back in time,to a place where sportsmanship andrespect among competitors was just as

important as the victory in battle. Thesaluting of the referee and opponentbefore each match is testament to this, asetiquette is not to be forgotten.

Now, onto the action, and a fairlyvigorous warm up session by Coach TomExeter to start, which certainly got theblood pumping. The next drill includedjumping, and a lot of it, as the innovativeuse of blades as hurdles created a sharp-

After last week’s defeat to Sheffield,Uni were hungrier than ever to bounceback against a strong Teesside squad.

They may have felt harshly done byto go into the break behind after whatseemed to be a very even quarter. Theteam displayed considerable ambitionto get into the opposition’s danger area.However the away team’s defence heldstrong and were clinical with a bundleof breakaway moves to take an earlylead of 12-18.

Teesside began to take control ofthe game early on in the second quarterwith a host of two pointers. The awayside scored an impressive 28 points ina section of the game that they largelydominated, with Teesside pulling outblock after block and interception afterinterception. This was followed up byimpressive breakaway attacks that left

Daniel NixonMen’s Basketball

Leeds Uni 1s 64-82 Teesside 1s

Try something new with Adam LeRoux

Lucie England-Duce ©Lucie England-Duce ©

important as the victory in battle. The saluting of the referee and opponent before each match is testament to this, as etiquette is not to be forgotten.

Now, onto the action, and a fairly

Exeter to start, which certainly got the blood pumping. The next drill included jumping, and a lot of it, as the innovative use of blades as hurdles created a sharp-looking obstacle courseto complete, testingfootwork at the sametime.

The battles soonbegan, and withmy knowledgeon épées andfoils still inits infancy Iwasn’t holdingmy breathwhen the pistecame calling.

Learning the

footwork on your ownwith no opponent orblade to worry aboutwas relatively easy,but once you haveto take into accountall of these factors at

the same time the menreally get separated from

the boys. My opponent,also a beginner,

seemedto

have it all, moving in seamlessly eachtime to attack. I was soon found to be anexpert at the lesser known approach ofthe ‘retreat and swipe’ technique, whereyou try to stave off the inevitable attackas long as possible, something that 20years of being a bespectacled redheadhad taught me well.

With a bit more practice I was soonwinning points of my own, as defenceslowly turned into attack. It was certainlyan experience never to be forgotten; theregal feeling when suited up and thelicence to battle with blades is somethingeverybody should get a chance to do.

22 Sport

Leeds 1s put in an extraordinaryeffort to beat Northumbria 1s in a tensematch on Wednesday.

After falling just two goals shortagainst Loughborough in their firstgame of the season, Leeds were visiblyeager for a win. The tension was highin the opening minutes of the firstquarter and it was neck and neck fromthe start as Uni’s’ speed and accuracywas countered by Northumbria’s fiercedefending. Despite some skillful passingin the circle throughout the first 15minutes, the away side successfullycrowded Leeds out, restricting passingoptions.

The second quarter proved difficultfor Leeds. Harsh umpiring decisionswent against the hosts and valuablepenalty shots were conceded toNorthumbria’s advantage. It was to

Gryphons grab dramatic late victory

Water Polo still awaiting first win

Leeds’ credit that they kept a cool head,playing the game minute-by-minuteand slowly gaining a more-refinedmomentum despite the speed and forcewith which Northumbria were passing.The score at half time was 16-16.

Going into the third quarter, tacticsbecame unpredictable and though bothsides showed incredible fitness, thisstage of the match called for a slowerpace. Leeds’ centre, Potter, showed greatcommitment to the team, ensuringthat the ball could reach the circleas Northumbria’s defence weakened.Goal shooter, Crosbie, and goal attack,Scott, were on target in the D and theNorthumbrian defence lost balance,giving away avoidable penalty shots toLeeds’ advantage.

Returning to the court for the finalquarter, The Gryphon Centre, was filledwith cheers from both benches. Leedsmanaged to net three goals which putthem just ahead, yet the visitors refusedto give up the fight. With the score 26-

26, Northumbria missed a vital penaltyshot, resulting in huge cheers from theLeeds bench. The Gryphons broke awayin the final minutes thanks to excellent

Charlotte StonesNetball

Leeds Uni 1s 28-27 Northumbria 1s

work from Dowse and Gray, bringing afinal score of 28-27.

After a narrow defeat to Loughbor-ough in their season opener, Leeds wentdown once again as Durham took a 14-4victory at the Edge on Tuesday night.

The visitors had finished secondin the Premier Division last year sothe Gryphons knew to expect a toughmatch in the pool and right from theoff the defence were called into action.The Durham attack moved the ballaround with haste as they searched forthe opening goal, stretching the Leedsdefence from side to side. With fourminutes on the clock the first goal wasscored, and it had been on the cards,as the visitors finally found a free manwho made no mistake when given thechance.

With Ed Scott in goal the home sidealways stood a chance of getting backinto the game if they could get theirattack into gear. Scott saved two penaltyshots in the match and numerous otherone on one attempts, making it clear to

see why he was called up to the TeamGB squad for the 2012 Olympics.

