Organise for abortion rights

The organising session at Feminist Fightback decided to call for a national torchlight march for abortion rights on the evening of Saturday 3 March 2007, in Central London.
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Students and the environment: Fight for democracy!

This is a discussion piece written by a supporter of Education Not for Sale from Cambridge University. We welcome further contributions on the subject.

As you’re reading this, look around at the room you’re in. Think about your halls of residence, your lecture halls, your classrooms, in fact, every building you go into in your week, I want you to ask yourself “how ecologically sound is this building?”.
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Speak up for democracy in NUS

The following petition comes from Student Respect. It concerns NUS Steering Committee’s decision to rule nine Student Respect-backed motions on the subject of Islamophobia out of order for discussion at this year’s conference. Although ENS have some disagreements with Student Respect’s take on this issue, we fully support the open and democratic discussion of what is a hugely important question.
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Radical Students’ Network meeting

Meet at 12:30pm next to Millie’s Cookies in Birmingham New Street station.

Further repression in Iran: solidarity with the student movement!

From The Guardian

Iranian student activists who staged an angry protest against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last week have gone into hiding in fear for their lives after his supporters threatened them with revenge.
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ENS Women statement on the Ipswich murders

We, the members of ENS-Women, are deeply disturbed and upset by the recent murders of women in Ipswich, and by the media coverage of these tragic events. We are also mindful that these events cannot be understood as occurring in a vacuum; rather, violence against women is widespread in the UK, and sex workers are especially vulnerable to violence, rape & murder at the hands of men.
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March for abortion rights!

The last few months haven’t been the best for abortion rights campaigners; since September we’ve seen the garnering of MPs’ signatures on an anti-choice Early Day Motion (including many supposed left-wingers, like Respect party MP George Galloway and David Taylor, a member of the Socialist Campaign Group) and a Tory Ten-Minute Rule Bill which would have seen a severe restriction on abortion time limits plus compulsory “counselling” (because women clearly can’t make up their own minds, poor things), not to mention the international situation which, with the complete banning of all abortion in Nicaragua and a wave of legislative attacks including a proposed ban in Poland, is looking increasingly grim.
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Disaffiliation, delegations and demonstrations - NUS NEC meeting, 23 November 2006

Firstly, an apology: September’s meeting report was extremely late, from a combination of losing my notes, business, laziness and probably having some form of scurvy because I’m skint. It’s not especially detailed, so I’m happy to answer questions from anyone about what went on - email me at sofie.buckland@nus.org.uk

This month's meeting was the first since 8 September, October's having been cancelled due to the National Demo and various affiliation referendums. I went up to Imperial for the debate there, spending a day talking to students about why even if you don't like Extra or think NUS doesn't fight hard enough on fees or anything else, you should still be involved with your national union. I also headed up to Aston, whose sabbs were threatening to disaffiliate based on NUS's handling of the lecturer's strike. Sadly, the campaign didn’t go quite so well, and Aston voted to leave the NUS.
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A brief report - NUS NEC meeting, 8 September 2006

Those of you who are particularly observant might notice that the dates at the top of this blog don’t match; it’s about the 8th September NEC meeting, but it’s been posted in December. Clearly, this has nothing to do with those at HQ who put up my blogs, and everything to do with my failure to write a report in a reasonable amount of time. I’m sure you’ve all been on the edge of your seats with anticipation, and I apologise profusely.
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Should NUS be political? A response to Bristol & co.

This is my response to the letter from some sabbatical officers, circulated to the NEC in October. The text of the letter and signatories can be found here.

Dear Ben (and all who signed the letter)
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Letter from sabbaticals to NEC: Middle East

This letter was sent out to the NUS executive following discussions on the Middle East, and more generally on the Lebanon war. Sofie Buckland’s response is available here.

Dear Gemma,

Firstly we would like to congratulate you on an excellent campaigns launch and those of us who attended were extremely pleased with the direction and focus of the National Union for the coming year. We are writing this letter not to demand or admonish but to let you know our beliefs as student leaders within our organisation.
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Motions for NUS NEC, 18 December 2006

All motions submitted to NUS NEC, 18 December 2006

Sudan Divestment
FE Bill
Supporting SUs to support medical students
Sweatshop week of action (ENS)
No to Trident replacement (ENS)
Solidarity with Harmondsworth detainees (ENS)
Defend freedom of religion
No to Trident replacement
Carbon academy
Faith on campus
Emergency motion: anti-semitism
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Amendment to “Education Campaign”, NUS NEC 8 September

See below for original motion.
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Amendment to “Stop The War”, NUS NEC 8 September 2006

Amendment to: “Stop the War” (see below for motion)
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London protest in solidarity with Chris Riley and JJB workers

Outside JJB Sports, 8 The Broadway West, 12 Shopping Centre, London W12 8PP.

Meet 1pm, outside the shopping centre opposite the Shepherd’s Bush Central Line tube station (this is about ten minutes from the separate Hammersmith & City Line station of the same name).

Organised by No Sweat.

Socialist Youth Network launch conference

First conference of the Socialist Youth Network
(youth section of the Labour Representation Committee). 12-6pm, University of London Union, Malet Street (Euston, Russell Square or Goodge Street tube). Speakers include Tony Benn. For more information visit the SYN website or email.

Mansour Ossanlou for NUS Honorary Vice-President

Every year NUS elects an Honorary Vice-President to show solidarity with a struggle going on somewhere in the world.

ENS activists are campaigning for the election of Mansoor Ossanlou, the leader of the bus drivers’ union in the Iranian capital Tehran. Ossanlou has been in out and of jail repeatedly and, despite serious injuries sustained during struggles with the police, is now being held in the Evin prison with no visitors allowed.
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