SUM #107 AN UNWRITTEN SHEET by SUM Student Union Malmö

SUM

STUDENT UNION MAGAZINE

An Unwritten Sheet

Någon att prata med? Universitetskyrkan finns till för dig. Med oss kan du prata om vad som helst. Du är välkommen oavsett vad eller om du tror, vem du älskar eller identifierar dig som. Vi vet att studietiden kan vara en kamp av många skäl. Kanske särskilt just nu under pandemin. Många gånger behöver vi någon att anförtro oss åt och att tala med. Vi i universitetskyrkan har många års erfarenhet av samtal med människor i olika skeden av livet. Vi har absolut tystnadsplikt och för inga journalanteckningar. Tveka inte att höra av dig till oss! Lennart Henriksson pastor i Equmeniakyrkan

Sofia Tunebro präst i Svenska kyrkan

Kontakt: email: universitetskyrkan@mau.se eller förnamn.efternamn@mau.se instagram: universitetskyrkanmalmo facebook: UniversitetskyrkanMalmo hemsida: universitetskyrkanmalmo.se 2

Sum magazine

Issue #107 An unwritten sheet Fall 2021 Cover by Leonardo Summers Student magazine SUM is distributed by the Student Union of Malmö and reaches all students at Malmö University. Opinions that appear in the magazine are the students own and not neccessarily SUM’s. SUM has to some extent modify pictures and texts, but no responsibility is taken for submitted material. SUM is printed on Nordic Swan Ecolabelled paper. Get in touch with us at SUM: sum@malmostudenter.se Print: Elvins Grafiska AB - tel: 042-159900 / www.elvinsgrafiska.se Editors in Chief: Dominika Pizoń, Simine Azarnoush Contributers in #107: Leonardo Summers, Charline Wolf, Freja Johansson, Okezi Otuoba, Alva Bexell, Wiktoria Grzybowska, Maria Fernanda Volponi, Sana Rehan Butt, Valgerður Lilja Björnsdóttir, Sofia Grahn, Oskar Syrén, Hampus Georgsson, Jonathan Gartmark, Yulu Zhang, Samantha Stedtler, Hannah Katinka Beck, Magda Sjölin, Jaeger Ehrenbeck, Hanna Almgren, Eda Ramsay, Marieke Danne, GuillermoValladares López, Maria Fernanda Volponi, Dominika Pizoń, Simine Azarnoush, Konstantina Klonari, Lilli Auginski

Editor’s foreword

Att vara redaktör för tidningen känns verkligen som att börja på en tom sida, mycket är nytt och jag lär mig nya saker ständigt. Kanske därför valde jag temat Ett oskrivet blad, även känd som Tabula Rasa, det kändes rätt i samband med denna nya utmaning och möjlighet.

Being an editor for the magazine really feels like starting on a blank page, a lot is new and I am constantly learning new things. Perhaps that’s why I chose the theme An Unwritten Sheet, also known as Tabula Rasa, it somehow felt right in connection to this new challenge and opportunity.

Sidan som du läser just nu har en gång varit ett oskrivet blad, i själva verket var det inte så länge sedan alla kommande sidor var fyllda av ingenting. Detta nummer är en konstutställning av allas idéer som blev till skisser som blev till konstverk. Du kan nu ta del av någonting nytt denna version är här för att vidga vyerna, ge en start till en dag och uppmuntra till att reflektera om det oskrivna.

The page you are reading right now has once been an unwritten sheet, in fact it was not so long ago that all forthcoming pages were filled with nothingness. This issue is an art exhibition of everyone’s ideas that turned into sketches that turned into works of art. You can now experience something new - this version is here to broaden the views, give a start to a day and encourage you to reflect on the unwritten.

De nuvarande chefredaktörerna vill tacka redaktionen och läsarna som gjorde detta nummer möjligt.

4 6 8 11 13 18 20 22 4

The current editors in chief would like to say thank you to the editorial team and readers who made this issue possible.

Content

The Word Office Melodrama

Wiktoria Grzybowska

38, Rounded to the Nearest Ten

Sana Rehan Butt

Smile Lines

Leonardo Summers

Guide till biografer i Malmö

Alva Bextell

Creating yourself

Valgerður Lilja Björnsdóttir

Can your truth be unwritten?

Maria Fernanda Volponi

The Rasa Experiment

Eda Ramsay

I’ve got no strings to hold me down

Alva Bexell

Dear Diary - Tabula Rasa, a curse in disguise

Paint your slate

Frankenstein + Tabula Rasa = sant?

6 ways to survive the winter

Malmö through international eyes

Ett oskrivet blad

Canceling Culture

Green Slate

QUIZ - Vad kan du om Malmö?

10 places Tabula Rasa struck in Malmö

Piece by Piece

Philosophy of Photography

I wish I could write

Kåren hälsar

Okezi Otuoba

Hanna Almgren

Magda Sjödin

Oskar Syrén

Marieke Danne

Jonathan Gartmark

Freja Johansson

Samantha Stedtler & Hannah Katinka Beck

Magda Sjölin

Oskar Syrén

Sana Rehan Butt

Leonaro Summers

Charline Wolf

Kåren

The Word Office Melodrama

By Wiktoria Grzybowska Grzybowska.wa@gmail.com

ow distressing it can be, the whiteness. The empty space, asking to be filled with words, weighing me down with responsibility. Humans don’t like emptiness; we always find ways to fill it up. But an empty cabinet or a naked wall is easier to deal with than a blank page. Just throw some stuff in there! Problem solved! No one will look and dissect whether you’re using your closet space wisely. That blank page, though, that’s a heavy-duty task. Writing is meant to be read. It’s a vulnerable experience to type out those letters for others to see, for it to be edited and re-written, for you can click on that left-pointed arrow however many times you like and start over, and over, and over again. Writing badly is humiliating, even if there is no one there to witness it. The act of deleting my words because they’re not good enough is grief-inducing! I do it, despair, and go back to that blank page. Grief turns to anxiety; anxiety makes me hopeless. And why did they have to make the cursor blink? I keep staring at it, as if it were going to solve my problems by itself. Just be nice, move to the right, leave a trail of words behind, why won’t you? Stubbornly, it never does. Whenever the time comes to click out a text, the pattern I fall into is nearly identical. I sit on my bed, a computer on my lap, and I struggle. Whether it’s a school essay, a creative writing piece, a job application, or an e-mail to customer service—the melodrama is always there, apparently inherent and a part of my routine. Everything is a distraction, and my strong will is…well, weak. And I try to take every writer’s advice which is: just start! Just start writing! Anything will do! Only that it won’t, because the standards we set for ourselves are impossibly strict. So many times have I deleted a whole page of decent writing because of one not-so-decent sentence. But here’s the thing—we don’t have to do that. Writing word for word is gut-wrenching, but even forced writing is better than none at all. At least the page will stop being blank, right? But there is a certain amount of ego that’s involved with writing, especially for those of us who made it a part of our identities. Less than perfect is hard to accept for

those of us who love to write. And we do love it, many of us! That one moment of flow, it’s easy, it’s exciting, it’s eye-opening. The problem is—that flow is only one step in the process. And it goes over quickly. Something breaks your work bubble, or you stumble on a word, or you take a pee break, and it’s gone! Back to square one. And the rest of that process is nothing short of despicable. There’s no prescription here for easing the pain of the blank page. I can’t teach you how to stop procrastinating or how to find inspiration or how to motivate yourself. No matter the number of self-help, motivational YouTube videos I watch—I still struggle with those things. A lot! But I do have some advice. If you feel like going through five stages of grief over your paper, do it. Don’t hold it in! Put on Kate Bush and embrace the drama. Let your distractions distract you, but not your phone. Make some tea, eat even if you’re not hungry, force some love onto your cat—but the phone is your nemesis. Force your words out steadily. The thing about that flow we love, it triggers just as quickly as it disappears. You never know which sentence, or phrase, or word will summon it into action. So just try to write something. And hope for the best.

The page is never blank at the end. ■

Illustration by Jaeger Ehrenbeck @jehrenbeck_art

38, Rounded to the Nearest Ten “I may have not gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be”. - Douglas Adams

It’s funny how new beginnings sprout out of a tangled web of mess, almost when you least expect them to. I gave birth to my third child, a beautiful “rainbow baby” four months back, who miraculously is a spitting image of my elder one. Not only that, I am almost thirty-eight years old. When I see young(er) students in their early or mid 20s in and around MaU, I often wonder what I am doing here. 8

Photograph by Magda Sjödin @magdasfotografier

By Sana Rehan Butt Sanarmb11@gmail.com

I am not as quick or agile as I was in my 20s. My brain is foggy, almost muddled with no rhyme or reason. It takes me a while to register and comprehend things - I’d like to blame it on the side effects of surgical anaesthesia administered during my children’s birth. My knees make this crackling noise if I take the stairs to go to my class, no exaggeration. I would rather go up in an elevator (I have my classes on the 5th floor) than go by stairs, in fact. If I do not write things down in my Daily Planner, I forget the dates and the long never-ending to-do list. One would assume I resent being a mother or the joy motherhood entails. On the contrary, I love being a mother and having these chatterboxes who love you even at your worst, but often I wonder if I even belong here, an older mom, who has started her Master’s studies after a hiatus of fourteen years. Yes, 14 long years! Amidst the never-ending diaper-changing, bottle/ breastfeeding sessions and answering little humans’ requests for a snack for the hundredth time a day, I’d forgotten about myself and what I really wanted or was interested in. I often get asked why I wanted to do a

Master’s now after having three children, particularly at this age. In a failed attempt to explain why, primarily because of a loss of better words, I am almost always reminded of how it all started. I am a teacher by profession but the truth of the matter is, I never intended to be a teacher. I had almost always envisioned myself to be a writer, brooding over books in a room surrounded with floor to ceiling bookshelves. It just so happened that after I did my first Master’s, I got offered a position at one of the prestigious schools to teach the Senior Year. Since the offer was too good for someone with practically no teaching experience, I took it up as more of a learning experience and the rest, as they say, is history. Not only did I enjoy interacting with students but I found my newfound passion, teaching, but most importantly, making a positive difference in my students’ lives and seeing them progress. With all that said, I didn’t wake up one fine day and thought I would do the Master’s I am doing right now. I had a constant knock at the back of my mind, continuously reminding me that I am more than just a mother, that I was me, myself, before I was someone’s Mom. The motivation to learn, progress and succeed was what made me decide to continue my studies. It isn’t easy to continue studying after a long gap or even a few years’ gap but what it results in is something profound: one finds a new perspective to look at things as well as more wisdom to support your perception. As you age and experience the world, your mind explores and absorbs

newfound bits. So, at nearly 38 years of age, 40, if I round it off to the nearest ten, thanks to my son’s “Estimation and Rounding Strategies” he is learning in Math, I have found my new beginning. It came calling to me with such resonance and strength, I simply could not say “No!” If you have taken a gap year or years, as in my case, and continued studying, know that it would not be easy in the beginning. Things are more fast-paced it seems and more often than not, you would feel like giving up because it would be too much at times. Nevertheless, in that time of doubt and self-analysis, dig deeper and hold onto that motivation, determination and passion which knocked at your door in the first place. This new beginning would undoubtedly result in something positive and a couple of years from now, you would look back at all this and marvel at how much you have achieved. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step”. I, for one, do not know how long the staircase is or even if it is straight or winding, but I know and believe I will eventually reach my destination, whatever that may be. For now, the prospect of a new beginning rejoices in me and brings happiness as does a hot cup of coffee in my favourite mug and my seven-year-old uttering, “I love you, Mommy!” ■

Unik försäkring för lärarstudenter: Studentförsäkring Leva

Inga andra studenter har något liknande Studentförsäkring Leva hjälper dig om du råkar ut för både små och stora olyckor. Råkar du till exempel ut för ett olycksfall eller en sjukdom som gör att du inte kan studera på ett tag, och du förlorar ditt studiemedel, får du ersättning från försäkringen. Besök vår webb eller kontakta oss så hjälper vi dig.

