2020 General Meeting

Date: 22nd June 2020 (2020-06-22)

Agenda

Matters Arising

1. Update on college paper on discrimination against BAME students 
2. Update on JCR finances

Amendments to Governing Documents

Motions Relating to Financial Matters

1. Donating to BAME Film Fund (BA) Passes

Any Other Motions

Appendices 

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Matters Arising

1. Update on college paper on discrimination against BAME students 
2. Update on JCR finances 

Amendments to Governing Documents

Motions Relating to Financial Matters

1. Donating to BAME Film Fund

This JCR notes that:

• Black, Asian and minority ethnic artists are severely underrepresented in Oxford’s student film scene
• OUFF (Oxford University FIlmmaking Foundation) and the OxBAME Drama Society have recently created a fund exclusively for black, Asian and minority ethnic filmmakers, called the BFF - the BAME Film Fund.
• The BFF is struggling to secure funding from the university.

This JCR believes that:

• Black, Asian and minority ethnic filmmakers should receive the same funding opportunities as their white counterparts. 
• Participation in the student filmmaking scene should be far greater than it is right now. 
• The diversification of Oxford filmmaking can only be a good thing.
• The BFF is financially sustainable, and suitably placed to help black, Asian, and minority ethnic filmmakers, financially and otherwise. 

This JCR resolves:

• To give £100 to the BFF to help it secure its emergency fund, allowing it to officially begin in Michaelmas 2020 

Any Other Motions

Appendices 

Minutes

Financial update 

Conor decides to write a Facebook post on the financial updates as nobody’s here, so would be a bit pointless now. 

College paper on discrimination against BAME students 

Cerian says most of what happened in college meeting is on her post on the jcr page. 

Andi says she’s happy with what happened, it went well, it should achieve change. 

Cerian says exec is considering moving the fresher’s week in-depth race workshops into another slot a few weeks into term when people are more familiar with the Oxford system and thus the problems it can pose for BAME students. The workshop would be mandatory, and supported by college. 

Dhruv thinks this would be a good idea. He didn’t realise the depths of some of the problems in two terms, let alone a week. We could have something mentioning race in freshers week, and then a bigger discussion later on. This could make freshers week less hectic. We need to make sure the discussion is seen as important though. 

Cerian says we could set a standard for behaviour in freshers week, and then go more in-depth once people have more experience. 

Andi says a later workshop could also mean more people would be willing to deliver them, so smaller groups; people won’t have collections, we could hold them on a Saturday when people don’t have deadlines, tutorials. 

Cerian says the BAME fellow is yet to be chosen. It’s been suggested that the position could be held by a white fellow as a specific type of training is needed, and no BAME fellows currently have that training. 

Andi says she’d rather wait until a BAME fellow can be appointed as the BAME fellow as part of the point is not having to explain the experience of racism to someone who hasn’t gone through it themselves. 

Dhruv agrees, and suggests asking Sudhir if he’d cover the position. We want someone with personal experience to draw from, and don’t want to risk any unconscious bias occurring. BAME students need to be fully comfortable speaking to the BAME fellow. 

Andi says they’ve asked Sudhir, but he’s too busy to take the role full time. He’s chairing the committee established by college and will oversee the implementation of the agreed measures. She says we have a say on who is appointed to be BAME fellow, and can have a conversation with college about who we think would be good.

Cerian says that the BAME fellow is intended to specifically come from a British point of view. 

Cerian says that work is also being done on diversifying the curriculum and introducing college level quotas for diversity statistics. Some money from donors could also specifically go into a BAME welfare fund. 

Andi says the general experience of college meeting was positive, and it was recognised that the jcr has done our bit and it shouldn’t have taken a student report for some of these changes to be implemented. 

Cerian says going forward, we need to make sure things don’t get as bad as before, and need to make sure we follow up on proposed changes. 

BAME film fund 

Bruno introduces the motion. He’s president of Oxford Uni Film Foundation (OUFF). Along with Oxford BAME Drama Society, they want to establish a fund for BAME filmmaking. The drama society is aiming to diversify the Oxford drama scene on and off stage by providing support networks and financial support to BAME students. There’s no similar initiative for film in Oxford, which is notoriously white. OUFF wants to set up a ringfenced fund that BAME artists can apply to. They can bring their own crews, or OUFF can help them get a crew. OUFF are pledging £100 a term to the fund, as are Oxford BAME Drama Society; this will be a sustainable pot of money. OUFF is also launching a Facebook group to share opportunities on, will be hosting talks, and will be teaching people how to use equipment to support BAME, and particularly black, students to get involved in filmmaking. He wants the jcr to give £100 to an emergency fund to be used if either OUFF or the drama soc can’t pledge their termly £100, so the fund can be more stable and can get off the ground. 

Conor asks what the fund would actually go towards. 

Bruno says OUFF will provide equipment. It will instead go towards buying props, renting locations, hiring crew etc. Money is assigned on a case by case basis. Applicants will have to go to an interview panel of OUFF’s BAME officer and president, and Oxford BAME Drama Society’s president. They will need a detailed breakdown of their budget. 

Rory asks why Rory is on this zoom call from Balliol back quad. Bruno says he didn’t have time to get home :(

Conor says we can definitely afford this. 

A vote is taken. The motion passes.