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4 Reasons It’s Coming Home

Muhammad Oleolo
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4 Reasons It’s Coming Home

We’re going to tell our children about the Summer of 2018.  The Sun never failed us, every night ITV filled a Love-Island shaped hole in our hearts and, as it stands,  90 minutes against Croatia separate England from the World Cup Final.

Ladies and gentleman, it looks like this Summer is the Summer (if you forget about the mess that is our government right now) nothing can go wrong for England.


Here are a few reasons why we can say with a lot of confidence that football is truly coming home:

 

4 – Stephen Hawking’s Colour Hypothesis

Ahead of the 2014 World Cup, the Nobel-Prize winning physicist Stephen Hawking attempted to put the ingredients of England’s success into numbers. One of the conclusions that he reached was that England was more likely to win when playing in Red – which is considered the teams ‘away from home’ kit and worn less frequently as the tradition all-white.

Source: LA Times

This year, that hypothesis rings more true than ever, with England wearing red in three of their 5 games, winning every single time they’ve played in away colours.

 

3 – Young Doesn’t Mean Inexperienced

The incumbent Manager, Gareth Southgate is England’s youngest holder of that office, fielding England’s youngest team, and it’s no doubt that his input in crafting the England Youth System’s DNA Philosophy gave the young squad the confidence and cohesion that has seen them through this far.

Source: BBC. Raheem Sterling still catching flack from the media; less about his private life and more about his performance on the pitch.

DNA is a system of approaches and actions that range from a particular style of play (dominating possession, while being flexible, adaptable and quick off the ball) to the instilling of a sense of pride in the Three Lions and its heritage. DNA was something that Southgate was part of creating and it has filtered from the U21 Team right down to the most junior levels of FA football, creating uniformity even between players that have never played together. 

Midfielder Dele Alli has commented, “I played with him a couple of times with the Under-21s, so I know his philosophy,” speaking of Southgate. Other players have similarly lauded how coming up through the youth system helped them slot comfortably into the National Team, which has not always been the case. 

 

2 – An Easy Route to The Final?

This World Cup has proved that the playing field at the highest levels of Football has begun to equalise and that teams can no longer run away with competitions, a trend that already emerged in the domestic leagues but now is becoming apparent internationally. There just aren’t many ‘easy’ teams to beat anymore and that should be a source of deep excitement for the footballing world.


Even the footballers have noticed that the ‘easy route’ hypothesis doesn’t quite hold up to the reality on the pitch.


“I think it’s very dangerous,” Alli told reporters on Saturday. “We have to approach every game like we’re playing the best team in the world. These are top sides. No international game is easy”.


It’s coming home not because it was easy, but because England performed in a difficult tournament.

 

1 – The Twelfth Man

There have been some incredible individual performances from the England team: Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford could give the US President tips on building a wall that dispatches South Americans, Harry McGuire is now a national hero and the star of his own series of memes and Harry Kane, while blazing a path towards the golden boot has been less than selfish as a striker and an inspiring captain.

Jordan Pickford

The players have inspired the nation, who have in turn inspired the team in their own right. Social media in England has appropriated the “It’s Coming Home” mantra that comes from the 1996 song by the Lightning Seeds. Often, the song has been used sarcastically but this year marks a rare instance where the country is united by the prospect that England could really bring back the Jules Rimet trophy to the country where Association Football was born in 1863.

The Country seems absolutely united in goodwill for the team and the team must feel much more spurred on than previous England squad that were routinely subject to “so many jokes” and “many sneers”, to quote the song.

Well, most people are united:

Accessibility Is The New Black

Emmabelle Nwadikwa
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Accessibility Is The New Black

These days brands seem to be trying (and failing) to meet the mark where inclusivity is concerned. From FashionNova who launched their menswear line to In The Style with their “WeHateJosh” discount code inclusivity seems to be the new black. However, in the midst of all of this, ASOS may have actually cracked the code.

In collaboration with Team GB Paralympic athlete and BBC Bristol sports reporter Chloe Ball-Hopkins the clothing line designed a waterproof jumpsuit, ahead of festival season, that is also wheelchair friendly.

Chloe was born with Arthrogryposis which meant that she was born without hips. The condition also means that her shins are also affected. Though she has had surgery, Chloe spends the majority of her life in a wheelchair. She expressed that this made shopping difficult as it was hard to envision what the model was wearing on herself in the chair.

Chloe has shared that she got the idea after being drenched at Splendour Festival the previous year with her boyfriend and feeling as though it left her looking “like you’ve taken your gran out of the care home for a day”. She emailed ASOS hoping that they would be interested in the idea but assuming that they would take the idea themselves and expand on it, what she didn’t expect was that they would actually work on it together and that she would go on to be one of the models advertising it on the ASOS website.

The idea behind the jumpsuit is about making fashion accessible. There aren’t two separate designs for people who are and are not in a wheelchair, instead it’s one design that is able to work for everyone.

 

The jumpsuit is waterproof with a waterproof pocket on the breast, as opposed to being at the hips where pockets are often found, to store important things such as medical information and phones. It has cuffs on the feet which Chloe says make it ideal for people with different heights and even “means its easy to put wellies on”. It also has a zip around the waist which makes it easier to put on or take off despite being an all in one piece.

This of course is just the latest step towards inclusivity taken by ASOS. They have previously taken a stand against airbrushing the stretch marks on their models and they have also been credited as being excellent with the diverse hiring of their models as they hire people of different races, sizes and differing body shapes. Their Curve range was dubbed the most fashionable plus size range by Cosmopolitan Magazine.

ASOS are not the first big name brand to create things that are disability friendly. In November 2017 Mindy Scheier, founder of non-profit organisation “Runway Dreams”, an organisation that aims to educate the fashion industry about changes that can be made in order to become more accessible, gave a Ted-Talk in partnership with Tommy Hilfiger where she talked about how there are 1 billion people in the world that experience some form of disability. Tommy Hilfiger were the first mainstream brand to actually launch a clothing line for children with disabilities then went on to expand that line to adults. Amongst other retailers who have gone on to take similar steps are Nike and American retailer, Target.
The jumpsuit is available for £50 from the ASOS and can be purchased here. 

 

Why are Millennials Having Less Sex?

Common Sense Contributors
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By Benedicta Denteh.

Millennials today are often considered the ‘hyper-sexual’ generation. With attachments to alcohol, drugs and an unstoppable desire to be sexually active, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if you said they were the most sexually active era to date. This doesn’t just include intercourse but also ‘presenting’ oneself in a more sexual way through clothing and the sexualisation of television, media and so on. As the years have gone by, sex is arguably (at least in the western world) becoming less and less taboo, so why wouldn’t sex become a more frequent act, considering the rise in protective measures etc.? However, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Paradoxically, according to several studies across the UK and US, millennials (people born between the late seventies and the mid-nineties) are having less sex than the past few generations!

Generation groups aren’t categorically defined and so tend to go up and down in years.