0771 - 21 09 09

lararforsakringar.se 9

Content warning: Sexual assault

Smile Lines

By Leonardo Summers @leonardonathanielsummers Leo@ohwest.me.uk

A short story

Life is a long journey, an old man once told me. Don’t weigh down your load with unnecessary baggage. How far until land? I ask the captain of the small dinky-boat. The captain is a man of stature; broad shoulders, and ropey forearms, chiselled by hours of work. A sun-faded tattoo of a beautiful lady wrapped in what seems to be a snake sits on his forearm. She rests her light frame on an anchor. He turns, catching me staring at the letters written underneath the faded ink. Returning his levelled gaze out again to face the choppy waves of the open sea, he squints the sun rays out of his blue eyes which beam out below his greying brow, weathered wrinkles appear around his eyes, smile lines. He chuckles heartily to himself and that’s why I call him Captain Chuckor just Chuck. He’s cool. But he still doesn’t reply. I entertain myself by looking out the window. The raindrops rolling down the windowpane remind me of the ocean The Captain and I share together. I stifle a yawn and realise suddenly that I’m no longer in a boat on the open sea, but looking out a small window in a stark white tiled room. As I move my hand to cover my mouth, my eyes investigate. A medical man sitting properly in turquoise overalls stares calculatedly at me, I know what he’s thinking…he’s trying to figure me 10

out, maybe even wait me out…they all do it, as if I’m some sort of freak of something. He’s thinking why won’t he speak? What has he got to be so afraid of? Where is he now? Where is he... I’m with Chuck now. I can’t help it. Chuck is safe, safer. With Chuck I feel like I can be myself. - When was it that you stopped speaking, Roland? When they abused my mother in front of me, I think to myself. When they held her down and raped her while I could do nothing but watch. Men like you, doctor, people with your happy life, with their own wives and children, they took my mother from me, they did this to me, I didn’t just decide to stop speaking, they muted me. -

Roland, can you tell me about your father?

No. That’s the simple answer. The doctor sees the hatred glint in my eyes. Unable to stop the aggression from finding its way out of my body, I throw myself to the floor involuntarily, I sit there quietly while he mumbles words into

the echoic room. I don’t notice the words he says or the way he says them when he grips at the flesh under my arms to pull me from the ground, I find myself once again in the chair I previously occupied looking again out the window. Hi nurse, I’m sat…Roland… …yes and…trauma… …with electrotherapy… Goodbye. *** Good morning, Roland. The doctor is leaning over me, smiling. I don’t like that. Something feels off, wrong. I feel as if I’ve awoken from an ancient slumber, my body feels heavy, like a wet animal hide, my joints weak, but my brain, that’s the worst part, each thought is a floundering fish, suffocated and eventually subdued by force. The doctor breathes in sharply, then starts. - I would like to tell you that your electrotherapy treatment was a success, Roland, by this afternoon I hope to authorise your leave from the premises. What premises? I think. What premises? I say. The doctor smiles and tells me very little, he tells me about this treatment called electrotherapy and why I have had it to fix a speech impediment that I had. He also proceeds to tell me about a visitor. Ignoring the prospect of a visitor as well as whom it may be, I ask why I don’t remember anything. The doctor collects himself, quietly looking at the floor, and proceeds to explain that I may not remember some things because those memories had to be removed in order to ensure a successful treatment. The doctors attempt to escape the visible anxiety proliferating over my body fails as I grab his arm as he turns to leave, before he can make the full rotation I ask:

to look at me, I haven’t the slightest inkling as to whom you might be referring to... Try and rest. Rest I do, I fall again into a heavy sleep. *** Mr Keith is striding around the garden in his dressing gown, his right hand brandishes a cup of coffee and his left, a small shovel. I’m washing dishes in the kitchen; I’m smiling, watching him from the window when he calls for me. Roland! Roland boy, come! Coming! I shout as I hop around on one leg, squeezing a heavily socked foot into an adidas shoe. The emperor of his garden, Mr Keith stands, surveying the greenery around him. Hairless legs inside dark slippers are planted firmly on the grass. Mr Keith holds his coffee mug close to his chest, much in the same way a red coat would hold his sword. His feet, married amongst the grass like a ballet dancer and his neck extending high, higher, much like a peacock, one would instantly recognise that he was a man of the navy; proud, tough, and watchful. Pointing down at the ground using his shovel he says, Aren’t they beautiful Roland? Look at that! Just the right time as well…and to think that I almost thought they wouldn’t come through this year. Beautiful, just fantastic! He points to some purple geraniums; I nod and smile in agreement. They are beautiful, I reply. He holds the shovel above his eyes to block out the sun, and now, squinting across his vast garden he breathes in through his nose, closing his eyes in a state of pure delight. Then, turning and looking down at me I notice the wrinkles by his eyes, smile lines, I think.

Where is Chuck?

I think we’ll go by the lake today, pack your stuff lad.

I run gaily across the garden, into the kitchen and

I’m sorry Roland, He says, turning around

throw together a travel bag. Mr Keith stands his ground; I see him now from my bedroom window. He looks smaller, older, more frail than strong. When we both finish packing, we jump in the car and go to the nature reserve where the lake is. *** I’m standing on top of a mountain of large rocks, jetted high above the water. Next to me sits my dog, I look out at the vast expanse of ocean, remembering Captain Chuck. Behind me, the forest floor, a thick carpet of sights and smells grows higher and higher, strong and tall, like Mr Keith. The ocean throws up reflections of sunlight into my eyes like skimming-stones, every now and then I’m blinded by the sparkling sea. Blind I may be, mute, I am not. THE END

Smile lines is an allegorical short story written from an animal rights perspective. The story is metaphorical for the life of an animal destined for the slaughterhouse. For farm animals, life is suffering, trauma, murder and abuse on a daily basis. Roland embodies any one of these animals we raise to be killed every day. Despite our disgusting and abhorrent treatment of the animal kingdom and the natural world at large; animals continue to show love, unendingly and unconditionally to humans. Why, with so much power and responsibility, do we choose desecration, degradation, and death, over the principles of preservation, of love, and of peace? ■

Guide till biografer i Malmö Av Alva Bextell a-bex@hotmail.com

Nu när alla restriktionerna släpps är det nog dags att våga sig ut i publikhavet och se film på duk – så som den inte har setts på år och dag. Kanske vill du se den mycket försenade Bond-filmen No time to Die? Eller någon av superhjältefilmerna som blygt tittar fram i höst och vinter? Kanske vill du vidga dina vyer? Tänk dig då den där pausen efter bioreklamen; draperierna som dras åt sidan; den vita duken hänger där tom och redo att uppbringa vad som helst, det oskrivna bladet om du så vill; mörkret sänker sig, viskningarna tystnar och så fylls duken av ljus och bilder. Hur du än kommer, vad du än vill ha, så har säkert någon av Malmös biografer just det som du letar efter.

Nordisk Film Bio Mobilia Ett nystartat multiplex i köpcentret Mobilia (södra Malmö). Fem salonger visar det mesta av de senaste biopremiärerna. 4D-visningar finns också och har effekter utöver bild och ljud. Men framför allt har NF bio både studentrabatt och en speciell onlinerabatt (när du beställer på nätet) vilket gör biljettpriserna överkomliga.

Panora Friisgatan 19 Folkets bio i Malmö driver denna 3-duks biograf nära Möllevångstorget – mellan Folkets park och Bergsgatan. De visar smal och bred film från hela världen och är hem till bland annat IFEMA filmfestival (enbart kvinnliga regissörer) och MAFF (Malmö Arab film festival). De har en studentrabatt som gör det möjligt att få en biljett för under hundringen. Ibland har de också konstutställningar i foajén att titta på medan man väntar på insläppet.

Spegeln Stortorget Spegeln, byggd 1934, har under de senaste åren ockuperat nischen med specialvisningar och matservering till filmen. Utbudet kan beskrivas som blandat, där nya storfilmer samsas med det senaste från Frankrike/Italien, sing-along, frukostbio och svartvita klassiker. Priserna ligger på ungefär samma nivåer som Filmstaden (maten kostar en del men är för det mesta valfri), undantaget är Cinematekets visningar där du kan få biljetten för en hundralapp och se filmer som du kanske aldrig har hört talas om.

Royal Södra Tullgatan 4 Filmstaden (före detta SF) har tre ställen i Malmö, ett finns inne i köpcentret Entré (vid Värnhem) och ett på Storgatan i centrum. Royal – ett stenkast från Gustav Adolfs torg – har bara en enda salong, men i gengäld så är det den största salongen i Malmö med en gigantisk duk för de största av storfilmerna. Ibland slår de till på stort och projicerar film i 70mm som i gamla tider – det brukar dock reserveras för restaurerade klassiker eller Christopher Nolan- filmer. ■

CREATING YOURSELF “What you wear is how you present yourself to the world, especially today, when human contacts are so quick. Fashion is instant language.” —Miuccia Prada

By: Valgerður Lilja Björnsdóttir IG: @valalilja 15

Can your truth be unwritten? By Maria Fernanda Volponi mafernandahecht@gmail.com

Some people agree that in this society, it is possible to understand and to separate what is wrong from what is right. Some people also declare that we should be taught the right path. Moreover, the law system around the world guarantees that there are manners to be followed, there are specific things to be said and there are lies seen as truths. However, how can you possibly know what is the right thing to do, who has decided, which system has declared what can be done, and what can not? According to some philosophers, human beings have the State of Nature. These philosophers have tried to predict how people would behave before societies came into existence. Thomas Hobbes, for example,

Illustration by Jaeger Ehrenbeck @jehrenbeck_art

Imagine that you have a baby, a little cute new creature. Imagine you holding this tiny human as if the world would explode in minutes. You love, you care, you put all your efforts to protect this newborn molecule’s conglomerate. Everything is here, in your arms. What do you do now? What things must you teach your child?

