Two university students held up a banner - now they’re banned from campus

Sheffield University has a long history of left-wing politics — when Malcolm X visited the UK in the 1960s, one of only three speeches he gave was at its student union. But students claim the institution is growing increasingly intolerant of campus activism. Earlier this year, the university made national headlines for hiring private eyes to investigate two students it believed took part in a protest that occupied a university building. Now, it has gone one step further. Victoria Munro spoke to two students banned from campus for holding up a banner.

Mini-briefing

🤢 Thousands of Sheffield businesses are overdue for a food hygiene inspection, while more than 600 have never had one, due to “significant backlogs” in the council’s food standards service. Councillors were warned there is a “risk to public health of a death or serious injury” because of the “over 3,000 overdue interventions” and were told the Food Standards Agency is questioning officers about the pile-up on a monthly basis. The council says it is doing all it can to “mitigate” health risks but cited problems recruiting staff and the impact of the pandemic. 

👱🏻‍♀️ The Times has interviewed South Yorkshire’s most notorious sitting MP, Miriam Cates, to divine whether she is a “a mainstream Tory or a right-wing ideologue” — your answers on a postcard please. It starts with an anecdote about a woman running up to her with a hand-written note thanking her “for standing up for women and children” and touches on topics like whether she’d attend a gay wedding (yes, but only if it was a “close friend”, although the article doesn’t reveal how many close gay friends she has) and the fact she now wishes she’d voted Leave.

🛖 If you think the house prices in Sharrow are bad: a run-down shack in the Peak District has sold for £124,000 after a frenzied bidding war, despite having no running water or electricity. The hut, built in the 1930s, is one of four in a field at Overstones Farm below Stanage Edge and went for double the guide price. The Star reports that “its position, views and the scarcity of properties in the area are believed to be behind its value”. Henry David Thoreau would be proud.

Things to do

🎉 The annual Sharrow Festival takes place in Mount Pleasant Park this Saturday, marking 27 years of the neighbourhood’s free celebration. Expect live music from local talent, food, a “graffiti jam” and stalls showcasing local groups and businesses. The Speakeasy Bar within Abbeydale Picture House will host a fringe party as part of the festival, with DJs from 2pm till late.

👨🏽‍🍳 An art installation centred around British South Asian food and cooking launches at GLOAM Gallery in the city centre on Saturday afternoon, from 12 to 4pm. “Courses for Dis-course(s)” was created by artist Roo Dhissou and “takes the form of a kitchen, dining room, cafe, restaurant and chill space”. Roo “wants to explore who gets a seat at the table” through a series of exhibitions and dinners for British South Asian artists in both Sheffield and Nottingham.

🎨 On Sunday afternoon, you can enjoy two hours of sketching and painting in the beautiful surroundings of Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet. Artists with any level of experience are welcome to join the weekly event and can benefit from “feedback and support” from one of their regular tutors. If it rains, the group will move into one of the hamlet’s buildings, such as the forge or the learning centre. Tickets are £8 and available here. 

Two university students held up a banner - now they’re banned from campus

Riley Gibson and Charlie Thomas each owe the University of Sheffield £375 and a letter of apology. They’re also banned from campus for the next three months “except for academic purposes”. Charlie, a politics student in his third year, doesn’t know if he will be permitted to attend his graduation this summer. On top of that, any academic references the university provides in future will note that the two have received a formal reprimand. 

These punishments were handed down by the university last week, after an investigation that took months and saw them interviewed by private investigators. According to Riley, a master’s student in modern history, expulsion “was on the table as an option up until the last minute”. He believes the fact they have both almost finished their studies was their saving grace. “If we were any earlier on, I very much expect they would have expelled or suspended us.”

What was their crime? On the face of it, all Riley and Charlie did was hold up a banner that read “SOLIDARITY” in big pink letters during a conference of the Higher Education Strategic Planners Association. In Charlie’s words, they walked into The Octagon, an auditorium off Clarkson Street, on 9th February to be “an obvious and awkward presence”, reminding university higher-ups from across the country that they had chosen to cross a picket line to attend the event. In response, the university cancelled both days of the conference while they were still inside the building. 

Charlie views what they did as an “indoor protest”, but the University of Sheffield, which says it does not punish students for protesting on campus, maintains Charlie and Riley did something different. They argue the students occupied a university building, a well-worn tactic used by activists over the last few years and one the administration is evidently no longer willing to tolerate. At their disciplinary hearing, the pair were told this was the first time Sheffield students had been formally disciplined for occupying a campus building. Their concern is that it won’t be the last.