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07/05/2014
QUB To Debate Poppy Ban
The student council at Queen's University is to debate a motion this evening that could see the sale of Remembrance Day poppies banned from the Students' Union.
The motion says "the Poppy Appeal is a politically charged and necessarily divisive initiative given the nature of local politics. This Council recognises that the Students' Union is an inclusive and neutral space for all students at Queen's University and therefore must offer a politically neutral environment regarding issues of the past to avoid offence and a sense of exclusion.
"This Council, therefore, instructs the VP Equality & Diversity and the Union President to end the sale of poppies in the Student's Union to provide an end to political sponsorship of the Poppy Appeal, in the name of peace, inclusivity and progressivism."
But DUP MEP Diane Dodds has condemned the motion. She said: "Whilst the wording of this motion talks of peace, inclusivity and progressivism it is actually regressive, backward looking and an attempt to politicse the poppy as a symbol and exclude it from Queens’s Student Union.
"For a motion tabled by university students it shows an abject lack of knowledge. The motivation behind the proposed ban is supposedly to maintain the neutral environment within the Student’s Union and to avoid offence and a sense of exclusion. However, the poppy is recognised as a non-political and non-sectarian symbol.
"The Equality Commission recognises that the wearing, and presumably the sale of poppies in a respectful manner within the appropriate period, should not be regarded as anything which would cause offence. Therefore, the motion is actually defeated on its own terms, leaving the political motivation behind the motion clearly exposed."
Ulster Unionist Councillor Alexander Redpath described the motion as "intolerant".
He said: "The Poppy is an internationally recognised symbol which commemorates the hundreds of thousands of people who gave their lives in defence of freedom. The Poppy Appeal also raises funds to help the injured and to assist members of the armed forces return to civilian life. Naturally this includes former Queen's students.
"The very fact that Queen’s Students’ Union is able to debate such a crass and intolerant motion such as this is because of that sacrifice, but this point would no doubt be lost on the closed minds behind this motion, which is quite simply intolerant, divisive and brings shame on those who propose it. It is the motion, not the Poppy, which is politically charged and divisive, in that it seeks to deny the right of those who choose to wear the Poppy as a mark of Remembrance."
(IT)
The motion says "the Poppy Appeal is a politically charged and necessarily divisive initiative given the nature of local politics. This Council recognises that the Students' Union is an inclusive and neutral space for all students at Queen's University and therefore must offer a politically neutral environment regarding issues of the past to avoid offence and a sense of exclusion.
"This Council, therefore, instructs the VP Equality & Diversity and the Union President to end the sale of poppies in the Student's Union to provide an end to political sponsorship of the Poppy Appeal, in the name of peace, inclusivity and progressivism."
But DUP MEP Diane Dodds has condemned the motion. She said: "Whilst the wording of this motion talks of peace, inclusivity and progressivism it is actually regressive, backward looking and an attempt to politicse the poppy as a symbol and exclude it from Queens’s Student Union.
"For a motion tabled by university students it shows an abject lack of knowledge. The motivation behind the proposed ban is supposedly to maintain the neutral environment within the Student’s Union and to avoid offence and a sense of exclusion. However, the poppy is recognised as a non-political and non-sectarian symbol.
"The Equality Commission recognises that the wearing, and presumably the sale of poppies in a respectful manner within the appropriate period, should not be regarded as anything which would cause offence. Therefore, the motion is actually defeated on its own terms, leaving the political motivation behind the motion clearly exposed."
Ulster Unionist Councillor Alexander Redpath described the motion as "intolerant".
He said: "The Poppy is an internationally recognised symbol which commemorates the hundreds of thousands of people who gave their lives in defence of freedom. The Poppy Appeal also raises funds to help the injured and to assist members of the armed forces return to civilian life. Naturally this includes former Queen's students.
"The very fact that Queen’s Students’ Union is able to debate such a crass and intolerant motion such as this is because of that sacrifice, but this point would no doubt be lost on the closed minds behind this motion, which is quite simply intolerant, divisive and brings shame on those who propose it. It is the motion, not the Poppy, which is politically charged and divisive, in that it seeks to deny the right of those who choose to wear the Poppy as a mark of Remembrance."
(IT)
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