Photograph by Maria Fernanda Volponi

used to affirm that the natural state of every single human was evil, humans were born in that specific way. Jean Jacques Rousseau declared instead that humans were good, but society would corrupt them. What must be pointed out is that the first look, the first breath, and the first cry of every human, was already performed inside of this society. It is impossible to analyze something in its natural state because the natural state does not allow us to be part of it. It is natural, it is fresh, and it is blank. In the psychology field, the term Tabula Rasa means that people’s likes, thoughts, and abilities were developed in their surroundings. Thus, everything before birth is unknown, is a mystery, and is unwritten. This statement makes it possible to reflect on political and social institutions, and also discuss why society imposes numerous rules if all of them were created by different viewpoints. How can universal truths exist, if human perspectives were responsible for their creation? The concept of truth is used continuously to define people, determining their actions as right or wrong and stipulating punishments, if the action does not correspond with the established social norms. The truth is rooted in either prejudiced views, and historical periods, showing only one side of the story. Some truths are so intrinsically accepted, that it becomes challenging to investigate them. Have you ever thought about why some people are in jail and some people are not? Why do some people receive a death sentence when they commit a crime, while in many countries the sentence of death is prohibited? Is it right to execute a murderer? Is it right that prison may be avoided when citizens have the economic conditions to pay a good lawyer or even bail? All these questions were not given looking for answers, they were admitted here to create even more

critical questions against what has been given for you as options in this society. It is easier, of course, to believe that a sentence of death is acceptable when your social environment has normalized that for you. It can also be comprehensible to accept that women are not allowed to be in the labor market when the law system affirms that. From the point of view of the writer here, it is horrible, and a challenge to try to understand a perspective that denies basic human rights. But stop a minute, and think: if you were born in a place, country, city, or even family, and since your birth everything people have taught you, supported these ideas presented above, you would be sure that you would hate these beliefs? The way I just personally defined the lack of human rights as horrible, also shows that I have my universal truths, however, this does not mean that I am right or wrong. This text is not about defining which morals should be accepted. Everything written here is about understanding the power of social environments and trying not to close your eyes to different perspectives. It is necessary to admit that the “wrong thing” can also be true in its particular social environment and the universal truth could be a more complex concept that should not be considered the possibility in the decision of right or wrong, opposites which would not exist. However, does this same statement about the concept of truth no longer constitute itself as the truth of what “really” the truth would be? The concept, then, does not exist, or does it? Tabula Rasa highlights that everything you are, has been designed as your experiences were happening and everything you know, has originated from different social institutions. You are part of the context and the context only exists because of you. Breathe in before making conclusions, because your new truths may still be written. ■

The Rasa Experiment A short story

By Eda Ramsay @official_eda_r

athinaramsay@hotmail.com

Two baby girls had been born at the same time from the same birthmother. They had the same brown hair, same light blue eyes, same shape of the nose and the structure of their faces were all the same. Taken from their birth mother from the moment they were exposed to the oxygen-sphere, to eliminate any risk of becoming poorer examination subjects. Instead of being given names with letters such as Alice and Becca, their names were 1070 and 1071. To keep their names shorter as a way to differentiate and call on them with ease, Zero and One became their nicknames. However, if they ever were accompanied by other children, because there were more than those two at this facility, their full names were used. Ten-seventy and Ten-seventy one were given the same kind of accomodation, the same nutritional stimuli, the same toys, the same books to read and were only allowed to have the same interactions with the personnel at the facility, all throughout their childhood. Nothing could be different, not even their experiences as children, which meant an ultimate control of the two at all times.

Cameras in every corner of the sleeping chambers, mirrors hiding surveillance rooms fitted with guards 24/7 and audio picked up from microphones. The girls had no privacy. The children were never allowed to get hurt, never allowed to get sick, or never allowed to be given special attention, unless it was caused with will. The goal of the experiment was to find out if the two girls could become the same person in a sense. If treated the same at all the stages simultaneously, with the same resources and the same environment, then they would also become the same person. The experiment was called ”Tabula Rasa, The environmental impact on the person ”. Zero and One were not the only ones involved with the experiment. Two boys; 1073 and 1074, who also were from the same birth mother, and they were undergoing the exact same treatment as the girls. Many more experiments were also in process with the same type of test structure, however, all with small differences, to see how the results would end up in the very end of it all. All of this had been inspired by the John Locke theory of the baby being a blank page, and as she was exposed to the world and in different ways interacted with it and depen-

ding on the environment she was born in, it would shape her, which often meant that all individuals became different. The Head of the TaRa Organization; Dr. Donard Holkburg, wanted to test this theory. The experiment went on and on, the children played their parts perfectly. No cracks or dents were found, and it seemed, for a very long time, that Dr. Holkburg’s goal with the two girls especially, would become true. 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, 19 years went by. The experiment kept on going. In the 20th year, the two girls were no longer children and their teenage years had gone by already. They became adult women. Everything had been the same for both of them. Dr. Holkburg finally took one at a time the girls to separate rooms. First he interviewed Zero and after her he asked the exact same questions to One. He expected to get the same answers. He expected the two to act the same way. He expected the two to like and dislike the same things. He expected the girls to have the same personalities, behavior and word choice. But he found that his expectations were not met.

game of Would you Rather. They got the question; ”Would you rather Stab out one of your eyes, or, would you rather cut off one of your thumbs?” And in front of the two girls, on a table a knife was laying. The implication being that they were supposed to act out on their choice as well. Zero, who had over the years become a much more sceptical and a rather rebellious woman who had found herself deciding to play their little game and gone on along with every command she was told. She raised an eyebrow and merely looked at the knife. Rather, she picked up the knife and kept it close. Over the years, she had inspected the facility and the personnel. She knew every corner and corridor, and she knew how to, and had the guts to escape, even if it meant taking lives in the process. One, had become the sheep of the facility. She had with all her might wished to be the best of the best at the facility. No questions had been asked from her mind nor lips, the existence had been accepted. Presented with the knife and the question, she as well picked up the knife, first she cut off one of her thumbs and then one of her eyes, no hesitation could be seen from her. She had given both. Anything for the facility. With that, Dr. Holkburg’s expectations were ruined. The exact same environment, and the exact same this and that, did not produce the same person, Tabula Rasa was about much much more. ■

After the interviews he gave the two girls a big written exam on all the topics which they had been taught. All the facts they had been taught, the teachers had given them the exact same lessons, homework and exams over the years. They had been studying at a given time every day. And yet, once the final exam was done and Holkburg later sat with the tests in his lap, looking through the answers, he found the two girls to be very different. The third try to prove Dr. Holkburg’s possibly wishful-thinking sort of theory and goal, was another test, but physical. Dr.Holkburg led one at a time the girls to the gymnastics area of the facility. Here Holkburg wished to prove that at least the girls would have the same skills physically. The two girls had been on a rather strict schedule to keep their bodily health, which meant exercising and dieting. The third test was performed through the two girls finishing an obstacle course to finish within a set time. However, as it might have been expected by this point, the results were not the same. The last test, Dr. Holkburg knew, could be a dangerous one. However, due to his frustration from the test results, and also from the desperation, he had after all spent all those years on the experiment. With a frown over his lips, he now performed the last test with the girls. This time, a moral choice one. The two girls would be shown the same scenario. A 23

I’ve got no strings to hold me down Text av Alva Bexell - a-bex@hotmail.com Illustration av Yulu Zhang

En ung kvinna kommer in i ett rum fyllt av datorer och sladdar, hon pratar livligt om sin pojkvän och vad de har gjort samma kväll. Hon sätter sig ner i en märklig stol – utan att sluta prata. En ung man i rutig skjorta och snedlugg hjälper henne, lyssnar på henne och aktiverar samtidigt stolen – hon och vi kastas tillbaka till minnesbilder av kvällens händelser och sedan ännu längre tillbaka: ett helt liv passerar revy. När det är över, sätter hon sig upp med ett blankt uttryck i ansiktet. ”Jag måste ha somnat” säger hon, ”ska jag gå?” ”Om du vill” svarar mannen. Kvinnan ställer sig upp och lämnar rummet utan ett spår av den livfullhet som hon kom in med. Scenen ovan kommer från Dollhouse, en kortlivad tv-serie skapad av Joss Whedon (känd för Buffy the vampire slayer och Avengers... och för att vara en dålig chef och äkta make). Kvinnan, spelad av Eliza Dushku, kallas Echo. Hon är en så kallad ”Doll” (docka). Befriad från personlighet och vilja lever hon i ett underjordiskt komplex tillsammans med andra “dockor”. De har alla varit vanliga personer som av en eller annan anledning gett sina kroppar till denna verksamhet. De styrs av ett gäng forskare och affärsidkare som har lärt sig att implantera nya personligheter i människor, som de sedan 24

kan skicka ut på uppdrag för kunder: oftast uppdrag av romantisk, kriminell eller sexuell natur. Givetvis är det hela bara tillgängligt för de stenrika och hålls hemligt för allmänheten. Konceptet med personlighetsimplantat har mycket potential och är på samma gång djupt problematiskt: det är med klarspråk en sorts sci-fiprostitution det rör sig om. Mannen i den rutiga skjortan är Topher, hjärnan bakom teknologin de använder. Han är full av självförtroende och tillförlit över sin skapelse. Givetvis sitter man och väntar på att något ska gå fel: glömmer dockorna verkligen allt varje gång deras temporära personligheter raderas? Finns det verkligen inget kvar av deras ursprungskaraktärer? Och kroppar som kan ladda ner åratals erfarenhet av kung-fu med några knapptryck, vad händer när de inte längre fogar sig i sin roll? Dollhouse är en sevärd och likvärdig kusin till Buffy – om än svår att få tag på – som erbjuder varierade historier i varje avsnitt, humor; mörker och action om vartannat. Även om den fadda bismaken som kommer ifrån avslöjanden om Joss Whedons beteendemönster bakom kameran, kan han inte helt självdestruera sina filmer och serier så enkelt. Roboten Chappie å andra sidan, i filmen med samma namn, är till skillnad från Echo och de andra dockorna i Dollhouse inte av kött och blod. Han (för robotarna kallas konsekvent för “han”, även när de saknar personlighet) är från början byggd för att utföra polisens jobb i ett våldsamt och dystopiskt Johannesburg, Sydafrika. Han programmeras med ett inkännande och humant AI av uppfinnaren Deon men kidnappas av ett kriminellt gäng som både tar hand om honom och utnyttjar honom för att stjäla bilar. Det är en mer cynisk idé om det oskrivna bladet som förmedlas här än i Dollhouse – både Chappie och Echo utnyttjas, båda utför våldsamma handlingar, bara hos Echo finns det ett intelligent motstånd mot det som hon blir ombedd och tvingad att göra. Chappie är istället som ett barn som tar efter sina fosterföräldrar och vill göra dem till lags till vilket pris som helst. De lär honom att gå som dem, att prata som dem, att skjuta som dem – helt emot de planer som Deon hade för sitt AI. Det är så klart också så, att varken Chappie eller Echo är oskrivna blad: Chappie är en robot konstruerad för att patrullera gatorna och utöva en viss typ av våld, och innan hon blev en docka var Echo en ung kvinna med egna åsikter och verkliga känslor. Den raderade mänskliga personligheten och den nyfödda roboten är bara skenbart tomma ytor: en programmerare som skapar något nytt har sina egna fördomar och kunskaper och kan inte alltid kontrollera vad den besjälar sin skapelse med. Den kan inte heller kontrollera vad skapelsen lär sig senare, när banden klipps. Chappie finns på Netflix. Dollhouse är för tillfället endast tillgängligt på DVD/Blu-Ray. ■

From the diary of Okezi Otuoba Instagram/Spotify/Apple Podcast: zeelicious diary

When words fail, silence rants.... Zeelicious diary.

