In Solidarity Sister!

I don't know if any of you have joined the Students Union? It's hard sometimes to feel part of a student body when you are literally miles apart. Apropos of nothing, I thought I would post about a fellow student, Sophie Scholl. Some of you may know of her, some not. She wasn't a student at Middlesex, she studied at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Sophie, along with her brother, Hans, was convicted of treason for distributing anti war leaflets on campus. Like the victims of the Kent State massacre in 1970, she and her brother also died. They were guillotined. The year was 1943.

As part of my career, I have often been a dissident of some sort. Being a woman, being a woman of colour, having and stating an opinion; all of these things, in some places and times, would have caused me great problems and put my life, let alone my liberty in danger. Indeed, they still might in some parts of the world. The fact that I enjoy the freedoms which are a touchstone for me, has literally been paid for by the blood of others. Every day, therefore, it behoves me to be brave. To say what I believe to be true and to take chances, rather than walk the safer path, in my thinking and writing that is. Sadly, I'm still not a superhero and when my pants are worn outside my tights, it's by accident, not part of my costume.

This course is an intellectual challenge. We must think for ourselves and create new paths, that others may follow and build on the work we do. We are making history and our opportunities must not be squandered.