According to the CDC report in the National Health Statistics Report which evaluated data on the sexual activity of those who were teenagers during 2011 to 2015, of those aged fifteen to nineteen, 42% of women and 44% of men reported that they were sexually active which showed a decline when compared with the 51% of women and 60% of men who reported being sexually active in 1988 in the US! A similar trend is found in the UK which has seen one in five sixteen to nineteen year olds with no sexual partners at all and subsequently a decline in teenage pregnancy according to the Director of External Affairs at the British Pregnancy Advisory Service.

Let’s explore possible reasons for this surprising decline

1. Sex Education and Consent

Beyond the classroom, people of all age ranges, from teenagers to adults, are being educated about the pleasures and dangers of sex through the media. Debatably, sex has become something that is more openly discussed. One thing now being widely explored is what consent actually is. With the #metoo movement revealing people’s stories of sexual assault and more adverts explaining how to ask and know whether someone is giving consent, it is possible that people are becoming more understanding of which boundaries not to cross in the bedroom department. This may have been followed by the decline as people are becoming more cautious with sex, what can be considered as going too far and others feel less pressured to go through with sexual acts.

This is a positive linking to a lack of sex as it shows that people are becoming more sexually liberal and taking a more methodological approach to sex, in that people are understanding what they want, how to express it and when to step back from a situation.

There are also more forums online and an extensive amount of videos (on sites like YouTube) which discuss how to know when you are ready to become sexually active, possibly meaning that people are being more careful and having sex when they actually feel ready to rather than misinformed or pressured.

2. Digital Age, sexual exploration beyond bedroom gymnastics

Technological solitude may also be a reason for the decline in sexual escapades of millennials.

I am often witness to hearing older generations talk about how young adults cannot be pulled away from their phones, computers or anything that can connect to some sort of social media network. We are consumed in a world of social feeds and Netflix and as a result, have had to sacrifice some intimate time with potential sexual partners. This to some extent seems to be true and could explain the drop in sexual intercourse.

Furthermore, quenching one’s sexual desires have never been easier than now and in the last thirty years. Not only is pornography accessible online (though pornography has always been available, having it online means access is easier and more discrete), sex toys more and more readily available through delivery and some people opt for sensual actions through online platforms such as video calling and sexting.

This may have led to the supposed decline in sex due to sexual intercourse being less convenient as it arguably gets in the way of the ostensibly fast moving environment of this new era. When pleasure is now so effortlessly attainable, why spend time finding someone to do the deed with or even who has time for the commitment and responsibility required in a romantic relationship?

Is technological advancement replacing our need for human contact?
3. A fear of intimacy and contact in the new age?

Image. That’s what it seems to all be about these days. We can deny the control that images of seemingly flawless men and women plastered and broadcasted over the internet, magazines and television have on our ability to be comfortable in our own bodies all we want, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t. According to British surveys conducted during 2014 and 2016 (according to one of the latest “National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyle” and “the British social attitudes survey of 2014”) ten million women in Britain are depressed by their image and 8% of men and 44% of women experience anxiety during sex. Now it might seem to be a superficial worry however, this is something that should be taken pretty seriously, especially if body image and comparing oneself to Instagram “baddies” is causing a lack of confidence in the array of body shapes and types which we possess. Who knows what these images are doing to our mental health?

Apps such as Tinder and Grindr are suggested to have contributed to a ‘hook-up’ culture which is believed to encourage a rise in one-night rendezvous and casual partners. However, these online platforms may be having (slightly, for some) the opposite effect.

The kind of connection one can make online and the ability to allure behind a screen is one that cannot be easily re-enacted in real life. Fear of not being perceived in the same way in reality as online visually and in conversation may drive people to remain behind the screens.

The digital age also has contributed to a fear of intimacy and people are becoming more comfortable contacting others through digital waves than in real-life, as for someone who spends a lot of time online, the latter may seem debilitatingly daunting.

There are of course many more reasons why millennials are abstaining from sexual relationships; from the economic climate meaning that they will be at home longer into adulthood (lack of own space equals lack of opportunity to have sex), to the concern being more on making money and pulling oneself out of the seemingly crippling economy after the recession in 2008 and the possible decline while Brexit deals are being set etc., people seem to be more concerned about building a secure future rather than sexual exploits.

There are of course a couple of problems that come with research looking into sexual activity. The use of self-report techniques isn’t always reliable, despite the fact that we are constantly going toward sex becoming a less surreptitious subject. People still may lie about the amount or their frequency of sexual encounters for many reasons. In addition, the definition of sex itself is subjective, some may define sex as simply just sexual intercourse whereas others may include all possible sexual activities. Be that as it may, data does suggest that there is a clear dip in sexual activity for millennials and even Generation Z.

Whether it’s a problem that should be visited and studied with extreme precision or just a change of attitudes towards sex, one cannot be sure. However, reasons of why millennials are having less sex is probably very multi-lateral ranging from social media, finances and just a rise in more methodological thinking before approaching sex.

 

Benedicta is currently studying Arabic and French at the University of Manchester and hopes to become a linguist and broadcast journalist in the future. In her free time, she enjoys learning about African development and issues to do with race, society and culture. Benedicta also takes pleasure in acting, travelling and promoting plant-based eating.

Twitter: @BenniDenteh

A Socialist Paradise: Venezuela’s Prices Have Risen by 40,000%

Common Sense Contributors
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By Shafiq Kyazze.

Venezuela was once the richest country in South America. It has some of the largest known oil reserves in the world and was seen as a beacon of progress in Latin America.  However, the current president, Nicolas Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chavez, helped to see to it that this great progress was reversed, running the country into turmoil.

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, holding a copy of the country’s constitution, addresses supporters at the presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, after electoral officials declared he was re-elected on Sunday, May 20, 2018. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

The administration’s persistent socialist and authoritarian policies have ensured its fall from grace.  Empty shelves, rampant corruption and smugglers depict a clear image of the turmoil. A recent university study showed that 90% of civilians were living in poverty last year with most of those surveyed having lost 11 kg in body weight.

A father and daughter rest while someone holds their place before sunrise in a long line to buy basic foodstuffs in Tachirastate, Venezuela. Shortage of such products as flour, milk and sugar have made life increasingly difficult for residents of Tachira, which has been a focal point for anti-government protests for almost a month.

Senior economist at Pantheon macroeconomics, Andres Abadia, labelled Venezuela a disaster area and added that as long as Maduro is in power, the economy will continue to collapse.  With all this chaos happening, there has been a deafening silence from his supporters including the incumbent leader of opposition in the UK parliament, Jeremy Corbyn as well as renown supporter and retired MIT professor Noam Chomsky.

The country’s inflation rate has now hit 41,838% yearly for the first time according to Steve.H. Hanke, an applied economics professor at John Hopkins University who has tracked the country’s prices for the past two decades.

