Elizabeth Brauders
Erasmus columnist
Elections, elections, elections, France is obsessed. As a country that first declared itself a republic in 1792, perhaps they’ve got a right to be. Along with near-constant coverage of developments across the pond, they’ve got their own presidential elections this year too.
The majority of students here are hoping for a victory from the left, but they’re afraid it’s not going to materialise. In Nice, where roughly 10% of the population has foreign citizenship, the biggest worry is the threat of Marine Le Pen’s Front National, France’s far-right party, with a strong anti-immigration and “French first” ethos. Given that the student body of my university is almost one-fifth foreign students, and half of these from African countries, anti-Le Pen sentiment is strong.
Small, but frequent, clashes between these cultures have convinced me that the threat of the far-right is all too real. I have seen women abused on buses for wearing hijab, Algerian flags waved defiantly at policemen on the main street, jubilant comments on an article about the shooting of two immigrants. I have also seen young couples and groups of friends composed of all nationalities around campus, and in town.
It seems to me that hope for a change in attitude lies with the younger generation. Never has this been more evident than with yet more elections, the student union elections, in the Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis. The student council works differently here. Candidates do not run for the specific positions of President or Welfare officer, but instead run simply to be elected to the council.
The problem with this system, as explained to me by one of the candidates, is that the fun-loving Ents-officer style candidates often get voted in, and those who really have student issues at heart are overlooked. These issues are key in the diversification of French student life, and later, French society at large. I spoke to one extremely passionate candidate who believed in the importance of foreign students in education, he is hoping to secure permits for these students to come and study in Nice for 3 or 5 years, i.e. enough to finish a bachelors degree or even masters or doctorate. He believes that a melting pot of cultures at University-level will lead to a more tolerant community.
Aside from the threat of sexy, soirée-organising candidates, the real problem is the lack of representation. As a fellow exchange student explained, “the only way to describe them is ‘absent’.” When asked to write this article, I wasn’t even sure that my university had a student council. I contrast this with the obvious presence of the student officers in my first year at Trinity, the support network was constantly evident and all officers were approachable and helpful.
On my first day here as an Erasmus student, we were marched into a hall and lectured by professor after professor on the importance of signing up for this and that, and returning forms and respecting deadlines… I waited and waited for the peer supporters or welfare officer to give us an encouraging speech, and offer a listening ear, but it never came. Instead we were offered the opportunity to buy membership of the Erasmus Student Network, an outside organisation.
The Student Union has so much potential for change, and the candidates have some wonderful ideas and goals, they just need exposure and contact with their peers.
Other students here are very clear on what is that they want “workshops, tutors, essay-writing aid”, but there appears to be no opportunity to suggest this to our student representatives; “the only time I realize there even is [a student council] is when they’re outside trying to get people to vote for them!” exclaims one exasperated student. They need to get out and talk to real students about their own problems, and get people onside to fight as a group for the right to study here, to repeat examinations (which are under threat due to a paycut for lecturers), and to a library that’s open at weekends and holidays!
Also, and I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but I have not been offered free condoms once this year. To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure they have the free condom system at all. This is clearly an SU that needs to prioritise.
