Letters
Green Energy
Dear Sir,
I was gratified to see your coverage of the council elections, but surprised that you failed to print the results in all of Oxford. While you mentioned Sushila Dhall’s second place for the Greens in West Central, you didn't print that we won four seats. I am glad to say that in Isis, which includes over 4,000 students, the Green Party won with 38 per cent of votes, and 35 per cent in East Oxford.
Across Oxford, the Green Party surpassed the Tories and gained 22 per cent of the vote, making us the third party. We couldn't have done this without the support of students. I look forward to working with my Green colleagues to make a difference for everyone living in Oxford.
CLLR DEBORAH GLASSWOODIN
Dear Sir,
I know it must be difficult in the white heat of creating a newspaper to actually bother reading your own news stories before writing a Leader on them, but your plunge into the waters of black students’ representation last week was not only ill-argued, but avoided entirely the point made in your news article, that Tom Dale’s proposals were a topic of discussion, not confirmed policy of the Student Union.
It is because OUSU recognises that diversity within the Student Union (and within the University itself) is not sufficiently broad that Tom and others have begun a discussion about how to improve it. We aim eventually to have a fully fleshed out policy proposal to put to OUSU Council. To achieve this we must consult on the issue.
You have offered your own suggestion that we ought to ensure that a more diverse range of applicants are admitted to Oxford: I would point out that OUSU’s Target Schools Scheme has worked for over two decades to achieve just this. Much has been achieved, but there is still much to do: OUSU is taking its representative role extremely seriously, and your attempts to mock it ought be ignored by all students seeking a fairer University for all.
JOHN BLAKE
OUSU PRESIDENT
Dear Sir,
Although the Union does run some exceptional events, last week’s Oxovision Song Contest was a RAG event (contrary to reports in the Oxford Student).
Over £800 was raised for charity, though I suspect that had little to do with a rendition of Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes!
IAN KING
OUSU VP CHARITIES AND COMMUNITY
A confused dream
Dear Sir,
Entertaining as it is to be written about by my old friend and boss Peter Cardwell in his column, he seems to have confused his Dreams. This week’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is in Queen’s, but it is directed by Kate Sagovsky. My production is in Merton in seventh week.
TOM LITTLER
LADY MARGARET HALL
19th May 2005