Buoyed by Scott’s efforts, Leedsstarted to claw away at the deficit. Withsome neat build-up play, they finallyreaped their rewards and got the gameback to 4-2 - the secondbeing a superb back-handed effort past thehapless goalkeeper.

As the second quartercommenced the scoreswere still tight, and apowerful attempt bySimon Morton-Grant keptDurham’s lead at only twoto keep the pressure on.

The second half was adifferent story as Durhamtook the upper hand -their quick breaking abil-ity and excellent distribu-tion from the goalkeepermeant they profited fromLeeds’ wayward attack,as they countered numer-ous times to extend theirlead.

Adam LeRouxMen’s Water Polo

Leeds Uni 1s 4-14 Durham 1s

With seconds to go, Leeds grabbeda late consolation penalty but Durhamwere by far the superior team here andfully deserved their 14-4 victory. WithScott in goal the Gryphons will alwaysstand a chance in this division, but a

trip to last year’s Premier Division win-ners Edinburgh next week will not bean easy one. Leeds know what it takesto overcome the Scottish side though,having taken a 13-3 victory the lasttime the teams met.

Lucie England-Duce ©Lucie England-Duce ©

Sam Lewis ©

Sport 23

THEGRYPHON.CO.UK

The University of Leeds 2ssuccumbed to a narrow defeat in a gameagainst Leeds Beckett which could havegone either way. Having defeated theiropponents 3-1 in the Varsity fixtureearlier this month, Uni were lookingfor a similar result this time around tokick-start their league campaign aftersuffering a heavy defeat to the 1s lastweek.

In miserable conditions at Weetwood,the game began at a high tempo withboth sides looking to gain the upperhand early on in this local derby. Unienjoyed the lion’s share of possessionin the opening exchanges and forcedthe first corners of the game after goodpressure by Ben Leaman. However, Uniwere reminded of the threat that theBeckett attack possess and impressivebattling and last-ditch tackles wererequired from the Gryphons’ centre-back pairing of Omar Bukleb and Chris

Jackson as the away side worked theirway back into the game.

Uni had a penalty shout for handballwaved away by the referee, before theywere denied the lead by a clearanceoff the line. Yet, it was Beckett whoscored the first goal of the game as aninswinging free-kick was met by a bulletheader that flew out of goalkeeper CodyWharton’s reach.

The home side, however, weren’tready to lie down and responded wellto going behind. They quickly forcedanother corner which culminated ina tame effort after a scramble in theBeckett penalty area. As the gameheaded towards half-time, Leamaninitiated a well-worked one-two withcaptain Elliott Campbell which resultedin a great cross that almost led to aBeckett own goal.

After the interval, the game largelycontinued in the same vein and it wasn’tlong before Uni were deservedly on levelterms. Jack Bullock latched onto a finethrough ball with a neat touch whichtook the ball away from the defender,

before he buried it into the bottom cornerfrom the edge of the area.

The goal seemed to put a springin Bullock’s step as he was soon firingon target again, with the home sidenow chasing the lead. However, Beckettwere also looking for another goal andwere soon back in front. The Gryphonsconceded a foul after a spell of concertedpressure from Beckett, and there wastruly no stopping the resultant free-kickfrom roughly 35 yards.

As the match reached its final stages,the pace of the game upped again withUni desperate for an equaliser. Strongtackles flew in all across the field anda good save denied Bullock his secondgoal of the game from a free-kick on theedge of the 18-yard box.

Beckett ended the game victoriousbut they were largely matched by thehome side and the win could quiteeasily have been Uni’s on another day.It is now imperative that the Gryphonstake this performance into their nextgame at home to Sheffield Hallam 2son 5th November.

