Empire Times 49.4

EMPIRE TIMES

ADL STUDENT MEDIA COLLABORATIVE ISSUE

EDITION.49 ISSUE.04 > FLINDERS_UNIVERSITY_ STUDENT_MAGAZINE

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> WITH CONTRIBUTIONS FROM ON//// DIT & ON THE RECORD//////////////////////// > SMASH OUR OBSCENE SOCIETY//// > DEEP DIVE INTO THE ON DIT//////////// ARCHIVES/////////////////////////////////////////////// > IS PRINT MEDIA TRULY DYING?/////// > UNIVERSITY IS THE MODERN WAR PROFITEER////////////////////////////////////////////

In loving memory of the free student media.....

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Editorial.......4

Smash Our Obscene Society: censorship and the student press in 1960s Australia.......6 Five Facts about Student Media.......9 Is Print Media Truly Dying?.......10 Love Like Arson.......12 Adelaide Locals Printing, Publishing & Poppin’ Off!.......14 Hypocrisy: a beacon for western standards.......19 Man Made Home.......22 Universities: the modern war profiteer.......25

Regional & Rural Campus: FUSA Student Council visit Darwin and Katherine.......30 For the 50%: how to report sexual assault and harassment at Flinders University.......34 Flinders’ Radical Heritage: the need for reviving student activism.......38 Political Correspondence.......40 A Deep Dive into the On Dit Archives.......44 Australia’s Aunty .......48 The Uni Merger Policy: what is it & why should you care.......50 Dyslexia.......52 To Last a Lifetime .......54

contributors

Contributors EDITORS Chanel Trezise Grace Atta Habibah Jaghoori Jenny Surim Jung Jessica Rowe Tahlia Dilberovic

COVER ART Ria Sharma

CONTRIBUTORS Chanel Trezise Claire Gibbins Emelia Haskey Grace Atta Habibah Jaghoori Jessica Rowe Lachlan White Louise Jackson Maddy Tapley Nix Herriot Sophie Holder Tahlia Dilberovic

JOIN THE TEAM Empire Times and On Dit are always on the lookout for new contributors.

BACK COVER ART Ria Sharma MASTHEAD Kienan McKay

If you are a University of Adelaide Student, the On Dit Editorial Team can be reached at OnDitMag@ gmail.com If you are a Flinders University Student, the Empire Times Editorial Team can be reached at empiretimes@flinders.edu.au The opinions expressed within are not necessarily those of the editors, Flinders University, or FUSA. Reasonable care is taken to ensure article are accurate at the time of print.

Acknowledgement of Country.

Empire Times acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the lands in which its editors, contributors and readers live, and honors Elders past and present.

Empire Times is printed and distributed on the traditional lands of the Arrernte, Barngarla, Boandik, Dagoman, Erawirung, Gunditjmara, Jawoyn, Kaurna, Larrakia, Nauo, Ngadjuri, Ngarrindjeri, Peramangk, Ramindjeri, Wardaman, Warumunga, and Yolngu peoples. We acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded, and that this land is stolen.

We stand in solidarity.

On Dit acknowledges and pays our respects to the Kaurna people and their elders past, present and future as the traditional custodians of the land on which the University of Adelaide stands. We acknowledge that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Kaurna people today.

9:41

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Habibah - On Dit

Hey Jess, Did you hear yet ANOTHER journalist was killed doing her job by Israeli forces? Shireen Abu Akleh from Al Jazeera. Israel is deeply threatened by their brutal occupation on Palestine being exposed to the world so they shot her with precision. This is a very serious but typical attack by them. The role of press is so influential in the world and I really think this atrocious attack is relevant to student media as well That’s horrible to hear, Habibah. Totally! If governments are afraid of individual journalists it signifies that media outlets, no matter how large, have a lot of power if it is harnessed properly. Power to make real change! Even our little old student magazines.

I feel like the press has a very important job. It is inherently political. Student media is not exempt from that. We have a social and moral responsibility to be the source of JUST coverage. We need to actually televise the revolution.

So true, this responsibility extends to the bodies and spaces that are designed to support student media and make it possible, our unions, associations, and Universities need to enable and support our respective magazines in platforming the student voice and making change. It is clear from our experience that student media doesn’t rank high on our association’s priority list, what’s it like over at Adelaide?

On Dit hasn’t got much support from the AUU, unfortunately.

Neoliberal university bodies have been suppressing free speech with heavy censorship rules and the defunding. This has halted our ability to expand on events that can connect the students to their media. This year’s editorial team don’t have much to work with because our budget is so low. The AUU board really screwed us over.

Well Habibah, myself and the ET team hope to show our solidarity through this collaborative issue, where we discuss the importance of student media, the dangers of censorship, and some histories and celebrations of print media in our city.

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Habibah - On Dit Back in the 70s the University magazines across Adelaide would release collaborative issues, back before student media went through an activism lull. In bringing together content from Adelaide University’s On Dit, Flinders University’s Empire Times, and University of South Australia’s On The Record, perhaps we can get one step further in restoring student media in SA to its former glory. What do you hope that people take away from this issue?

I think we need to use our platforms to fight for, promote and expand on the objective solutions to the mass oppression in the world today.

Whether you are Julian Assange or Shireen Abu Akleh, it’s on us to use our voice and challenge the status quo. As Nix Herriot said in his article, ‘in On Dit, Empire Times and other papers, students raised their voices against injustice and celebrated the democratic power of new print technology.’ What we have right now is a gold mine of opportunities to influence conversations and stir up change.

That’s right Habibah! I hope this issue encourages its readers to do just that. For those like myself who are still learning the ropes of activism, this issue is full of super helpful pieces.

Whether its Maddy Tapley’s celebration of Flinders’ radical heritage and the need to revive it on page 38, or page 25 where Tahlia Dilberovic exposes how our very own universities partake in war profiteering, and for those who are interested in media and journalism, the mag is jam packed with discourse we would love for you to join in on, about the importance of, and obstacles faced by people and bodies in the field. Here’s to learning, listening, and advocating in solidarity with one another. Let’s turn University back into a place where you feel you can change the world.

Obscenity is killing kids

and dropping napalm

...Smash our

obscene society!

- Empire Times Editorial Team, 1970.

Smash our obscene society: Censorship and the Student Press in 1960s Australia Words by Nix Herriot For much of the last century, Australia banned more works of literature than most other Western countries. Labelled obscene or seditious, novels ranging from James Joyce’s Ulysses to James Baldwin’s Another Country found their way onto the government’s banned list. As late as the 1960s, the majority of films screened in Australian cinemas were censored. The state’s exclusionary treatment of people under the White Australia Policy was echoed in its approach to books, pamphlets, and films. This pervasive censorship regime, explains historian Jon Piccini, was carefully “designed to enforce cultural and political conformity”.

Following the outbreak of the Second World War, On Dit had been heavily censored and even ceased publication until 1944. Adelaide University Student Union President and communist activist, Elliott Johnston, was the target of controversy over his support for strikes considered contrary to the war effort. But, by the 1960s, there were signs of an emerging challenge to the repressive Cold War atmosphere that had suffocated students’ political and cultural expression.

Student newspapers, Piccini suggests, were being captured by growing protest movements and soon became Australia’s closest counterpart to America’s underground press. Students at Melbourne University took to the pages of Farrago and railed against their city’s “dingy, suburban, aggressively middle-class solemnity”. In On Dit, Empire Times and other papers, students raised their voices against injustice and celebrated the democratic power of new print technology. “We don’t have the printing resources of the establishment press,” declared Brisbane’s Society for Democratic Action, “but we do have one advantage – no one can censor our Multilith 1250”.

If conscription and the Vietnam War had catalysed an atmosphere of youth radicalism, then Australia’s censorship regime added fuel to the fire. “Youth in Australia controls nothing but the teenage gramophone record business,” complained the writer Geoffrey Dutton at the time.

Bookstore owners selling objectionable publications regularly found themselves falling victim to arrest by underground members of the Vice Squad. Student newspapers and their editors came under close surveillance. Frustration towards the conservative Censorship Board, headed by male octogenarians, steadily mounted among students as publishing itself came to be viewed as a form of direct action. By the mid-to-late 1960s, banned books, posters, and magazines were spreading like wildfire.

In 1968, a cacophony of colourful guerrilla newssheets appeared in high schools, with titles such as Treason, Tirade, Student Power, and Out of Apathy. Students, at school and at university, were coming into increasing conflict with the structures of paternalism and everyday authoritarianism.

“From our point of view,” wrote the activists behind Melbourne’s Tabloid Underground, “controversy and struggle are good since it is then that people are jolted out of complacency and re-examine their old ideas”.

In the early 1970s, Geoff Gold, a Maoist student activist at Flinders University, who had published Tabloid Underground, set up Gold Star Publications and, most famously, acquired the Australian rights to the Little Red Schoolbook. Mimicking Mao’s Little Red Book, this Danish publication educated students on sex, drugs, and alcohol and encouraged rebellion against school discipline and parental authority.

“Democracy is built on action, and it comes from below,” the authors declared. Banned in Queensland, the book became the target of significant controversy as right-wing outrage helped sell hundreds of thousands of copies.

By the time the Little Red Schoolbook became a bestseller, activists had taken to the trenches in an all-out war against censorship. In 1968, radicals in Sydney republished the American pamphlet, How Not to Join the Army, and had their bookshop raised and printing equipment seized by police. “Our law enforcement agency rules what we can say and how and when we fuck, what we may look at, and who cannot print what is designated as obscenity,” Empire Times editorialised in 1970. One student at Monash University even took a job on the Melbourne docks to import banned literature with the help of communist wharfies.

