For their latest initiative, the Equality Unit have partnered with various organisations and activists to raise awareness on the issues faced by SU students and society.
Stellenbosch University’s (SU) Equality Unit, in collaboration with several other organisations and activists, have begun a video discussion series to unpack various issues affecting the SU community and society, such as issues of race and masculinity.
The project, which launched on 4 August, has developed six 2 minute to 4 minute videos that will be posted every Tuesday for six weeks on the unit’s Instagram page, said Greeff Brink, the head of the Equality Unit.
According to Brink, the division has partnered with QueerUS, SPECTRUM! Tybergerg, WAQE (SRC), student activist Giuseppe Guerandi, Sonke Gender Justice, Rape Crisis, the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, and the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation.
The topics chosen for this project are ones that are regularly dealt with at the unit and are issues that students, women and men face daily, stated Brink.
Informative Content
“It was important for us to unpack these [topics] with the student community, but also to bring in the perspective of SU student societies and activists as well as external organisations, who can also shed a different perspective on the topics,” said Brink.
Brink stated that the topics that will be discussed include issues of race, why catcalling is problematic, masculinity, male rape, choosing your pronouns, and dealing with the difficulties of talking to your partner about contraceptives.
Local actress, Alexis Petersen, will be role-playing and acting out the various scenarios in the videos, regarding the issues being discussed, said Brink.
According to Brink, alongside the informative videos, the Equality Unit will also be hosting live Instagram discussions every Wednesday at 19:00 and students are encouraged to send in comments or questions, which will form part of the discussions.
Necessary discussions
Giuseppe Guerandi, SU student-activist and participant in the project, who identifies as a non-binary queer individual, will be leading the discussion on gender pronouns.
According to Guerandi, this topic is both underdiscussed and ignored.
“We are definitely on the back foot in terms of our knowledge on these subjects,” Guerandi said.
According to Guerandi, the ability to contribute meaningfully to discussions is important for creating tangible change and social progression with regard to these subjects, such as talking about gender pronouns.
Stellenbosch University student activist Giuseppe Guerandi will take part in the latest project presented by the Equality Unit, which hopes to raise awareness on various challenges and issues faced by the SU community and society. PHOTO: Supplied/ Lia Snijman
One final year BA (Humanities) student at SU, Chérise Adams, does not think there is a better place or space to dismantle these topics than at SU.
“Giving the platform, SU community should actively learn and unlearn when it comes to these issues,” said Adams.