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Is The Stormzy Scholarship Racist?

Mike Omoniyi
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Is The Stormzy Scholarship Racist?

State school funding has been falling steadily in the UK since 2015. However, despite this trend, one school based in East London appears to be swimming against the tide. Brampton Manor had their most successful results day this year with almost 100 students achieving straight A* and A grades.

They took to Twitter to share these impressive grades and the admissions of their students into some of the country’s top universities.

Outliers 

The Academy has been sharing these images of the students holding their results letters and smiling. They have tons of posts on Twitter.  Each of the posts celebrates their grades, what subject they will be studying at university and where. The students have gained places at a number of prestigious UK institutions, from Oxford and Cambridge to Imperial, Bristol and Durham.

The school is based in East Ham and is headed up by executive principal Dr Dayo Olukoshi, who was awarded an OBE in 2015 for his services to education. Twice over, the school has been rated outstanding by Ofsted, achieving an outstanding in all areas both in 2015 and 2018.

Principal at Brampton Manor DR DAYO OLUKOSHI OBE Source: BRAMPTON MANOR ACADEMY

#BlackExcellence At Brampton Manor 

There are more than 600 students at the sixth form and half of each of the year groups apply to Oxford and Cambridge. The result: close to 90% of the students ending up at Russell group universities.

Of the 20 students who have gained places at Oxford and Cambridge this year, all come from BAME backgrounds, almost all of them are the first person in their family to go to university, and around half of them receive free school meals.

TCS Network sat down with, Ugandan born, Baker Lubwama, a recent graduate from Brampton Manor, who achieved three A*s and will be studying medicine at Cambridge. He told us he applied for Brampton Manor years prior after seeing the success of their students on Twitter. His success is now also making rounds on Twitter,

Baker received all 5 of his medicine choices, a commendable feat, and had his choice. He told TCS Network, “I’m just glad I get to be a doctor, but its even greater that I get to be a doctor who went to Cambridge University.”

Baker will be off to study Medicine at Cambridge in October


When we asked Baker what he would like to say to the younger generation, he said, “I want people who hear my story to aim big, I want to be an example for people and to teach them not to doubt themselves.”

Stormzy and Funding Cuts

However, underscoring the higher attainments by students from BAME communities is the reality that financial setbacks make it harder for said students to go on to study at these top institutions. The curbing of Educational Maintainance Grants in 2015 has made it even harder.
It is this very problem that British rapper Stormzy sought to address when he announced the introduction of ‘The Stormzy Scholarship on Instagram. He said

“I am very very very proud to announce the launch of my new scholarship “The Stormzy Scholarship” in partnership with Cambridge University. With this scholarship we will be funding and covering the full tuition and maintenance for 2 black students this year and 2 black students in 2019 to study at Cambridge University. We as a minority are still heavily Scholarship at the top universities and I pray this scholarship serves as a reminder that we are more than capable of studying at places of this caliber. Congratulations to all the A-Level students getting their results today, be proud of yourselves despite what you got and overstand that this is only the tip of the iceberg for what’s to come! This is my proudest venture thus far and I look forward to seeing some young black geniuses go on to achieve at Cambridge via this scholarship.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmiNIWXFDBO/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

The introduction of the scholarship sparked some controversy with some commentators arguing that the scholarship was exclusionary. People have claimed that it has failed to take into account poor white and other BAME young people, and that by only supporting two black students, it doesn’t solve the real issue but was in fact grandstanding.

https://twitter.com/bhall__/status/1030137623040417792

Baker, talking to TCS Network had a different take, he explained, “Stormzy set an example for other influencers to contribute to their community, hopefully more and more people who do well will start looking back and giving back”, he also said “People should be free to contribute to causes that relate to them. If I try and fight one illness, people can’t tell me I have to fight all illness.”

The debate will no doubt continue, however, this message from Baker who will start at Cambridge in at October will resonate:

“Cambridge was literally a dream after the standard of education I was offered [in Uganda],” he said. “I want to be open in speaking to people from my position to inspire them to apply for the sorts of institutions they thought they couldn’t reach.” For Baker and many more young people from BME communities, It looks like their might be more help for these applicants in the future.

Superheroes Dont All Wear Costumes

Afoma Andrea
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Superheroes Dont All Wear Costumes

Paris is said to be the home of the fashion forward, unfortunately however it seems the French Open president missed the memo and has found himself in hot water with tennis fans.

On Friday it was announced that Serena Williams had been banned from wearing her Nike black catsuit again. French Tennis Federation president Bernard Giudieccli stated that the French Opens will be releasing new regulations in regards to introducing a new dress code for 2019. Highlighting Willaims catsuit from last spring’s tournament, Giudieccli commented “I think that sometimes we’ve gone too far”.

He further explained “It will no longer be accepted. One must respect the game and the place.”

Tennis legend Billie King came to the defence for Williams, calling the ban a “policing on women’s bodies”

Outraged at the Frenchmans comments, many tennis fans and celebrities flocked to twitter to openly protest their disapproval at the ban. Some saw the ban as an attack on black women’s bodies. The white woman’s body is seen as the norm and tasteful while the black women’s physique is often othered and sexualised. Serena is not alien to this and unfortunately mockery about the stars figure has plagued her whole career,commentators have likened her figure to being “muscular” and have used words such as “aggressive” to describe the tennis star style of play.

Of course one cannot forget the whole Caroline Wozniacki debacle. The Danish tennis star in a match against Maria Sharapova, confusingly had decided to stuff her shirt and skirt with towels and prance around the court giving a somewhat bizarre imitation of Ms Williams. The ban itself inherently may not be racist, but we do have to wonder if it was a white woman in the black catsuit would Giudieccli have made such remarks.

Others have criticised the fact that the French Open ignorantly did not examine the reasons why Williams had chosen to wear the catsuit in the first place.

The catsuit is more than a mere fashion statement , it is actually a health saver. After experiencing life-threatening complications with the birth of her daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr, Williams decided to forgo her usual attire and don the catsuit due to problems with continuous blood clots. The suit provides on-going blood circulation thus reducing the risk of blood clots.

The French Tennis Federation should focus more on ways to improve the tournament then try finding faults with a woman trying to take care of her health in a fashionable way.

A Left-Wing Obituary for John McCain: Learning to Reach Across the Isle, Just as John Did.

Muhammad Oleolo
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A Left-Wing Obituary for John McCain: Learning to Reach Across the Isle, Just as John Did.

For the liberal-minded folk, especially those of us living outside the immediate US political sphere, John McCain may be remembered for some horrible things.

After losing the 2008 Presidential Election to Barack Obama, McCain joined the Republican cabal that seemed hellbent on sabotaging the idealistic Obama; a hostility that certainly created the toxic political environment of the day. In fact, his choice of Sarah Palin as running mate in 2008 gave a certain legitimacy to the once-ostracised ultra-nationalist, populist right-wing, that now has their man in the White House. And let’s not forget this: 

Looking from the left-hand side of the political divide, McCain’s legacy could be easily lampooned in the wake of the terrible news of his passing late last night. What I would like to say, however, for people like me on the left, if we want strong opponents (and a strong democracy by extension) we would wish to see more John McCains fighting the other side of the argument.

