The Trinity College Dublin Students Union (TCDSU) constitution mandates the body to act “independent[ly] of any political, racial or religious ideology”. Ambiguous as the exact implications of this clause are, it is safe to say that our Student Union is not apolitical. A growing number of students think this fact both violates the TCDSU constitution and is a slap in the face to students who oppose the Union’s political ideology, given Union membership is compulsory for all students.
This disillusionment with TCDSU has crystallised in the Freedom for Students movement whose aim is, according to their Instagram bio, “craic and to make TCDSU membership a voluntary and informed choice.”
Speaking to The University Times, Eric Grelet, a Senior Fresh PPES student who is involved with the Freedom for Students movement, said the group “aims to unify students who feel their money is being misused” by a Union that “has alienated them and their interests entirely”.
Grelet’s contention with TCDSU derives from the fact it is “funded by the student body indirectly via the student contribution fee, which is a mandatory fee imposed on all students by the college itself”.
“These fees are pooled together and redistributed among various student-led groups within the college”, including the SU. He thinks it “noteworthy” that “all students are automatically enrolled as members in the union” as a result.
Because of this mandatory membership, Grelet thinks the SU has a responsibility to “ensure it represents the interests of all students” rather than “using funding for political motives”.
The SU constitution defines the body as “apolitical” to “ensure it does not contradict” students’ beliefs, said Grelet.
Grelet sees the Union as having been “hijacked by a group of students who aim to use SU power to pursue their own political interests” and who carry out “illegal actions” as a result. He referenced an email sent by the US wherein Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were said to “not care about students and young people” and were consequently “blamed for the ongoing accommodation shortage”. Not all students agree with this sentiment, he argued, pointing out the existence of the Young Fianna Fáil and Young Fine Gael societies.
“Pro-choice messaging is painted on the walls of the student common room” in Teach 6 (House Six), he said, which in his opinion is antithetical to some students’ beliefs, “including devout Muslims and Christians”.
Grelet offered examples of apolitical campaigns the TCDSU could focus on more, such as “their fight to bring down the cost of the laundry services in Trinity Hall, fighting the parental overnight guest policy, ensuring all lectures are recorded and their continued fight for free sanitary products”.
Speaking to The University Times, TCDSU president Jenny Maguire noted that success in so-called apolitical campaigns like their digs drive and the doubling of period product funding was achieved “because of the new tradition of agitation within all that we do”.
She said this “new direction is not only effective but incredibly engaging” as the union has seen “record numbers of class reps, social media numbers and voters”, giving rise to “a wider array of voices and perspectives”.
“Every decision is grounded upon the policy brought to us, and every officer is chosen by the members. If people wish to vote for a direction of the union, it is our job to honour that.”
The desire for an apolitical union is a stance Maguire “cannot get behind because it doesn’t make sense to” [her]. For Maguire, an apolitical union is neither feasible nor desirable. “What is an apolitical union? To be a student is to be political,” she remarked. “Who decides what is and isn’t political? If a person of colour stands up for their rights, should the union tell them to shush because they are being political?”
“A neutral position on something inherently benefits the oppressor, which is taking a stance. This would hurt our ability to engage with the marginalised students who need our support.”
“We are a union that illegally published information on accessing abortions. We are a union that, because of the support of the sabbatical officers, saw QSoc officially recognised. We are the union that achieved a historic BDS win.”
According to Maguire, calls for an apolitical union constitute a “failure to recognise the vital role the union plays within broader cultural and political life”. “An attempt to remove this is just, ironically, conservatism” which, as she noted, is “also politics”.
In an opinion piece published in The University Times last February, László Molnárfi, then-SU president, characterised members of the anti-SU movement as “a tiny minority of right-wing agitators who mislead students” and pedal “conservative ideology presented via populist rhetoric” in an effort to “kill the union’s progressive policies and impede its ability to campaign for our rights”.
But contrary to Molnárfi’s portrayal of the movement, Grelet reported it has gained “major traction” and quadrupled in size since its inception. The movement now encompasses “a wide variety of students of various beliefs and backgrounds”.
When asked by The University Times for his thoughts on Molnárfi’s comments, a member of the Freedom for Students movement who wished to remain anonymous claimed that the “majority” of people in the Freedom for Students movement are “left-leaning, politically moderate individuals” of “all genders, religions, sexual orientations, races, and nationalities”.
Referring to him as “Comrade László”, he compared his behaviour to that of a dictator, suggesting that there would be “international outcry” if “any leader in a Western democracy acted as he did” while incumbent.
“Even people who fully agree with the SU’s campaigns are fed up with the fact that we essentially pay a bunch of full time activists. People are beginning to lose sight of the value that the SU provides.”
“I hope that the movement continues to grow, so that we can finally extract some accountability from [the SU’s] leaders. We have already had success electing members of the movements to class representative roles within the SU, and as the movement grows I expect resistance within the SU to grow as well.”