The country’s failing government blames the poor economy on opposition activists and the U.S government. The country’s president blamed the hyper-rise in prices on “criminal mafias”, but nothing could be further from the truth: Maduro’s administration has accelerated its spending while the country’s revenue sources were rapidly shrinking causing them to sink deeper into an economic crisis.

A little girl sleeps in the children’s cancer ward at Luis Razetti Hospital

Venezuela’s foreign exchange reserves have fallen by about $2.5 billion in the last three months according to Capital economics, leading to a further loss in value of the Bolivar, the country’s official currency. “Everyone who has a bolivar wants to get rid of it like a hot potato because they expect it’s not going to be worth anything tomorrow.” Hanke added.

 

Shafiq is a Chemical engineering student at The University of Manchester and has a strong interest in philosophy and history having been exposed to such issues at a very young age. He is also very keen on topics concerning the global economy, politics, and social issues, but when he’s not engrossed in such conversations, you can find him supporting the Barcelona football team or writing contributor articles for The Common Sense Network.

More Money More Problems: South Korean President Encourages Less Work & More Play

Common Sense Contributors
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By Shafiq Kyazze.

“It is impossible to lead a happy life when long hours and overexertion become routine; overworking must not persist in our society”. This was the statement made by Moon Jae-in, the South Korean president earlier this year who was introducing the idea of reducing the work week in a bid to boost the nation’s falling birth rate and depressing standards of living of its citizens.

His comments come as no surprise as South Korea’s fertility rate of 1.2 children per woman (The U.K rate is about 1.8) coupled with Spain and Italy, is one of the lowest birth rates among OECD countries.

This low birth rate is mainly blamed on the work culture, where people work very long hours, in fact in March this year, the gender equality and family minister, Chung Hyun-back, called the country’s working hours “inhumanely long” and put the blame for low pregnancies on the workaholic life.

But it’s not only government officials complaining about the country’s long working hours. A 2014 hit song, “Misaeng” that translates to ‘Incomplete life’ highlighted aspects of office life: Bullying from co-workers, sexual harassment and a cruel pecking order, were among the many troubling issues.

A young business woman in Seoul

However, changing the workaholic culture isn’t going to be an easy task for the government. The culture has been instilled into many South Koreans during the country’s 60-year rise from a poverty stricken nation to a leading industrial power. Such a change is inevitably going to take a tremendous amount of time as this requires a dedication of citizen’s priorities and values. Poverty has plagued this country for a considerable length of time and it is possible that the fear of backtracking from their new found success is affecting people’s relationship with work and as a by product, their perspective on family life.

The government has proposed a reduction in the official corporate work week in order to give employees more free time, improve their health and wellbeing as well as boost their birth rates. The work week for office workers was cut from the current 68 hours to 52 hours even though some believe that such a change will just remain on paper and won’t be promoted in most work places.

“A law on work hours is just a piece of paper, the reality in Korea is that we will work and work and work” giggled Hyun- Soo, an accounts assistant at a major telecommunications company while taking his smoke break. He preferred not to mention his name or employer due to fear of blowing his career.

Cheonggyecheon Stream In Seoul City

In order to comply with the new reductions, some companies have gone as far as deciding to shut down computer networks to force employees to go home early whilst others have installed TV surveillance to ensure clock-in and out at reasonable hours as well as introducing card swipe systems to limit smoking and coffee breaks.

A further measure of bettering standards of living has been the minimum wage increment; the South Korean government has also increased the minimum wage to $7 which represents a 16% jump. This minimum wage increment has been the biggest change in the last two decades as well as starting new programs to cut down costs for small businesses.

So how well will these measures work, and how far is South Korea prepared to go to ensure it doesn’t fall prey to an aging generation whilst on the trail of enconomic success?

 

Shafiq is a Chemical engineering student at The University of Manchester and has a strong interest in philosophy and history having been exposed to such issues at a very young age. He is also very keen on topics concerning the global economy, politics, and social issues, but when he’s not engrossed in such conversations, you can find him supporting the Barcelona football team or writing contributor articles for The Common Sense Network.

Race to the Clouds, the Pikes Peak Challenge

Common Sense Contributors
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Race to the Clouds, the Pikes Peak Challenge

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is an annual Automobile and Motorbike event held at the Pikes Peak course at Colorado, USA. It involves drivers racing their vehicles to the top of the peak essentially making it a hill climb. One can imagine it’s similar to the timed attempts at the Nurburgring with the exception of it being a start to finish course and not a circuit (and of course the obvious hill element). Another feature is the fact that each driver is only allowed one race attempt and a few test attempts. The weather changes in this hillclimb can be drastic given the setting.

 

Pikes Peak Course.svg

As you can see, in the image above, scaling this gaudy monstrosity within ones motor vehicle class/type is a an achievement in its own right. But being the fastest overall among all the vehicles that competed here since 1916, is nothing short of special.

In October last year, when Volkswagen Motorsport director Sven Smeets was interviewed, he spoke of the race as being a “new beginning for us. We are developing an all-electric race vehicle for the first time. The project is also an important milestone in our new motorsport orientation.”

In short, this is a fresh direction post the emissions scandal. The glaring issue was the fact that Volkswagen had no experience racing at high altitudes. Their last attempt was all the way back in 1987. At that time the course was part gravel, one that required the terrifying and bonkers group B rally cars. To put simply, normal racing tires and cars don’t do quite well in gravel as compared to asphalt due to the varied traction requirements i.e much lower than normal. So we need specialized tires for starters. Secondly, as we climb up rapidly, the engine is starved of air as the air gets thinner and thinner. So without forced induction an Internal Combustion Engine would drop performance in said circumstances.

Audi Sport Quattaro – a group B rally car

Volkswagen Solution

Volkswagen’s solution was to get their MK2 Golf, one with an engine in front and another engine out back, making this a one of a kind model. Both engines were based on the 16-valve, 1.8-liter four-cylinder units then offered in the GTI. Each carried a turbocharger, and had a mechanical throttle system that would link their outputs as necessary; the driver could choose rear, front or four-wheel drives. And that output was massive – 652 horsepower, enough even with the weight of two motors to catapult the Golf from rest to 62 mph in 3.4 seconds. A 4-wheel drive mode would come in handy during the gravel section per se, so their machine and its flexibility was optimum at the time. During their run, they were leading as well only for a suspension bearing to fail. That effectively ended their challenge.

Now we date to October 18, 2017; work on the factory entry into the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb since the ill-fated 1987 campaign began. Proven winner, Romain Dumas, was chosen to be the pilot. Norma, who have experience building Pikes Peak cars are called upon for a “team-up”. An electric drive train was chosen and experienced technical director François-Xavier “FX” Demaison was at the job. Demaison’s key philosophy being downsizing, i.e reducing weight.

The Science

From an Aerodynamic standpoint, we would have to revisit the characteristics of air at high altitudes.  Air becomes less dense as we get higher and higher and the pressure drops. This means beyond a certain point one would have to consider the fact that simulating this in a tunnel would not be possible. Hence the involvement with Ansys makes a lot of sense. The car trades off drag with Downforce, and as we go higher the effect of drag is reduced. An emphasis being placed on cornering and acceleration. As far as efficiency of the cooling cycle goes, it is slashed significantly as the air gets thinner.

