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Volume XV, Issue III
Radius
Molly Wetsch speaks to Bridget Farrell, founder of Bullaun Press, about publishing works in translation.
Emma Rouine speaks to College society committee members about their New Year’s resolutions heading into 2025.
Erin Keenan considers the surge in mainstream listenership to Irish artists.
James Grace asks if there’s any originality left for the WWII movie genre.
Saskia McDonogh-Mooney covers DUPA’s latest exhibition.
universitytimes.ie
Tuesday 10 December 2024
Trinity Board Announces Student Centre
PHOTO BY IVAN RAKHMANIN
Molly Wetsch and Eliora Abramson
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rinity’s Board has approved a plan to place a designated student space on the ground and first floor of the Naughton Institute almost a decade after students voted to financially support a Student Centre in 2017. An email with the news was sent on Wednesday December 4th to the College community from Bursar Eleanor Denny, TCDSU (Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union) President Jenny Maguire, Dean of Students Richie Porter, and CSC (Central Societies Committee) Chair Faith Olopade. In the communication, the Centre was described as a place to “accommodate multipurpose breakout spaces, social spaces, and other spaces for student use”.
Development of the Student Centre is expected to begin soon with plans to open in 2026. This would mark nearly ten years since 88% of students chose to accept an annual levy of €30 to finance the construction of the seven million euro Centre, as reported by The University Times in 2017. According to the reporting at the time of the vote, College will additionally assist in financing the space through fundraising and acquiring a loan. In a statement via Instagram, TCDSU have said that “students will be in full control of the building, with its own entrance and new lifts included in the plans”. The email from Maguire, Denny, Porter, and Olopade announced that the Centre will take over the
Science Gallery Dublin’s space in the Naughton Institute after its construction. The announcement preceded an email from University Dean of Development Gerard McHugh which confirmed the official permanent closure of the Science Gallery. The Science Gallery was opened in 2008 and served as a public-facing museum which was a part of a network of art and science galleries at leading universities. The museum accrued significant debts during its operation, with one year’s exceeding 1.65 million euro. In 2022, the museum was temporarily closed to solve problems of funding and create a new operating model for the space. The email from McHugh stated that “despite the College’s best efforts to develop a sus-
tainable model, it was not possible to deliver this for Science Gallery Dublin and a decision has been taken by the University’s Board not to reopen the Gallery”. The communication from College also stated that the re-use of an existing space on campus is due to the fact that it “aligns with Trinity’s sustainability agenda regarding campus development”. By using an existing space, College will save on construction costs and carbon commissions while still accomplishing the goal to give students an additional space. This will be the university’s first dedicated Student Centre, which comes after calls of lack of student spaces on campus.
Walkout Staged Mid-Debate Over Debating Society’s “Pure, Blatant Racism” Brídín Ní Fhearraigh-Joyce
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Phil Udoma debate resulted in a mass walkout of People of Colour (POC) debate speakers in the midst of the debate on November 7th. The walkout was initiated by Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) Welfare Officer Hamza Bana. The controversy began when a debater told the audience that she experienced a committee member of the Phil making monkey noises in her direction during a council meeting. The Udoma subcommittee holds debates that “aim to represent POC and Ethnic minorities in the spheres of debating, public speaking and discourse”. Following the debate on the motion “This house believes POC solidarity is impossible”, multiple members of the Phil’s Udoma committee spoke to The University Times about their personal experience of racism in the society. During the debate, Hilary, debate convenor of the Udoma subcommittee, stated that “this will be my last debate”. She said, “I wasn’t allowed to be on council last year, because I was deemed too aggressive for first years and too unfriendly.