Dear Diary

Tabula Rasa, a curse in disguise. Day 1 #107 Dear diary…. I left my name blank, because I don’t know who I am anymore. I wake up everyday with no memories of yesterday With you I get a glimpse of my past A chance for a fresh start Each new dawn, a crisp new page to continue life’s voyage. You are just a blank page, waiting to hear my plans and thoughts Now I am staring deep into this page and wondering Struggling to begin My mind is empty 26

So scared of getting it wrong again I am stuck in this white space, trying to create a life to fill this void But I fear, My thoughts are floating within oblivion. Day 2 #107 Dear diary…. Who am I today? I woke up this morning Alone and confused Drenched in fear, Fear of the unknown, the horror of not knowing has killed me a thousand times inside My heart ticks and rings, like an old clock in a church yard which calls for the morning prayers Am I living a double life? Because everyday is cliche, like I have been there already I guess I have down this road thousand times, it’s called memory lane I am, but a mind of one who has lost his memories Each time I look at the mirror, I see another Now tell me, who do you see when you look at me? I have become an enemy of my own being, Mistakes clutter my past in piles of trash, like a closet filled with skeletons Choosing to leave my past behind, I wake up every morning with nothing But a blank slate Ready to be written on Ready for things that shall unfold There are so many verses to fill this void But in days like this, words are scarce and expensive As I struggle and fumble with my pen, intimidated by this page My ideas begins to battle with structure, as rhythm and harmony takes on a journey Where has my creativity gone? Each time I see a blank paper I get inspired But not today. 27

Illustration by GuillermoValladares López

Day 3 #107 Dear diary…. As twilight melts away The morning fades in like a scene from a bad theatre production With sunrise piercing my face, Spreading around my room like an untreated infection The scent of the morning embraces my skin My pores tickles, to the gentle breeze it feels Rustle and bustles, the trees babbles Birds chirping, their chorus breaks the drone above my roof As I wake up to reality The reality of having to start everyday on a blank slate Tabula rasa has become my curse A blank day, Full of nothing Like an untouchable piece of canvas, waiting for a color burst and ink to rejuvenate it to life I am a blank book Yet one with a past, present and future My emotions and imaginations all locked up inside, waiting to be put down A page of opportunities, So empty Yet, completely powerful Invincible words, waiting to come alive My life is such a lonely journey, Because every morning I am rewritten I am like a silent scream My words have failed me, Now my silence rants I am like a blank cheque, Waiting to be eloquently written on by deep desires and wild imaginations My mind roars, its unfiltered thoughts on the page And behold a new story begins to unfold on this blank page But sadly.... Today is over, and again the page is done and turned Another chapter completed, waiting for tomorrow But the thoughts of Waking up into another blank page with no memories of today has crippled my sanity So now what? ■

Paint your slate PAINT YOUR SLATE

With the colours of autumn WITH THE COLOURS OF AUTUMN

Here you go: An autumnal colouring page for you to colour andAlmgren life. It Textfill andwith illustration by Hanna might not be clean or empty, and the contours might be limiting. However, you are Here you go:painter. An autumnal colouring page for you to fill withthe colour and life. might personal not be cleanpreference. or empty, and the the You are allowed to choose palette ofItyour contours might be limiting. However, you are the painter. You are allowed to choose the palette of your preference. You are welcome to add shapes and create new motifs. You are invitedpersonal to paint You are welcome to add shapes and create new motifs. You are invited to paintinside the black lines but you can also inside the black lines - but you can also choose to pretend they donʼt exist. Scribbchoose to pretend they donʼt exist. Scribb- le, scrabble, doodle and create the map of the autumn you want to experience. le, scrabble, doodle and create the map of the autumn you want to experience. Is Is this the semester you start watching the sunrise before class? Is this the right time for trying out new recipes in your thisAre the semester watching the sunrise beforeI wouldnʼt class? Isknow. thisBut theyou right time dorm kitchen? you, after all, ayou greatstart choir member or splendid letter writer? might. ■ for trying out new recipies in your dorm kitchen? Are you, after all, a great choir member or splendid letter writer? I wouldnʼt know. But you might.

Mask pool Illustration by Hampus Georgsson @hxmpus

Frankenstein + Tabula Rasa = sant? Text av Magda Sjödin Illustrationer av Sofia Grahn @sofiagrahn

sofia_grahn@hotmail.com

Finns det en koppling mellan begreppet Tabula Rasa och filmen Frankenstein? Det var frågan jag ställde mig när jag började skriva denna artikeln. Med hjälp av tidigare skrivna artiklar och andra faktasidor kommer jag, tillsammans med erfarna personer inom området försöka komma fram till om huruvida kopplingen är möjlig eller ej. Hur kan den svartvita välkända gamla roman skräckfilmen Frankenstein kopplas till temat i en modern skoltidning?

Moa Karlsson beskriver Filmen i en filmanalys från år 2017 med titeln ”Y9 Filmanalys av ”Frankenstein”. Filmen handlar om Victor Frankenstein, en ung adlig man som förlorar sin mamma. Sorgen skapar en ny glöd hos honom. Han vill skapa och återföda liv! Genom att experimentera som vetenskapsman syr Viktor ihop lik och med hjälp av fostervatten och elektricitet får han liv i det som vi nu känner igen som Frankensteins monster. Monstret flyr från labbet och måste lära sig att leva, som såklart är svårt i en värld där alla är rädda för honom. Monstret tvingas anpassa sig till vår värld så gått det går och får för första gången uppleva känslor som kärlek. Han känner själv alltså snart behovet över att vara älskad. Detta leder till att när monstret för första gången fått uppleva känslan av att vara sviken, vet han inte hur han ska reagera. Han mördar därför två personer i Viktors familj i form av en slags hämnd. Filmen Frankenstein är skriven under Romantiken. Enligt Wikipedia skapades alltså monstret Frankenstein under epoken där ”Det var känslan som skapade tillvaron”. Hur skulle då Frankenstein kunna anpassa sig i världen när han skapades utan känslor? Hur kopplas då denna film till själva begreppet Tabula Rasa? Det finns en självklar koppling till begreppets förklaring; att människan föds som ett blankt papper man ska fylla.

”.. när vi skapar något nytt blir det inte alltid som .. vi tänkt oss, vi tror vi skapat ett ont monster men .. . monstret är.. i själva verket bara missförstått. ” Han kommenterade sambandet mellan Tabula Rasa och Frankenstein och berättade många intressanta kopplingar. Bland annat menade han att när vi skapar något nytt blir det inte alltid som vi tänkt oss, vi tror vi skapat ett ont monster men monstret är i själva verket bara missförstått. Martin berättar ” Tabula Rasa är för mig tanken om att vi människor genom empiri och rationellt tänkande kan skapa en välfungerande värld med väl anpassade människor och fungerande människor”. Han fortsätter ”Men det blir inte alltid som vi tänkt oss, vi är inte tabula rasa, det är mer komplicerat än så, vägen är krokig.” I en intervju med Paul Clucas, en doktorand på Malmö Universitet som bland annat är legitimerad ämneslärare i psykologi, fortsatte diskussionen om begreppet Tabula Rasa och filmen Frankenstein. Den huvudsakliga frågan som vi diskuterade handlade om Victors anledning till skapandet av monstret. Paul tog upp frågor såsom: “Finns det samband mellan monstret och Victors sorg av förlusten av hans moder, att Victors känslor speglades i monstret? Kan då monstrets skapelse liknas med tabula rasa?” Vi diskuterade vidare om huruvida monstrets hjärna kunde hantera dessa känslor. Några begrepp som framkom var ‘kognitioner’ och ‘emotioner’ och Paul beskrev det som att det finns en medfödd struktur i hjärnan som styr beteenden. Ett exempel på detta är att vi bryr oss om någon annan, vilket visas i filmen då monstret hjälper familjerna. Det visar då att Monstret Frankenstein skapade hade vissa

“medfödda” kognitioner och då menade Paul att det inte riktigt var att “möta världen med ett blankt papper” vilket Tabula Rasa faktiskt innebär. Efter intervjun lämnades jag med flera oknutna trådar och inte lika säker på min första koppling. Var det verkligen såhär det skulle sluta? I en artikel på hemsidan Vi.se kan man också läsa om Frankensteins monster. Skribenten Josefin Olevik skriver om hur monstret “får för lite kärlek”. Namnet på artikeln är “Till försvar för: Frankensteins monster”. Ett intressant citat från texten är “Det är en ganska usel start att födas som monster.” Hon ställer även oss läsare frågan om monster inte är mer än en ful varelse. Men är då verkligen Frankenstein + Tabula Rasa = Sant? eller är Frankenstein + Tabula Rasa = Falskt? Det kan vara svårt att koppla monstret till konceptet av Tabula Rasa, främst på grund av hur omöjligt det filosofiska konceptet är. Däremot finns det några argument som stärker kopplingen. Jag skulle säga att det faktiskt mest handlar om hur du som individ tolkar Tabula Rasa och hur du sätter det i perspektiv. Men en sak är säker, det är en väldigt intressant diskussion. Just att försöka få fram iden om att människan föds som ett tomt papper. Speciellt när det handlar om ett känt monster. Det är ett väldigt roligt samtalsämne att ta upp på nästa familjemiddag och kommer definitivt ge de närvarande gästerna en tankeställare! ■

6 ways to survive the winter By Oskar Syrén @o.syren

Sweden is famous for great nature and a wholesome lifestyle. And summer in Sweden truly is magical. There is just one catch: Winter. The problem with winter is that all the things in nature that give joy, go to sleep for six months. And then what are you gonna do? The starting point for the poem found alongside this list, is that every year when spring arrives, you are surprised by the sudden feeling of being alive – like, alive for real. And it’s like that every year. The winter is so long that you forget what being properly alive feels like. Over and over again, winter after winter. But then spring comes and you are startled by the feelings you had forgotten that you can feel. It’s not that you were necessarily feeling depressed until that point. But when those birds start singing and the sun warms your skin, man do you realise your emotions were hibernating. This yearly event is known in Sweden as feeling the spring feelings – vårkänslor. Even though this mini-katharsis is quite an experience that I do hope that you will have the chance to go through during your stay in Sweden, it might be appropriate to provide you newcomers with a few tricks to ease your existence during the dark months. What you need to do is to get creative with finding ways to stir up your spirit. Here are my personal favourites. 1. Stare into a fireplace Staring into the dancing flames is a great way to warm up your frozen winter soul. Order a drink and enjoy the fireplace in the hotel lobby of Radisson Blu Hotel.

2. Winter bathing Perhaps my favourite aspect of the local culture here, is the practice of building saunas on stilts in the sea. The idea of open-air winter bathing can seem quite terrifying of course. But hear me out: You sit in the hot sauna with naked strangers until you can’t take it anymore. Then you will want to jump in the sea. You feel good while doing it, but you feel amazing afterward. Try one of our three kallbadhus (Cold bath houses) in Sibbarp, Ribban or Bjärred. It is also a great way to get in touch with locals. 3. Keep up the running The weather always looks worse from your window than it actually is. And you might think it’s too cold, but it’s not. I run in snow. Use an old sweater and scarf (both not too thick) while warming up. Tie the sweater around your waist if you get too warm. When you show to yourself that you are the master of your mobility – not the weather – you will feel a peculiar sense of liberation. 4. Go for recreational swimming indoors The feeling of weightlessness in the water makes you forget about everything, including the rain and dusk outside. Malmö’s public indoor baths are Simhallsbadet, Hylliebadet and Kockum Fritid. Look out for good daytime swimming deals that allow you to go swimming for 30–40 kr/week. 5. Go to museums A visit to an art museum can give you some muchneeded colourful stimulus when the outside world is all grey. Malmö is not famous for its museums, but in spite of this there are some decent institutions – and they are affordable or free to enter. Check out Malmö konsthall, Moderna museet, Malmö konstmuseum and Skissernas museum in Lund. 6. Tropical therapy in the greenhouses of the Botanical Garden in Lund If nothing else works, this one should do the trick. Charge on chlorophyll and moist tropical heat, surrounded by the most romantic of gardens on the other side of the glass. Inside you roam with free-going Qual birds – you will have to have a heart of stone not to be totally cuted out. The greenhouse complex with a large collection of exotic plants is open Tuesday to Sunday 11.00-15.00, free of charge.

