Sep
SUSU Against Prorogue
On Saturday, your Sabbatical Officers attended the Southampton protest against the prorogation of parliament, supported by mandate of a previous all student vote.
In March 2019, SUSU held an all student vote asking if students wanted to support the national campaign for a People’s Vote on Brexit. Of a total turnout of 17.9% (which is the highest turnout we have had from an all student vote), 82.9% of students overwhelmingly voted for SUSU to support this mandate.
SUSU attended Saturday’s protest to represent the Students’ Union and all students. Emily Harrison, Union President, and Laura Barr, VP Welfare and Community, made speeches to condemn the prorogation on the basis of its impact on students.
Many students were part of the crowd of approximately 200 people, and our Sabbs spoke to a variety of students afterwards, including medics, mature students, and previous students who are still in Southampton.
The protest was not party political, and there was a mixture of people who supported Brexit and were from different party’s. Everyone’s speeches included something about unity and cohesion in a time that will impact everybody. It was about democracy.
We are at a point in the political sphere that is unnerving, and scary. But your Sabbs are here to represent your interests, relay those fears, and do our best to try and minimize the damage in whatever capacity we can.
We will be holding monthly Brexit info sessions to relay information, and spend our time on social media clarifying misinformation when Brexit happens.
Please contact welfare@soton.ac.uk if you would like to be involved.
Tags: Brexit, democracy, Prorogue, sabbs