“We could not manage this solely with the data from the wind tunnel, where it is not possible to recreate the thin air,” stated Volkswagen Motorsport’s Technical Director, François-Xavier Demaison, in a press release on the I.D. R’s aero development. “The simulation was a great help in determining the dimensions required for the cooling system.” The emphasis on acceleration is due to the fact that in a hill-climb, it’s a matter of maximizing acceleration rather than top speed.

Limited development time (the I.D. R was greenlit in August 2017) meant rapid component prototyping was crucial to the car’s refinement on such a short time frame, forcing heavy use of 3-D printing, according to one of the project’s computational fluid dynamics engineers, Dr. Hervé Dechipre. “We printed about 2,000 parts,” explained Dechipre “In doing so, we saved a lot of time.”

Image result for francois xavier fx demaison volkswagen
The picturesque Pikes Peak, Romain Dumas during testing.

Now bear in mind, the electric record was held by the eO PP100, which raced with almost 1,600 horsepower and 1,859 pound-feet of torque. So a goal weight 10 percent beneath that of the 1,200-kilogram (2,646-pound) record holder was targeted, forcing added complications onto the battery capacity and weight calculations. To keep mass down, two electric motors were used (instead of four), and they are linked by a reduction gear to the traditional differentials at both ends. Regenerative braking would harvest energy during the race. There is no torque vectoring, just a motor and differential at each axle. Heat recycling tech, too, is absent. All in the effort to shed weight. “I always said the best car for Pikes Peak would be electric,” said Dumas. “You have to fight against losing power, brakes, and downforce [at altitude], but you don’t lose power with this car. I’m in love with this race, the mountain is so beautiful. It’s a kind of Nordschleife, but for sure with even more risks.” Pikes Peak’s weather can change violently in a matter of minutes or miles. Even in June there can be sun at the foot of the mountain and snow at the summit. It’s common for sections of the course to be enshrouded in fog.

Volkswagen and Dumas believed they could attain the electric record—maybe even the overall record. At the end video evidence proved it. They shattered the EV record by nearly a minute and the overall crown by 16 seconds.

To quote Colin Chapman, “Adding power makes you faster on the straights, subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere”. And we can only begin to marvel at engineering and racing to the extreme.

by Rutvik Bhaskar Perepa
Rutvik Bhaskar Perepa is a student at The University of Manchester working towards a MEng in Mechanical Engineering hoping to be on a placement after Year 3. He has had the privilege to travel around his home country, India and discover the rich heritage and diversity. His personal interests include Food and travel, history, Sport among many others. Often found in discourse on various issues ranging Engineering to Religious Practices, he never shy’s away from being expressive. He believes in being open minded, empathetic and analytical is the key to problems posed on a daily basis.

Misogynoir on Love island: Black Girl Samira’s Missrepresentation

Common Sense Contributors
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By Tanya Mwamuka.

The generation we live in today revolves around social media; the incessant calling out and cancelling culture perpetuated by social justice warriors. Problematic celebrities have their support retracted; politically incorrect comments have been slandered and recently I have noticed the increase in recognition of social issues such as misogynoir.

What is Misogynoir?

The word misogyny is a term that no doubt the majority of people can at least recognise if not define. Despite that, its counterpart Misogynoir which is combination of the words misogyny and noir, is a term almost exclusively only known by the black community – more specifically black women. The word was coined by queer black feminist scholar, Moya Bailey as a way to express the misogyny directed at black girls and women. Like many issues in our social media fueled generation, the term was popularised on twitter and this word was specifically brought to the forefront by @thetrudz.

Youtuber: Philosopher perfectly explains the term in her video:

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT6VnLN1DfU

#TOTW: Misogynoir |What is it?

“Misogynoir is us being seen as the least attractive solely based on race […] Misogynoir is the fact that although we are always having these conversations about how women make 78 cents to the man’s dollar however black women actually make 67 cents to the white man’s dollar[…] Misogynoir is the fact at any given moment in America, 64 thousand black women are missing and no one says anything. Misogynoir is that black women are reserved the role of the ghetto side chick … the hypersexualised jezebel in all almost all media roles”.

The idea that black women are inherently more aggressive is central if not the most prominent and most recurring example of misogynoir. The use of carefully selected language has effectively curated a negative narrative. As a black woman I can’t count the number of times the phrase “angry black girl” has been thrown around.  When describing other women of other races for the same characteristics we see more desirable synonyms used. For example, a fierce or confident demeanour in a black woman would be portrayed as “attitude” whilst in a Latina woman it would be described as “passion”.

How Misogynoir has been used on the Island

So if you haven’t been living under rock, you’ll either be watching love island or at the very least keeping up with the tweets about it. One of the love island contestants Samira Mighty (she’s black) has been subject to misogynoir countless times.

Love Island Contestant Samira has been subject to online backlash which many may agree is unwarranted and racially motivated.

It started from the first coupling. Every one of the boys who were Samira’s type on paper chose a different girl and Samira was forced to be coupled with A & E doctor Alex. Many viewers see nothing wrong with denoting lack of interest towards Samira as simply personal preference. But that isn’t the whole truth; black women, particularly those of non-Eurocentric features and darker skin tones seem only desired when hypersexualised, when it comes to men outside their race. What most people don’t understand is that attributing beauty or non-beauty to race is really part of social conditioning, and we have been conditioned to think that when you look more European, you have achieved the standard of beauty. Compliments (insults really) like “pretty for a black girl” only reinforce this idea and illustrate the thought pattern that black isn’t beautiful. As much as I wanted to be excited about a non-ambiguous black woman entering the villa (a sure sign for an increase in diversity) the niggling idea that the boys likely wouldn’t find her attractive because she’s black consistently played in my head.

Not pretty enough to date Chris Pine?

When Samira revealed she had dated Hollywood actor Chris Pine, she was met with heavy criticism and accusations. One viewer tweeted that she was lying and many proclaimied that she wasn’t attractive enough to date someone of such a status.

Twitter user accuses Samira of lying about her romantic relationship with celebrity Chris Pine

In some ways Samira’s situation draws parallels to Marcel, a black man in last year’s series who was also chosen last despite his (obvious) good lucks. However, Samira has the added strife of being a woman with not only her looks put to question, but her behaviour also unfairly scrutinised.

Most recently Samira was deemed manipulative and fake when warning Alex on his new love interest Ellie. Amber Davids, although claiming to be team Samira put her in her Muggy section of her love island column in the Sun. She was joined by annoyed viewers of the show who tweeted about how Samira was misleading Alex to save herself. Strange that no one batted an eyelid of accusation when Dani and Megan were bitching about 20-year-old Georgia.