Århundradets sommar Vi sitter mitt i mörkret när det nya året nalkas men vintern har blott börjat det är långt till fågelsången och kvittret i din mage det som känns vid första värmen och det där speciella ljuset det nordiska till elva är så fjärran att du glömt det Men det kommer, kvitter-pirret som en överraskning till våren Det är det som är det fina ja, det läker alla såren Det är överraskningen som bär mening till din bana Det är nåd att inte veta när vi tröttnar på vår vana men likväl om otur väntar

så om otur eller välgång är ditt ödes lott så säg: ”Jag är glad att inte veta, och jag väljer själv min väg” Kvittret i din sommarmage sporrar dig att söka livet – till att bli ditt bästa jag du tar ingenting för givet därför når du lyckans dag Ta ett steg i nyårsnatten känn hur allt blir nytt igen tänk att cykeln börjar om något ändrad denna gång Vi blir trötta på oss själva men i natten finns en bot Överraskningen som väntar där du nyss satt ned din fot spirar århundradets sommar ■

35 Fotografi av Magda Sjölin, @magdasfotografier

Malmö through international eyes Text by Marieke Danne Illustration by Yulu Zhang

By leaving the train station in Malmö for the first time I entered a new chapter. Moving abroad gifted me a new city with nearly 350.000 inhabitants. The location as well as all these people were a blank slate to me. However, this state of affairs was not to last long. Within my first weeks I got to know Sweden and people’s habits pretty well and I gathered my own experiences and challenges of being an international in Sweden. But let’s start at the beginning. I was incredibly looking forward to my new phase of life in Malmö, so I started my journey to Sweden full of enthusiasm. The initial euphoria was dampened when, after my arrival, I was almost run over by a cyclist as I left the station. Hello Malmö! Don’t you also have right before left? Someone could have told me that Malmö is the purest cycling city à la Amsterdam. Recovering from the initial shock, I decided not to let myself be deterred too quickly and optimistically (after this time looking around thoroughly to the right and left to make sure I wouldn’t meet a bicycle a second time) set off on my walk to the flat. On the way, I passed countless small cafés, restaurants and bars as well as several e-scooters parked next to the pavements. Sometimes they were lying across the pavement, so I couldn’t avoid giving them a chance and had to try them out for myself. After some initial mistrust of this new technological phenomenon, I became enthusiastic about how fast you can get from A to B with the scooters; that 36

the radius for using my new means of transport was limited, however, I learned in an unconscionable way after only a short time. While I was once again running late and rejoicing all my way over the minutes of catching up thanks to the e-scooters, my scooter started beeping loudly at my destination because it was not allowed to be parked at the destination thanks to a prohibited zone. So I had to drive half the distance back again and then walk for what felt like an eternity to the finish, so that in the end I was late for my appointment again. Thanks to the invention of the forbidden zones! In the end, I was happy to have a bicycle with which I could jet to all the parties in the future, completely independent of the zones. Speaking of parties - how early do Swedes actually party? That was a real culture shock for me. While everyone in my home country is getting ready, everyone in Sweden is already on their way home. Or maybe they just value a consistent sleeping rhythm, who knows... But that was not the only change I had to face. I also found out that I can no longer buy my beer whenever and wherever I want. We don’t even need to talk about the high prices of alcohol. If, despite all these hurdles, I managed to find the motivation to go out, the final opponent awaited in the clubs in the form of the audience itself. Thanks to silent Swedes, making new contacts actually became a real challenge for me for the first time. But don’t despair, just wait because once Swedes get going, the conversations also get going very quickly. In many of these conversations I learned over time that with Swedes it’s a case of hard shell, soft core. The Swedes are kind people and even if I was confronted with the odd adjustment, they all welcome us internationals with open arms - ready to fill our empty pages with eventful memories like mine. ■

Ett oskrivet blad Tabula Rasa. Text och illustration av Jonathan Gartmark mr.Jonathan.Gartmark@gmail.com

Alla tar, genom sitt liv, ett eller flera beslut som innebär starten av ett nytt kapitel. Det vill säga påbörja något helt nytt, ovetandes och osäker över utfallet. Det kan vara ett nytt jobb, en påbörjan av studier, en ny livsstil eller bara något enkelt så som nya matrutiner. Som illustrerat i bilden är vi alla nakna när vi går in i den nya fasen och med tiden får vi kläder och intryck som färgar oss på nytt. Som titeln på bilden nämner, lämnar han rock and roll - livet för att så ge sin in på det oskrivna bladet som är hans nya liv. ■

Canceling Culture En utfrysningskultur? Av Freja Johansson - @freja.johansson - freja.johansson97@gmail.com Illustrationer: Sofia Grahn - @sofiagrahn - sofia_grahn@hotmail.com

Canceling culture är ett viralt digitalt fenomen, som gestaltas genom att offentliga karaktärer uttrycker eller beter sig sexistiskt rasistiskt, homofobiskt och/eller transfobiskt på sina sociala plattformar och blir därigenom avföljd och med störst sannolikhet kritiserad. Canceling culture praktiska gestaltning innebär därigenom att den kollektiva massan reagerar på moraliskt tvivelaktiga uttalande och personifierar det offentliga ögat; och gestaltas där som den offentliga bödeln.

Detta låter säkerligen hårt då utfallet kan leda till handfasta konsekvenser för offentliga personer, men låt oss komma ihåg hur Soran Ismail fick gråta ut i SVT:s kanaler i 60 minuter samtidigt som han utreds för sexuella övergrepp och ofredanden. Även Paolo Roberto fick i TV4s livesändning beklaga sig över hur personligt påfrestande det har varit att vara under det offentliga betraktande ögat när han blev dömd för sexköp.Är det meningen att vi skall vända andra kinden till? Ge dem en tabula rasa. Innan vi besvarar den frågan låt oss gräva djupare. Offentliga personer kan likställas med företagsorganisationer där dem själva personifierar företaget och dess ideal via deras handlingar. Offentliga personer blir deras varumärke, och deras handlingar reflekterar därför direkt deras varumärke. Samtidigt

har vi som samhälle konsumentfrihet där vi kan och bör välja vad och vem vi konsumerar- det vill säga ett fritt konsumentval. Att offentliga personer sedan blir personligt kränkt av att bli ”cancelled” visar både på en okunskap kring hur kändisskap är en handelsvara; men det signalerar även en form av självberättigande narcissism kring hur Ismail och Roberto anser sig vara berättigade en plats i rampljuset och den mediala värmen. Även efter de begått lagbrott. Offentligheter får stå till svars för sina handlingar, vare sig det handlar om sexköp, rasistiska uttalanden eller klassförakt. För offentligheter kan den mediala utfrysningen i bästa av världar leda till självrannsakan, där dem ser vart dem felade och omvärderar sina ideal och börjar bejaka det påstådda okränkbara människovärdet. Det vill säga gör om och gör rätt. Där vi som offentlig bödel ej

ger dem tabula rasa, utan snarare empati och förståelse om dem är villiga att genomgå det personliga arbetet och ber om ursäkt, beroende på brottet självfallet. Samtidigt är fenomenet cancel culture mer komplext än så. Den digitala ”call out-kulturen” kan resultera i ett förenklat perspektiv av verkligheten, som inte tillåter nyanser; där personer kan bli offentligt dömda för ett uttalande de gjorde för 10, 20, 30 år sedan när samhällsklimatet hade en annan värderingskarta. En del av samhällsdiskursen vill därför klassificera cancel culture som digital mobbning eller social utfrysning som grundar sig i en inneboende rädsla för den raka diskussionen, vilket endast leder till att vi, den folkliga mobben väljer syndabockar i ett försök att säkerställa vår egen personliga moraliska integritet. Där offentligheter får bära allas våra synder. Oavsett personlig inställning är det dock viktigt att reflektera över hur det världsomfattande digitala fenomenet faktiskt påverkar samhället; om det resulterar i åsiktskorridoren faktiskt smalnar av eller om vi höjer rösten för de marginaliserade. Om vi i verkligheten,

liksom i vårt flöde börjar avfölja alla som vi ej instämmer med, lär världsbilden bli både snävare och förenklad. Åsiktskorridoren kommer därigenom bli allt smalare, där det är naturligt att undra om vi själva slutändan kommer kunna gå igenom? Det vill säga kommer den moraliska ribban vara för hög även för oss själva. I stället föreslår jag att vi omdefinierar hur vi ser och tolkar fenomenet cancel culture. Att individer vill slippa ta del av ständiga sexistiska, rasistiska, homofobiska och transfobiska uttalande på deras sociala plattformar är inget underligt; när verkligheten redan är fylld av dem. Trots detta är det förmodligen hälsosamt att utsättas för olikartade åsikter, om bara för att bli medvetna om hur olika resonemang ser ut. Cancel culture kanske i stället bör översättas till en form av digital “vett och etikett-manual” skapad av gräsrotsmänniskan, kring hur vi faktiskt bör handskas med varandra. Där vi som kollektiv tillsammans får sätta ribban kring hur vi ska prata och behandla varandra; och därigenom föra det offentliga samtalet vidare på vänligare termer. Där mina vänner, har vi en uppfriskande tanke. ■

From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancel_culture

The thought of leaving everything behind So desirable yet so scary The way we want our history to be wiped out Even then there is ink left Penetrating through the paper

Wanting to be acknowledged Never forgotten We keep wiping till we’re bleeding And the paper is long gone Shattered in invisible pisces,

And still The ink is all over the floor Entering our veins, Yet, we have not complied it Our history is reflected in our eyes

No matter how often we try to close them Or hind it behind the lather of a green tear The forever lastning oblivion Non existing fear ■

Text and photograph by Dominika Pizoń dominikapizon@icloud.com

Green Slate By Samantha Stedtler & Hannah Katinka Beck

Do you have a clean green slate?

This is what we asked four students from Skane, who are trying to live environmentally friendly. They told us their stories of success and failure, and gave insights into a generation that is deeply involved in environment protection - so deeply, that criticism turns into judgement. What do you think when you hear about having a clean environmental state? Dre: I think of a society where you avoid carbon dioxide emissions, don’t harm the environment, focus on conservation of nature, don’t kill wild animals and protect nature. So basically protecting nature from harm and maintaining a balance of everything. But in the end, is it really possible to protect the environment so that nature won’t come back at you? I believe that even if you try your best, at some point nature will come after us humans, think for example about natural disasters such as earthquakes. When it comes to having a clean slate, the western world has done a good job in trying to work on that but they haven’t really achieved it. In many developing countries they don’t really think about achieving a clean slate because there are so many other factors to worry about, like making the economy work and becoming more technologically advanced. I don’t think you can blame them. During industrialisation, all the western countries that are now working on achieving a clean slate have come up with so many different types of machines that were harmful for nature and ejected a lot of carbon dioxide, and only later they became more cautious.

Do you think that you as a person have a clean slate? I think that has to do with the background you are coming from, that affects you. Where I’m coming from in Africa, all those things were not seen as a big deal. When I came to Europe I never saw someone burn waste next to the roadside, people recycle. In Nigeria you burn your waste. Being here, I’m trying to fit into society, I’m trying to change. I haven’t really done a good job with living environmentally friendly back in Africa. But now that I’m in Europe, I am trying to fit into the system and I’m trying to recognize the importance of nature. Did you ever feel like people judged you because you didn’t do a good job on living environmentally friendly? The people that judged me were the ones that call themselves vegans or vegetarians. They push me like ‘don’t consume this, are you a killer?’, stuff like that. People approach you and they try to push it on you to go green. I guess going green has to do with maintaining a clean slate? In Africa like I said, all these things are not really taking off and I’m still kind of new here so I’m not sure if people are going to judge me, but as I said, I’m doing my best to fit into the system.

Dre Photograph by Hannah Katinka Beck

How do you feel about that judgement? I feel like everybody is entitled to their opinion. Everybody as they like. You can’t just tell me to start eating things like ours and really initially .. because of these particuar opintions. I dont really get upset consined when people judge me and dont bother myself generally. But I feel like people in this city mind their business a lot. They can be very reserved. When they don’t like something, I feel like you can see it in their body language… they don’t really come and yell at you. Do you think that platforms like Facebook or Instagram are contributing to this atmosphere of judging or shaming other people? I would say that social media has contributed to promoting the clean slate. I myself follow vegans on Instagram that inspire me. I feel like it has done a good job rather than that it has led to people judging others. I think there’s a general stereotype when it comes to people in Africa and when it comes to how we eat. Basically we are nomads. Animals are the primary source of our food. It feels sometimes as if people see us like we just eat anything without control. I guess it’s just differences in culture.