There was some support for these authoritarian moves and student newspapers became a particular target of sometimes hysterical controversy.

Conservative politicians and public figures were particularly vocal, even urging that action be taken to suppress the publication of papers like Empire Times. “Freedom must be restricted for the benefit of everyone,” declared Lance Shilton, an Anglican cleric in Adelaide. “It’s not only pornographic,” complained an evangelical protester burning copies of Tharunka at UNSW, “the paper has a kind of Marxist-anarchist line which, together with is presentation of sex, seems aimed at undermining much that is good in our present society”.

As the Little Red Schoolbook had shown, attempts to curtail radical ideas often had the opposite effect by ensuring publicity for activists and their arguments. Students hoped to expose the hypocrisy of a nation that was happy to conscript young men to fight in Vietnam but expressed outrage at swear words and nudity. As the editors of Empire Times wrote in 1970, “Obscenity is killing kids and dropping napalm … Smash our obscene society!”.

Editors of student newspapers tested the boundaries of and raise public awareness about the stringency of Australian censorship. The publishers of Tharunka and other papers found themselves dragged into court and charged under acts which weaponised archaic concepts like depravity and corruption. In 1972, Wendy Bacon was imprisoned for publishing a sexually explicit edition of student publication Thor. But, by then, Bacon recalled, “the censorship laws were in disarray”. The actions of student radicals across the country and others had helped smash censorship, which began to evolve away from a criminal regime to its current bureaucratic classification model.

Of course, the threat of criminalisation remains, as when the Classification Board banned a satirical guide to shoplifting published by La Trobe student paper Rabelais in 1995, or when a 2013 issue of Honi Soit was pulled for its failure to censor photos of 18 vulvas. In 2022, however, free speech is threatened not so much by censorship boards, but rather by antiprotest and draconian anti-terror laws, crusades against whistle-blowers, and the corporatisation of universities. The federal police no longer raid left-wing bookshops, just the offices of trade unions and the national broadcaster.

At a time when many of the social gains of the past are being eroded, relaxed censorship laws remain an important legacy of the 1960s, alongside the interconnected victories of increased sexual freedoms, civil rights, and a less authoritarian atmosphere in high schools and universities. Activism challenging Australia’s once widely accepted censorship regime was a hallmark of the student movement worth celebrating. A revived culture of resistance, agitation, and challenging existing traditions would serve us well today.

It was reported in 2019 that the University of Michigan’s student newspaper The Michigan Daily was the only daily Newspaper covering news in the Michigan city of Ann Arbor. According to a New York Times article, “As more than 2,000 newspapers across the country have closed or merged, student journalists from Michigan to Arizona have stepped in to fill the void.”

2. Martin Luther King’s Contribution

While attending Morehouse College, Dr Martin Luther King Jr contributed a piece to his student magazine, The Maroon Tiger, titled ‘The Purpose Of Education’.

3. Student Paper Exposed University’s Lies

George Washington University’s student press, GW Hatchet, were the ones to expose their ‘dishonest’ admissions policy in 2013.

4. Student Press On Prozac

In 2017 Sally Percival Wood, author of Dissent: The student press of 1960s Australia published an article for The Conversation titled ‘Student press in 1960s Australia was political, now it’s more Prozac’.

5. Previous Eds in Politics

Previous ET editors Kate Ellis and Steph Key both went on to become Labor MPs, with Key becoming the first Minister Of Social Justice in Australia. Ellis has also had a range of ministerial roles usually in the area of youth and early childhood education.

by Jessica Rowe

five facts about student media

1. The Only Daily Paper In Town

Is print media truly dying?

Words by Sophie Holder [from On The Record, Uni SA]

When I began my double degree of law and journalism four years ago, I recall people politely telling me that I won’t get a job as a journalist, so it’s good that I am studying law too. I got told that print media is dying and that there is no point in becoming a journalist, since everything will be on the internet soon. Now that I am nearly finished my degree, my first journalism job is as a print media journalist.

As a 22-year-old, this is one of the last places I expected to be as a journalist, given I consume the majority of my news via my phone.

But I also never expected to buy a film camera, be gifted a vinyl album for my last birthday or snap my most recent night out on a digital camera from 2012. It seems ridiculous, right? In a world where everyone has a camera and every musician’s discography at our fingertips, many of us turn to the more considered and tangible options. Why? What makes us want to use a film camera when we have no clue how the image will turn out? Why do we want to listen to a clunky vinyl? why do we want to read printed books? When we can access all of these things so easily, there is a certain pleasure that comes from holding something physical, that isn’t the phones or laptops that we are glued to.

and we have often already seen the ‘breaking news’ on our phones.

Print media in its mainstream form is slowly dying, we have seen these statistics for years. We saw this decline too with vinyl music, cassettes, film cameras, videotapes, and DVD’s. This is nothing new, and yet, many of us cherish these items more than we did before.

Perhaps, it is time for mainstream print media to do the same. In the death of mainstream print media, we would simultaneously see a resurgence of the art that it leaves behind.

If we let mainstream print media die, it leaves behind a niche of people and creators that are truly interested in writing and sharing not just the breaking news, but more personal and intimate stories.

This is when we are able to share stories in print media form that are worth remembering and worth keeping as a memory for our children and grandchildren.

As new technologies are created, it leaves a pathway for the dying technology to become historical and artistic. Perhaps mainstream print media needs to die in order for people For many though, this does not extend who truly care about the sharing of meaningful stories through print to newspapers. Perhaps, because media, both consumers and creators, newspapers are not a memory or a form of art for many people in this day to fill this void. and age. Mainstream print media can be tiring for many people to consume,

LOVE LIKE ARSON

I’m gonna fall in love And commit arson I’m gonna fall in love and burn down everything that doesn’t remind me of your face I’m gonna fall in love And commit war crimes Of passion Rifle aimed right at the heart I’m gonna fall in love Like I’m playing battleship Torpedo to C4 Burning rubber up the highway To your door In my corolla I’m gonna fall in love and make the headlines Front page of the daily mail website I’m gonna fall in love like I have a soft side When I fall in love I’ll kiss you in seven different languages And the words would slip off your tongue like milk and honey When I fall in love I’m gonna bury myself within your chest And find the centre of the earth there Rare jewels in every cavity I could make you the hearth of my home Warm shelter from the rain I could look at you and never need to see again I’d memorise you by touch I want to feel a love so electric I can feel it in my bones for days after The X-Ray Operator is not amused But I’m smiling Maybe I just want to feel real love Not Hallmark holiday love I mean the drive you to the grocery store love The here’s your morning coffee love Take my bra off when I get home love The love that makes you wanna do the vacuuming for once Maybe clean the sink love And I know that when I fall in love There will be no place like it There will be no love like it I’m gonna fall in love Words by Emelia Haskey

Adelaide locals, printing, publishing & Poppin' off!

by Jessica Rowe If print media is so dead, then how come these independent zine makers and retailers are bringing Adelaide’s underrated creative scene to life? Flipping through the pages of these locally made mags, walking through the doors of independent stores run with such passion; clearly there is something to be celebrated about our city’s growing love for print.

FRND FRND Magazine is a super impressive publication

made independently by young, local, creative Zane Qureshi. It’s primary function is to provide a platform to young, emerging, Adelaide creatives. Zane certainly seems to be succeeding in this mission, as FRND Magazine continues to become fairly well known throughout the scene. Glam Adelaide even put out an article featuring the new go-to source for all-things emerging fashion, photography art and youth culture in Adelaide. Incredibly image-heavy, the mag provides vibrant aesthetics filled with intimate and expressive portraiture. Flicking through the pages of FRND makes you feel like you’re meeting and networking with the coolest kids in our city, and knowing Adelaide, you’ll almost always find one of your own friends inside. FRND can be read online for free or you can order yourself a print copy on their website.

27 is not simply a store, but an incredible Instagram: @frnd.mag stepping stone towards making the

27

Adelaide art scene more accessible. They are one of the only places in the city that stock independently made and printed zines, offering a dedicated Zine library in collaboration with Index Adelaide. With a plethora of mini-mags on show, 27 is the hub for zine-makers wanting to get started with distributing their copies, or those who love getting their hands on paper in its truest form. Run by tattoo and visual artist Chira, and writer and actor Payton, the retail space and creative hub is authentically for the emerging Adelaide artist.

Website: twentysevenstore.com.au Instagram: @t_w_e_n_t_y_s_e_v_e_n

Nothin To Do Playing on the disillusioned idea that there is ‘nothing to do in Adelaide,’ this weekly zine sets out to prove that wrong. Nothin To Do centers around the local music scene, showcasing events, artists and new releases. Whether you want to find the right show to cure your Saturday night boredom in their gig-guide, or expand your musical horizons with their ‘fresh finds’ page, Nothin To Do will certainly give you something to do. Limited amounts of print copies are available at Clarity Records or you can subscribe to the Nothin To Do patreon to get them delivered to your door. Otherwise be sure to check out each issue on their instagram page.

Instagram: @nothintodo.adl

Fresher Born from the Adelaide University’s Fashion Collective, Fresher Magazine is volunteerrun by a group of creative students. Their main goal is to “provide a space in Adelaide for fashion news and content that celebrates individual style, rather than a conformist and commercial approach.” In a city long criticised for its inside-the-box street style, Fresher shows us the innovation, experimentation and expression happening in the world of fashion right here in Adelaide.

