02 Nov Conservative students in 2018 – A dying breed or a shunned subculture?
In todays political climate, having what one would consider ‘controversial’ opinions can have a negative impact of how you are perceived and your interactions with certain people.
Societies are a place where people with similar interests come together to talk about said interests. There are societies for everything nowadays, from sports, LQBTQ+ and even Hummus. So how would someone feel if they were looking for a society to feel included, but there was no option for such, even if its for something influential like a society for a particular political leaning.
For those that are more right leaning on the political spectrum, those who choose Theresa over Jeremy, there isn’t much option within a university setting in which conservative students can voice their opinions. With the most recent Conservative Part Conference being the butt of many people internet jokes, it’s fair to assume Theresa is not held in the highest of regards among the young people of this country.
Pro- EU rally in Birmingham 2018, students and the community gather alike, to state their opposition to Brexit.
Why out of all the places, can you not express your opinions, however controversial, in a place that is virtually a melting pot of different cultures, ways of life and language, are you not allowed to voice certain views or opinions unless you want negative backlash?
Out of all the fourty higher education institutions in London, around five of them have a registered society that is related to the Conservative Party, or right wing politics in general. Although you may be think why this number is relevant, societies that relate to left wing parties or the Labour Party are present in about 30 of those universities.
Conservative student Orlagh Daly spoke about why she thinks there aren’t more of these societies present on our campuses. ‘I know people wont want to start a society like that, knowing it would come up in conversation…explaining that to your friends, even if you have no views that could be offensive, just the connotation that saying you’re right wing has. People just assume certain things about you that makes people reluctant to start something like that.’
With America taking free speech as a right, as its their first amendment, the same can not be seen in the UK. With a history that includes a revolution from the left, it could be argued that now the tables have turned, with the left coming out as the majority.
Its no joke that many universities avoid such topics, which has become apparent as out of the ten different universities that were contacted, knew the reason or wanted to comment. So is this the new wave of political discussion, especially among young people?
The stigma around this topic is a somewhat recent one, only getting more extreme as the time goes on, targeting anyone that isn’t 100% left wing. Although right wing people are definitely not a dying breed by any means, the presence of it officially in university campuses are becoming more and more sparse, they exist more as an underground concept, than something that is out and proud like that of a left wing leaning.