Twitter user analyses Samira’s behaviour and some think such comments are rooted in stereotypes of black women’s character being particularly negative

Yet what was funny is that Samira was right all along. If anything, she is the one person in the villa who doesn’t step on egg shells when it comes to telling Alex the truth. Ellie was filmed talking to Alex about how she felt their relationship was robotic and a preview of the Monday night’s episode revealed drama between Alex and Ellie which Samira had warned of.  Furthermore, Samira is deemed aggressive yet other contestants are described with positive alternatives for the same behaviour, as Chia highlights in her tweet.

Chia Tweet: Dani vs Samira

Samira has been neglected throughout the whole process. When new potentials for Alex walked into the house the islanders encouraged him, gave him style and girl advise and the nation rooted for him to find his love. During all of this Samira received no attention and romantic affection yet no one cheered for her with as much enthusiasm. Despite the islanders claiming Samira is their best friend, the lack of support she receives doesn’t reflect their words.

What’s also funny is that the producers probably thought that by putting Samira in the show, it was a sure way to tick of the inclusion or diversity box. But what’s the point of putting the token black girl in if you’re not even going to put someone in that finds black women attractive? Witcho Lavender perfectly outlines this.

Are producers simply ticking of their diversity box?

Yes, new boy Sam did choose Samira in the end but I’m still critical. My reservations lie from the fact that when he retold his list of top girls he liked, he didn’t hesitate with 1-3 but forgot Samira’s name asking the girls to remind them of it. Moreover, the sheer number of tweets supporting Samira likely influenced the producers to send in Sam to pick Samira. Many speculate he will recouple with Ellie and Alex and Samira will be right back where they started.

Misogynoir is very much not over but, one thing I do hope is that more and more people become aware of it through watching Samira’s treatment on Love Island.

 

Tanya is currently studying Biomedical Sciences at the University of Manchester and hopes to get into media and journalism after her degree. Tanya is a lover of fashion and travelling and enjoys fashion blogging and learning languages in her spare time. Right now she is learning French and Spanish.

Twitter: @thisnewoldthing

Time to Disconnect: The UK Makes Plans for it’s First Gaming Addiction Centre

Common Sense Contributors
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By Dolline Mukui.

We are all at least somewhat familiar with one game or another, and even if you’ve never been a ‘gamer’, I bet you can’t say that you never found yourself gripped by the mischievous Angry Birds, the fast paced Temple Run or the sickly sweet and addictive Candy Crush. But, even if we have all fallen prey to the world of competition and ‘levelling up’, has the nation‘s addiction become that bad? So bad that we have had to resort to opening up an internet addiction centre?

The Central and North West London NHS Foundation has announced that it is set to launch its first NHS funded addiction centre in the UK in the next few weeks. The addiction center will aim to tackle gaming disorders and other online addictions in the future. Because clearly we’re only getting worse, right?

Psychiatrist and clinic founder Henrietta Bowden-Jones told The Guardian, the clinic will provide treatment, do research and give advice to families.

Henrietta also said ‘Gaming disorder is finally getting the attention it deserves. The distress and harm it can cause is extreme and I feel a moral duty on behalf of the NHS to provide the evidence-based treatment these young people and their families need.

‘We are unlikely to witness an epidemic of young players with an addiction to gaming but for the ones who do struggle, the centre for internet disorders will be a life-changer.’

The World Health Organisiation (WHO) has classified gaming disorder as an addiction earlier in the week after it placed it on its International Classification of Diseases (ICD) manual.

Online addiction is now an official disease recognised by the reputable World Health Organisation. 

However, experts say that not enough research has been conducted into the effect excessively gaming has on the human condition and there is therefore currently a lack of scientific evidence to demonstrate addiction and making a hobby seem abnormal.

WHO’s official definition of gaming disorder includes a pattern of gaming which is out of control for 12 months, an increase in priority to gaming to the point that it takes precedence in one’s daily activities and the continuation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences.

For the NHS to open a clinic funded by them shows a shift in peoples’ behavior patterns. It also shows what the advances in technology can do to a person.

Can the modern day society live in a world without this kind of entertainment, or at least, enhanced limited access? Who exactly is to blame?

In the 21 century we see kids as young as 1 years old being handed tablets to calm them down, to distract them, to keep them quiet for minutes to hours on end, but do we set boundaries to their access? We allow kids to have 24-hour access to their games in their rooms but do we really know how long they are spending on it? Have we started planting seeds of addiction into their lives, or are we planting seeds of addiction into our own?

You have to ask yourself these questions because at the end of the day this is now our reality, it’s not a game we can pause and carry on with the next morning. So ask yourself, how long does it take you to tell yourself Game Over?

 

Dolline is a traveller, journalist and blogger who has a constant desire to try new things. She is a very spontaneous person; you might find her skydiving over the Kenyan coast or kayaking on Lake Como. She can be an over thinker who considers every possible outcome, but if she’s ever caught by surprise, she welcomes the change that was not planned. However, she is a very simple person who is up for a good laugh or a book and enjoys living in the moment. Dolline also writes for her small personal blog called ‘Swatches of Beauty’ and contributes to a radio show called a ‘A Chat with Elle Celeste’.

Twitter: @ceraz_x

Why Is Black Hair Political?

Common Sense Contributors
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By Benedicta Denteh.

Now, as I write about black hair, I’m not simply talking about hair of a darker pigment, but specifically the ‘kinky’ or ‘coily’ diverse strands that grow on the scalps of those of African and Caribbean descent. For centuries, black hair has been a source of identity, taking on different shapes and styles for a plethora of reasons. From tribes in West Africa in the 1400s to the Black Panther Party in 1960s America, black hair has been a statement of culture and identity, but can black hair really be seen as political?

1. Bans and regulations within schools

High schools throughout the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and South Africa have been known to place bans or punishments on black students who wear their natural hair. The following schools have been under the eye of the media in recent times: Butler Traditional High School in Louisville, Kentucky, St. Gregory’s Catholic Science College in Melbourne, Mystic Valley Regional Charters School, Malden, Massachusetts, Pretoria in South Africa. Each of these institutions have all reported incidents of members of staff asking students to straighten or chemically perm their hair or to take out styles such as braids, cornrows and dreadlocks.

Beyonce. Source: astrostyle.com

Reasons provided for these kind of styles being deemed unacceptable have largely been based on opinion than issues of fact. For example, excuses such as not wanting to encourage “gang related” hairstyles and claiming that braids “did not represent” the establishment to these hairstyles being deemed “extreme” or “distracting” for other students in classes.

Many schools have argued that their uniform policies aim to promote equality amongst all students and therefore desire to have styles that do not inhibit their ability to concentrate during lessons. The problem? It completely disregards cultural differences between students and so these kinds of rules incite indirect or subconscious racial discrimination. Braided hairstyles such as cornrows and braids (examples above and below) are not only deeply embedded into familial traditions amongst black people in the African diaspora but also form part of the natural upkeep of black hair. For this reason, this lack of integrating policies which take into account multiculturalism, often makes students who are targeted feel a sense of otherness in an institution where  arguably one of its primary goals is to install a sense of unity into society’s future members.