Fresher promises you fashion journalism, photography and styling that excites! From student style files, to unpacking how to get ‘the look’ from your favorite movies, Fresher is invaluable for the fashion nerd, or the laymen who wants to up their style to help them get social media famous (it’s me, I’m talking about me.) Although Fresher publishes only online for now, the team says that they “absolutely plan to!” release print copies down the line, the future is looking tangible.

Website: freshermag.com Instagram: @freshermag

Greenlight comics The new kid on the block when it comes to the Adelaide comic book stores, Greenlight Comics will be celebrating their 6th Birthday this year. The store offers your traditional monthly single-issues, of-course, as well as catering to those who prefer to read graphic novels and in volumes. They stock a very wide range of comics including a shelf showcasing local comic creators!

The Greenlight Comics team was lovely enough to share their thoughts on the importance and experience of print media; “Comics come alive in a physical book in a different way than they do on a screen. There’s so much depth and immersion to the experience of flicking back and forth between pages, double-checking details, catching a glimpse of an entire scene in the periphery as we move through a page from panel to panel, not to mention the pure joy of curling up with a tactile object and sinking into a story. Having our favourite stories physically present in our lives is how we affirm ourselves in the world too. We love print media.”

Website: greenlightcomics.com Facebook: Greenlight Comics Be my guest and enjoy your fleeting, 15 second tiktok, but you cannot deny the joy of holding a hard-copy in your hot little hands. The physical manifestations of creative energy, being passed, sold and swapped around our city.

vol. 12.7 vol. 32.3 vol. 53.1 8 vol. 58. 2 2 vol. 75.4

By Chanel Trezise

War is devastating and its impacts are something no one can be immune from. The dark realities of invasion and dispossession, coupled with the psychological trauma of being torn away from your personal property, community, and enduring the longlasting consequences of environmental and infrastructural destruction of your land, is a traumatising experience and a lethal form of violence.

Violence itself, however, can manifest in multiple forms and through multiple channels. One form of violence that is particularly painful in this era is systemic and cultural hypocrisy.

Currently, we see innocent Ukrainians facing the consequences of a criminal invasion by Russia, baited by their own far-right, neo-Nazi and war worshipping government.

Simultaneously, those who possess a little insight can see the impressive anti-war Russian protestors and innocent Russian civilians victimised by western sanctions and European media propaganda. This is a deeply unnecessary war. The innocent Ukrainians who don’t recognise President Volodymyr Zelensky’s farright, neo-Nazi agendas as their own and the innocent Russian civilians who make up the anti-war protestors are victims of the West’s cruel sanctions, propaganda, and proxy war manoeuvres.

But what about the wars and hardships imposed on countries predominantly filled with black or brown people and Muslims? These are the countries that have suffered in greater quality and quantity from all of the physical dimensions of violence, war, and colonisation. These are the countries that must deal with generational

trauma, cultural infiltration, and weak governing systems because imperialism - capitalism’s greedy claws - seeks to plunder their resources and wipe out their independent markets to install their own western neoliberal institutions.

The wretched impacts of war you don’t see are those few hours of electricity because the power plant has been bombed, saving up your last pennies to buy medicine for your child sick because of a lack of clean drinking water, or when your schools have been destroyed and the children have to be homeschooled and are denied a chance to build a community with one another.

Yes, indeed, war is a horrible thing that can scar your sense of self and identity.

It’s a thing that will alienate you from the rest of the world - being victim will make you the outcast, the scary and dangerous one, the enemy, the threat to normal. Yes, this life is actually a reality for around one billion of the world’s population. Why has the West turned a blind eye to those victims of war? Blaming the governments of these countries fails to seriously consider of the devastating impact of foreign policies and global alliances.

When it comes to Ukraine, however, Zelensky is not held to account. Is it fair to not even question a government that bans all opposition parties, that absorbs all independent media into state media, that asks only for weapons rather than medical aid and food supplies, that has broken contractual agreements with its enemy country, and that has continuously attempted to join an extremely rich and powerful western military alliance actually responsible for the wars and destruction inflicted on countries whose citizens are not typically white?

The media is a tool and it’s being used to brainwash and perpetuate individualism. It’s a fuel for racism and fearmongering. The hypocrisy to never report on or speak about the oppression and bombings of Palestine but to instead steal that footage and claim it is of Ukraine is evil. To cover the oh-so-inspiring story of Ukrainian children fleeing and being embraced

by American politicians but to justify jailing Mexican and Haitian children in detention centres at the border as a necessary immigration policy is evil. To say Ukrainians need to be cared about because they are white people with blonde hair and blue eyes is racism.

What should the people, who came out in demonstrations, who took to social media, who gave speeches and wrote papers about the conflict in Ukraine, but never said a word or lifted a finger for the country of Yemen, a victim of horrific war for the past 8 years, be considered as? When the news media provides more coverage of the first 24 hours into the Russian invasion than they have for Yemen in 8 years, what can we view this as?

The Yemeni people are facing one of the worst famines and exterminations the world has ever seen. Our universities are partnering with the very weapons companies responsible for manufacturing and distributing the bombs that blow up school buses filled with children. Where is the massive cry of opposition to that? Why can’t western officials, celebrities, influencers, and ordinary citizens condemn and protest their own countries’ allegiance to the Saudi Royal Family’s oil at the expense of Yemeni blood?

Capitalism, coloniser nations, western cultures of performative activism, shallow political participation and trendhopping, as well as neoliberalism, are inherently and innately hypocritical. They breed alienation, racism, individualism, toxic double standards and the normalisation and even appraisal of brainwashed people whose participation in society extends to mere aesthetics and social relevancy.

Glory be to the real anti-war resistance in the forgotten and neglected countries who defy colonisation and imperialism.

The criminals responsible for the devastation in Algeria, Somalia, Sudan, Afghanistan, Yemen, Iraq, Kashmir, and beyond need to pay the price. The news media need to bow out shamefully or start telling the truth. People of the world need to wake up and fight the real war machine.

If men are as thick as bricks Why can’t I build a home out of them?

I think if I could stack them on top of each other Line my walls with them Pave my my bathroom with them Put the bright ones on my rooftop like solar panels Re-do the grout with the dull ones If I could build a house out of all the men I’ve ever loved I’d tank the property market I’d bring down the value of the whole suburb With my man-made house I’d take the hands that once held me And have them hold up my archways Mould soft bodies into a sofa So they can finally support me Furnish my life with men

Man Made Home Words by Emelia Haskey

Arthouse furniture for the pretentious Stretch the tall ones into ceiling fans Remind them how hot I am Tile the bathroom with pearly whites Arms and legs intertwined into bookshelves Holding leather bound novels and old framed photos I recognised your left rib from the picture Bones make good floorboards I should know You broke so many of mine I’d stretch layers of skin as welcome mat In case I forget they walked all over me At least I can rub myself off If I could build a house out of all the men I’d ever loved It’d be a memory box of mistakes Happy endings, flaccid goodbyes What a thing to live in a man made home All flesh and muscle Lucky my heart is built Of sturdier stuff

For every dollar On Dit gets

ET gets two

Pay your Eds what they’re worth

AUU

UNIVERSITIES THE MODERN WAR PROFITEER Words by Tahlia Dilberovic

It’s the early 1970s, and a jovial electricity fills the air. The Student Representative Council and the Vice Chancellor have gathered at the Flinders University Registry building. The portraits of Vice-Chancellors-past look down upon them, watching them. Someone barges into the room, rushing to the Student President’s side. The slam of the door is muffled by the carpeted floors, as the person leans down to whisper in the President’s ear. Ian Yates smiles sheepishly and pushes back his chair.

“Excuse me, Chancellor”, he interrupts, “I have to leave the room. They want me to sign another cheque for bail money”.

The Student Movement and Its Anti-War Tradition The student movement in Australia has always been unwaveringly antiwar. When the former Australian Prime Minister, Robert Menzies declared in 1962 that Australia would join the Vietnam War, the student movement and student-led media were anything but supportive.

While main-stream media in the 1960s and 1970s were essentially state-controlled and parroted the Government’s imperialist propaganda without a second thought, student media carved out a space for itself as a form of alternative media, working alongside socialist and communist organisations to disseminate information from both sides of the Vietnamese conflict.

While mainstream-media outlets became a key component in managing public resistance against the war, student media took every opportunity to undermine the government’s propaganda machine.

One of the key moments within this radical tradition was the publication of the ‘Wanted DOA’ feature by Lot’s Wife, Monash University’s student

magazine. The feature comprised six politicians who were wanted ‘dead or alive’, for their ‘crimes’. Prime Minister Harold Holt was among these politicians, wanted for the ‘the murder of kidnapped Australian minors, also for complicity in the torture and murder of North Vietnamese citizens.’

This spirit of resistance, and disgust, was also present on South Australian campuses. Adelaide University’s Student Representative Council was actively involved in the anti-war, anticonscription movement, so much so that ASIO felt the need to deploy recruits onto the campus. Throughout the 60s and 70s, it was not uncommon for On Dit to report that council members had had their homes broken into and offices unlawfully searched.