Will Stanley ©Will Stanley ©

Peter WhiteMen’s Football

Leeds Uni 2s 1-2 Leeds Beckett 2s

ResultsBadminton 1s (M) 3-5 Durham 1sBadminton 2s (M) 8-0 Huddersfield 1sBadminton 3s (M) 5-3 Bradford 1sBadminton 1s (W) 7-1 Durham 1sBasketball 1s (M) 64-82 Teesside 1sBasketball 2s (M) 71-82 York St. John 1sBasketball 3s (M) 64-19 Leeds Trinity 1sBasketball 1s (W) 61-17 Bradford 1sFencing (M) 131-111 Manchester 2sFencing (W) 133-135 Sheffield 1sFootball 1s (M) 4-3 Sheffield Hallam 2sFootball 2s (M) 1-2 Leeds Beckett 2sFootball 3s (M) 1-2 Sheffield Hallam 3sFootball 4s (M) 1-0 Hull 2sFootball 1s (W) 12-0 Manchester 1sFootball 2s (W) 3-3 Bradford 1sFootball 3s (W) 0-6 Hull 1sGolf 3-3 Sheffield Hallam 1sHockey 1s (M) 1-5 Nottingham 1sHockey 2s (M) 4-4 Northumbria 1sHockey 3s (M) 3-6 Newcastle 2sHockey 4s (M) 6-1 Bradford 1sHockey 5s (M) 4-2 Huddersfield 1sHockey 6s (M) 2-2 Leeds Beckett 4sHockey 1s (W) 1-4 Nottingham 1sHockey 2s (W) 2-0 Newcastle 2sHockey 3s (W) 1-2 Sheffield 2sHockey 4s (W) 1-1 Leeds 5sHockey 5s (W) 1-1 Leeds 4sHockey 6s (W) 0-4 Leeds Beckett 3sHockey 7s (W) 0-5 Bradford 1sLacrosse 1s (M) 16-0 Durham 3sLacrosse 1s (W) 4-20 Nottingham 1sLacrosse 2s (W) 8-23 Newcastle 2sNetball 1s 28-27 Northumbria 1sNetball 2s 41-24 Newcastle 3sNetball 3s 34-37 Durham 2sNetball 4s 45-24 Leeds Beckett 4sNetball 5s 23-23 Northumbria 4sNetball 6s 18-45 Sunderland 2sRugby League 1s 50-6 Manchester 1sRugby Union 1s (M) 18-16 Northumbria 1sRugby Union 2s (M) 15-12 Sheffield Hallam 1sRugby Union 3s (M) 5-22 Newcastle 3sRugby Union 4s (M) 5-67 Newcastle 4sRugby Union 1s (W) 7-32 Northumbria 1sSquash 1s (M) 3-2 (9-8) Manchester Met 1sSquash 2s (M) 3-0 (9-3) Northumbria 2sSquash 3s (M) 3-0 (9-4) Huddersfield 2sSquash 2s (W) 4-0 Northumbria 2sTable Tennis 1s (M) 0-17 Notts Trent 1sTable Tennis 2s (M) 14-2 Sunderland 1sTennis 1s (M) 8-4 Leeds Beckett 2sTennis 2s (M) 10-2 Sheffield 2sTennis 3s (M) 2-10 Durham 4sTennis 5s (M) 2-10 Durham 5sTennis 1s (W) 12-0 Liverpool JM 1sTennis 2s (W) 10-2 Durham 5sTennis 3s (W) 0-12 Leeds Beckett 3sWaterpolo 1s (M) 4-14 Durham 1sWaterpolo 1s (W) 12-15 Loughborough 1s

Beckett get Varsity revenge

24 October 2014 thegryphon.co.uk

Leeds put down a marker for the restof the league as they maintained their100% record in the men’s fencing thisseason.

They faced off against Manchester2s, and made sure that they got off tothe strongest start by electing to startoff with the sabre event, which they feelto be their strongest discipline. Theirsuperiority over Manchester was clear tosee as Alex Coleman, James Foreshawand Jordan Au helped Leeds to a 15-4lead after the first round of bouts,through a combination of lightning-fastfootwork and clinical shots.

Although Leeds were still dominant,the away team were gaining a footholdin the contest – which was brieflypunctuated when one of Manchester’ssabreurs broke his blade during anexchange. Rather than fight on withwhat now resembled a toothpick, Leedsgenerously lent him a spare sabre, butat the cost of a yellow card. Anotheryellow card would have meant that apoint would be awarded to Leeds.

Fortunately for Manchester, thisnever transpired. Towards the back ofthe end of the round, Leeds stretchedtheir lead further, with venomous playfrom all three men resulting in a 45-25win after one weapon.

It was now the turn of the foilists totake up the mantle and after a quick fix

of the scoring apparatus (by that ever-reliable material, ducktape), the contestwas back underway. Coleman returnedto the piste, but found the goingtougher, as neither he, Au or AlastairPlant were specialists at the discipline.Nevertheless, they stepped up to theplate, with Coleman producing theperformance of the round, scoring tenhits to one against one of his opponents.

Leeds looked set to pull off amemorable victory with the weapon,until Manchester snatched victory fromthe jaws of defeat to keep their fainthopes of snatching victory.

The épéeists had to wait a long timefor their chance to shine, but grabbedit with both hands. Josh Stuart keptLeeds in the driving seat, with Harry

Leeds take the spoils with the foil

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Could the men'sfootball 2s repeattheir Varsityvictory over LeedsBeckett? - p. 23

How did the men'sbasketball 1s fareagainst a tough

Teessideteam? - p. 21

Black HistoryMonth: How

has sportembraced

ethnicdiversity? - p. 18

football 2s repeat

victory over Leeds

Yorkshire CricketCaptain AndrewGale speaksexclusively to TheGryphon - p. 19

Alex BowmerMen's Fencing

Leeds Uni 1s 131-111 Manchester 2s

Jamson and Rob Ward maintaining thatadvantage. Manchester could now notcatch Leeds’ total score, meaning thecontest was wrapped up, Manchestersoon gained renewed impetus andtook the lead in the final weapon, butStuart’s experience stood him in goodstead and turned around the outcome inspectacular fashion.

It finished 131-111 and Stuartmentioned that after losing out onpromotion to Durham last season, Uniare favourites to finish top of the leaguethis time around. After Wednesday’sperformance and the trouncing of theUCLAN the previous week, they canrightly be confident of making it threewins on the bounce when they visitBangor in two weeks’ time.

•Victories in both épée and sabre sees winning streak extended•Two wins out of two for outstanding Gryphons

Alice Greenfield ©Alice Greenfield ©