Some say McCain’s choice of running-mate in the 2008 election opened a Pandora’s Box from which Trump appeared. Source: Stephen Douglass/Rex/Shutterstock

The lesson of this man’s life, is to compromise and extend an olive branch to the other side (when you can justify doing so) and when you cannot, to stand out, even if that leaves you with few friends, with whom to fight your battles.

John McCain remembered by Ellen DeGeneres with whom he publicly (yet respectfully) disagreed on the issue of gay marriage. 

McCain truly was a difficult opponent for the left in America, not for the aforementioned tribal reasons but because he took the project of representing conservative principles rather seriously. He took this task seriously when it scored him political points and when it didn’t. He therefore became an opponent of those in his own party. 

McCain really stuck his neck out for cause of US democracy by co-sponsoring the Bipartisan Electoral Reform Bill in 2002 at a time when even Democrats weren’t in a rush to reform the gargantuan influx of corporate money in American elections; his Republican Party certainly wasn’t rushing to achieve campaign finance reform and the grassroots movement that we see now for the issue was not as prominent. He sponsored the Bill with the help of progressive Senator Russ Feingold, both of whom were considered “moralists”, starry-eyed and blind to the realities of how things worked in Washington. 

There was, however, a time when some would have argued that it was easy for McCain to make the case for campaign finance reform but it certainly wasn’t after the ‘Citizens United’ decision made by the Supreme Court in 2010. The Court decided that corporations and unions both had the same right as individuals to finance political campaigns. At that point, McCain become the only leading Republican voice that made the case for campaign finance reform.  That was an example of what we could learn from the height of McCain’s political life but it’s not the last time he would stand-out so boldly against the grain of his party.

The President; McCain’s final, great political adversary. 

BBC reports that Donald Trump and John McCain clashed no less than 5 times on twitter after his 2016 Presidential Bid. These included McCain’s rebuff of Trump’s statements calling Mexicans “rapists” and his disturbing comments from the Access Hollywood tape where he claimed to grab women by the genitals, something McCain said would make it  “impossible to continue to offer even conditional support for his candidacy” at a time when other Republicans, despite their evangelical and sermonising discourse, seemed to gloss over Trump’s deeply immoral statements. 

John McCain was not one of us (still speaking for the lefties here) but I can’t say that he was against us, he was simply a man that wished to fight his corner for the betterment of his people. There are yet still other people like this on the other side of the isle and especially in this time of political head-assery and mindless group think, we have to seek these voices with whom we can have beneficial conversations with.

God forbid, we may even start to humanise the other side, just as we learnt how human John McCain – the Republican Leader; The Outspoken Moral Voice and the Conservative Politician, truly was. 

Source: AZ Quotes 

Los Niños Liminales: All you need to know about the separation of families on the Mexican Border

Common Sense Contributors
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Los Niños Liminales: All you need to know about the separation of families on the Mexican Border

by Benedicta Denteh

The bond between a parent and child is in many ways inseparable. They depend on each other for comfort, security and happiness – essential for the growth and frameworks in which can create schemas for the ideas of healthy relationships. It is not wonder then that the current acceleration of the number of families being split in the US has caused uproar amongst families, the general public and world leaders.

Since autumn of 2017, there has been a surplus of families from Central America being separated on the US border. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, roughly three thousand families have been separated in the last year, the highest surge being during May 2018 and quickly rising. The US Government separating families who seek to cross over the border illegally is not a new occurrence. Even in Obama’s administrations, the government had sought to decrease the number of illegal immigrants from entering the US. However it has now become a crisis.

The Trump administration separating families who illegally cross the US-Mexican border (image source: vox)

In 2014 there were hundreds of immigrant families held in detention centres. The federal courts had a limit on the time that families could be held for i.e. after a while they could leave and disappear which led to court dates being missed. Trump on the other hand stepped up the policy, and in doing so, more children have been separated from the families.

WHAT

As there have been tighter border controls more and more families are being tracked and stopped at the border. Here they are checked and put into jail whilst their children are put into immigration custody. Usually, unaccompanied children are sent to the Office of Refugee Resettlement where they are then referred to foster parents for the time being, until their parents are released. In some circumstances children are given to the closet relative in the country. However, due to the high rising number of being placed in the immigration centre, the systems are overwhelmed. Children are being moved unnecessarily or being kept away from families because of  overloaded systems and workers. Something the UK is not unfamiliar with.

WHY?

Following on from Trump’s goals to decease (essentially stop) illegal immigration into the US from other parts of America, namely Central and South, policies were strengthened to stop the constant flow. Main reasons for this hard crackdown on immigration was pretty much to stop more Mexican drug cartels and MS-13 gangs, which Trump vowed to stop at the beginning of his term, from entering into the US.

border patrol guarding Central America immigrants (image source: vanityfair)

A lot of criticism has followed the alarming rate of family separations. One being that many minors (children under five, including babies) have been separated from their parents. The negative effects of prolonged separation from primary caregivers can be tricky to reverse for those of such a young age.
Secondly, even immigrants who are trying to seek asylum, are finding it very difficult to do just that as even their families are being separated (though these cases are not as widespread as ones of simple illegal statuses). The American Civil Liberties Union Report have reported that there have been alleged cases physical, verbal, psychological, emotional and sexual abuse that these children are having to deal with whilst being held in immigration custody by the authorities of the Border Control. This kind of neglect and barbarous treatment was not unknown before the steep rise of immigrant children in custody but of course following the rise, the numbers are cases have accelerated.

On the 20thof June, Trump accordingly reversed some of his migrant separation policies with the aim that families will begin to be reunited and less will be separations but whilst keeping the border strong. This change that Trump’s administration were adamant in not changing at first may have been triggered by the commotion images and video clips of distressed children and desperate parents in search for their young has caused. A federal judge of California also ordered halt on estrangements between parents and minors in the President’s first major harsh criticism.

Parents also have the option to plead guilty in court for illegal entry into the States in order to get released more quickly (possibly) and re-join their children however this choice makes re-entry in the future into the US a lot more difficult.

There are still hundreds of children to be reunited with their loved ones however hopefully following the recent changing policies hopefully less families will be split and eventually all members of families will be united.

 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 and travelling. 

Arsenal Vs Chelsea – Premier League 2018-2019

Jireh Antwi
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Arsenal Vs Chelsea – Premier League 2018-2019

Sarri Ball vs Emery’s Philosophy

Arsenal were up against Chelsea on Saturday the 18th of August for the 17:30 Premier League kick-off. This chaotic game did not disappoint and truly showed what the Premier League is all about in its true splendour.

https://www.thestatesman.com/sports/premier-league-preview-clash-fresh-ideologies-chelsea-host-arsenal-1502674230.html

Arsenal’s first Premier League game was one to quickly forget for its fans due to the fact that they couldn’t yet see what was being implemented into their team with instructions not quite clear. Ramsey, Henryk, Cech were all over the show, their best player Ozil essentially missing in a big game scenario and the defence trying to play out from the back cost them dearly. They were lucky it was only 2-0 due to City not converting all of their chances.  Chelsea faced off against Huddersfield and played rather well, Sarri ball hasn’t come into full effect but with the new signings of Jorginho and David Luiz coming back into the starting XI and generally being much better than Huddersfield a 3-0 was a posotive outcome. 

So, heading into this game there wasn’t an outright winner to predict even with Chelsea’s previous win. How they were going to set up against each other with new systems was going to be the biggest decider in claiming the 3 points. With new managers, new players this game was amazing for the neutral fan.