Even our beloved Empire Times, born from this political moment, openly decried war, conscription and western imperialism. Empire Times would frequently call for its readers to dodge the draft, gave instructions on how to fail medical exams, provided resources on how to access safe houses and actively fought for a moratorium. Successive Editors held these convictions so strongly that they

were often times arrested at antiwar protests, alongside their fellow students. At the time, the Flinders’ University Student Council were more than willing to express solidarity with these actions and established a bail fund for protestors.

The inspiration for this collaborative edition that you hold in your hands right now originated from this era; when On Dit, Empire Times, and the South Australian Institute of Technology’s (now Uni SA) student magazine banded together to produce a weekly newspaper that was distributed across all campuses. Or at least it was meant to be – it was often confiscated by the police before students could even read it.

This anti-war tradition within studentled organisations did not end with the Vietnam war, however. In the following decades, students would come together to rally against the expansion of US military bases, nuclear armament, the Gulf Wars, and inference in East Timor. It was this very spirit that was exemplified itself by the relatively mainstream ‘books not bombs’ campaign, a movement against the 2003 Iraq Invasion that popularised the slogan ‘when the bombs drop, school stops.’

However, in the years that have elapsed since 2003, in the wake of voluntary student unionism, increasing neoliberalism, and an ever-growing military industrial complex, this tradition has begun to fade. In the 21st century, while our own universities have found themselves in bed with world’s largest war profiteers, the voice of students has fallen silent.

‘When Bombs Drop, School Stops’ Australian Universities: The Modern War Profiteer A war profiteer is any person or organisation that profits from war, the selling of weapons, or the provision of other goods to parties engaged in war.

It is not a term one would think would apply so readily to our not-for-profit educational institutes, but in the era of the degree factory any business is good business – and blood money is still money.

Christopher Pyne, Australia’s former Defence Minister, once boasted that South Australian universities have a stronger relationship with the defence industry than anywhere else in Australia – and he’s right. As of 2019, all three of the South Australian public universities were in partnership with the world’s most prolific war profiteers.

The universities may argue that these ties are merely research or education based, that they provide invaluable experience for their graduates, and that the technology they are developing is benign, but don’t be fooled by their marketing spin.

Whether it is through direct funding or prestige, our universities are benefiting from their friendly relationships with warmongers. These partnerships are profitable for our universities, and that is their key motivator. They are placing profits over people.

Simply put, death and destruction. But let’s take a deeper look. As of 2019, the world’s top five war profiteers were Lockheed Martin; Boeing; Raytheon; BAE Systems; and Northrop Grumman. Our universities are linked to each, and where they go, death follows.

Boeing also supplied combat aircraft to Israel that would go on to be used against Lebanon and Palestine.

A notable incident of this was the Gaza massacre of 2008, in which approximately 1,000 Palestinians were killed. Boeing supplied missiles were also linked to the Israeli government’s attack on United Nations relief offices, hospitals and schools.

Lockheed Martin

Raytheon

But what are they profiting off of?

In 2019, Lockheed Martin made $44.9 billion in arms sales, resulting in a $2 billion profit. All three of the South Australian public universities have reported ties to this company, with the University of South Australia advertising this partnership to entice prospective students, while Flinders University is a recipient of research and development grants from Lockheed Martin.

Lockheed Martin’s arms sales have been linked to the bombing of a school bus in Yemen which resulted in the deaths of 26 children. They have also been linked to the missiles used against civilians in Saudi airstrikes.

Lockheed Martin also supplies combat aircrafts to Israel that are routinely used against Palestinian civilians.

Boeing Boeing made $26.9 billion in arms sales, and a $8.2 billion profit, in 2019.

Both the University of Adelaide and Flinders University offer scholarships funded by Boeing, particularly in the area of robotics.

These funds are partially the result of selling combat aircraft to the Saudi government that would later be used against civilians in Yemen. Likewise,

Raytheon made $23.9 billion in arms sales in 2019, resulting in a $2 billion profit. All three universities have received research funding from the conglomerate.

Raytheon is also guilty of supplying the Saudi government with munitions that would be used in airstrikes against Yemen. They have also supplied war goods to the Israeli government that would later be used against Palestinian civilians, journalists, and medics in the West Bank. Also, a benefactor from the War on Terror, Raytheon, supplied several weapons systems to the United States and the Coalition against Afghanistan.

BAE Systems In 2019, BAE Systems earned $22.9 billion in arms sales, resulting in a $1.1 billion profit. All three universities are financially tied to BAE Systems. The University of South Australia maintains a $4 million research and development partnership with BAE systems, while the University of Adelaide is embroiled in a collaborative project revolving around high frequency systems (which can be used for communication…or sonic weapons). Flinders University’s collaboration with BAE systems

resulted in an entirely new Research and Development facility (the ‘Factory of the Future’), located at Tonsley. All three universities are also members of the Joint Open Innovation Network, headed by BAE Systems BAE Systems is perhaps best known for its complicity and involvement in Saudi war crimes, and the supplying of munitions used in indiscriminate bombing campaigns, which have resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians. BAE Systems has had a complaint filed against it with the International Criminal Court, for alleged involvement in war crimes.

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman made $22.4 billion in arms sales in 2019, and a $2 billion profit. All three South Australian Universities are linked to this arms dealer. The University of South Australia and the University of Adelaide are both partners in the Cyber Resilience Centre, of which Northrop Grumman is a major player.

The University of Adelaide also collaborates with Northrop Grumman in research.

The Vice Chancellor of Flinders University, Colin Stirling, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Northrop Grumman, with the University entering a collaborative research and training partnership with the arms conglomerate. Flinders University established the Northrop Grumman Scholarship in 2018, which is contingent on an on-going partnership.

Northrop Grumman has made its billions partly by supplying war goods

to the Saudi and Israeli governments, which have then been used against civilians in Yemen and Palestine. In addition to this, Northrop Grumman’s subsidiary company, Vinnell Arabia, holds an exclusive training contract for the Saudi National Guard. The arms dealer also conducts joint weapons ventures with Israeli arms companies.

Silence from Stirling and Student Reps In 2022, we can once again hear the drums of war in the distance; and the advent of social media means that we cannot turn away. Every war is now our war. At the same time, our educational institutions are complicit in the destruction and devastation caused by these companies; worse yet, they are profiting off it.

Flinders University’s Vice Chancellor, Colin Stirling, was contacted for right of reply for this piece but did not respond. Probably a wise choice for actions so indefensible. Sadly though, despite being contacted, the Student Presidents of Flinders University Student Association, the Adelaide University Student Representative Council, and the University of South Australia’s Student Association, all remained shamefully silent on this matter.

We need a strong student voice, media, and representation now more than ever. We need representatives that are willing to stand against the military industrial complex and re-packaged imperialism that our universities are revelling in and profiting off. Even if it means bringing back the bail fund.

Regional & Rural Campus Student Council visit Darwin and Katherine. Words by Molly Turnbull

This year it has been a priority for FUSA (Flinders University Student Association) to connect with rural and remote campuses. In March, this year a group of student council members visited Mount Gambier (Bunganditj) and the Northern Territory campuses.

Molly (FUSA Student President), Emily (General Secretary), Maddie (First Nations Officer), Darlyn (Welfare Officer) and Jess (Mature Age Officer) flew to Darwin to meet with staff and students about their experiences.

Over 3 days we visited an array of wonderful humans. By the end of the trip, we returned to Kuarna land with a real comprehension, appreciation, and sense of connection with our peers and the land they are from.

We arrived in the afternoon, we settled, and got to roam around Darwin and learn the layout of where we would be going. For most of us,

this was our first trip to NT. It was 34 degrees and incredibly humid, so we went for a quick swim (safely away from crocs!). We organised to meet with Flinders Medical Student Society NT. It was impactful to meet such a diverse group of students from all over Australia and the world. So many of the students we spoke to want to make a change and saw a need/found a calling in their studies and it was inspirational to be able to chat and discuss what was working well for them and what FUSA can do to support and help solve problems they have e.g., academic, club and placement orientated issues. We also help a social event with the medical society and invited all students that were on campuses in the NT to hangout.

The next day we met Kelly-Anne the Community Engagement Officer who

took us on a tour of the campuses, and we learnt about how they’ve operating. We got to visit campus labs and see all the fancy simulation dolls in the clinical setting. This is a campus is also a hospital, and the academic setting is situated adjacent to the hospital. While the campus is smaller than what many students experience, it doesn’t fall short in community engagement – later in the week we made damper there!

Before our trip ended in Darwin, Maddie visited with a range of First Nations students, and we all reconvened at the Darwin Waterfront to participate in a Saltwater Ceremony with Uncle Richie. A Saltwater Ceremony is like a Smoking Ceremony – an act performed to connect with ancestors and elders to acknowledge the land and protect us. First, Uncle

Ritchie walked into the water and connected with the ancestors and then invited everyone in, one by one.

He spoke to each of us when we were invited over and told us all to remember the words of wisdom, while mingling the sweat from our bodies with saltwater and then rubbed the water on our heads.

We returned to Kaurna land with a better understanding of our similarities and differences, as students – online, rural, remote or central. Our goal is to encourage, amplify, and inspire change, advocating for and empowering students to address concerns and issues. We’d love to hear from you – you can find all our contact details on fusa.edu.au/student council Our campuses and centres are on the traditional lands of the

Arrernte, Dagoman, First Nations of the Southeast, First Peoples of the River Murray & Mallee region, Jawoyn, Kaurna, Larrakia, Ngadjuri, Ngarrindjeri, Ramindjeri, Warumungu, Wardaman and Yolngu people.