Because when someone else was making monkey noises towards me on council, up there in council [pointing upwards], I stood up for myself.” She referenced former TCDSU President Gabrielle Fullam’s statement about racism within the Hist, saying that “everything she said is true”. In the original statement, which was published as a manifesto during Hist auditor elections, Fullam stated, “In both my personal and professional capacity at the Hist, I was frequently subject to demeaning racist remarks.” Speaking after the debate, Hilary said, “as a Black woman I’ve definitely felt a strong anti-Black culture within the Phil”. She further continued that “institutions like the Phil and the Hist, especially in the GMB, have been historically built on racism”. Anthony, the PRO Steward of the Phil and the Udoma subcommittee stated, “hopefully they will wake up to the amount of racism that goes unnoticed”. He further stated that he is currently in the process of making a dignity and respect complaint to the Phil. Hamza Assaf, a member of the
Phil, stated he walked out with his fellow debaters to demonstrate “that we are not afraid to go against the pure, blatant racism in the Phil.” When I say racism in the Phil [...] I don’t mean that members of the Phil are inherently racist. I just mean that we have faced what is racism, and we call it what it is.” He further continued, “It’s no secret that [in] most chamber debates, it’s white speakers. All chamber debates, I’d say there’s only like one person of colour at most, or two if you’re lucky, that are on that week. So it does feel like as a person of colour in the Phil, you aren’t given the same hand as a regular white person in the Phil.” Assaf, who is also a Hist committee member, shared that he has not experienced the same level of racism in the Hist as the Phil. He also stated that in the run-up to the debate, a senior Phil committee member expressed his concern regarding “the capability of speakers”. “You wouldn’t ask that if it were a regular Phil chamber,” Assaf said. “That was just blatantly racist.” Article continued on page 2.
Isabel Norman COP 29: The Baku Workplan and its significance for Indigenous voices in climate discussions.
Eve McGann Trinity students recount the hidden truths behind the glamour of Schols.
Flossy Whittow Women’s rugby is seeing a rise in popularity, but underfunding and inequalities persist.
Editor: Brídín Ní Fhearraigh-Joyce Volume XV, Issue III Phone: (01) 646 8431 Email: editor@universitytimes.ie Website: universitytimes.ie
This newspaper is produced with the financial support of Trinity College Students’ Union, but maintains a mutually agreed policy of editorial independence.
To contact UT, email: The Editor editor@universitytimes.ie
Three Month Wait Time for Psychiatrist Appointments at College Health Natalia Kamendy
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rinity’s Health Service or College Health is one of the most widely used student services on campus. With sickness and issues with student’s mental health currently being at their peak, The University Times spoke with College Health’s Practice Manager Catriona Curran and Medical Director Dr. David McGrath about what College Health is doing to keep up with the high demand for appointments. The Health Service currently has nineteen staff members, which Dr. McGrath stated is “the largest number of staff we have ever had”. Stating the move to Printing House Square as the reason for an increase in medical, nursing and administrative staff, Dr McGrath called this change “very welcome”. Regarding the alleged waiting times Dr. McGrath spoke about why this time of year is especially challenging: “The main reason is that this is the time of year where we have to designate well in excess of two thousand doctor and nurse appointments for those students in clinical courses”. For students in the Health Sciences, Social Work and Social Policy, Clinical Speech and Language, as well as other courses, these appointments are necessary in order to commence clinical placements. The requirements include pre-registration screenings and vaccinations. Each individual student would require five consultations at College Health to participate in clinical placements, which contributes to the Health Service’s increased workload. The University Times also spoke with College Health’s Practice Manager Catriona Curran about waiting times for regular and emergency appointments. For a routine appointment such as regular checkups or blood tests, students should expect approximately two and a half weeks of waiting time. As stated by Curran, College Health takes twenty emergency appointments in the morning and fifteen in the afternoon. This difference is because of shorter time slots in the morning. The wait time
PHOTO BY RACHEL CONWAY
for an emergency appointment varies depending on the annual leave of the GPs as well as on the season. To get an emergency appointment students were advised to call at nine a.m. in the morning, when College Health opens, to secure a same-day appointment. Otherwise, specific emergency appointment waiting times were not stated. When asked about the psychiatrist appointment waiting times, Curran confirmed that to get an appointment with a psychiatrist after referral students would have to wait around three months. Curran believes that this wait is much shorter than that of a community psychiatrist, should a student seek an appointment with the HSE. For emergencies, however, the Health Service does provide, according to Curran, emergency appointments and emergency prescriptions that students can get filled while they are waiting for their appointment. Additionally, Dr. McGrath stated that some staff are removed from routine consultation dates because of new developments, like the spe-
cialised clinics which provide free contraception such as implants and coils. When asked about emergency appointments and acute medical issues, Dr McGrath provided greater detail stating that students can receive a same-day referral to College Health from the Disability Service, Student Counselling or their tutor. Addressing the complaints of short appointments, Dr McGrath stated that during his eighteen years at Trinity, he has not received a complaint. He also stated that College Health’s consultation time is longer than most general practices. When asked about the threemonth psychiatric waiting time, a College spokesperson stated that, “Trinity has the best sourced College Health service in the country. However this is a very busy time of year, student numbers have increased, and unfortunately, there can be a wait for a routine appointment. We do offer same-day emergency clinics every day.”