UWS Students’ Union Response to violence across the UK
 

Against the backdrop of the violent events in the UK, in the aftermath of the stabbings in Stockport, and with more far-right gatherings planned in Scotland this week, we wanted to talk directly to you, our UWS Student members, about support you can access and actions you can take.

We are appalled by the violence, which is directing attention away from the unfathomable murders of three children. We condemn these acts of Islamophobic and xenophobic violence fully, and the hateful narratives that have encouraged this violence to occur. We stand in solidarity and offer our support to all members of our community who are impacted by these events.

Misinformation in British media, often encouraged by politicians and exacerbated further online, has led to the spread of Islamophobic and xenophobic narratives. This feeds cycles of violence against migrants, Muslims, and people of colour in particular, as well as those who support them by offering housing or legal services.

We know many members of our university community are feeling unsafe and at risk, or worried about their friends, colleagues, and neighbours. This violence will disproportionately affect people of colour, and we want to tell you about the support services you can access, as well as actions you can take in response.

We value every student at UWS, and we are here for you.

- Your Union Team


Actions you can take

Counter-Protest

Not everyone will feel comfortable protesting in the context of the current violence so there is no pressure to do so. However, if you would like to protest, there are several counter protests being organised across Scotland and the UK. If you would like to attend a protest with other people, in some instances other members of the Students’ Union may be in attendance so please e-mail admin@uwsunion.org.uk to join as a group.  

Write To Your MP

You can write to your Member of Parliament to express your feelings about the current violence, and the political context and discourse behind the violence.

You can find your Westminster MP here: https://members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP
You can find your MSP here: https://www.parliament.scot/

Support Your Community and Stay Safe

Check in with your friends and colleagues, especially those who may have been directly impacted by the violence, and make sure they have access to support networks. Send messages of solidarity and stand together. You could join with friends to go out, especially where you are visiting locations which may be targets such as certain religious buildings (e.g. Mosques or Gurdwaras) or cultural shops (e.g. afro-hairdressers or Asian supermarkets) . Look out for warnings from the emergency services about activity in your area and stay safe.

Support You Can Access

In an emergency please contact 999.

On Campus

The SafeZone app, which you can download here allows you call for help and assistance when you need it, giving you fast access to security whenever and wherever you are on campus.               

Anyone who needs urgent help can also contact University security on 0141 848 3333, which will give callers the option to select the campus they wish to be connected to, or 3333 on an internal line. 

Report to Support on Campus

If you experience discrimination, hate crimes, or racism on campus you can report it anonymously or provide contact details and get support from a UWS adviser. You can do that at https://reportandsupport.uws.ac.uk/

Union Advice Service

You can contact our Union Advice Service at advice@uwsunion.org.uk to talk about issues including hate crime. The team can support you to report hate crime.

Reporting Hate Crime

You can report hate crime yourself, but if anyone is still in danger or an offender is present or may return, you should call 999.

In Scotland you can report hate crime here: https://www.scotland.police.uk/secureforms/c3/
In England you can report hate crime here: https://www.report-it.org.uk/your_police_force


Counselling Support
UWS provide counselling support to students, and you can access that support here: https://www.uws.ac.uk/current-students/supporting-your-health-wellbeing/counselling/

Other support services

Citizens Advice - https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/
Victim Support - https://victimsupport.scot/