Maurizio Sarri faces off against Unai Emery (Source: BBC)

Key man Eden Hazard starting on the Chelsea bench made it seem like Arsenal now had a stronger chance of winning and they started off well with Ozil narrowly missing a chance at the 8th minute mark. However, Pedro was the first to strike 9 minutes into the game quickly followed by a second from Morata, who latched onto a long ball after Aubameyang had missed a glaring chance seconds earlier. Morata had Mustafi twisting and turning in his effort to defend and slotted it past Petr Cech to make it 2-0. Morata for a long while now has not been performing adequately enough for Chelsea but this goal will be sure to give him confidence. At this point in the match it seemed like it was going to be a 5 or 6-0.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan battling against César Azpilicueta (Source: BBC)

Arsenal seemed defeated and deflated and as the chance finally fell, Henrikh Mkhitaryan hit a low strike from just outside of the box into the net – which goalkeeper Kepa really should have saved – to make it 2-1. As Chelsea seemed to go on the attack Arsenal converted in the box again with Iwobi placing the ball into the net from a cut back pass from Mkhitaryan to make it 2-2 in the space of 5 minutes. The game was firmly back on and it was now Chelsea who looked defeated. However, with a few misses from Aubameyang and Iwobi in the first half it should have been 4-2 to Arsenal which should be a real concern for Sarri.

Xhaka had a nightmare game: on and off the ball he was ineffective and Emery could see this as at half time he was taken off for new signing Torreira. Ozil was subbed of at the 68-minute mark to be replaced by Ramsey and it looks like once again in a big game his influence wasn’t felt enough. With the calibre of player he is, he should be doing a lot better.

Mesut Ozil being substituted with the score at 2-2 (Source: BBC)

Throughout the second half Chelsea created a few more chances and looked more in control than the Arsenal XI, who weren’t causing the same level of threat as they did in the first half.

Hazard was spectacular for Chelsea as he was subbed on for Willian at the 61st minute mark. He was slippery, electric, calm and collective in his plays, with his presence giving Chelsea the necessary threat to push for 2 wins out of 2. Mateo Kovačić on loan from Real Madrid really proved his worth and talent today as he put on a midfield show with an incredible 100% pass accuracy. He came on for Ross Barkley who is showing that his talent level might not be high enough to compete for a club such as Chelsea.


Alonso scored the final goal of the game thanks to a Lacazette mistake. The French striker gave the ball away in his own half to eventually allow Hazard to assist Alonso, who roamed in the box with minimal marking at the 81st minute to put Chelsea ahead and secure them the 3 points. At the last dying breaths of the game former Arsenal player Giroud and Hazard were in a 2 on 1 scenario but couldn’t convert to make it 4-2, nonetheless they got the win.

Arsenals silver lining was the performance of their 18-year-old French player Guendouzi who was brave in his plays and approach to the game. He was direct and was able to have lots of roaming space for himself, he showed his passion for wanting to be at this club and in the XI. Now having played against Manchester City and Chelsea and still looking exciting, Arsenal have a promising talent on their hands.

https://twitter.com/Squawka/status/1030890824790245376?s=19


Before this game Arsenal were sitting 16th in the League due to their loss to last year’s title winners City but have now dropped to 17th. Chelsea were second and now claim the top spot of the table.  This is now the first time since 1992 Arsenal have lost their two opening Premier League games -under previous manager Arsene Wenger’s reign this never happened. It goes without saying that Emery’s philosophy will take time to implement but right now he’s not off to a good start, without a single point to his team’s name.

Are Chelsea ready yet to challenge City for the title? The verdict is still out there.

What The F1!

Common Sense Contributors
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What The F1!

by Rutvik Bhaskar Perepa

Hamilton wins on a Ferrari Track

Lewis Hamilton drove a commanding race at the front and capitalized on the missed opportunities by the Ferrari team, yet again with Sebastian Vettel.

He led from the start and took full advantage of a car that was well placed for the race, unlike their practice sessions.  At the start, the top 4 went into the turns in position with Carlos Sainz in the Renault vaulting to fifth but dropped behind to 8th as the fiery Max Verstappen cut no corners by doing his trademark lunge down the inside- meaning the fast-starting Sainz lost all his momentum.  The resurgent Kevin Magnussen slotted into a healthy seventh making up places, while Daniel Ricciardo in the out of place Red Bull survived a hit from Marcus Ericsson.

He finished a fine fourth while his teammate retired due to a Renault problem yet again-the switch to Honda could not come sooner, or will it come back to bite the Bulls? One can only speculate until preseason next year.

Contender Vettel took the lead having started on softs while both Mercedes’ pit for new tyres as they started on the Ultra softs. Vettel was set for a fantastic overcut due to the Ferrari’s superior pace but encountering traffic in a span of 4 laps from 36 to 40, after a troublesome affair with Sainz, he finally pitted. But a slow stop ( a disaster in truth as it took 4.2 seconds) meant Vettel fed out behind Bottas. He did not get past and could not get close enough to make a move for over 20 laps. This allowed teammate Raikkonen to close up making it a three-way dogfight. Vettel was managing his race, continuously pulling out of the Mercedes slipstream on the straights to get some cooler air, by which point Hamilton in the lead streaked into the distance. Then on lap 65 after Vettel upped the pace…

This meant Bottas finished P5, with Pierre Gasly taking a fine sixth ahead of Magnussen, Sainz, Alonso and Grosjean. Outside the top 10 were the unusually lackluster Hulkenberg and the struggling Force India’s- whose weekend was marred by the fact that the team went into administration.

He now extends his lead to 24 points heading into the Summer break, of which two weeks remain. A lot has happened in the world of F1 since then.

Lawrence Stroll lead group take over Force India

Image result for lawrence stroll

Lawrence Stroll, seen with son Lance and family (source: Motorsport.com)

Canadian Billionaire investor Lawrence Stroll, of Tommy Hilfiger and Micheal Kors fame in the world fashion also better know as the Father of Williams Driver Lance Stroll, took over the struggling Force India F1 team from Vijay Mallya, Subrata Sahara Roy and the Mol family. It is understood that driver Sergio Perez was owed in the ballpark of 3 million pounds and Daimler/Mercedes (owed around 9 million pounds) and BWT, one of their lead sponsors.

Sergio Perez later added that he forced his hand in order to save the jobs of 405 dedicated staff at the base.

Stroll is joined in the consortium by Canadian entrepreneur Andre Desmarais, Jonathan Dudman of Monaco Sports and Management, fashion business leader John Idol, telecommunications investor John McCaw Jr, financial expert Michael de Picciotto and Stroll’s business partner Silas Chou. (source: Formula 1.com).

“This outcome secures the future of the Force India team in Formula 1 and will allow our team of racers to compete to our full potential,” said Otmar Szafnauer, COO of Force India.

“I am delighted that we have the support of a consortium of investors who believe in us as a team and who see the considerable business potential that Force India has within F1 now and in the future. At Force India, our expertise and commitment has meant that we have always punched above our weight and this new investment ensures that we have a bright future ahead of us. I also would like to thank Vijay, the Sahara Group and the Mol family for all of their support and taking the team as far as their circumstances would allow.”