But are you feeling comfortable in Malmö now? Do you feel like you can feel at home? I feel like malmö is a very cosmopolitan city. Different people from different places who don’t really judge you and are quite diverse in culture. My experience is that people here have been warm, accepting and understanding. When there are people who say they don’t eat certain kind of things they say it respectfully without hurting my feelings, they say it goes against their religion or they’re vegan. Is there any achievement or lifestyle choice that’s connected to having a clean slate that you’re proud of? In Nigeria we have air pollution because of all the traffic, the climatic conditions are so harsh, it can be really hot and when it’s cold it gets really cold. When I came to Sweden I felt like the air was so fresh. So I think in the end it goes a long way to protect your own health. I want to preserve my culture and lifestyle, sometimes I walk in the streets of Malmö with my traditional clothes on and prepare food from home.

What do you think does “clean environmental slate” mean? How do you interpret this term? Florence: In my view it would mean to try to live the most sustainable, ecological way, but without putting too much stress on yourself. Trying to do your best to be environmentally friendly.

Florence 46

Photograph by Hannah Katinka Beck

What does that mean for you? What would be the best you could do without stressing yourself? There are a lot of things that are quite easy, a matter of habit: turning off the light when you leave the room and not letting the tapwater run. It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but I think for some people it could be something that they could change, without too much difficulty. Also, not using too much screen time. And maybe you don’t need to order everything online, you can also go to libraries and borrow stuff. Not owning too much. Sharing. Have you ever had such a situation when you were stressed because you thought you couldn’t do enough? Yeah. But more on a systemic level. You easily fall in that kind of trap when you look at all the problems and climate disasters and so on, then you think: I can’t do anything to induce change. But do you still think that the individual matters?

end? I mean, if you really go that far, then the best would be to not exist at all. That’s not an excuse to use the car, but I also use it not just to drive around and emit carbon dioxide for nothing. There’s a purpose. I use it, for example, when friends ask me to help them moving or something like that. Do you have the urge to explain to other people why you have that car now? I think so. And how do you feel about that? I feel guilty. But to a certain extent. It’s not that I can’t sleep because I have a car. In America, for example, there are a lot of people who have SUVs and don’t feel guilty. Why do you think that is?

I do think so. I still think that many individuals change something. So, maybe not you as a specific individual, but the mass of all the individuals, of course, can change something.

I guess it’s all about society’s views and it may be an example of missing infrastructure. So, people may be forced to use cars, whereas here in Sweden or in Europe, you have good infrastructure with trains and public transportation that you could use, that it is more matter of money here.

Have you ever met a person that, in your opinion, isn’t doing enough? That he or she hasn’t got an environmentally clean slate?

You told me that you use social media like Instagram or Snapchat. Have you ever posted a video or picture of your car there?

Quite a lot, but then I’m also trying to think about their background and situation they are in. Not everyone can afford or live your lifestyle. When I look at friends from the Dominican Republic, for example, and they’re posting pictures of how they travel and use airplanes and so on, I’m like … Maybe that’s something I wouldn’t do so much anymore. But I’m in this privileged situation that I’m living in Europe. I’ve already been to some places around the world, and it is still possible for me to travel around Europe and see a lot of places without using airplanes.

No. Maybe only in my personal stories. Of course, my friends are allowed to say something, criticize. I think I could have a good discussion with them. … You are trying constantly to defend yourself or defend these environmentally friendly values. But at the same time, you are not like that perfect kid, you’re not doing exactly what you’re defending.

And how would you react if another person judged you because of your behavior? I actually had some discussions in my family because I am using a car, which is quite old – a diesel car which uses a lot of gas. So, it’s really not environmentally friendly to use that car. And I was questioning myself about whether I should come to Sweden by car, from Germany. It’s a car that no one uses at home. And I got a lot of critique, which I approve of, I agree with them. My brother said: why do you study environmental studies and still drive a car? That doesn’t go together! But then how far do you go? You can do radical emission reduction yourself, but where does it

What are you proud of yourself concerning that “clean environmental slate”? Which obviously doesn’t exist … I always tried to be engaged and informed. Especially since I started studying my bachelors, I got more aware of environmental issues. Then I got engaged in different student organizations like the green youth in Germany, where we did a lot of activism. And now I’m working at the Circle Center [editor’s note: in Lund] as an officer. I think we reached something there! Organizing this library of things where people can come and borrow stuff, promoting the idea of sharing community, sharing economy. It was really cool to see that. You can, on an individual level, move something.

Thomas

Photograph by Hannah Katinka Beck

What do you think of when you hear ‘clean environmental slate’? Thomas: The first thing that comes to my mind is having a clean conscience. Clean in an ethical and moral way. But I guess you could also interpret a clean slate as being neutral or unaware of the topic. So there could be different ways of understanding it. How do you think of yourself in that context? Do you have a clean slate? No, definitely not. I think it’s impossible to have a 48

completely clean slate. Just by being alive you affect things in one way or another. I think it’s impossible to be 100% environmentally friendly or environmentally beneficial because you need food to sustain yourself and that by itself is some kind of negative environmental impact. Especially by being born and raised in Sweden or the western world in general, one is very much climate unfriendly and the slate is quite dirty. You could make some individual lifestyle choices and behave in a more proper way, avoid flights, eat vegan etc., but just being a child to parents who are not completely poor in Sweden will always involve having one or two cars and going on vacations for example. I was born in 1992 and I guess people who are from that generation didn’t hear

anything about climate change up until they were 12 or 13 at least. Children nowadays seem more aware and now it could maybe happen that when you’re 6 years old you say “no i don’t want to take an airplane”. How do you feel about that now? I’m not burdened by it and don’t feel ashamed. I don’t have Klimatångest (ed. note: eco-anxiety) either. However I do feel bad for different kinds of biodegradation, different environments being destroyed or species being wiped out. Often coupled with poor working conditions, this kind of post-/neo-colonialism, human rights issues. I’m very worried about climate injustice; like how big companies exploit people in poor countries, at the same time damaging people and social relations and the general society in the countries where they’re extracting natural resources, destroying human lifes and other lifes. It makes me sad when I think about it but I don’t feel an individual responsibility for all of those high level events happening that you can’t really affect as an individual. Has someone ever judged you as an individual or made you feel ashamed about your choices? Not really in that I’ve been deeply hurt by it. I am rarely involved with strongly idealistic people. I don’t have friends who are angry with me for e.g.not being vegan. I would say that my social circle is pretty tolerant and I think of myself as being tolerant as well. I think there is a good level of understanding that you can’t be a perfect person all of the time. You talked about idealism, do you think that idealism leads to judgement? Which kind of idealism do you mean? Yes, I think that’s a clear connection. And I mean any kind of idealism. People who are passionate about something tend to be more aggressive when it comes to defending or imposing their views on others. It’s a virtue to be passionate about something but not pushing your agenda on others constantly. I think its a fine line, you should be able to be passionate but in a more constructive way. not just by shaming people whose actions you don’t like. Do you think this culture of shaming is connected to social media like Facebook? Do you use these platforms? I’m on Facebook but personally I’m not much on social media. I guess the general view of our times is that social media enables social movements to arise and to be more powerful and to have more impact because it can spread different kinds of ideas quicker than newspapers.

Do you think it could also help people to sympathise with each other and become more tolerant? Maybe, but I think the limitation of social media is the kind of depth you can convey. I believe that things you share on social media are not very deep in a sense that you can get a short and provocative statement across really easily and that’s more or less what happens all of the time with social media and I’m not really a fan of that and i think its intrinsically polarising to communicate in that way. That’s a good point. There was an interview this week with Frances Haugen who had been working as product manager for Facebook and who talked about the algorithm being programmed to present content that provokes anger in people. Yes I think it’s hard to spread tolerance through social media like that.Of course it can be done but it’s very inefficient because you’re working against the algorithm and the way these platforms are constructed. They are not made for teaching to be tolerant. I guess you can make people angry and have some kind of revolution but if we’re talking about spreading tolerance and understanding, it is better to do it face to face in a more social context. Is there something that you wouldn’t compromise with, that would be a deal breaker if someone did it? For me at least that would be being friends with or dating or living in the same kollektiv with people who are actively working in the financial sector. because if I put the blame somewhere I think it’s on capitalism and those people who are very profit-focussed, it could be a company or organisation that doesn’t have a ‘clean slate’. It is very much in the financial sector on the stock market and so and i have a very hard time to sympathise with that. I think it is just greed that motivated people to take such jobs or study how to be a --trader. so i think that would be a dealbreaker. Is there any achievement that you’re proud of that has anything to do with environmental activism or lifestyle? Yes, once I lived for two years “off-grid” on a farm with seven or eight people having no electricity and no running water, growing our own vegetables, and had some chickens and two goats. I had hardly any rent at all to pay and didn’t buy anything except for food. I think I could say that I lived very climate-friendly. I did not travel anywhere and took the train three times a year. And was very focused on building my complete life in this one small village, like all of my needs had to be satisfied from within this village. When i moved there i was very convinced that i would never have a wage job. As it turned out I got a job because you do need money to some extent but I only worked one day a week. It was definitely the period of life when I lived as climate friendly as I have ever done. 49

What do you think when you hear ‘clean environmental state’?

Is there someone who you think is inspiring when it comes to an environmentally friendly lifestyle/ activism?

Johanna: I guess it can mean different things, like being climate neutral or it can describe an environment that has not been influenced by any human action.

There are some people who are working within permaculture who I think are inspiring. The permaculture movement in itself is already inspiring and there are different movements, like e.g. one group of people that is self-organised and that travels to different places that have undergone a catastrophe. They arrive long before other organisations such as the red cross, which need plenty of time because they have longer decision making processes before taking action and which need to take a lot of resources, for instance water bottles, with them. This group I talked about works with the conditions they find at the spot when they arrive and then they collect material to build containers for collecting rainwater and so on.

Do you think you have a clean environmental slate? I know that I don’t. But it also depends on whether you see me as an individual or as part of a group within society. I buy food on a regular basis and that food is produced in a way that damages the environment, even if it is produced in the least damaging way, like when it is ecological or locally produced. Is having a clean slate something you work towards? Yes I do, but in my opinion it requires a lot of knowledge and it is something that should be taken step by step. It means to live your life in a different way and I feel like I don’t know enough about it yet for that i could live like that. Have people ever judged you? Yes, it is something I have experienced, for example when eating meat. I have been travelling by plane sometimes but I’m not sure if anyone judged me for that. The friends I have right now are quite tolerant. Do you sometimes think that others don’t have a clean slate and do you judge them for that? Yes, especially if I know that people are not doing their best in most things. I guess when there’s a lot of things where someone just takes chances and isn’t very thorough with what they do. When it feels like they don’t care, then I judge them. Apart from that, when people don’t know anything about living environmentally friendly it feels bad because it’s like we’re living in two different worlds. Which topics do you think are most important right now? There’s several… food production, the forest industry, biodiversity… It’s very much about wholeness. I would say that if we don’t want to destroy the environment, we have to live in a completely different way than we do now and if we don’t learn how to do that or don’t prepare enough, we will get into trouble. Of course you could lie down and die if you don’t want to be a burden to the environment, but if you don’t want that, if you want to live, there’s a lot that society has to learn to be able to survive.

