Vote Grian for President for someone who will fight against slum landlords, get you FREE printing in the SU, make QUB Carbon Neutral by 2030 and provide mental health awareness and suicide intervention training.
Vótáil Grian!
For the last 5 years I’ve been involved in student activism around housing, cuts to courses, Irish language rights, and reproductive justice amongst other things.
As we face another five years of Tory austerity and more political uncertainty at Stormont, we can see that politicians and the people in power do not have our interests in mind. We have to be louder and more radical than ever. While our university has hundreds of millions in the bank, we’re seeing students at the heart of a mental health epidemic, staff on unstable and unequal pay, and so many struggling just to cover their rents and get out of their overdrafts.
It doesn’t have to be like this and I want to lead a union that will engage, educate and empower students to stand up and fight for the future they want to see and that we deserve. I’m ready for the fight.
Manifesto Summary
Free printing for all students; implementation of free printing for students, available in the SU building. The services are there - I will implement them.
Suicide Intervention awareness & training; It’s time we radically overhaul how we look at mental health and provide mental health awareness/suicide intervention training.
Fight against slum landlords; We need someone like me with a proven track record on housing activism to campaign against slum landlords, illegal fees and stolen deposits
System Change to prevent Climate Change: Fight for Queen's University to declare a climate emergency and make a declaration to be carbon neutral by 2030. Our planet can’t wait any longer, so neither should we.
Equality for All: Whether it's bodily autonomy, language rights, marriage rights, LGBT+ rights or anti-racism - we also need to put Queen's University back on to map as leading the fight for rights on a national level.
Student Health:
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Use information collected from the OMNI survey to radicalise how we look at and challenge this epidemic in mental health.
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Ensure we see a restructure of the academic year that prevents period of massive stress and pressure that play a massive role in students’ mental health.
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Mental health awareness and MH first aid training to all Course Reps, School Reps, Student Councillors, clubs and societies and to staff who work regularly with students.
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Educational campaigns around taking drugs safely, drinking responsibly and gambling.
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Ensure that the exceptional circumstances and extension request processes are compassionate and empathetic.
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Campaign for a two day drop-in sexual health clinic on campus.
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Reduction in gym membership price for students with mental health issues.
Housing:
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Continue to fight against crooked landlords and letting agents who are charging illegal fees or not protecting your deposits
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Promote MarksOutOfTenancy.com that allows tenants to give honest reviews of their houses and landlords.
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Challenge the current off-campus discipline system that is intimidatory, hostile and breaches a students’ right to a private life when they are brought in for noise complaints, something that would not happen in any workplace.
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Have the University act as a guarantor for international and estranged students
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End the demonisation of young people and students living in student areas.
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Continue to lobby for lower Queen’s Accommodation prices.
Students are workers:
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Stand with UCU to ensure our PhD students are working and studying in secure conditions. Working and learning conditions come together here.
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Ensure Queen’s is providing a secure living wage to all its employees, from academic to professional services to catering staff.
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Roll out a campaign that informs students on the benefits of joining trade unions, and how to unionise.
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Work alongside trade unions and student workers to assess and challenge the issues facing students in their workplaces such as harrassment, fair tips policies and zero-hour contracts.
Human Rights and Equality:
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As a Gaeilgeoir, I have campaigned for the introduction of an Irish Language Officer on campus, as well as being part of the campaign for bilingual signage on campus. I am also active in the campaign for an Irish Language Act in the North.
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I’m passionately pro-choice. While we achieved decriminalisation, the struggle for true reproductive justice is far from over. I will continue to be a voice for choice in our Union!
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Trans rights are human rights and I will fight to ensure this campus is inclusive and safe.
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We must fight racism in all its forms. We must ensure our campus and Belfast is a safe place for people of colour, for Irish Traveller students, for international students. This comes from education, challenging the prejudices we hold and fighting against systemic racism that is so prevalent in the north now.
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I will fight to make this university a University of Sanctuary and push for more scholarships for refugees seeking to study at Queen’s.
Climate Action:
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Fight to make sure the University is at least carbon neutral by 2030.
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Fight to make sure that the University is not putting business interests above what needs to be done to protect the climate; and ensure that they are making ethical investment choices. (Fossil Free).
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Biodegradable plastic tumblers and cutlery by catering and bar services on campus. The alternatives are there, we need to tell our university to use them!
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We are in a climate emergency. We need to challenge inaction and demand system change from our University and our political institutions. I’ll work with civic society groups and youth strikers fighting to shape the kind of institutions we need to protect the planet.
Download Manifesto
Facebook: @votegrian