Joint administrator Geoff Rowley added: “It is rare that a company can be rescued and returned to a position of solvency. The quality of the various interested parties has been impressive and required careful consideration as the administration has progressed.”

“Having followed a robust process, in the end we were left with a highly-credible offer to save the company and restore solvency. All creditors will be paid in full, all jobs will be preserved, and the team will have significant funding to invest in its future”.

Force India are now looking to bring in much needed updates to their car as early as Spa, at the start of the second half of the season or latest Monza, the round after in a bid to fight for “the best of the rest title”.  The driver market has now gone up in flames.

Silly Season is in full Swing as Daniel Ricciardo signs with Renault F1

Star Daniel Ricciardo announced his departure from Red Bull after winning 7 races and scoring 29 podiums, all with the Milton Keynes based team.

He joins the mighty Hulkenberg at the ever improving Renault team. Renault are projected to challenge for the title in three years. With the starfrom down under, they might just get there sooner. They posses outstanding ability to develop cars and give feedback that is ever so crucial in the world of Motorsports.

“It’s a great shame he’s chosen to leave the team, but I guess in his mind he’s felt that after five years he needs a new challenge,” principal Christian Horner said (on the Beyond The Grid, F1 podcast). “He’s chosen to join the Renault team he feels are in the ascendancy. He knows the Renault product very well from all the time he’s spent with us. And I can’t help but feel he wants to be a leading role perhaps in a smaller environment. The competition between he and Max is intense. Max is growing stronger and stronger and I think Daniel has decided the timing is right for him to check out and try something else … He said he wanted a change. You look at the rational reasons for that, it’s hard to understand. I think it comes back to wanting to take on, in his words, a new challenge. But he sees Max growing and growing in terms of speed and strength and he doesn’t want to play a support role … not that they’re in any way treated any different.”

In a way Horner is right as the ever Improving Verstappen would eventually lock horns with Ricciardo over wins and podiums to be the alpha dog. Perhaps Ricciardo treasures his bromance way more than people think.

This leads us to another seat in a different situation.

Formula 1 great Fernando Alonso to retire

Legend and widely considered to be one of F1’s best ever, Double World Champion Fernando Alonso is set to step away and not “race” in Formula 1 in 2019.  This opens the door to his potential triple crown attack, as McLaren look to sign with Andretti or with the Chip Ganassi team.

NASCAR is also a possibility with WEC(an overall championship assualt) and Rallying being an outside chance. Miles, CEO of IndyCar parent organisation Hulman & Company, confirmed McLaren’s entry was in progress in a statement to Autosport(source).

“Today’s announcement [about Alonso stepping back from F1 in 2019] certainly has fueled excitement among IndyCar fans who hope that Alonso will compete throughout the championship in 2019,” Miles said. “McLaren is working to put all the necessary arrangements in place, and we are supporting their efforts. I don’t expect this to be resolved until closer to the end of this year.”

Alonso made his mark years ago, and the above clip is a testament to the fact despite the tyre farce that year. Alonso ursurped the crown from Schumacher after a period of domination, and ended his challenge the following year to become double world champ.

He gained respect widely for dragging the duck of a Ferrari car in 2012 to near Championship glory. Having had his fair share of controversies with Lewis Hamilton at Hungary 2007 and his alledged involvment in Crashgate 2008, he regained his stature in the paddock after a beating to his reputation.

Alonso will keep options open for a return should McLaren be competitve in the future but for now the tributes keep pouring in.

Legend Niki Lauda finally recovering from Lung disease

Image result for niki lauda

Mercedes Benz Chairman, and former three time World Champ Niki Lauda(source: unknown)

Mercedes informed that 69-year-old Lauda missed the German Grand Prix and the Hungarian Grand Prix because of a bout of “summer flu” and that he was on the road to recovery.

However, his condition was far more serious as it turned out to be a severe lung disease that caused him to be hospitalised which the Mercedes media office was probably unaware of at the time.

The Vienna General Hospital reported on their website: “Due to a severe lung disease, Niki Lauda had to undergo a lung transplantation at the AKH Vienna today. The transplantation was successfully performed by Walter Klepetko, Head of the Clinical Department of Thoracic Surgery, and Konrad Hötzenecker.”

“We ask for your understanding that the family will not make any public statements and request the privacy of the Lauda family.”

Now, Lauda has fought yet another life threatening batlle and won, read all about it in Motorsport.com.

Mr Lauda, now is on the road to recovery, being recommended 6 moths of no travel, meaning Mercedes would have to live without a stalwart leader for the ever crucial second half of the season.

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.

Boris Johnson, Free speech and the right to provoke

Common Sense Contributors
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Boris Johnson, Free speech and the right to provoke

By Shafiq Kyazze

Boris Johnson’s recent remarks about Muslim women have re-ignited the never-ending debate about free speech. Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the former London mayor said, “if a female student turned up at school or at a university lecture looking like a bank robber” he would ask her to remove her burqa to speak to her.

The former foreign secretary defended his views by stating it is “sensible” to be able to read each other’s facial expressions, and humans “must be able to see each other’s faces”.  But he further added: “I am against a total ban because it is inevitably construed – rightly or wrongly – as being intended to make some point about Islam.”

 

The Muslim Council of Britain accused Mr Johnson of “pandering to the far right”, and Labour’s David Lammy called him a “pound-shop Donald Trump”.

Comedian and free speech champion Rowan Atkinson defended Mr Johnson in a letter to the times stating, “All jokes about religion cause offence, so it’s pointless apologising for them.”

Boris later refused a direct order to apologise for his remarks issued by Tory party chairman Brandon Lewis on Twitter and called demands to apologise “ridiculous and an attack on free speech”.

Asking Boris to apologise due for his offensive comments towards some Muslim women makes perfect sense. It’s absolutely fine to not want people’s feelings to be hurt when addressing them or issues pertaining to them, especially those containing touchy topics like people’s clothing (there has to be an element of courteousness in one’s speech).

However, advocating for speech restriction is a ludicrous move, if Britain was to go down the root of government speech regulation, discussion of certain topics would be regarded as taboo, with those daring to address them being ostracised or worse still imprisoned for uttering offensive remarks.

Furthermore, it would create an aura of fear driven by the opposition of thought and discussion of certain topics which would impede the growth and development of Britain as a nation. Famed author George Orwell perfectly depicted a society with speech regulation in the dystopian novel 1984.

In this dystopian society, government organisations things such as thought police existed with a tight regulation on what is correct or wrong in so far as two plus two equalled five on one day and four on another day. Everything depended on what the government wanted the answer to be and those who dared to say or even think anything contrary would be purged.

An illustration of 1984 by George Orwell (Source: Amino Apps)

Speech regulation can be used by some against their opponents. A simple observation of contemporary British and American politics paints the perfect image: anyone who has a different opinion than those on the left on issues such as Brexit, immigration, gender pay gap, Black Lives Matter or Donald Trump, for example, is called a racist and politically incorrect bigot who should be locked up.

Comedian Rowan Atkinson, who has said it would be pointless for Johnson to apologise (Source: Frostsnow)

It has become a common joke that the go-to response for a leftist during a debate is to call someone “a racist white privileged man, a white nationalist or a bigot.” According to the leftist dictionary, the term racist also means someone who politically disagrees with you or is politically incorrect.

