I Felt Safe at UCU Last Week

by Kimberley Snijders

During our transition in June, the baby Student Council board decided to go off campus and go to Emma’s house in Doorn. Away from campus, surrounded by nature and with few disturbances of day to day life, we talked very openly about why we decided to run. As we sat in Emma’s living room, we looked at each other and felt a shared sense of responsibility to act upon the change in the atmosphere we had felt on campus. A semester full of protests, emotional confessions, and heavy conversations could not go by unnoticed. To blame these events on the lonely nature of the pandemic would be overlooking the nature of the concerns that were raised. At the same time, however, how can a group of six newly-elected members help reduce the feeling of unsafety on the campus?

in a short time span was, to say the least, hectic. Yet, during the conversations we had with staff, the Management Team and students prior to the week, we realized our efforts were also very necessary and appreciated.

"if we get into heated conversations about these topics, it’s primarily because we care about the wellbeing of those around us"

As the day progressed, the idea came up to organize a safety-themed week together with CAR and the UCSA during the Fall semester. Our aim was to facilitate conversations and host workshops in order to bring students back in touch with each other, as well as provide everyone with some tools to feel more ganize a week full with external point out is that there are many more conversations to be had at UCU. Racism is an institutional problem, steps need to be taken to help sexual assault victims, and if the freedom of speech of one student impairs that of another, we need to have a conversation about this. At times I felt like conversations had to end right when they were about to get interesting. Still, if there’s anything I personally took away from Safety Week, is that we are all more alike than we might think. And if we get into heated conversations about these topics, it’s primarily because we care about the wellbeing of those around us.

I was personally involved in the community session, the workshop about racism and the Freedom of Speech event. The weekend before Safety Week I became insecure. What if we were about to host a week full of emotional triggers? What if no one showed up to the events? What if the week turned out to cause even more polarization? Was I good enough of a moderator to lead such important conversations? Safety Week is completely new and no one knew exactly what to expect. However, as I stood on the stage of the auditorium and saw students and staff talking to each other casually waiting for the event to begin, I realized an important step was about to be made.

"A semester full of protests, emotional confessions, and heavy conversations could not go by unnoticed"

Safety week might not have solved UCU’s problems, but it started some very important conversations that I hope we will all continue to have — not just with our friends, but also with all students, teachers and College Hall, because although it’s incredibly hard to open up about feeling unsafe on campus, nothing will change without an open and honest conversation.