Has it happened that people didn’t take you seriously because you did something that was bad for the environment? Again, I think of vegans that you speak to and at some point start to think ‘I guess we got our information from completely different sources’. And they talk about numbers which they got from the page of the UN and then they usually look at industrial agriculture, but when it comes to other topics that involve animals, such as the biologic cycle, they still say it’s bad for the environment. Like, I think it’s quite obvious that there are many things in society that are unsustainable and everyone lives unsustainably in many different ways. And then there’s for example vegans that only care about one thing and don’t take the rest into account and they think you’re a bad person because you don’t do that one thing. There are also these people for whom it is very important that everything is locally produced and who maybe grow vegetables in their own garden, I think that can also go into a direction where only that one aspect matters and nothing else. Is there something that you wouldn’t compromise with? No, for me it’s more about the accumulation of everything. Like when people do a lot of stuff that is not okay. Is there something you are proud of? When I was a child, I went to Waldorf school where we always got vegetarian organic food. Later I went to a folkhögskola where we were served meat, and I noticed that it made me feel bad and I realised that I had been proud before of eating vegetarian food. However that was more of a group decision and not really an individual choice I had made from the start. So I guess

Johanna that your social environment does have a big impact on how you behave, even though of course you can choose your surroundings yourself to a certain extent. Besides, I attended a gymnasium for agriculture with a specialisation in ecology which I’m a bit proud of. ■

Photograph by Hannah Katinka Beck

QUIZ Vad kan du om Malmö?

Ringa in det svaret du tror är rätt och kolla in facit på sista sidan! Quiz by Magda Sjölin

Fråga 1:

Fråga 2:

A: Linje 8 B: Linje 12 C: Linje 4

A: 106,7 m hög B: 190,4 m hög C: 230,2 m hög

Fråga 4:

Fråga 5:

Vad hette den första spårvagnen som gick igenom Malmö?

Vad har Malmöhus slott tidigare använts som (bland annat)? A: En bank B: Flyktingläger C: Ett stadsarkiv

Fråga 7:

När öppnades Emporia shopping center? A: 2012 B: 2015 C: 2009

Fråga 10:

När grundades Malmö universitet? (då känd som Malmö högskola) A: 2001 B: 1998 C: 1972

Illustrations by Simine Azarnoush - simine.e.a@gmail.com

Hur många meter hög är byggnaden “Turning torso”?

Hur lång är öresundsbron? A: 2679 m lång B: 7845 m lång C: 10456 m lång

Fråga 3:

Vad kallades Malmö innan? A: Elbogen B: Nya Lödöse C: Halm

Fråga 6:

Vad var medelåldern i Malmö kommun år 2020? A: 22,4 år B: 42,3 år C: 38,5 år

Fråga 8:

Fråga 9:

A: Borgarskolan B: Malmö Latinskola C: S:t Petriskolan

A: Limhamn B: Toftanäs C: Arlöv

Vilken är Malmös äldsta skola?

Vilken stadsdel tillhör INTE Malmö?

QUIZ

What do you know about Malmö? Circle the answer you think is correct and check the results on the last page! Quiz by Magda Sjölin

Illustrations by Simine Azarnoush - simine.e.a@gmail.com

Question 1:

Question 2:

A: Line 8 B: Line 12 C: Line 4

A: 106.7 m high W: 190.4 m high C: 230.2 m high

Question 4:

Question 5:

What was the name of the first tram that went through Malmö?

What has Malmö Castle previously been used for (amongst other things)? A: A bank B: Refugee camp C: A city archive

Question 7:

When did the Emporia shopping center open? A: 2012 B: 2015 C: 2009

How many meters high is the building ”Turning torso”?

How long is the Öresund Bridge? A: 2679 m long W: 7845 m long C: 10456 m long

Question 8:

Which is Malmö’s oldest school? A: Borgarskolan B: Malmö Latin School C: S: t Petriskolan

Question 3:

What was Malmö called before? A: Elbogen B: Nya Lödöse C: Straw

Question 6:

What was the average age in Malmö municipality in 2020? A: 22.4 years B: 42.3 years C: 38.5 years

Question 9:

Which district does NOT belong to Malmö? A: Limhamn B: Toftanäs C: Arlöv

Question 10:

When was Malmö University founded? (then known as Malmö University) A: 2001 B: 1998 C: 1972

10 places Tabula Rasa struck in Malmö Text and graphics by Oskar Syrén @o.syren

The history of urban planning is a history full of tabula rasa. From the very laying-out of a street grid over virgin land, to the commonplace eradication or replacement of structures that have up to that point dominated the city; the interest in what has been handed down from the past has been nearly null in urban planning – until just recently.

oday, at least in the best case, we treat cities like historical treasures. The structures that have been formed over centuries are seen as chapters in a living history book. They are believed to carry meaning and identity for those that inhabit the city today. I believe the recently awakened interest in preservation also has something to do with the beauty that stems from the manual and nature-based building crafts of the past. We are not able to produce the same richness of experience with the industrial production methods used for building houses today. Therefore, beautiful houses have become a finite and shrinking resource. Here are 10 places where urban tabula rasa struck in Malmö. Some are long forgotten, and now appreciated by the locals. Some are not. 1. Caroli Six medieval streets and six blocks with cute old houses were levelled to make space for a shopping mall, parking garage and modern apartments in the 1960’s. Along with adjacent demolitions this halved the size of Malmö’s Old Town. 2. Lugnet and Triangeln Ever wondered why the city is so weird and inconsistent south of the Canal? Extensive demolitions took place here in the 70’s to make place for traffic and modern apartments with a decent living standard. A working-class neighbourhood similar to Kirseberg was erased off the face of the earth. 3. Kronprinsen Decorative and very solid brick buildings from an abandoned military garrison were torn down for this Malmö landmark. This could have developed into a place similar to the famous Christiania in Copenhagen, which occupies former barracks. But it was not to be. 4. Södergatan Less talked of than other sites affected by the demolition years of the 70’s, Malmö’s main shopping street has suffered much from this period. Having lost its former delicate balance between high and low buildings, as well as some architectural gems, it is today a dark and eclectic passage along Malmö’s north-south axis.

5. Davidshall Although hard to believe today, this was once an industrial zone belonging to the great Kockum shipyard. Wiped out and redeveloped with great taste in the 1920s, this is today one of Malmö’s finest urban spaces. 6. Kanalen Like the name suggests, Malmö (“Gravel-island”) has always been surrounded by water. However, the city isle was substantially enlarged when the city’s defensive walls were torn down in the 1800’s. The reconstruction works gave us today’s broad and straight Canal in exchange for the narrow moat that had been zig-zagging around the city’s grassy bastions, which were topped with windmills and grazing sheep. 7. Slottet A city-area similar in size to today’s Gamla väster was levelled to make space for the construction of the Malmöhus Castle in the 1500’s. Today we enjoy Kungsparken in its place. 8. Stortorget Few Swedish cities have a square as grand as Malmö’s Stortorget. And it did not come about by accident – it was an act of active urban planning in the 1500’s. The protestant reformation opened the opportunity to clear the site of a former monastery for this great marketplace. 9. Landfills for the harbour What can be more tabula rasa than building a city on the water? When Stortorget was established, the open sea lay just two blocks down the street. Today, the coastline has been moved out to Scaniaparken, 2 km away from the old heart of the city. 10. Kockumskranen All Malmöites my age or older associate Malmö with the enormous white crane that used to stand at today’s Dockan in the western harbour. When the Kockum shipyard went bankrupt, the question everyone was asking was what would happen to the city’s great landmark. Malmö went for its patent anti-nostalgic approach: The crane was sold and shipped off to South Korea, and Malmö built itself a twisted new, white landmark.

De var så säkra De var så säkra på att segra Allt det gamla skulle bort Traditionen var förlegad Dags för en ny samhällssort De föraktade det vackra Nedärvd visdom var besvär Traditionen – glöm den tonen! Riv Norrmalm och Kattesund Inte tveka en sekund Vi ska bygga en ny värld Det vi alltid sett och vetat Gamla gatans rikedom Säg hur kunde ni ej se den Eran blindhet blev er dom Se, den dagen har snart kommit då den skövlingen går bet Traditionen intar tronen Inte dyrka askan bränd utan hålla elden tänd Återgå till rimlighet Säg mig, minns ni, kära vänner – trots det var så längesen de bespottade vårt arvgods – deras segervisshet än? ■

Piece by Piece By Sana Rehan Butt sanarmb11@gmail.com

Toxicity in your veins Blue instead of red. Breaking a soul Repeatedly On and on In a cycle of endless Doom and Despair. Pushing and shoving – Boxed in a box. No hands involved. The words pierce Enough to do The cruel job. Little by little Piece by piece Till I bubble And erupt, spewing and gurgling Mountains of suppressed feelings And emotions.

Not once do you dwell Or ponder upon The repercussions The domino effects Of it all. You aren’t all bad. Am I, not right? A mismatch?

Horizon holds no answers The future weakened. You are a product Of endless years of toxicity Yourself. Yet, oblivious. Thus, the cycle Continues. She could endure But I may not. She might have had the strength But I do not. A few more pushes A couple more syllables

And I am just there Yet again – At the edge of the ledge: Narrow, deep, harrowing. Black. Alone. Empty. Jumping no longer Entices. Nor does the painful path Back to you. Wishful the rusty chains Break themselves As they groan and clank So, I may fly Far away Where I breathe In air, Non-toxic, Untouched by your words.■

Philosophy of photography Text and photographs by Leonardo Summers

My mission with photography has always been to cast a light on the parts of the human experience that stick out to me most. 60

Stories are immortalised through a camera lens on an everyday basis, your recent holiday photos, or photos of where you last left your keys, or how full your fridge is before you do your weekly shop – these are all stories in our daily lives that we can all relate to, and in the same sense, through my attempts to capture fleeting moments of humans interacting within their environment, I hope to interweave my fictitious understanding of the human experience with reality.

We really are not so different, us humans, most of us strive to find a sense of purpose and individuality whilst at the same time avoid straying too far away from our collective idea of “normality” – my wish is that my photography may reinforce the idea that despite being so similar in our natures, it is important to embody our shared thoughts, feelings, and personalities in our own unique and novel ways. ■

You can find me on instagram: @Leonardonathanielsummers

I wish I could write. I wish I could fill pages with rhythm and rhyme, light a fire in my soul, make you feel what I feel through paper, and not tire halfway through a page of empty words, write books that inspire, and instead I just desire but never let it out. The collection of empty notebooks in the drawer under my desk shoots me a dirty look every time I peek in, so I look away, looks like I’ve given up looking for inspiration to hit, and the pressure of perfection puts my head into a space where I can’t form a single sentence, nor dare I even try. I wish I had stories to tell of all the people, places, and ideas in the world, I wish I could catch you with my words, mesmerize you and spin my web of spelled-out lies, lay out dreams and nightmares and make you forget to breathe while entangling you more by the second until I let you back out, moulding you line by line and leaving my mark in your heart.

But my head is empty and my eyes are burning, staring straight at the page that hasn’t changed in hours. I don’t write. I’ve convinced myself long enough that I can’t.

What is art, anyway?

Text by Charline Wolf, charline.wolf8@gmail.com Illustration by Hanna Almgren

The empty page stares back at me, judgingly, and in a sudden motion, I make the slightest pencil stroke.

Presidiumkrönika | Presidium Chronicle

Lilli to the left, Konstantina to the right

Tabula Rasa - A clean slate and new beginnings For many students starting their higher education in a new city, or even country, this opportunity is a chance for a fresh start. We in the presidium also started over anew with coming to Malmö University in 2018. Both of us arrived at the same time, without really getting to know each other until we started working together in the Union. Here are our stories.