Disagree with some on the right and you will earn yourself a new title – ‘unpatriotic traitor’, ‘snowflake’ or even ‘social justice warrior’. In the US those who criticise the country’s horrendous foreign policy are called unpatriotic traitors who have zero respect for the greatest nation on Earth. Whenever Colin Kaepernick takes a knee for the national anthem during NFL matches, he is lambasted by many on the right, labelled unpatriotic and told that he has no respect for veterans who fought for his freedom, the sort of freedom that restricts him from discussing certain topics. According to the right-wing dictionary, freedom also means saying anything you want as long as you stay patriotically correct.

Boris Johnson offering reporters tea outside his home (Source: PA)

Put simply the left has political correctness while the right has patriotic correctness. Let’s imagine any of these two groups was handed the power to control what we should and shouldn’t say or do. The result would be catastrophic.

To those on the left still advocating for speech control, how would you like it if Donald Trump dictated what we should and shouldn’t say? To right-wingers, do you think you’d be able to criticise socialism with Jeremy Corbyn or Bernie Sanders regulating speech?

Lack of free speech is the essence of an oppressive authoritative state so whether you agree or disagree with Boris’ comments, we can all agree that it s a wrong move to advocate for governmental speech regulation.

Shafiq has a strong background in philosophy and history having been exposed to such issues at a very tender age. He has a voracious interest in economics, history, politics, philosophy and social issues. He is a Chemical Engineering student at The University of Manchester.

Shafiq is also an avid Barcelona fan and is currently a writer at TCS Network.

Moss Side shooting: a revisit from the past

Afoma Andrea
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Moss Side shooting: a revisit from the past

Early Sunday morning, just after 2 am, after a carnival street party on Claremont Road in the Moss Side area of Manchester, a 12-year-old boy was shot in front of his horrified parents.

It has been reported that the shotgun was recklessly fired at least twice in a large crowd of people during the street party, injuring nine people including two children who were at the party with their parents. Injuries are said not to be life threatening with many suffering pellet injuries, predominantly to their legs.

The shooting took place in the midst of the Manchester Caribbean carnival, celebrated every year in Alexandra Park in south Manchester. The carnival is meant to be a celebration of the area’s multicultural heritage, and had gone off without a hitch until the sudden act of violence.

Though the area in recent years has not had serious issues with gun crime, shootings are not unheard of in Moss Side. For some residents, Sunday’s shooting may bring back memories of Moss Side’s dark past in regards to gun violence.

Historically the area has had the reputation of being a community plagued by gang culture. Once originally known as a home for many Commonwealth migrants in the early 1940s and 50s where diversity was encouraged rather than discouraged, a sudden change occurred in the 1970s and 80s where the area saw an increase of gang violence and crime. Gun violence was said to be so rife in the area that it earned itself the nickname of “gunchester”. Tensions between the police and the residents escalated and resulted what is now known as the 1981 “Moss side riots”, a riot that many described as a “death to the community”.

Thousands of pounds’ worth of items were destroyed in the Riot (Source: MEN)

However for the past two decades, serious efforts have been put in by both Manchester city council and its residents to create an area that has moved far away from the reputation that preceded it.

Thus the shooting will come as a great shock to a community where gun violence, once a daily occurrence in everyday life, was now thought to be a thing of the past.

Though a clear motive has not been established, the chief superintendent Wasim Chaudry has announced that the police have launched an attempted murder investigation.

The Name’s Elba, Idris Elba

Richard Bolton
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The Name’s Elba, Idris Elba
Source: Paramount Pictures

Idris Elba, best known for his role as Luther, the impulsive detective, who remains tormented by the dark underbelly of humanity, spurred new rumors of his contention for the new Bond role with a cryptic tweet as Daniel Craig steps down after Bond 25 next year.

Elba knows how to play a character with skeletons in their cupboard. As a broken detective with a lot of complexity he is at his best in Luther.

Promoting diversity in movies is important, but that should not mean we change every white male character simply because he is white. This seems excessive. And yes, you can be racist toward white people.

We would be better served to give Idris his own spy movie, franchise it and make minority populations feel included with role models to look up to that a white Caucasian male fails to offer.

A Bond-esque character with a fresh 21st century revamp could be better – if done right.

More concerningly is Barbara Broccoli, the director of the Bond franchise, when asked whether the next Bond could be a woman, replied ‘Who knows what the future brings.’

What is she going to be called? Jessica Bondage? Sounds more like a tacky third-rate porno, but at least she’ll be popular with the opposite sex – a key factor for the ‘sexist’ franchise continuation.

The disjunct between the new proposals and the Daniel Craig films would be problematic at best. The background of the character would have to shift, essentially making a new splinter tale.

This is a form of cultural revisionism designed by pseudo-intellectuals to paint over a character whose essential political incorrectness was something the franchise was built upon.

Character or Codename?

A woman would defy credibility from a consistency perspective. The only way to explain away this disparity is to state ‘Bond’ was a codename and not a recurring character.

However, Bond is a recurring character, and 007 is the codename. They could well have Elba as another agent like Felix Leiter, the CIA operative as played by Jeffrey Wright in the recent films.

Relic of British Imperialism

The fact remains that Bond is a relic of British imperialism, something akin to manifest destiny in America. He needs to represent pax Britannica, portraying the outdated ‘00 license to kill’ that the washed-up superpower likes to call upon to take out their dirty laundry. A feature well captured in Skyfall by Judi Dench’s speech on accountability of MI6 as ‘M’ reciting Tennyson’s Ulysses, and to a lesser extent in Spectre.

Bond needs to be Oxford educated, Saville Row tailored suit, Jermyn Street shirts, white Scot grafted into a gentleman by his time at Eton and later Fettes College in Edinburgh. That’s how the Bond world works. It is meant to be a white bastion, showcasing the ‘white man’s privilege’.

Imagine Idris Elba in Casino Royale entering an African Embassy, ‘shooting up the place to kill one lone bombmaker’ as M lambasts him for. It wouldn’t be the same. The connotations and imagery of a worldly British gentleman educated at one of the most reputable institutions on earth, yet tough enough to survive on the streets of Africa. Bond needs to be a Scotsman because it helps the viewer comprehend his path, and the journey of many who went before him from Scotland. In particular, to colonise and take over the world in search of a better life than a rainy, short, miserable one in Glasgow or Aberdeen slums or the bleak Scottish Highlands despised for bitter winters.

There are four things that Bond can never be: homosexual, not from anywhere who doesn’t recognise Queen and country as his raison-d’etre, and he cannot be any other race than white, or a female.

Remnants of an Empire, Bond’s appeal through metaphor

There is nothing I have against any of these identifying factors. It is purely who and what the franchise is: an insolent British public schoolboy who struggles to find his place in a world of more affluent peers as an orphan, who needs to grow up; but 00 status enables this extended void of responsibility.

If he were any of those four, he would cease to be Bond, because Bond is a ‘sexist, misogynistic dinosaur relic of the Cold War’.

Qualities Specific to the Role

Few actors have the necessary qualities to pull off a successful Bond transition. The appeal isn’t just the blunt instrument he is taken for, but a charismatic capacity to melt butter with one-liners, keep villains into explaining away their schemes to innocuously bumbling through high society where he has no right to be.

