Nanny's nutters in Birmingham never cease to amaze me. Usually it is the council doing something daft, such as calling Christmas "Wintervall"; now Birmingham University Students' Union, keen not to be left out of Nanny's nonsense, has thrown its hat into the ring.The Students' Union has frozen the assets of the Evangelical Christian Union, and banned the Christian Union from holding meetings at Birmingham University.
Why?
It seems that the Christian Union has refused membership to non Christians.
Seemingly, in the small world that the Students' Union inhabit, this is discrimination.
Wiser souls might point out that this is just common sense, after all why would a non Christian wish to join a Christian society?
What possible added value to either party would there be from such an occurrence?
Anyhoo, common sense never really plays a part in Nanny's thinking nor in the thinking of her trolls and goblins.
Birmingham University's Student Union Guild has demanded that the Evangelical Christian Union (ECU) amend its constitution to allow people of all faiths to become members and, this is the killer point, sit on its leadership body.
Needless to say the Christians think that this idea is bollocks, and have refused, although I am sure that they put it in a far more polite way!
In retaliation the Students' Union have frozen ECU's assets of £5,500, and blocked it from using student union facilities until it complies.
ECU has been around for 76 years, and has no intention of turning the other cheek (I'm on form today folks!), it has threatened legal action to gain access to its funds ahead of a major religious awareness drive.
Andy Weatherley, a staff worker for the ECU, said:
"Christian unions should be permitted to restrict membership to only those people who profess faith in Jesus Christ.
It is a fundamental right of any organisation to be able to include in its membership only those who abide by the ethos and focus of the organisation.
We believe this to be true for all organisations within the student union, not just religious or ethnic ones."
Pod Bhogal, communications director for the Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship - an affiliation of Christian societies - said:
"In all our years of working with hundreds of higher education establishments, this action by Birmingham's guild is unique.
It is over-the-top and looks like political correctness gone mad.
We would not dream of telling a Muslim group or a political society how to elect their leaders or who could or could not become a member.
That's entirely a matter to them, based on their own faith principles. The same applies to a Christian Union."
The guild believes that ECU must open its executive positions to people of all faiths.
Another weighty problem that the guild is wrestling with, in respect of ECU, are references in the constitution of ECU to "men" and "women".
Seemingly these references discriminate against transsexuals.
Birmingham University's Student Guild claims that it is merely enforcing the 1994 Education Act, which states student societies have to be open to all.
So why has it taken them 12 years to get round to doing this then?
I suspect that there is more to this than meets the eye.
The good news folks is that one day some of these young men and women (sorry, "persons") will be in positions of power and authority in this country, something to look forward to eh?
So, does that mean that as a 27 year old employed male, I can join the Student Union and "enjoy" all the benefits that todays students enjoy?
ReplyDeleteIf so, where should I apply?
TWATS!
Nope - found this on the NUS website:
ReplyDelete"Membership of NUS is open to the active students’ unions of all post-16 educational establishments with full time students, excluding schools."
Looks discriminatory to me......
n retaliation the Students' Union have frozen ECU's assets of £5,500, and blocked it from using student union facilities until it complies.
ReplyDeleteThe easiest way to avoid a situation like this in the future is to: a) concentrate one's financial assets (as a non-profit or "fraternal" organization) in some institution outside the immediate grasp the university(maybe I'm missing something, but how is it that the university has direct control/access to the ECU's funds in the first place?), and b) meet somewhere off-campus that is convenient to the majority of the membership.
The bottom line is that students of any faith, Evangelical Christian or otherwise, can certainly meet as a group without official recognition from the school; it's a matter of exercising one's natural right of free association.
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteI "plugged" your site today, I really enjoy reading it.
This was a great post, thanks!
well...I agree with alot you said. No surprises there!
ReplyDeleteThe actions of these students unions are very silly and frustrating!
It's funny how these kind of issues have a way of making fairly intelligent people soft in the head!
Pod Bhogal
either re classify the uni as a care institution for degenerate wee ego driven inadequates (i've seen what is required to obtain a place there, and it's not good!!) or Get em out and into the community with a brush as the only other suitable option.
ReplyDelete