Many of the schools mentioned have accordingly decided to take into consideration different cultural practises whilst reviewing and amending their policies after media attention and high court interventions. Be that as it may, coming into question is the whether other schools throughout the world and other places with these types of uniform rules, will follow suit in order to create an environment of inclusivity.

2. A question of professionalism in the workplace

Source: britishcurlies.co.uk

We have all heard anecdotes of sexism in the workplace whereby women have encountered some type of a ‘glass ceiling’. This is the idea that there is only so far a position they may be able to reach in any given job in comparison to their male counter parts. Take for example Nicola Thorp. Nicola was let go from her receptionist temp job for failure to comply with ‘office rules’. These rules subsequently included women having to wear a skirt and high heels and it is without doubt that this kind of discrimination must be challenged and denounced.

However, in addition, we should also be extending this investigation of what is and isn’t professional in the workplace to black hair. There have been several accounts of black women being told to chemically perm their hair or be encouraged to wear weave in the workplace and of women being unable to secure jobs in the UK in places such as Harrods and Knightsbridge and these are not isolated incidents.

Hair being too “distracting” or “unprofessional” is often the reason behind employers asking employees to alter their hair. This has led to some resistance but also some compliance as no person wants to lose out on new job opportunities or be let go from their job/career. This discrimination feeds into division of employees; the ways in which rules are the same for all but not suitable for all. It creates a problem that often comes when there is an attempt to treat everyone the same although they are not the same. Equality over equity (equity being equality which recognises differences and that all cannot be exactly the same i.e. different rules suited for different people). As a result, these ‘rules’ in the workplace not only advocate for a Eurocentric idea of professionalism, but also encourage indirect institutionalised racism. As said by Anna Birtwistle, a partner at CM Murray LLP “an employer who prohibits afros in the workplace risks the allegation that they are discriminating against black employees”.

This discrimination has extended to places such as the military where it wasn’t until 2014 that Defence secretary Chuck Hagel announced that the military’s prohibitions on black hairstyles such as twists and cornrows had been lightened due to special considerations for racial differences, i.e. black hair. Although the intervention of women affected (among the 26,000 black women who served in the military at the time) and the congressional Black Caucus (a political organisation which was established in 1970) this issue calls into question the willingness of the United States, the UK and many other western countries to adjust regulations in order to be more inclusive and promote multiculturalism, especially for those who are willing to die for their country.

This undated image provided by the US Army shows new Army grooming regulations for females. New Army regulations meant to help standardized and professionalize soldiers’ appearance was under criticism by some black military women, who said changes in the requirement for their hair were racially biased. The Army had issued new appearance standards, which included bans on most twists, dreadlocks and large cornrows, all styles used predominantly by African-American women with natural hairstyles. More than 11,000 people signed a White House petition asking the then President Barack Obama, the commander-in-chief, to have the military review the regulations to allow for “neat and maintained natural hairstyles.” Source: AP Photo/US Army

So why does this all make black hair political?

Black hair is a part of African and Caribbean racial identity. For hundreds of years dating back to the seventeen hundreds black hair has been deemed to be outrageous and bizarre which furthers feelings of otherness amongst black people in the African Diaspora and even those in countries with large black populations. This has led to black people altering their hair textures in order to fit into western and westernised societies (although there are other reasons to change one’s hair texture such as to improve the simplicity of the upkeep of hair).

We should take a leaf from members of the Black Panther Party of the 1960s and 70s who embraced their natural hair and afros as a political statement that hair like black people of the time, should be truly free and unrestricted. It subsequently became a popular style and was often worn in protest rallies. Similarly, encouragement for change should be taken from the “black is beautiful” campaign which called for black people, specifically women, to wear their hair out, coils and all. Regardless of where it started, natural hair and hairstyles are becoming more and more embraced, symbolising acceptance and challenging the idea that has been maintained for so long that natural hair is improper and un-uniformed.

Dancer’s Donning Afro Hairstyles in Beyonce’s Formation Music Video. Source: Pintrest

Freedom to wear our hair naturally out or in natural styles shouldn’t be something banned within workplaces and other establishments such as schools. And what should also be put into perspective is that it is not an ‘act of kindness’ for these establishments to allow these hairstyles, it is a right that has been long overdue.

Paradoxically, “to wear our hair naturally shouldn’t be a political statement”, however, it will continue to be as long as there are restrictions of one’s opportunities in jobs and discrimination in learning environments because of the natural way one’s hair grows/is up-kept.

Benedicta is currently studying Arabic and French at the University of Manchester and hopes to become a linguist and broadcast journalist in the future. In her free time, she enjoys learning about African development and issues to do with race, society and culture. Benedicta also takes pleasure in acting, travelling and promoting plant-based eating.

Twitter: @BenniDenteh

Democratic Socialist Unseats 10-term Congressman

Alex Davenport
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Democratic Socialist Unseats 10-term Congressman

With the US midterm elections mere months away, we have seen perhaps the first significant indication of how the electoral tide may be turning. This indication was provided by the voters of New York’s 14th congressional district, who opted to back insurgent left-wing candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over veteran congressman Joe Crowley by a margin of 57.5% to 42.5% in the district’s Democratic primary. Ocasio-Cortez will now go on take challenge Republican Anthony Pappas for the seat in November, and will certainly go into the race as a heavy favourite.

 

Ocasio-Cortez, a former volunteer for Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential bid, offered a similar policy platform to that of Sanders, with a distinctively socialist ideological slant. Among her policies were the introduction of universal healthcare, the scrapping of college tuition fees and the abolition of the controversial Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, which has been at the centre of much controversy for its separation of migrant children from their parents at the border. These policies certainly appear to have chimed with voters in the district, many of whom come from ethnically diverse and socially deprived backgrounds.

Her opponent Crowley, meanwhile, had served 10 terms as the New York district’s Congressman. He had not even been challenged in a primary for 14 years and was expected by many to win with ease, with campaign finances more than 10 times those of Ocasio-Cortez. Crowley had been touted by many as a candidate for one of the top jobs in the Democratic Party, with his name even being linked to the position of Speaker of the House should the incumbent Nancy Pelosi choose to step down. Yet his illustrious career and dreams of moving on to bigger things have been suddenly cut short by this result.

 

Many have pointed to Crowley’s apparent complacency in running re-election as part of the reason for his defeat. According to Democratic strategists he did not appeal to any of his allies in the party for help during the campaign, confident that he did not need help to win. He also failed to show up to a debate with Ocasio-Cortez, citing scheduling conflicts, much to the ire of his opponent.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez being congratulated after her shock victory (Source: Getty Images)

Yet it is difficult to overlook the importance of wider reasons in understanding this result. Ocasio-Cortez’s victory seems to conform to a common theme of political change taking place in various countries, where establishment figures have lost out to insurgents from the left and right. In these cases, political prestige counts for little and ideology counts for much. As Crowley’s campaign for re-election showed, many of the things that used to count for a significant advantage in elections, such as a well-funded campaign and backing from party elites and big business can easily become millstones around a candidate’s neck, allowing them to be portrayed as part of an insular cabal. Ocasio-Crowley’s grassroots-led campaign, on the other hand, could point the absence of big-money donors and high-profile support as evidence of its ideological purity, free from malign interests.