Idris, for all his physical presence that is vital for a convincing fight scene: tall, imposing, physically intimidating, modern Bond demand more emotional involvement, a good English accent, icy stare, suave and youthful enough not to look like a past-their-sell-by-date Roger Moore acting the role into his late fifties.

Any future Bond should be able to dedicate a decade to the role, because recasting would lose continuation in the storyline. Idris wouldn’t start filming til he was 47, giving him three movies by 57.

Heritage

For those who suggest Idris, I would ask them would you want someone like Christopher Patten to play T’Challa in Black Panther? Or Danny Devito to play Gandhi?

The same arguments that propose Black Panther to have a white protagonist as T’Challa because of his long lineage falter when you consider Scottish skin colour of an old aristocratic family established in the Highlands that descended since 1183.

Make your own hero

Those who suggest a Bond who is discriminated against, looked down upon because of his skin colour, but rose up because of his aptitude and resolve to become a top-secret agent, do have a point to make in bringing the franchise into the 21st century. However, why touch this one? Why not make their own?

The Bond movies are now made up by scriptwriters, set in the modern world. Fleming’s era did not have mobile phones, satellite surveillance, or women in positions of power. Should we also remove them from the Bond universe because they didn’t exist him Fleming’s time?

What would be nice is that this new figure has difficulties with women, get rejected a few times because the black man who is good with women is a bit cliché. And it would be nice if women wouldn’t be objectified and we had a heroine featuring in a major role like Halle Berry in Die Another Day. Perhaps this alternative would be the hero young black boys look up to in a film industry devoid of ethnic representation.

Left in the lurch: AWoman Bond not inconceivable for Barbara Broccoli, James Bond producer.

 Of course, the white man who dreams of getting sex with a lot of women, might feel discriminated – they can just rewatch the old ones.

Should we ponder how much further this could go? An autistic Bond? ADHD? Depression? Wouldn’t this add more depth and relatable quality to the character?

An Inconvenient Truth

The inconvenient fact about minorities is they are just that. Only 3% of the UK population identifies as any form of ‘black’.

There are twice as many British Asians as British black, of which Indians constitute the largest group.

There are many tall, physically imposing, well-groomed, well-spoken Indians who could nail the James Bond role but for the skin colour and what he stands for.

Where are the calls for more Asians up on the big screen? Perhaps their cultures have assimilated better with British culture to the point where they could pass for a quintessentially British man, leaving less call to complain.

I would love to see wider involvement of these subcultures in the creative space. But not co-opting existing white Caucasian identity by acculturation.

Maybe features like the Walther PPK or the vesper martinis are subject to the artistic license of the directors. But why are we pandering to such a small minority who demand submittance our popular culture to the contusions of their perverse ideology?

James Bond represents a troubled, immature person as metaphor for the confused position England has in the world today. It provides a touchstone – a link to our past, our heritage which is all but lost to the diminished cultural memory extant today.

Bond – man or woman? https://screenrant.com/james-bond-woman-recasting/

Why besmirch history by inverting the role to Elba for the sake of political correctness

There are plenty of new characters and opportunities for characters of different genders and cultural backgrounds. If they don’t have the creativity to create franchises as timeless as James Bond, that remain popular throughout generations, it is because they fail to capture the hearts and minds of the audience in the same way.

It is their lack of truly exciting and original ideas that betray them, leaving us with tentpole movies that are fly-by-nights.

Finding the right fit – not plain sailing

It is for this reason that not any old white actor could do either. It requires a specific man for a specific role.

The lack of viable alternatives to Daniel Craig led Eon to increase his remuneration for further films.

There is only one actor who truly fits the bill, is popular enough to draw the crowds, is suave, sophisticated, classic, dangerous, charming, ruthless, and cool. And that is Michael Fassbender. However, he wouldn’t sign to the exclusive contract by a country mile.

Craig took a while to mould into the role, with many older Bond fans disappointed by his offering.

The other suggestions like Tom Hiddlestone,Tom Hardy, or François Damiens lack the looks, imposing demeanour, and the aura.

While new possibilities exist in James Darcy, Matthew Goode, Richard Madden or Henry Cavill, it should remain within the white demographic for the metaphoric imagery Bond conjures up of washed-up Empire, Queen and country, and the confused orphan who never really had to grow up – courtesy of Her Majesty’s Secret Service.

And in the meantime, let’s see what creative projects the subcultures can devise to improve black, women and Asian under-representation.

A Defence Of Alex Jones

Mike Omoniyi
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A Defence Of Alex Jones

Yes, you read this right, this is a defense of Alex Jones. Now before you leave, this is not a defense in the traditional sense, believe it or not, but the move by top technology companies to erase most of his content on their platforms should bother you. If it doesn’t you aren’t thinking about it thoroughly enough. 

How did we get here? 

On the 7th of August, 2018, after months of deliberation, top tech companies, Apple, Google, Facebook and Spotify severely restricted the reach of political pundit and conspiracy theorist, Alex Jones, and Infowars, his right-wing site that has been a leading peddler of false information online.

Alex Jones Speaking at AF Free Speech Rally / Lucas Jackson / Reuters


Alex Jones and Infowars have heavily relied on these social media platforms for years to spread their particular brand of dark, bizarre and frankly outrageous conspiracy theories. Some of these theories include, that the Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax and that mothers and students affected were hired, actors. Another theory was that Democrats run a global child-sex rings and most infamously that the tragedy 9\11 was an inside job by the government. For those who want more proof of his lunacy, there is a whole catalog of Alex Jones theories but we won’t go there today. You can check on his youtube Cha…oh wait.


For more of Alex Jones, Here are some of his greatest hits

Alex Jones Clip Compilation

Combating, his willful lies has always been a difficult territory for tech firms. They have long desired to combat misinformation online especially following the spread of ‘fake news’ during the last presidential election, but have also been reluctant to be arbiters of truth. Whilst this is a difficult chord to strike for business,  these top companies made a coordinated decision last week and evicted him from their platform.

What The Tech Companies Said


Facebook, Spotify and Google’s YouTube site removed Infowars content too. Facebook removed four pages belonging to Alex Jones, including one with nearly 1.7 million followers as of last month, for violating its policies by “glorifying violence” and “using dehumanizing language to describe people who are transgender, Muslims and immigrants.”

YouTube terminated Alex Jones’s channel, which had more than 2.4 million subscribers and billions of views on its videos, for repeatedly violating its policies, including its prohibition on “hate speech”. Spotify cited its own prohibition on hate speech as the reason for removing a podcast by Mr. Jones.

Apple removed five of the six Infowars podcasts on its popular Podcasts app. Commenting on the move, a spokeswoman said, “Apple does not tolerate hate speech.

Alex Jones Youtube Channel / Now Removed

Even the Adult site YouPorn followed Apple in this coordinated move.

If you’re wondering, yes, some of Jones’ videos were, in fact, available on YouPorn, including one clip titled, “Alex Jones lubing up and violently thrashing his opponents.”

Is It Too Early To Party?

Now in many ways, this looks like a win for ‘truth’ left-wing actors and even independents have welcomed this action as long overdue and desperately needed. However, those cheering this move are short-sighted.


Alex Jones is a smokescreen, what celebrants are really cheering for is an unchecked power that these monopolistic firms have to decide what is good, bad, hate or not. The most sticking feature of this power is that it cuts both ways. Right now it may be cutting ‘our’ enemies, however, when it cuts us, we won’t be so happy.

