Blogs & Comment

Union must put faith in student voters

By Kyle Christie
Published: 26/05/2009

We asked students what they thought of the Union telling students not to vote for the BNP.

This year, we are spared – some of the more keen types might say unfortunately so – the local election fight in Sheffield. The usual electioneering, which is often minimal anyway in a city safely in Lib Dem hands, has been absent so far.

However, we do all have the opportunity, probably for the first time in most of our lives, to vote in the upcoming European elections on June 4.

So far, I’ve only had two pieces of literature through the letterbox.

They were from the current leading party on Sheffield City Council, the Liberal Democrats, and from UKIP. To the untrained eye it’s easy to confuse them, if only because they both seem so fond of the colour yellow.

I’m especially fond of the UKIP leaflet proudly displaying Winston Churchill, two-fingered symbol and all, next to slogans calling for us to leave the EU. I’m sure they are well aware of his calls for a ‘United States of Europe’ in the post-war period.

The Lib Dems meanwhile seem insistent on telling me how every other party has no chance of winning in Sheffield. Which seems strange to me, considering they have only one out of six European MEPs for Yorkshire and Humber.

One more leaflet has been put through my letterbox by what I expect is now a politically well-informed postie. It was from the Sheffield UAF (Unite Against Fascism), urging me to vote against the BNP.

Let’s make no qualms or mistakes about it: the BNP are a real threat to the politics, diversity and peaceful nature of our country. Their policies are absurd as they are frightening.

They only need a tiny increase to gain an MEP in our region, and given the debacle over MP’s expenses and the public anger at politicians, this is perfectly possible.

Of course we’ve had our own version of elected officials’ expenses at the Union this year. It’s good to see would-be-politicians getting into the right mindset so early.

It’s worth asking how European elections, of all political events, possibly relate to students. Well the Union, through the prism of voting against the BNP, certainly believe that it does. They’ve held an event and released a statement on the very issue.

It’s even part of a team objective for the Union Officers. Given that a member of the BNP turned up on Union Council, a fact that would have possibly lain undiscovered were it not for a leaked membership list, you could understand the Union’s actions.

But does the Union (and the NUS, who have been even more virulent in their campaigning) have the right to recommend who students vote for? It does have an anti-racism policy, and it’s not as if such campaigns are anything new in student union politics. It’s highly unlikely that we’d accept the Union making similar statements about other political parties however.

I have enough faith in the student body to believe most wouldn’t vote BNP. If the party do get elected to the European Parliament, it won’t be through the votes of those attending university, but those unengaged populations shunned by major political parties.

If the mentality behind the Union’s actions is to increase student turnout against the BNP they should consider doing so without recommending how those they represent vote.

Doing so could be counter-productive. As a student, choosing who to vote for is confusing enough without being told who not to vote for.

To beat Nick Griffin and his cronies and ensure they stay in electoral oblivion, anti-fascists should concentrate on those who might actually vote for them: the recently unemployed and a white working-class that, rightly or wrongly, feels abandoned.

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