For many, Ocasio-Cortez’s victory over Crowley will have come as a significant shock. This is true for nobody more so than Ocasio-Cortez herself, who appeared stunned and lost for words as the announcement of her victory came through on a big screen at her headquarters. She has certainly joined the long list of political upsets to take place over the past few years. The main question to be asked now, as the political tide seems to be irrevocably turning, is how long this list of upsets has to get before we stop considering them upsets.

BET Awards A Step Up From Last Year?

Afoma Andrea
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BET Awards A Step Up From Last Year?

For a few years now it feels as if the BET Awards has lost its essence, granted the 2017 Awards was a step up from previous years but with viewership decreasing year after year it has become painfully obvious that the show was in need of a real shake up and reinvention. High hopes were held for a more entertaining ceremony, with the announcement of Jamie Foxx as host for this years Awards.

Jamie Foxx, this year’s BET Awards Host

It is safe to say that 2018 has been a year of Black Greatness. This year we saw Black Panther smash box office records,  Beyonce deliver a historic performance at Coachella and Ghanaian fashion designer Virgil Abloh being appointed artistic director for Louis Vuitton which is the highest position a designer of colour has ever had. Black Excellence was the phrase of the night with lead host Jamie Foxx repeating the phrase repeatedly throughout the show. Though he did have his share moments of stale jokes (the Wanda Wakanda skit was definitely not needed!), as a host Jamie was enjoyable but its clear that his talents lay more in music. Foxx is a talented singer and it was a joy to watch him deliver a special tribute to Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Anita Baker with the help of talented singers Ledisi, Marsha Ambrosius and Yolanda Adams.

On the night, we had performances from the likes of Migos, Nicki Minaj , Miguel and others. The Migos delivered a not great start to the ceremony. The rappers had no energy and looked tired, the backup dancers often looked like they were in and out of sync with one another thus creating a rather underwhelming performance

Performing a medley of her recent hits “Chun Li” and “Rich sex”, Minaj’s return to the BET stage was an anticipated one. The rapper ascended the stage in a eye catching latex kimono with a crew of dancers to perform  “Chun Li”. After a quick wardrobe change, Minaj strutted her stuff in a eye catching red latex dress and displayed some rather innovative dance moves by crawling on all fours for the remainder of the medley which only hyped the crowd more. The rapper concluded her sub-par set with a guest spot on YG’s performance of his new song “Big Bank” featuring Big Sean and 2 Chains.

Miguel dressed in what can only be described as his best Puff daddy white suit performed an excellent fusion of “Sky Walker”, “Come through” and “Chill”.  The singer returned later to the stage with Meek Mill to debut the powerful single “Woke” which placed a spotlight on police violence. Meek in a dark hoodie with images of recently deceased rappers XXXTentacion and Jimmy Wopo on both front and back, delivered a dramatic performance that highlighted issues with police brutality and his own issues with the criminal justice system. The performances of the night, however, would have to go to H.E.R.

Though she may not be as well known as bigger artists such as J.cole or Nicki minaj, H.E.R held her own and captured the audiences attention from the start to the end of her performance. Standing in front of a blue and purple tinged backdrop, H.E.R started her set with a smooth rendition of her song “Focus”. Showing that she is talented not just vocally, we saw the songstress flawlessly shred an electric guitar before bringing out Daniel Ceaser to perform their duet “Best Part”.

Tiffany Haddish Wins The Award For Best Actress

Winners of the night included SZA (who after her Grammys snub well deserved to win as Best New Artist), Cardi B and Tiffany Haddish.

Overall the show though not as energetic as last years show, was an enjoyable one and delivered on what it had set out to do – reminded us what Black Excellence could be.

Fallon vs Trump

Emmabelle Nwadikwa
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Fallon vs Trump

Since becoming the 45th President of the United States of America, Donald Trump has found himself in more than his fair share of arguments with his fellow celebrities, the latest of which is the Tonight Show’s Jimmy Fallon.

In 2016 Fallon interviewed Trump and, as most things concerning Trump seem to do nowadays, the interview had a viral moment. A short clip of Fallon ruffling Trump’s hair became a moment loved by few but overall hated by masses. In a recent interview Fallon expressed regret over how he had handled his interaction with Trump. He also opened up about the backlash he had since received and the low ratings that his show has had since the interview aired.

THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON (Photo by: Andrew Lipovsky/NBC)

This didn’t go down so well with Trump who took to ranting first on twitter and then at a rally in South Carolina.

In the tweet Trump claimed that Jimmy called him and implied the call was to thank him for the “monster ratings” that the show had received and he went on to tell Jimmy to be a man and to “stop whimpering”

Jimmy responded using is monologue during the Tonight Show. He opened by giving a shout out to their ‘Number 1 fan’ – the President of the United States. He went n to say “As you may have heard, last night the President of the United States went after me on twitter. So Melania, if you’re watching, I don’t think your anti-bullying campaign is working”. Fallon also asked if Trump didn’t have anything better to do than tweet him and then in retaliation he made a donation in Trump’s name to RAICES – the Refugee and Immigrant Centre for Education and Legal Services.

Fallon also separately addressed the issue of the call during the show. He alleges that the call never took place and that he had never used the term “monster ratings” and he also implied that his ratings actually got worse, not better as a result of their interview.

However, in true Trump fashion, a tweet didn’t suffice. During his speech at a rally in South Carolina he went into details about how the hair ruffling moment came about and spoke briefly about the phone call that he claims took place and explained that the “be a man” tweet was due to the fact that Jimmy had apologised for “humanizing” Trump. He didn’t stop there though, Trump then went on to call the Late Show host Stephen Colbert a lowlife and Jimmy Kimmel terrible.

Colbert, Fallon and Conan O’Brien banded together to make a comedic video response addressing Trump’s comments at the rally. They make reference to Trump’s comments by addressing each other as “Lowlife” and “Lost Soul” with Conan acting as though he’s completely unaware that Donald Trump, or as he refers to him in the video “the real estate guy who sells steaks” has even become President.They even found a way to tie in a joke about meeting for lunch at Red Hen, the restaurant that Trump’s Press Secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders was asked to leave.

This isn’t the first time that Trump has found himself tweeting celebrities, in fact, it happens so frequently that it’s hard to keep up. Whether it’s some sort of power move or a cry for attention, we’ll never know but we’ll try our best to keep you updated.