American poet, writer, and hip-hop artist Jackie Hill Perry/ Source: jackiehillperry.com


American poet, writer, and hip-hop artist Jackie Hill Perry came under fire early this year when a speech about her ex-gay lifestyle on the Harvard College campus led protestors and LGBTG+ activist to deem her speech hate speech as The Harvard Crimson reported. They sought to have her no-platformed but were not successful. Now, Imagine if this decision was instead made on the whim of some billionaire out there who decides what is tolerant and what is not.

This Is Not A Defence 

This is not as much a defence of Alex Jones as it is a defence of free speech. If we believe in a market place of ideas then it is important that we allow market forces determine what ideas are salient. Suppose Alex Joes does purport hate speech. The way you beat hate speech is not no-speech but good speech. Students should suggest better ideas, campaign for them,narrate a better ideology and beat his ideas, all of which can only be done in the market place of ideas. If you are afraid Jones is perpetuating a false narrative,  set up a facebook page called ‘debunking Alex Jones’ and win in the market place of ideas.


If there was another facebook or twitter then power would not be so concentrated; however, these companies are monopolies desperate to abscond government regulation.


If we treat these public companies as public utilities, then we actually have a marketplace of ideas and thus we can beat Alex Jones speech with better speech. No platforming doesn’t make bad ideas disappear, it forces them underground. We cannot beat ideas we cannot name of identity. Covert actors with bad ideas are enduringly more dangerous and loud ones because, with loud and open actors, you at least know what you are dealing with.


The moves over the last few days helped fuel that debate. “Whether you like @RealAlexJones and Infowars or not, he is undeniably the victim today of collusion by the big tech giants,” Nigel Farage, a British conservative politician, said on Twitter.

What’ in the Future?

Facebook, Spotify, Google, YouTube and all other tech companies are private companies with ‘terms of use’ and ‘conditions’ and so this is in no way a critique of their decision. Instead, if we follow this route down the map,  we arrive in a place where unelected and unaccountable billionaires on a personal whim get to decide not only the livelihood of individuals but also what speech is good and what speech is hate.


In our current context, Facebook, Spotify, Google and YouTube and not just firms but large monopolies who control and dominate the internet. Their decisions have deep ramifications. Either we treat them as public utilities like gas and electricity which no one can be denied use of on grounds of hate or we regulate them. That way, they become accountable to democratic will and rule. If not,  those cheering this decision do not know that they will inadvertently usher in a digital age where vested interested are allowed to dominate unchecked.

The final say: is a second Brexit referendum on the cards?

Alex Davenport
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The final say: is a second Brexit referendum on the cards?

In many ways, the demand for a second in/out referendum on the UK’s EU membership seems to be gaining momentum. For all that we have been told ever since that fateful June day when the result was announced that the issue was a done deal, there are some signs the tide may be turning. A petition to hold another Brexit vote has reached 600,000 signatures. There seems to be an endless supply of polls suggesting large numbers of voters have lost faith in the Brexit process, and would back another referendum. If that isn’t enough for you, even Nigel Farage has expressed support for the idea.

And yet, for all the hype, it is still hard to see that second vote taking place, especially while the Conservatives are in power. Only a liberal minority of the party’s MPs would back such a move, while a far greater number of Tory parliamentarians would be enraged by it. At a time when Theresa May’s majority is wafer-thin, she can ill afford such discontent in her party.

Similarly, most of the party’s voters backed the Leave campaign two years ago, with the majority of whom showing no sign of changing their minds on the issue. Any feeling that the party is giving in to the demands of Remain supporters could lead these voters to leave the Conservatives in favour of right-leaning alternatives such as UKIP.

Prime minister Theresa May, who is unlikely to give in to demands for another referendum (Source: The Commentator)

All this makes it difficult to see how another referendum would be in Theresa May’s best interests. Remainers may argue she would benefit from giving voters the chance to avert Brexit and the potential negative economic effects for the country it holds, but she cannot think so long-term; even announcing a referendum would almost certainly spell the end for her political career. Put another way, May and her party can cross the potential bridge of the fallout from Brexit when they come to it

A more plausible opportunity for another referendum may come from the Labour Party. It is important to remember that the party leadership is currently does not currently support such a move, instead arguing that the will of the people expressed in 2016 should be respected. However, there does appear to be a strong groundswell of opinion in the mostly-Remain supporting party that staying in the EU would be the best course of action for the country.

Crucially, many such Remainers can be found in the left wing of the party, which for the last few years has been dominant in Labour. For these party members, Brexit is perhaps the one issue on which they significantly disagree with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and his allies. There is already talk of members trying to get a second referendum voted in as official policy at the party’s conference later this year.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is under pressure from members of his party to change his Brexit policy (Source: Sky News)

It is important to remember, though, that Labour are not imminently close to power. Considering the UK is slated to leave the EU by March 2019, they would probably have to have won power before this time, either through May calling a snap election (she would certainly be more wary in doing so than she was last time) or though a vote of no confidence against the prime minister. Either is possible, but the chances of one happening before Brexit takes place, along with Labour’s official stance on the issue changing so substantially, appear slim at best.

With this in mind does seem unlikely that we will get a ‘final say’ before the UK leaves the EU. Then again, it seemed unlikely that Brexit would happen in the first place, but look where we have ended up.

Boris Empowers Far-Right with Comments About Muslim Women

Common Sense Contributors
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Boris Empowers Far-Right with Comments About Muslim Women

by Umar Zeshan Bhatti

The former Mayor of London and former Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, has potentially harmed a huge section of society with his comments regarding Denmark’s burka ban – Muslim women. In his article, he referred to Muslim women who wear the veil as ‘letterboxes’ and ‘bank robbers,’ a comment which is both ignorant and harmful.

Boris Johnson (Source: AOL.com)

Already the target of most Islamophobic crimes, Muslim women face increasing opposition in every day society. The reality however, is that these women are not at all how Boris Johnson has described them; in fact, they comprise countless hard-working and independent women, who are tirelessly and positively contributing to the UK across all sectors of society-as mothers, teachers, lawyers, doctors, etc.

Boris Johnson’s reckless comments will, undoubtedly, empower and bolster far-right elements of society. Mr Johnson has, therefore, attempted to use the far right for political gain, much like Islamophobes such as Geert Wilders and Tommy Robinson. Their rhetoric is destructive, seeking to divide society according to delineations of hate and xenophobia.

Rather than to ‘’liberate’’ Muslim women from so-called ‘’oppressive’’ religious practices, the words of Mr Johnson will place the women they claim to protect directly in the line of danger. For example, the Tell MAMA Annual Report 2017 highlights this issue, stating that 6 out of 10 anti-Muslim hate crime victims were women. This highlights an urgent and menacing threat to the very fabric of our society.

The foundations of this wonderful nation are rooted in the core values of respect, tolerance and a form of plurality that celebrates different faiths, cultures and beliefs. It is, therefore, essential that we abide by these values in the global village in which we all live and create an environment of peace, love, harmony, loyalty, and true integration.

The UK has avoided burka bans, such as those enforced by countries like Denmark, as they result in a hostile and toxic environment for women who have done nothing more than to dress in a particular way.

On the one hand, it is right for women who cover themselves to be asked to identify themselves for security reasons when and if it is necessary to do so, on the other, women who choose to dress modestly according to their own free will, should be afforded the fundamental freedom to do so.