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians, both past and present, of the various locations the University operates on, and recognise our continued relationship and responsibility to these lands and waters.

Maddie (First Nations Student Officer) and Molly (Student President) were invited to attend the Rural Health Experience in Katherine where Jawoyn, Dagoman, and Wardaman Lands converge. This is essentially a conference run for students up in NT who work in all types of health care.

This is an opportunity for a range of Flinders health care students are able to learn about Aboriginal culture and what it’s like to work in regional and remote health care.

What is the difference between regional and remote? As we spoke and learnt along with students and staff, we learnt that remote really means a lack of resources in many cases. Basic health care amenities that most of us have easy access to are far away – the nearest hospital might be 500km away. Regional covers towns and smaller but populated areas where there might be a GP present but still struggles with adequate health care for their communities. Whilst at this program we all got to learn new skill such as how paramedics triage in a mass casualty incident, how under resourced the rural and remote areas are, how to canulate a person, how to help someone if they have been bitten

by a snake - and how communication can be difficult at times but is so necessary.

So, this type of program is incredibly important, and it was great to meet and learn. Since Covid we’ve all learnt to be further apart and that is affected community all around the world. However, remote campuses, and students working remotely have been always distant – geographically as well as socially. It is incredibly important, and we are very privileged to have been able to travel to learn about the diversity of our students and their needs. It is a great reminder for us all to ensure that FUSA and the University understand and comprehend the needs of all our students rather than the ones that are right in front of them.

We got to meet the The Banatjarl Strongbala Wimun Grup, a that promotes cultural wellbeing, healing and sharing in Jawoyn land. The name Strongbala Wimun Grup is Kriol language for “strong women’s group” during the program. Elders spoke to us about their vision for a space where knowledge and skills are shared. We also got the opportunity to make bush medicine, this included smashing up many eucalyptus leaves and then it went into a big cooking pot with some other ingrediencies; at the end of the trip, we ended up taking a little tub home with us. They also taught us all how to make dampa which is like a bush bread, that is enjoyed with maple syrup.

For the 50% Reporting Sexual Assault or Sexual Harassment at Flinders University Editors Note: On the instructions of the Flinders University Student Association, Empire Times was unable to publish this article at the time of print.

We, as Editors, are disheartened by the factors that lead to this decision.

If you are a Flinders University Student, please see the Flinders University Safety on Campus Website, via QR code above

Content Warning: Discussions of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment

Safeguard Your Student Orgs!

An Opinion Piece by Tahlia Dilberovic

For those like our Premier, who are overly concerned about the fact that no South Australian university ranks in the top 100 universities globally, I will draw your attention to the ranking that we should actually care about. Nationwide, the University of Adelaide ranks 7th, Flinders University ranks 18th and the University of South Australia ranks 32nd out of 39. In what? The prevalence of sexual assault and sexual harassment experienced by their students.

On the 23rd of March 2022, the results of the 2021 National Student Safety Survey were released. Building on the foundational 2017 study, the 2021 results highlighted the scale and nature of university students’ experiences with sexual assault and harassment.

And the results were damning. The survey showed that 1 in 2 university students had experienced sexual harassment, with 1 in 3 students having experienced sexual assault.

Concerningly, 50% of students also indicated that they did not know how to engage in the complaint process or file a formal report following such incidents. This is an abject failure on our universities’ behalf. Not only are these institutions failing to safeguard their students, but the elusiveness of their processes keeps students from advocating for themselves. Furthermore, those who did report incidents indicated that they were often unsatisfied with the response they received from their universities.

Experiencing sexual assault and harassment is indescribably difficult, it can be earth-shattering. We here at Empire Times believe that you shouldn’t have to navigate this process alone. We had hoped to include a compiled source of information regarding the complaints process at Flinders in the preceding pages but, unfortunately, this is not the case. So, for now, lets discuss an overlooked component of this system.

Content Warning: Mentions of Sexual Harassment

Content Warning: Mentions of Sexual Assault FUSA is the Flinders University Student Association, of which our Student Council is the governing body of. FUSA advocates on the interests of students and provides a range of services and supports to them. However, under the FUSA Regulations for Student Council, certain office-bearers, usually those who serve an autonomous community, are obligated to ‘refer’ students to relevant services. Empire Times has heard word of many a Student Council office-bearer being faced with disclosures of a serious nature (relating to sexual assault, sexual harassment, or other confronting issues).

This is not necessarily a bad thing. This shows that the Student Council are doing their job, that their community trusts them, and that they are considered safe people to turn to. They should be commended on that. However, there are significant gaps in supports, preparation, and training for these roles that present a real risk of harm to both students and Student Council.

The 2021 National Student Safety Survey found that specific groups are more likely to see disproportionately high rates of sexual assault or sexual harassment.

This includes women; members of the LGBTQIA+ community; students from culturally or linguistically diverse backgrounds; First Nations students; students with disabilities; and post-graduate students. If one is to consider these results, it seems obvious that the office-bearers who serve these groups would more than likely be receiving disclosures, or coming face to face with these confronting issues regularly throughout their terms.

Despite this, to Empire Times’ knowledge, at the time of writing, and almost six months into each officers’ tenure, none of these positions have received Vicarious Trauma training; and only some have received Responding to Disclosures training. The Empire Times Editorial Team have also not recieved such training, and were only extended last-minute invitations to Responding to Disclosure Training, after unnamed Student Council members were unable to attend.

Whatever the reasons behind this lack of training are (COVID-19 has been cited) they do not take away from the fact that Student Council are not being provided the tools necessary to safeguard themselves from the potential harm their stipulated duties may bring. While FUSA’s willingness to provide training when specifically requested is a step in the right direction, putting the onus on overworked, underpaid, and (mostly) inexperienced volunteers to ask for the tools that they need, disregarding the fact that they might not even know themselves, simply is not the way to go about this. This is an oversight on FUSA’s behalf that once again leaves students even more vulnerable, and erodes student-led support systems in the long run.

We need our institutions to do better – and we, as students, need to demand it.

You may be shocked to find that Flinders University isn’t just the home of punishing hill climbs and parking fee hikes. Our quaint, duck-filled campus also has a history of student radicalism. Student activists took up the fight against the degree factory and imperialist war, producing the longest student occupation in Australian history.

If you stood at the foot of the Registry building on a breezy August day in 1974 and glanced up you would’ve spied students standing guard on the roof, binoculars eyeing you back. Just below on the top floor, bold red letters in the windows declared: “people’s occupation, fight oppression”.

The four-week occupation of Flinders’ administration building was the climax of a battle between radical students and the Flinders establishment. The dispute began with the introduction of mandatory first-year history exams. Left-wing history students argued that exams were mechanical ways of putting students into a box. These activist students circulated surveys in opposition to the exam, gathering a majority of support.

The issue became a democratic campaign.

In June, a student general meeting was held where official motions were passed, condemning the lack of student control over their education. Academic staff refused to negotiate. These academics were not like the casualised staff of the modern university.

Instead, they were establishment figures, ivory tower academics who looked down on

the long-haired student radicals.

The demands made by Flinders students in 1974 were built from a wave of political revolt that gripped the world in 1968.

Radical left-wing students took power into their own hands, not only demanding control of their lives at university but in the outside world too. They rallied against inequality, racism, and the Vietnam War. Students challenged conservative university management, occupying buildings, and linking up with radical workers’ movements.

To the Flinders occupiers, 1968 suggested that student movements could enact real change. So, they acted. The students upped the ante and occupied the social sciences staff room. But after this failed to bring staff to the table, they increased the pressure and moved to the Registry building. True to the left-wing principles of 1968, the occupation of the Registry was highly organised and democratic. The coordination of security, meals, and the rules of the occupation were determined during regular student meetings where everyone had a say. Student power was central. In student-run publications, they stated that it was the “concrete expression of a widely and deeply felt powerlessness”. This stood in total contrast to the top-down running of the university on power The concerns of the occupation swiftly moved beyond a critique of university management to take aim at the university’s

role in society. Students declared in their publications that exams reinforced the view that “different people deserve different rewards in life” and that this was “preparation for accepting a stratified society”.

The Vietnam War was a flashpoint that ignited and raised the political level of the occupation. The occupiers announced that they would begin opening vice-chancellor Roger Russell’s filing cabinets until their demands were heard. The files revealed that Russell had close ties to the US military and had taken part in chemical weapons research. This led the students to demand Russell’s resignation. Students linked local campus issues to world politics by identifying that degree factories maintained capitalist society, a society that needs senseless and brutal wars like Vietnam to maintain itself.

Despite the eventual defeat of the occupation by reactionary staff and police, the action of the students led to the democratisation of many courses. Where universities have alternative assessment arrangements, or where they teach courses like women’s studies, it’s largely student activists like these that we have to thank for their creation.

Today, students face many of the same political issues. How do we confront the degree factory in the era of the pandemic?

How do we de-militarise campus amid war?

Last year Australian universities axed a total of 27,000 staff. University management are crying poor, citing reduced numbers of international students as justification.

Compare 27,000 teaching staff who have lost their income to an industry that raked in $34.6 billion in 2020. Existing staff have been saddled with more work for less pay and students get YouTube uni for full price while vice-chancellors take home $1.5 million every year (looking at you Colin

Stirling!).

War is closer at uni than you might imagine.