A Sunday Kind of Love: A Review of Sport

Common Sense Contributors
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A Sunday Kind of Love: A Review of Sport

To start off, England demolished Panama in their World Cup Match. It’s only the group stages and fans have already began chanting the “It’s coming home” slogan. To be fair to the desperate masses, it’s about time England live up to it’s name as the class leading location to play. It has the talent, they need to mesh and that’s working out at the moment. To kick off the proceedings, John Stones scored his first ever goal for his Nation by the 8th minute. Taking advantage of a momentary Ashley Young block off, Stones uses his pace to get away and intercept the corner in a prime position. Stones duly scored at the 40 minute mark to pick up a Sterling miss.

Harry Kane completed a Hat-trick, first by taking after Stones’ goal in the 20th minute. He converted a penalty after a foul on Jesse Lingard who took revenge by putting another one past with some absolutely stunning precision. Rio Ferdinand said, “The whole of England’s play here is what you want to see from us, patience and confidence and everyone showing for the ball. With the finish, this is where Jess is unbelievable – this finish was exquisite. I have seen this from this boy since he was 11 years old at Manchester United. People always questioned ‘is he going to be big enough, is he going to be strong enough’, but when you have the intelligence and game management that this kid’s got, you can be two foot tall and get through. Jesse is that intelligent, he is that good, he understands the game, and when he gets in like this, although we didn’t see it the other day when he wasn’t clinical, we all said that when he gets the chances again he will put them away, and he certainly did. That finish there – a generation of kids will remember that goal.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4GDd_QcBFZo

Kane converted penalty number 2 after the Panama defense. He followed up with a cheery on top deflection off Walker to net it past Panama for the 6th time. Chelsea legend Frank Lampard summarized it best. “He just keeps producing. Nothing is a problem for him – even when they hit him on the heel, they go in – that’s when you know everything is going your way, but sometimes you make your own luck.” Panama could only score once in the second half. Which was all about not getting complacent about their first half performance as far as England were concerned.

We now move on, 3574 km west to Paul Ricard in France.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTyqqjMyxlk

The ensuing first lap carnage saw Lewis Hamilton in the lead from Max Verstappen and home team Renault up to 3rd with Carlos Sainz. Who looked very racy initially but fell to fourth after Daniel Ricciardo made quick work of him. Also running high up were Kevin Magnussen, Charles Leclerc, Kimi Raikkonen and  Romain Grosjean in that order behind Sainz. Perez and Hulkenberg were 9th and 10th respectively and on Soft tires, while the others were on used rubber.

Raikkonen cleared Magnussen and Leclerc with little effort and sadly for Renault, Sainz followed but was still on for big points. Meanwhile at the rear, Vettel and Bottas were clawing their way up the field all while Hamilton was streaking into the distance. Before long the charging Vettel cleared the lone Force India of Perez and the second Renault Hulkenberg. he eventually scythed past the cars ahead to sit at fifth.

A slightly odd awardee considering Hamilton dominated and we witnessed a clinical drive from Raikkonen and Verstappen. But a charge from the rear to 5th was great nonetheless. Leclerc scored a 10th cementing himself as a star in the making. The Renault’s increased their lead in 4th by finishing 9th and 10th. Magnussen was 6th scoring 8 valuable points for Haas.

Moving on to Manchester, England at Old Trafford. The English cricket side have already sealed the series against Australia. This however saw something special from player of the series Jos Butler. Australia set 206 to win. Aaron Finch and Marcus Stoinis departed in the 6th over after Moeen Ali caught them off again. Travis Head kept the innings going by knocking the ball to all parts off the park before being dismissed for 56 at the 11th over, relatively early. Alex Carrey and DArcy Short carried the load of scoring by contributing 44 and 47 respectively. Captain Tim Paine had yet another poor performance being dismissed cheaply after a solitary run. Ali wrapped up proceedings by sending Billy Stanlanke back to the hut and hence the Aussie’s were shot out for 205 in the 34th over. England started off poorly as well, losing half their side cheaply. At the same point in time the Aussies were double England’s total.

A mega Sunday for sports lovers saw England Sportstars come out on top in three different parts of the world. All three groups appear well set for accolades in their respective fields.

by Rutvik Bhaskar Perepa
Rutvik Bhaskar Perepa is a student at The University of Manchester working towards a MEng in Mechanical Engineering hoping to be on a placement after Year 3. He has had the privilege to travel around his home country, India and discover the rich heritage and diversity. His personal interests include Food and travel, history, Sport among many others. Often found in discourse on various issues ranging Engineering to Religious Practices, he never shy’s away from being expressive. He believes in being open minded, empathetic and analytical is the key to problems posed on a daily basis.

How ‘Allowing It’ Leads To Deaths

Emmabelle Nwadikwa
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How ‘Allowing It’ Leads To Deaths

XXXTentacion, Jimmy Wopo & 6ix9ine: Has allowance culture gone too far?

On June 18th 2018 rappers XXXTentacion, 20, and Jimmy Wopo, 21, were shot dead in their respective cities. The incidents were unrelated but they lead us to a much needed discussion to have about ‘allowance culture’.

XXXTentacion

XXXTentacion led a lifestyle that it was impossible not to disprove of. His personal actions made it hard for some people to sympathise with his death. One of Jimmy Wopo’s most popular songs, a song titled “lost” talked about being “lost in the lean” and drugs. For years now there has been a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy  and the deaths of these two young men have become yet another reason why this culture is toxic and in some cases, fatal.

There’s such a comfort that some people take in the idea that things are done “just for the music” or “mistakes” that we’ve collectively stopped holding people accountable for their actions. Violence, abuse, drug use and gang affiliations are ‘accepted’ more now than ever before in the sense that even though there are more movements against toxic behaviour, the need for the movements came from the underlying allowance of it.  Young men and women across the globe have been accepting of these things under the notion of “freedom of expression” and “free thought”, so much so that they seem to have forgotten that whilst you’re free to express your thoughts, that doesn’t mean that you’re free from consequence.

6ix9ine

These consequences should never be death. However, in a day and age when new school rappers such as 6ix9ine are running around with a sense of entitlement, provoking people at every corner, you can only wonder, what will it take for the violence to end. When do we step in and say that enough is enough? When do we hold ourselves and others accountable? It’s time for our online activism to match our real life actions.

It is no longer enough for people to turn a blind eye to the actions of those around us because if we continue to do so we’ll end up with many more situations just like this one. Eventually we have to become the change that we wish to see in the world. A key point is being made by fans and non-fans alike about the people around XXXTentacion when he died, they were all so caught up in filming him that they didn’t stop to check his pulse or call for emergency services.

https://twitter.com/Victoria__Paige/status/1008833095649386496

This is the real issue at hand. The allowance has turned into a complete lack of care. There’s a need for re-education. Most of us firmly believe in the principle of ‘each one, teach one’. When you’ve been taught something, it should be your duty to teach someone else, that’s how the world learns. Nelson Mandela said that “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” We need to use the tool that is education to create a change. It’s time for the allowance to end before anymore lives do.

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