Konstantina:

When I first found out that I was admitted in English Studies, I immediately knew that my life was going to change, as the idea of starting fresh without knowing anyone prior became a reality. So I immediately began to plan what I wanted to do as soon as I landed in Malmö. I decided that I ought leave the insecurities I had behind and work on not only learning new things and gaining experiences but also making new friends. Which seemed quite hard at the beginning, as while I was lucky enough to only move from Greece to Sweden, the cultural shock was still apparent, and so was adapting to the new weather. In the end though, I managed to achieve the things I had aspired to.

I made new friends by joining ESN Malmö, Festmesteriet and the Student Council, which have become my ‘unofficial’ not blood related family, and have continued to gain experiences and new knowledge throughout my years in Malmö.

Lilli: When I came to Malmö, I had already studied in Stockholm for a year and worked in Lidköping. At that point I’ve been moving to a new place every year. So moving to Malmö, starting all over again and re-inventing myself in a new city was not much of a leap out of my comfort zone, given I have been in the country for a while - or so I thought. Since I already had experienced two wild semesters of being an Erasmus student in Stockholm, nightlife and partying was not really my number one priority. Instead, starting the Masters of Urban Studies I looked really forward to nerding out on my favourite topics and I was hoping to get engaged in some form of activism again, which had been a huge part of my identi-

ty formation throughout my teenage years, but was missing in mythroughout life ever since I movedyears, to Sweden. ty formation my teenage but wasThe first days of orientation rough. I was surprised missing in my life ever sincewere I moved to Sweden. The about finding myself towere be quite during the first days of orientation rough.anxious I was surprised introduction weeks.to I was overwhelmed by meeting about finding myself be quite anxious during the so many new people, who already seemed to have introduction weeks. I was overwhelmed by meeting found their new clique and I got worried I would so many new people, who already seemed to havenot be able to make friends all. worried I would not found their new clique andatI got be able to make friends at all.

Fast forwarding a couple of weeks, I had learned a inside and outsideofofweeks, the classroom, grew Fastlot, forwarding a couple I had learned a close of my of classmates and found lot, with insidemany and outside the classroom, grew even close more friends and causes to get engaged in at the Union with many of my classmates and found even more afterand joining thetoboard of the association LGBTQ+ friends causes get engaged in at the Union Students Malmö. after joining the board of the association LGBTQ+ Students Malmö. Our journeys - similar, but yet different - led us to we - are today: a lot- led about our reOurwhere journeys similar, but Learning yet different us to spective fields, butLearning even more about where we are today: a lot so about ourourselves. reBecoming a part of the Union and becoming spective fields, but even more so about ourselves.closer friendsawith who we met during our first Becoming partpeople, of the Union andhad becoming closer semester and finding families abroad. friends with people, who weour had chosen met during our first Funnily enough, even though we arrived at the semester and finding our chosen families abroad. same time,enough, we hadeven never really outatwith Funnily though wehung arrived the one sameanother until we began sharing an office together time, we had never really hung out with one anoth- being the current Union presidium, buttogether as they say - better er until we began sharing an office being thanUnion never; and we are andsay grateful the late current presidium, but glad as they - betterfor our respective journeys bringing us together the end, late than never; and we are glad and grateful forinour startingjourneys a wholebringing new chapter in our inlives, respective us together the yet end,again. starting a whole new chapter in our lives, yet again. Lilli Auginski LilliPresident Auginski of the Student Union Malmö Konstantina Klonari Union Malmö President of the Student Vice-president Konstantina Klonariof the Student Union Malmö Vice-president of the Student Union Malmö

Studentkåren Malmö presenterar / presents terminens andra / The semester’s second

Musikpub Music pub Ta med dig dina vänner och njut av livemusik i Malmös fetaste inomhuscen. Upptäck ny musik där mat & dryck är billig och alla är välkomna! Bring your friends and enjoy live music in Malmö’s most awesome indoor scene. Discover new music where food & drink are cheap and everyone is welcome!

26 november 19.00 Studentpuben

STUDENTFRUKOST STUDENT BREAKFAST

Tisdagen innan CSN var månad serverar vi en buffé komplett med våfflor kl. 09.00 i Kølsvinet. Tuesday before CSN every month we serve a buffet complete with waffles at 09.00 in Kølsvinet.

SOPPLUNCH / SOUP LUNCH

Varje onsdag 12.00 - 13.00 kan du få en smarrig vegetarisk soppa i Kølsvinet för endast 15 kr med bröd och kaffe. Every Wednesday between 12.00 - 13.00 you can get a delicious vegetarian soup in Kølsvinet for 15 kr including bread and coffee.

KAFFE MED KÅREN / COFFEE WITH THE UNION *

Varje månad ställer vi fram lite godsaker på din fakultet och du kan hjälpa oss med att svara på viktiga frågor. Här kan du även träffa våra föreningar och vara med i vår tävling. Every month we put out some goodies at your faculty and you can help us out with some important questions.You can also meet our association here and compete in our competition.

KONTAKT / CONTACT - KÅREN FINNS FÖR ATT HJÄLPA DIG

Presidiet Kårordförande / President Lilli Auginski 0760 - 50 95 64 ordforande@malmostudenter.se 10.00 - 14.00

Vice kårordförande / Vice President Konstantina Klonari 0707 - 57 75 62 vice.ordforande@malmostudenter.se Lärande och samhälle - LS Anna Jakobsson 0707 - 57 75 68 ombudls@malmostudenter.se Hälsa och samhälle - HS Sheikh Farid Uddin Ahmmed 0707 - 57 75 63 ombudhs@malmostudenter.se

Studentombud Teknik och samhälle - TS Lisa Hofmann 0707 - 57 75 69 ombudts@malmostudenter.se Kultur och samhälle - KS Arinzechukwu Onwurah 0707 - 57 75 67 ombudks@malmostudenter.se

66 LÄS MER / READ MORE - MALMOSTUDENTER.SE

Lilli Auginski President of the Student Union Malmö Konstantina Klonari ty formation throughout my teenage years, but was ty formation throughout my teenage years, but was of theI moved StudenttoUnion Malmö missing in my life ever since I moved to Sweden. The missing Vice-president in my life ever since Sweden. The first days of orientation were rough. I was surprised first days of orientation were rough. I was surprised about finding myself to be quite anxious during the about finding myself to be quite anxious during the introduction weeks. I was overwhelmed by meeting introduction weeks. I was overwhelmed by meeting so many new people, who already seemed to have so many new people, who already seemed to have found their new clique and I got worried I would not found their new clique and I got worried I would not be able to make friends at all. be able to make friends at all.

16 -18 november 14 december

Lilli Auginski President of the Student Union Malmö Konstantina Klonari Vice-president of the Student Union Malmö

Our journeys - similar, but yet different - led us to Our journeys - similar, but yet different - led us to where we are today: Learning a lot about our rewhere we are today: Learning a lot about our respective fields, but even more so about ourselves. spective fields, but even more so about ourselves. Becoming a part of the Union and becoming closer Becoming a part of the Union and becoming closer friends with people, who we had met during our first friends with people, who we had met during our first semester and finding our chosen families abroad. semester and finding our chosen families abroad. Funnily enough, even though we arrived at the same Funnily enough, even though we arrived at the same time, we had never really hung out with one anothtime, we had never really hung out with one another until we began sharing an office together being er until we began sharing an office together being the current Union presidium, but as they say - better the current Union presidium, but as they say - better late than never; and we are glad and grateful for our late than never; and we are glad and grateful for our respective journeys bringing us together in the end, respective journeys bringing us together in the end, starting a whole new chapter in our lives, yet again.starting a whole new chapter in our lives, yet again.

Fast forwarding a couple of weeks, I had learned Fast a forwarding a couple of weeks, I had learned a lot, inside and outside of the classroom, grew close lot, inside and outside of the classroom, grew close with many of my classmates and found even more with many of my classmates and found even more friends and causes to get engaged in at the Union friends and causes to get engaged in at the Union after joining the board of the association LGBTQ+ after joining the board of the association LGBTQ+ Students Malmö. Students Malmö.

VAD HÄNDER PÅ KÅREN? WHAT’S GOING ON AT THE UNION? Följ oss på Instagram, Facebook och Canvas för att ta del av våra fartfyllda vardag! Här kan du se vilka evenemang och tävlingar som är aktuella för er studenter.

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Canvas to take part in our fast-paced everyday life! Here you can see which events and competitions are happening right now.

BLI MEDLEM LÄTT

SCANNA QR KODEN (FUNKAR ÄVEN MED SNAPCHAT)

Reception Kårhuset, Bassängkajen 8 Telefon: 040 - 665 75 65 Öppettider / Open: tis - tors kl 10 - 16, fre 10 - 13 receptionen@malmostudenter.se

MISSA INGET / DON’T MISS A THING

Studentkåren Malmö

studentkaren_malmo

mau.instructure.com/enroll/9MABRG

Canvas, gå till / go to:

Contributors initial thoughts about the theme

1:C 2:B 3:A 4:B

For me, an unwritten sheet is an open door to new possibilities, a fresh start and an alternative way of living. A cliché? Perhaps. But a kind of good one.

5:B 6:C 7:A 8:B

Hanna Du är vad du gör dig själv till Magda Is the rejection of tradition a good or bad thing? That is for me the central question that Tabula Rasa stands for. Some feel that tradition is something oppressive - as if others are making decisions for you. Some see it as standing on the shoulders of giants - that it is an invaluable pool of inspiration. In the end, culture is not all that different from a natural ecosystem: Complete clearing is bad, partial renewal is good, stagnation is only imagined.

Web based magazine: sum.malmostudenter.se

The theme itself stared at me for some days before I could finally wrap my head around it. What could one possibly write about an unwritten sheet? Anything or possibly nothing, leaving it blank to stress on the “unwritten” in the theme. The canvas was wide and the choices unlimitless but not long after, I knew what I wanted to write about. My texts resonate with the theme in a way that I interpreted it as new beginnings. For the article, I dwelled into motherhood and carved out for myself and for others like me a place, a new beginning for a person, who could possibly be a mother, but yet, she is so much more. Some may see me as only a mother but I want to announce it to the world, “Here I am! This is my new beginning! I love to be a mother but I am ready to fill up this unwritten sheet!” For the poem, some may see it as dark and upsetting, but it is a part of reality, silent, at times, but true. The girl in the poem realizes her worth and is on the road for her new beginning. Because she finally realizes the toxicity she endured for long, she is ready to start over and paint the “unwritten sheet” - only this time, keeping her in the forefront and knowing she is strong, beautiful and perfect. Sana New beginnings A thought unspoken; a regret. Jaeger Back to square one. Okezi

For me, Tabula Rasa signifies new beginnings. As an international student, moving to a new country means that both, the place and its people, and myself, are unwritten sheets to each other, ready to be filled with new experiences and memories.” Charline

När jag tänker på ett oskrivet blad: att ingen är ett oskrivet blad, vi föds med vissa förutsättningar och specialiseras in i sociala system som vi får välja att bejaka eller ta ställning gentemot Freja

9:C 10:B

Find SUM here:

Oskar

Marieke

Correct answers from the Malmöquiz

An unwritten sheet means the beginning, the unpredictable and the anonymity. Eda

Read all our issues here: issuu.com/mahskara_malmo Email: sum@malmostudenter.se Facebook: @sum.malmo Instagram: @sum_magazine

The current editors in chief would like to say thank you to the editorial team and readers who made this issue possible.

. å d t å Fram nu. tR å m a r F 200 Å AR VI FIR

Kåren har valt, vilken bank väljer du? I 200 år har vi hjälpt våra kunder att lägga grunden till sin ekonomiska trygghet och kanske till och med våga satsa på en idé eller dröm, vare sig det gäller att köpa eget boende eller starta företag. Vi har under hela vår historia satsat på unga och studenter, därför är vi extra stolta över vårt samarbete med Kåren och att de valt oss som sin bank. Välkommen du också!