Almost every campus in the country has deals with weapons manufacturers. Millions of dollars are being exchanged between university management and crafters of death machines while staff reach breaking point and students go hungry. Flinders University has lucrative deals with Lockheed Martin and BAE systems, openly celebrating ties to companies that drop bombs on Yemen and Palestine.

But just as the rotten gears of capitalism continue to turn, the history of the student movement continues to unfold. 2014 saw thousands of students protest in response to former prime minister Tony Abbott’s plans to deregulate university fees. These demonstrations had Abbott and his ministers on the run and ultimately defeated the plans. The fight continues at the University of Adelaide today. In March, students took part in the first student general meeting in decades, unanimously condemning staff cuts and mergers. Two 48-hour strikes have been called at Sydney uni to fight against job cuts and casualisation. In these contemporary fights, staff and students aren’t fighting over admin buildings, but are fighting together.

But this resistance doesn’t just appear, it’s built. The powers that be don’t care if you have a “fuck billionaires” sticker on your laptop (guilty!). What they do care about is if students and staff are organised, and fighting. For decades, student activists, socialists, have argued that the culture of student protest needed to be revived.

Negotiating with the very people that stand to benefit from inequality won’t cut it. Like the occupiers of 1974, students need to build power from below to take a stand.

And that stand needs to be occupations, protests, and strikes, aimed squarely at the capitalist system.

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FAR LEFT Flinders’ Socialist Alternative 1. While we are told that universities are places full of ideas and debate, very rarely outside of the classroom do we students actually have a chance to intervene into our own place of learning and voice our ideas. While Flinders uni can run media campaigns about how their ties with weapons companies are a good thing, actually, or try to present the constant job cuts and restructures as good economic practice, student opposition gets no place in the Advertiser or on massive advertisements plastered across campus. The role of student media is to be that intervention into university life, to break up that homogenous one-sided story with our own side.

2. Yes, absolutely! Socialist Alternative members of the Adelaide University SRC initiated the Special General Meeting (SGM) as part of fighting against the restructures, job and course cuts being rolled out by university management. Like our small but successful campaign against the cuts to Italian here at Flinders, we believe success can be found when trying to draw in students beyond just student politicians. Students’ power comes from ordinary students seeing themselves as being just as important and able to intervene into politics as the their representatives. We want to see more student participation in protests, occupations and mass student meetings.

3. It is not surprising to see quite a few GO8 universities also managing to make the top 8 for sexual harrasment in the country. When universities have a layer of wanna-be politicians and business leaders, men from elitist colleges and private schools who have never learnt what “no” means and will continue not to know all the way into the board rooms and the government, Christian Porter being a major example of this.

4. At Adelaide Uni, the Union President Oscar Ong banned the student media On Dit from publishing any negative critique of the Union, with the threat of funding cuts. This must be condemned for what it is - a right wing pro-cuts figure with too much power silencing any argument against him. Student magazines should not be smaller scale copies of Murdoch newspapers who uncritically republish press releases from the government but make arguments and take sides.

LEFT UofA’s Greens’ Club 1. Comparisons between student and traditional media are often made that denote student-run media operations as a ‘training-ground’ for a career in larger media outlets.

However, unlike big, bureaucratic media institutions, student media is not bound by the same obligations of the traditional sphere. Often funded by contributions from student unions, student media is not run as a for-profit enterprise that can corrupt the intentions of producers, editors, and reporters in the pursuit of larger profits. Without the requirement to focus on popular stories to the detriment of important ones, student media should embrace their identity as a student-run outlet and adopt the role of an organisation that shows to students what media can be like -if only.

2. We recently met with Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens spokesperson for Education, and she gave us a discussion paper that had the following to say on-campus activism: universities provide a unique space for community engagement and political advocacy. Student activism should be encouraged, not shut down. Through her work, she is advocating for funds to be dedicated directly to student unions, and for these unions to control student services, and we couldn’t agree more (we were so proud of the student-run UniBar, and so devastated when it was sold out in 2018 to give the money to a business instead)! Further, we have to make sure there is a strong culture opposing police and security guards being used to suppress, surveil and break up student democracy as they were doing at the recent SRC Special General Meeting .

3. The results of the National Student Safety Survey reveal the apparent negligence the University of Adelaide has towards protecting its students. Particularly against students who are trans or gender diverse, disabled, or ethnically diverse who are statistically far more likely to be victims of sexual and gendered violence. This, especially in the context of the federal ICAC towards disgraced Vice-Chancellor Peter Rathjen, who was found to have sexually harassed at least two staff members, the university’s continued defunding of counselling services, and the shallow consent courses and sexual health reporting training is yet another reminder of how unsafe we are on campus. The attacks against women continue from the AUU, blocking attempts for women’s interests groups to form, including prospective clubs including the Women’s Collective and the Endometriosis and PCOS Society. It is clear that a culture of apologia towards gendered violence and misogyny in this institution is rampant from top to bottom.

4. It is absolutely necessary that those without power are provided with a platform to critique the powerful. In this case, as student media acts, among other interests, as a megaphone for students to express the issues and inequalities they face, it is vital that student media is allowed to amplify the voices of students facing injustice. Students elect our student media team so that the editors best reflect the values of our student community. For this reason, we must ensure our student media can operate in a way to meet this expectation to voice student concerns. Working to silence student media’s ability to support student cries for help is yet again another reminder of the lengths Progress and the Young Liberals will go to undermine student welfare.

CENTRE UofA’s Labor Club (Equivalent of Flinders’ Student Unity) 1. Student media is duty-bound to report on matters which might jeopardise student wellbeing. It’s also about providing a voice for students who may otherwise not be represented.

Recently, this encompasses most students, due to the powers-that-be suppressing everything that isn’t university propaganda.

2. Here’s a radical notion—students should have a say in university policies that affect their lives! Participation in SGMs sends a powerful message that activism isn’t confined to the realm of political hobbyists, but instead an expression of collective dissent. However, we need a more robust framework to safeguard student liberty and force the university to action student demands, not just “take them on board.”

3. It’s incredibly frustrating seeing reports come out year after year detailing what survivors already know. Especially at Adelaide, the formal reporting process that places complainants at a disadvantage compared with the accused, is a strong barrier to reform. The system is overcrowded, difficult to interface with, and survivors risk their professional reputations if their complaint is referred to senior officials in their organisation. It’s not surprising that a system which consistently re-traumatises survivors was formerly overseen by sex pests at the highest level.

4. Free press starts with student media. It’s crucial when the words from the horse’s mouth are gaslighting us into accepting a rapidly devolving status-quo. Telling us it’s necessary to fire nearly 100 staff despite operating with a multi-million dollar surplus. Telling us rebranding the AUU at students’ expense was “strongly suggested” by focus groups. 90% of the time when the administration “has to do” something (like invest in fossil fuels), its relying on the base assumption that business magnates give a fuck about what is desirable or even decent. Student democracy is flat-lining and student media must speak truth to power.

RIGHT Flinders’ Liberal Club (Equivalent of UofA’s Connect) 1. The primary role of student media is to inform the university’s community of current events of importance that are relevant to the student experience. It is, ideally, a free marketplace of ideas and opinions as to encourage lively debate amongst the student body.

2. We unequivocally support a direct form of democracy on university campuses. This is because it is most fair that all students involved get a choice in how they wish student governance is to be structured. We elect officials to the SRC for a reason and respect the power that the student body has vested in them.

3. More information is needed in order to be able to make a more more informed and appropriate comment on such a sensitive issue.

4. Absolutely! The commonality for progress in almost any system is a free media with the ability to criticise and scrutinise positions of authority. Individuals at any level in the media, including ones writing for student media, should never be put in a position where they are not allowed to express their views on the basis of such criticism “undermining authority”.

A Deep

When I reflect on the values of On Dit and what purpose I believe it serves in the broader media landscape for students, I think about its role in creating space for diverse lived experiences.

For anyone who has picked up a copy of the magazine in the last several years, titles like Elle Dit (the women’s issue) and Queer Dit (the LGBTQIA+ issue), are likely quite familiar. I’d like to think that the establishment of these special editions – and those like it – is a representation of the very nature of student media. Inherently, student media is a place where new and progressive ideas are slowly introduced, debated, refined, and then established, as is done through (to varying degrees) in the academic institution (the university) that unites us all as a community.

Naturally, this is still somewhat dependent on the ideological inclinations of the editors at the time.

Despite this understanding of the culture of student media, I thought it still worth to take a deep dive into the On Dit archives to investigate the progression of representation in the magazine and the origins of the special editions. And trust me… there were some juicy findings.

The First Issue of On Dit (Vol 1.1) Starting with the very first issue of On Dit in 1932, which was presented in a student broadsheet format (as opposed to the magazine we now know), one of the few mentions of women on campus was in reference to the Women’s Union. The writers of the column say in regard to this group that they had ‘some very able speakers’ and encourage campus societies to ‘bring them out to address you, and debate against you; their eloquence and power and logic will startle you!’

While likely well-intentioned at the time, reading this sentiment 90 years on, I do scoff at the absurdity of it being somehow shocking that women would have minds, views, and well-thoughtout arguments of their own. And yet, undeniably this rhetoric that women are somehow less capable or less intelligent continues even to this day.

