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A prominent and liberal judge on the US Supreme Court, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has died aged 87. She has now become the first women to be laid to rest at the US Capitol building. Although her passing has little impact on the UK, the legacy that she leaves can be an inspiration to us all.  The Supreme Court in America constitutes one third of the government; the federal judiciary branch. The cases ruled on by those judges have changed the political landscape in the US whilst also advancing the rights of many US citizens. For example, the case of Brown vs Board of Education in 1954 led the Supreme Court to rule that racial segregation of children in public schools was unconstitutional. In 1973 Roe vs Wade saw the judiciary also give women the right to have abortions. The Supreme...

Royal Holloway Debating Society have been widely criticised for inviting the former Labour MP Chris Williamson to give a talk as part of their guest speaker series. The Student’s Union stepped in to ensure that the controversial event, due to run on the evening of 5th October, was cancelled after the society received backlash for inviting an openly anti-Semitic speaker.  Williamson, the former Shadow Minister for Communities and Local Government, was suspended from the Labour Party last year, after a series of comments which underplayed and dismissed anti-Semitism within the party. Formerly the MP for Derby North, the 64-year-old politician described Labour as being ‘too apologetic’ over reported incidents within Jeremy Corbyn’s opposition.  He also attracted ire for admit...

With students returning to or beginning their university experience this autumn amidst the Coronavirus pandemic, many feared restrictions living with the virus would only ensure to make university life more challenging.  This comes alongside recent UCU warnings of a ‘silent avalanche of infections’, in a BBC interview as Jo Grady emphasised how student mass migration away from home ‘[risked] doing untold damage… and exacerbating the worst public health crisis of our lifetimes’.  Universities UK spoke for campus leaders, assuring face-to-face teaching was only to take place ‘where it is safe and appropriate to do so’. With little notice, but also a desire to return to some normality, we have seen students embark on this migration to universities across the country, and to R...

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way that we live. For those of us lucky enough to have emerged unscathed, it’s changed how we socialise, how we shop, and even how we receive our education. That is perhaps most true for students who had been planning to spend the 2020/21 academic year abroad. As a result of the need to minimise intercontinental spread of the virus, many students have seen their plans for the year ahead cancelled. Plus, those considering applying for an opportunity to study outside the UK, might be worried about how the pandemic will affect them too. This article, however, will hopefully shed some light on the subject. For students who have seen their plans cancelled, the university has introduced new measures to avoid disappointment where possible. In a normal cli...

‘Land of Hope and Glory’, has been a staple piece at the Last Night of the BBC Proms since the year it was composed within Edward Elgar’s 1901 ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ March No. 1, with lyrics later added in 1902 by A.C. Benson, featuring alongside ‘Rule Britannia’. ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ was later considered as a ‘second national anthem’, with calls for it to become England’s national anthem, aside to Britain’s. So, in the announcement of BBC’s removal of both ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ and ‘Rule Britannia’, for artistic reasons due to COVID-19 restrictions, the BBC began to see mixed reactions through multiple media lenses.  Coronavirus guidelines have limited not only singer-participation, but also audience involvement, leading producers to support the decision in how the son...

Throughout 2020, American citizens have taken to the streets in order to make their voices heard. Angered by their nation’s inherent and systematic inequalities, Black Lives Matter protesters have ensured that their cause has been front and centre of the United States’ political landscape. Unfortunately, their efforts are yet to reap significant rewards, as little tangible progress has been made under Trump’s regime since the unlawful killing of George Floyd.  In fact, social tensions have flared up once more following the shooting of another black American, Jacob Blake. An official report of the events leading up to the shooting is yet to be released, but Wisconsin attorney-general Josh Kaul says that officers were called to the location after a woman reported that “her boyfr...