Hey! I’m Zeinab, I am a final year law student and I am hoping to be your Equality and Diversity Executive for 2020/21. For the past three years I have been driven to making a difference on campus but it's not always easy. Being heavily involved in different societies and areas within DSU, I know where the gaps lie and would love to take the opportunity in making a bigger more impactful difference on campus. I want to ensure our current students and future students experience the most enriched, free from prejudice and eye-opening time at university regardless of race, ability, gender, religion, age and sexuality. I believe I can fulfil the position, by enhancing student opportunties and in ensuring students voices are heard, listened to and proactively create positive changes that will you can be part of.
If elected, these are my commitments:
Racism & Discrimination
- Zero tolerance policy when dealing with racism/discrimination and establishing strong university protocols for dealing with it.
- Work alongside with Decolonising DMU to ensure both DMU and DSU are tackling racism together.
- Create initiatives to allow co-creation and collaboration between societies to increase awareness.
- Workshops on how to deal with racism and discrimination.
- Bring more awareness upon the points of access when incidents do occur (internally/externally).
Create equal opportunities for everyone by bridging the attainment gap
- Establish a mentoring scheme for students of all backgrounds.
- Work with the Stephen Lawrence Research Centre to get more students engaged with projects.
- Host leadership and skills workshops in order for students to help empower students.
- Encourage more funding to be invested into student experiences particularly for those of BAME backgrounds.
- Working alongside DMU to create an action plan to diversify the curriculum.
- Empower minorities in STEM - workshops, networking events, panels.
- Work alongside DMU to provide a scholarship for students who could benefit from it and support them financially in being at university.
Supporting the wellbeing of BAME students
- Bring well-being speakers onto campus from different backgrounds, so mental health stigmas in BAME communities are spoken about.
- Work with the welfare executive to employ more diverse health specialist, ones in which those from BAME backgrounds will feel comfortable talking to.
- Collaborate with HealthyDMU to provide monthly support sessions in relation to mental health.
Ensure campus is more collective and unified
- Ensure more commitments are being made in celebrating Black History Month, International Faith Day, Anti-Bullying week and other big events.
- Celebrate more events that we value, celebrate our differences and celebrate the different communities we have at DMU.
- Support students and societies in hosting events on campus that can engage everyone.
- Give cultural societies the exposure they need to engage more students in their events.
- Plan a DSU trip that is celebrates culture and history.
- Oversee an improvement in university experience for all students.
- Ensure that no student, regardless of any characteristic, is forgotten.
Ensure student voices are being heard
- Promote student empowerment and engagement students by giving them a safe space to talk about their concerns.
- Have drop in sessions where students can talk about what we can do to improve areas within DSU.
- Bring forward ideas in making impactful changes on campus.
Every DMU student should and will be supported, this journey is not mine alone, it’s us ours – Your Campus, Your Rights, Your Union.
Vote Zee for Equality and Diversity so that together we can make a difference...