Into the

Dive The Origin Story of the First Elle Dit (Vol 58.22)

The first women’s special edition – Elle Dit – was proposed in 1989 as an election promise from the two male candidates running together as editors for the following year. As hoped, this promise did indeed win David Penberthy and Steve Jackson their editor positions for 1990. In the year 2000, where Elle Dit was a tradition still being carried on, the editors of the time reached out to Penberthy and Jackson to ask what prompted them to establish Elle Dit. Buckle in your seat belts, because if you are hoping for an inspirational progressive response, you are in for…well the exact opposite.

Penberthy: ‘It was an election promise designed solely to win the support of female voters and get us on as many endorsed tickets as possible. There was a sense that two guys as editors would make the paper too blokey, so we thought the promise would make us seem like we’re not going to be rampantly sexist.’

A little tokenistic, but unfortunately not the worst thing I’ve read. Just wait…

Jackson: ‘I like the ladies and it was a good chance to get a few in the office. We were both trying to shag a prospective Women’s Officer at the time.

For that we would have promised a semester of Elle Dits. It was good old knee jerk feminism. Some women claim to be oppressed so let’s give them some column inches, we thought.’

Hardly the wholesome origin story you would hope for, and yet, potentially a reflection of where feminist movements often began. In far from ideal circumstances, where any concessions in the way of finally receiving basic rights, gaining space in the workforce or media representation, were often only achieved for tokenistic, misogynistic reasons.

Nonetheless, time after time we see women making the best of the little wins, however ridiculous it may be that such battles have to be fought over every little inch of space.

The content within the first issue of Elle Dit in 1990 varied from discussions of the abuse women face in sexual assault and domestic violence to intersectional feminism. It included a Malaysian international student’s recount of her experiences with racism and sexism as intertwining concepts, to another woman’s piece on

‘ l e s b i a n i s m ’ .

On Dit Archives

Other Elle Dits In the second ever Elle Dit (1991), the edition’s ‘crew’ (which notably included the incredible Annabel Crabb) addressed the haters if you will. Pre-empting the arguments of some readers that having a women’s special edition of On Dit is ‘sexist’, the editors wrote: ‘Women’s interests and perspectives are often absent from mainstream media publications. It’s not sexist to redress existing imbalance and this is what Elle Dit attempts to do.’

‘In many ways it is a perfect example of the differences between women which is, of course, the strength of feminism.’

This issue covered topical issues such as abortion and the importance of affirmative action in increasing the number of women working in tertiary institutions. It included discussion of women who had lost their lives in advocating for women’s rights, women’s safety and autonomy, and the matter of female circumcision which many in the west are unaware of as an issue.

Common themes have continued throughout following Elle Dit issues. These include describing and breaking down the stereotypes surrounding feminism, health issues specific to women and various empowering creative works (poetry and short stories) illustrating the female experience in all its variations.

The Origins of Queer Dit (Vol 84.8) The first issue with a notable space dedicated to conversations around and for the LGBTQIA+ community was in 1971 (Vol 39.11) in an issue titled ‘Homosexuality – Heroin – Dr. Spock – C.I.A. – Godard – Families – Women – News’. The issue featured a piece titled ‘Why Gay Liberation?’ challenging the discourse of the time in saying: ‘Why are HOMO-SEXUALS so disliked? Could it possibly, be because they as a group question, and thus challenge, the rigid role-playing inherent in the HETERO-SEXUAL establishment.’

Another worthy mention was in 1973 where On Dit had a ‘Gay Pride Week’ issue. The special edition featured a piece each from two people identifying as lesbian and gay respectively: speaking of their experiences in understanding their identity and breaking down stereotypes.

Notably – and potentially reflective of the understanding at the time – this issue missed the representation of other identities within the LGBTQIA+ community Following this, issues such as Sexuality (in 2008, Vol 76.3) or Sexuali-Dit (in 2014, 82.5 included Queer representation. However the first dedicated special edition – Queer Dit – was only introduced in 2016. This history making issue for On Dit (and yes, I am making that call) featured pieces on the ‘University of Adelaide’s Queer History’, ‘Masculinity and Femmephobia’, reviews of Queer art, reflections of the challenges faced as a bisexual person, the meaning of ‘pride’ and so much more. In my view, it set the tone and a strong grounding for the future of Queer representation in the University’s student media. This is not to say, however, that we don’t still have a way to go in ensuring we achieve greater inclusivity of as many diverse, intersectional identities from within the LGBTQIA+ community.

And ultimately this is true for every issue of On Dit or any student magazine. If we are to offer an alternative to mainstream media, who till this day still prioritise a white, male, conservative perspective, then we must in every issue advocate for the marginalised voice. It is my hope that in another 90 years future editors will look back at issues of On Dit, Empire Times and other student magazines, and be able to honestly review us as advocates for a more progressive, inclusive, and representative media.

Words by Grace Atta

AUSTRALIA’S AUNTY

by Lachlan White In Issue 2 of Empire Times, I wrote about the ABC and its importance to our nation. I want to expand on that article and points I missed.

If a political party cares about our National Security and Defence then they would fund the ABC. A great strength of the ABC is Soft Power for Australia, something that Australia can use to interact with and influence our neighbours to adopt our ideals and behaviour. It’s a much cheaper and less dangerous way of doing diplomacy than armed conflict.

Contrary to this approach, the Liberal Government has cut ABC services provided to neighbouring countries (The Australian Network, operated by the ABC) across Asia since 2014.

Before that John Howard gutted the ABC’s budget in 1996 which resulted in the ABC losing its international services entirely. The Government would go on to offer such services to Channel 7 with government support (subsidies). Channel 7 would lose money and pull the services just two years later in 1998. Eventually, the ABC would fill its old niche once more.

The massive benefit of the ABC is that it’s a public broadcaster, and therefore not beholden to private sector sponsors. Unsurprisingly, groups opposed to the ABC, are those who don’t have the ability to run their ads on the front page since the ABC is public property… big coal and oil, gambling groups, right-wing organisations… corporations, individuals, and politicians who want the public eye on their shady actions.

Across the globe, many public broadcasters, such as the British Broadcasting Corporation

(BBC), have higher funding than our ABC. Research by Nordicity for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, indicates Australia ranks 13th out of 18th for Developed Countries’ Public broadcasters for the ABC and in the same report it is argued that the ABC’s funding would need to increase from roughly $1 million per capita to $2 million per capita a year to have a funding per capita equal to the United Kingdom. Australia is also ranked 17th out of 20th for government funding of public broadcasters in relation to total government spending.

Switching to a 5 year funding cycle would protect the ABC from political jousting each election cycle, and would also secure the ABC’s independence. Furthermore, it would mean a more extensive and cohesive plan for the future of the ABC. The Australian Labor Party’s leader, Anthony Albanese, has committed to a 5-year funding model for the ABC, unlike the Liberal party, who have made attempts to privatise our public broadcaster for a quick buck.

To touch on some of the amazing work done by the ABC, I will direct your attention to the rural journalism division. The ABC provides services and content for Regional Australia in what the ABC managing director David Anderson called “news deserts.” The ABC fills a gap where resources have been so lacking that across the country. With the decline of the private sectors for communication services such as radio, and television in regional areas due to a lack of profit, or disinterest in non-partisan reporting (we’re looking at you, Murdoch and Fairfax). The ABC is an important service to regional communities as it provides emergency warnings, recent news, interesting discussions and our very own parliament to their doorstep

by Question Time at lunchtime.

Frankly, more Australian content also means more Australian jobs. The ABC isn’t a waste of taxpayer’s money since it gives back huge to our economy, society, and democracy.

There are many more issues facing the ABC that I haven’t even really touched on such as the ABC funding, radio, and the ABC board appointment process; however, I can only write so much and I am not getting graded on this. I would recommend contacting your local Federal Representative and Senators about the importance of the ABC and have a look at the work of the amazing ABC Friends, an non-profit organisation who campaign for protection of the ABC. Don’t forget, if your song didn’t get number one on Triple J’s hottest 100 then blame the ABC’s funding.

The Uni Merger Policy What is it & why should you care?

Words by Louise Jackson South Australia is home to three universities: the University of Adelaide (established 1874), Flinders University (established 1966), and the University of South Australia (established 1991). All of our universities are small in comparison to those interstate and have a significantly lower revenue. None rank in the global Top 100.

Tertiary funding comes from the Federal government. The State government can only really make recommendations to the university councils; they would have great difficulty forcing a restructure.

Both Federal and State governments have taken a very hands-off approach to the university sector over the last decade; it is certainly an interesting A merger was most recently discussed in 2018 climate for the policy to be implemented. between Adelaide Uni and UniSA, without government intervention. It fell apart quickly Pros when the university councils could not come Labor’s main argument is around status. to a mutually beneficial agreement.

Outlined in the policy proposal are the major benefits of a Top 100 ranking.

The Policy Students are more likely to choose The South Australian University Merger Policy to attend a Top 100 university and was first put forward by SA Labor back in quality researchers prefer high-status 2020. After Labor’s recent state election win, institutions. Institutional collaboration the policy has become a hotly debated topic. is also based on rankings. The reputation The policy will establish a Commission of a high-ranked institution would be (basically a group project the government sets great for both the university and the up to investigate something) to determine state – status is an excellent branding ‘how the state can best be served by the tool. university sector’. The Commission will make a recommendation to the government and the The size of the three universities individual university councils based on their prevents them from being truly findings. Labor has outlined 5 criteria that competitive with both national and need to be met: international institutions. Experienced educators and researchers are likely to - The need for a Top 100 uni choose a large university just as much as - The sector benefiting the local community a Top 100. It is another status symbol.