Together with 38,000 other Muslims, I recently attended the Jalsa Salana, an international Muslim Convention held in Alton, Hampshire, in a site that is transformed from a farm into a tent-city by a team of 7,000 volunteers, 3,000 of whom were Muslim women from all walks of life.

These women, including doctors, engineers, lawyers and others, are nation builders and an undeniable source of knowledge, power and experience to the UK. When I saw them, I did not see oppressed women, but empowered human beings and role models. Mr Johnson and those who harbour far-right ideology, would do well to recognise this, and harness their immense potential contribution as opposed to syphoning them off like some unwanted minority.

Society must create and cultivate an environment that encourages people of all backgrounds to flourish. Until and unless we do so, we run the risk of destroying the very foundations of plurality and liberal democracy upon which this great nation was built.

 

Umar Zeshan Bhatti is currently studying Law and is interested in Human Rights. He is part of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association.

7 Year Old Boy Found Dead in Suspected “Gang Arson Attack”

Afoma Andrea
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7 Year Old Boy Found Dead in Suspected “Gang Arson Attack”

Early Tuesday morning this week, a blaze broke out in the flat of The Urhie’s on Aldolphus Street in Deptford. Mrs Urhie (49) and her daughter Sarah (19), escaped the fire by jumping from the first floor, however sadly her son Joel Urhie was not able to follow them. It is believed that the young boy was trapped in his bedroom and it proved too difficult to reach him.

Police and Forensic teams arrive at the charred flat in Deptford.

Witness report hearing the distraught Mrs Urhie crying on the floor screaming “my son is inside, my son is inside”. Family friend Grace Gbenedio stated that after hearing the screams she rushed out to see the mother on the floor screaming repeatedly for help. When shown the room that the boy was trapped in she likened the fire to a curtain and said no one could go in or out. 

Both Mrs Urhie and her daughter were taken to a nearby hospital where they were joined by Joel’s older brother Sam(21), who arrived at the hospital with his friends in a car after hearing the news. The grief-stricken Sam was seen shouting “Why him? Oh, why not me? It should have been me. Why not me to die?”

Many suspect that the fire was a deliberate arson attack and was “gang-related” with the older brother Sam being the intended target. This has not been confirmed yet but Detective Superintendent Jane Corrigan has released a statement that a murder investigation is being carried out as they believe that the fire was started deliberately. 

There is a just giving page for the family  set up by Jenni Poulter of Lewisham

Title Race of 2018/2019 – The Top 6

Jireh Antwi
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Title Race of 2018/2019 – The Top 6

With the Premier League starting in a couple of days on the 10th of August, fans and players alike are preparing themselves for another season of football. Last year was a historic season for Manchester City running away with the league by December and earning 100 points making the rest of a top 5 battle out with each other for a champions league spot. With the transfer market shorter than usual its meant that teams have had to act quicker or unfortunately not been able to negotiate terms and conditions for their intended transfer target.

The Premier League 2018/2019 season is underway in less than a week

This season, like every season, is generally different. But this season Arsenal have a new manager in Unai Emery, who was a 3x consecutive winner of the Europa League with Sevilla. Arsenal are in the Europa League since they finished sixth last season, Emery will be sure to make it a target for them to win the European Competition. Nearly 22 years of Arsene Wenger at Arsenal no longer being the helm will take to getting use to for the whole club  and fans. Likewise sensational striker Pierre Emerick Aubameyang having his first full season will be new and a thriller for fans and additions such as Leno, Lichtsteiner and Torreira coming into the mix will be exciting but will also take time for everything to click together. Moreover being linked with highly touted after Ousmane Dembele from Barcelona might be the biggest positive they have this season.

Chelsea have a new manager in Maurizio Sarri, the previous Napoli manager who played some of the most exciting football in Europe last season with their fast-paced game moving the ball very quickly.  He brought defensive midfielder Jorginho along with him to solidify the Chelsea midfield. Along with Arsenal their also in the Europa League this season as the finished fifth, whether their Belgian star players in Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard are still at the club at the start of the season is to be determined as both are reported to be going to Real Madrid. Losing these 2 would be a massive blow to their title challenge and most likely playing philosophy.

Liverpool have strengthened their squad quite considerably with new additions in Naby Keita of Leipzig, Fabinho of Monaco, Stoke City’s Xherdan Shakiri and world record transfer fee for Roma goalkeeper Allison. Losing in the Champions League final last year due to their best player getting injured from a Sergio Ramos tackle and a comedic performance from goalkeeper Karius, forced the Liverpool board to move aggressively in the transfer market and even more adamant to fix their mistakes, however with all these additions is it finally time for Jurgen Klopp to not just perform but also win actual silverware?

Allison from Roma could be the solutions to all of Liverpools goalkeeping problems (Source: SkySports)

 

Manchester city still have Pep Guardiola at the helm and with their first team returning from the world cup with minimal changes except for adding a world class talent in former Leicester player Riyad Mahrez, their chances of retaining the Premier League title is looking very likely. With already securing the Community shield against Chelsea with a 2-0 win on Sunday they’re off to a good start.  However the competition should be a lot more difficult than it was last season, so this year will really be a test of their resolve and grit.  The last time a team retained the Premier league title was Manchester United in from 06/07 to 08/09. Kevin De Bruyne who’s been named in the 10-man short list for FIFA pro best player award will be sure to leave another mark this season and further assert his class and poise over the rest.

Mahrez has finally had his dream move to City to play under Pep Guardiola (Source: Mancity)

Tottenham Hotspurs are still relatively the same, transfers wise they haven’t acquired anyone.  This must be a worry for the fans as most of their money is ted up in building their new stadium. They could also be losing their highly rated centre back Toby Alderweireld to Manchester United adding further troubles in team depth. With Pochettino’s progressive tactics, there’s a wonder where they will place in the league table, as well as being in the Champions league this season could spell the same outcome as last season with coming far but not quite making it.

Manchester United return with a World Cup winner in their ranks from Paul Pogba and third place striker Romelu Lukaku, both are very much needed to perform at their peak levels this season.  United have new signings of midfielder Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk and full back Diogo Dalot from Porto to add to their ranks. Unfortunately pre-season has looked horrendous for United with Jose Mourinho still playing mind games and even complaining publicly about players like youngster Anthony martial who received a £180,000 fine for not returning to pre-season due to spending time with his new born child as his wife had complications during birth. Without a doubt Mourinho’s complaining and excuses will continue all throughout the season. Signing Fellaini to a new 2-year contract hasn’t gone down a treat with the base as well due to Fellaini’s lack of quality to be a Manchester United calibre player. Jose is creating rifts between fans and some are wondering whether they want Mourinho still at the club and if he can really lead United to a Premier League trophy. It has been rumoured that Zinedine Zidane could be lined up to replace him.

Mourinho looks to be in meltdown mode as he’s experienced at previous clubs (Source:Express)

For next seasons predictions the likely outcome for the Premier League will be Manchester City placing first, Liverpool second, Chelsea third, Manchester United fourth and the fifth and sixth place being a toss up between the 2 North London clubs of Arsenal and Tottenham. But football can be very unpredictable and new surprises can spring up to change all the outcomes and predictions, nevertheless its sure to be a thrill if its competitive all round.

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