- Ensuring stability and productivity for academics and researchers Smaller student bodies ensure a lower - All students having access to internationally revenue; Labor believes a merger competitive tertiary education, regardless of would make the SA universities more socio-economic background economically and research competitive.

- All the universities remaining strong Revenue from international students is despite their merger configuration down. Supporters of the merger believe more students at a combined institution There are limitations to the influence the State will equal more revenue. They argue government can have on the university sector. that revenue can then be channelled

into better degrees, higher quality staff, and funding research.

Labor also cites ‘the brain drain’ as a major argument for the merger. ‘The brain drain’ refers to the increasing number of students choosing to study interstate. This likely results in students choosing to start their careers interstate as well. Labor suggests this will continue to have a negative impact on the local economy and that a more competitive university sector will encourage more students to stay.

Cons University restructures tend to bring job losses.

The faculties merger at Adelaide Uni has already demonstrated this is the case. The university sector is one of the biggest employers in South Australia.

Given the ongoing impact of the pandemic jobs crisis, many believe it dangerous to propose a policy that is almost guaranteed to leave more staff unemployed.

Admin staff often fall victim to mergers, increasing the stress on teaching staff to provide admin services on top of their existing workload.

Student experience is also under threat. Conflicting university cultures and structures result in a long period of readjustment, to the disadvantage of those studying through it. This also reduces student choice.

Many students are drawn to a specific university for reasons beyond just their degree. The culture, clubs, student governments and opportunities are important factors to consider; there is no guarantee how a merger would affect them.

Degrees are at risk. It is unlikely all the degrees currently offered at each uni would survive a merger.

They will at least not survive in the same format. A university merger would have to carefully consider the impact a reduced degree choice will have on current and future students.

Why should you care?

There’s likely no right answer to the question of the university merger, and it would be arrogant of me to tell you where you should stand. But I can tell you that you should care. The results of the Commission could decide the future of tertiary education in South Australia – our future as students. We have a right to a voice in this debate and we deserve a seat at the table. Our universities may run like businesses, but they don’t work without us.

Words by Claire Gibbins

Dysilexia, Dsyslexea, Dyslexea, Dyslexica…

Dyslexia that’s how you spell it, and yet it still doesn’t look right does it? I did get close on my last guess, but ultimately, I had to use my phone and ask Siri to spell it for me.

Now if it wasn’t obvious by the title and the opening of this piece, I have Dyslexia, but this article is not going to be about what it’s like to have dyslexia and be an editor because that would be just a couple sentences about me detailing how I ask Siri how to spell more complex words for me. How boring would that be?

Instead, I thought I’d tell you how I got ‘here’ to University, studying Creative Writing and English. I couldn’t read until year 5. I was still on level 17 reading books, and to put that into perspective in case your school did things differently. There were 50ish levels and by year 3 you should have completed the final reading level and graduated into reading proper library books... I was on level 17. So the situation was dire, most of my teachers thought I’d never read, I was always placed in the lowest reading and spelling groups because I couldn’t spell either.

When I was in year 3, my reading/spelling group, was taken out of the class by two SSO, and they took us into a different room, made us

sit on the floor while they sat on chairs and told us a story. So basically, the story mentioned, a man was hungry and decided to go and get some beans from the shops. However, he couldn’t read, and so he struggled to find the bean cans, when he finally found them, he got a couple, paid, and went home. But, when he got home and he started to eat the ‘beans’, he found out he’d bought cat food.

The SSO ended the story by saying since the man couldn’t read, he spent the rest of his life eating cat food.

Now, most of my group mates started crying.

They were upset because they didn’t want to eat cat food. I then stood up and said, “I don’t need to read then”. The SSO was confused and asked what I meant and I told her that the man was dumb and that cat food has a picture of a cat on it and bean cans have pictures of beans on them, so as long as I pick the can with the beans on them I’ll be fine.

This made my group happier, SSO angrier, but I didn’t care. At that point I didn’t want to read, and so I refused to learn out of spite.

Jump forward to year 5, and my whole friend group have gotten into reading, all of them, like every single one. They made their own ‘book club’, and decided to read the whole Deltora Quest series in the library. They all had just started on book one and back in those days,

rubbers shaped as animals or fruit or ice-cream where all the rage. So during recess and lunch they would act out the book so far, and of course I couldn’t join in. I didn’t know the story, and as a child, sitting there watching all your friends leave you while you just sit there not understanding is heart breaking. So, I went to the library afterschool and I borrowed the first two books in the series and as a side note, I was actually really embarrassed to even go to the libaray, I made sure no one saw me and hid the books in my bags so my family didn’t see.

I must have re-read the prologue of book one at least 10 times. It didn’t make any sense, I cried inevitably, I moved on to read chapter one and two and suddenly it was like, it all clicked in place, the prologue is not the ‘start of the story’ it’s meant to give me context for when I start reading the main story, and suddently it made sense, and the more I read, the more it clicked.

I finished the first book that night and started on the second one. I went to school tired but I could finally join in with my friends, most were surprised because at that point they all knew I hated reading, and now there I was, ahead of them. I finished Deltora Quest before anyone else in my friend group and from that moment on, I became addicted to reading, I read whatever I could get my hands on. If I didn’t

know a word I would ask and for the first time in my life, I could use a dictionary (When you didn’t know how to spell a word or didn’t know its meaning my teachers would tell me to look it up in the dictionary and when you can’t read how are you to find the word in the first place?).

When I hit year 6, I got my first ever pass in English.

I always failed it, always got Es in my report card, but I got a C, and that was massive for me! When I went into year 7, we had to take our reading card placement test. There were about 50 coloured cards that had 20 different texts for you to read and then answer questions, you had to get 100% current answers on in at least 3 tests to move up a card colour.

I was the first person in my whole school to score 100% on the reading placement test. I finished the final level of the colour cards (Silver) in a week and spent the rest of the time reading novels instead of the colour levels.

I completed three premiers reading challenges (equal to 36 books) and got a B in English.

My spelling was a different story, I couldn’t spell ‘Family’ until the end of year 7, and whenever we would have a substitute teacher they would always play the ‘spelling to get out’ game, basically they would throw a ball at someone, and when

the student caught it, they would give them a word, if the student could spell it, they would let them leave the class room (this was the end of the day), I would have to get asked about 3 different words before I would be able to spell it right and let out.

Once the substitute teacher asked me to spell ‘Cannon’, and I spelt it ‘C A N E N’, the boy next to be actually began to bully me and make fun of my inability to spell, after I told him I had Dyslexia, he apologised but it stuck with me at the time.

In high school, I got As in English, during year 8, I read all the Twilight novels in under 4 days and Stephen King’s Firestarter in under 2 days. I even got into advanced English during year 11 and in my finaly year I read 13 premier reading challenges to honor my 13th reading certificate (equates to 156 books).

Now, am I bragging? Yes, because despite the learning disability, I am here and I am succeeding. I know for many people Dyslexia is still something they struggle with well into adulthood, even my own spelling still needs work and I do make errors a lot of the time, but it’s manageable and I’m at a point where I am happy with my English skills.

I am so proud that I did not let my disability keep me in the box society created.

In the early morning of the day that turned spring, far before the sun had risen in the sky, there was a downpour. Rain drizzled downwards, washing away the white powder that had covered the park for months. Water turned to ice melted, leaving the grass exposed, wet, but finally green after being chained to frost.

The world spins so fast and yet the people on earth feel no movement at all. The sun is blinding and merciless on the eyes but the body needs it to function and fresh air being pulled into lungs is a feeling no one can describe without saying “It makes me feel alive”.

A young man was pushing an elderly woman in a wheelchair through this very spring turned park. The glistening pavement caused sounds of crackles which seemed to harmonised with the birds chirping.

“Stop”; it took a second for the young man to realise the words his grandmother had spoken but he nonetheless slowed down to an eventual stop.

“Turn me around to face the tree, if you would be a dear”, after some careful manoeuvring, the woman was facing the tree. The man thought the tree was unimpressive, It was grey and there was still some sleet surrounding the base.

The tree wasn’t overly tall. Compared to the other trees it was much younger, its branches and trunk not as thick, yet his grandmothers face seemed to convey tranquilness, like she was a peace, glossed over with a happy spell, almost as if she was lost in a movie that was playing in her mind.

Words by

To last a

“When I was 18, your grandfather and I planted that tree”, her voice broke, and the man felt a stub in his chest, a pricking feeling engulfed him, departing was the calm to be replaced with the expression of uneasy and awkwardness.

“Here”, his grandma pulled out an old yellowed piece of thick paper, only after had she opened the folds, he saw the photo. His grandma and grandpa stood with arms around each other, there were other people all around them planting similar saplings, that one day, they would grow into beautiful trees and cover the park. His grandma was lost staring at the photo now, he had never seen her look so young, the photo had encapsulated her youth, but he knew that wasn’t why she was staring.

His grandfather had passed away 2 months ago.

“I’m sorry grandma” “Oh no, don’t be sorry, we planted that tree because we hoped it would grow in time with our love… and it did, your grandfather and I saved up for the sappling and ever since we planted it, we visit at least once a year...This is the first year I’m alone”.

He pulled out his phone, neath down, asking her to smile.

“Come on grandma, let’s take another photo with your tree”.

Claire Gibbins

life time

ET ET X X On On Dit....

Dit....

ET X On

we are w e ar e s

till her

Dit

still he re

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Volume 49, Issue 04