Outrage after blind, Ghanaian student 'dragged by his ankles' out of Oxford Union debate and then has his membership suspended!
A blind Ghanaian postgraduate student was "dragged by his ankles" and thrown out of one of the United Kingdom's most prestigious debating societies after he tried to reenter the venue of the event.
On October 17, Ebenezer Azamati, 25, who is visually impaired, wanted to attend a talk on the motion "This House has no confidence in HM Government" at the Oxford Union. Worried there were no special provisions for disabled students, he got to the union early to reserve a seat. He placed a book on an accessible seat near the entrance to reserve it and went back to his college for dinner.
However, when he returned with a friend of his to the arena, officials refused his attendance and were caught on video manhandling him while trying to get him out of the seat. In the video, posted on the Facebook page of Oxford University Africa Society, officials were seen trying to pull him out of his seat while he pleads with them to give him back his cane.
A number of witnesses at the debate claimed that Azamati was being "dragged by his ankles."
"Our understanding is that Mr. Azamati, who is visually impaired, was forcibly and violently prevented from re-entering the Union to resume his seat, and subsequently, forced to leave the debate Chamber after simply exiting and re-entering when the program had not even begun. Even if he had re-entered when the debate had started, such poor treatment through violent means remains unjustifiable," the Oxford University Africa Society said in a statement.
The incident has sparked a number of reactions from the supporters of Azamati and those in opposition alike. For example, a disciplinary committee was assembled, where Oxford Union President Brendan McGrath alleged that the Ghanaian behaved aggressively and thrust his arms out as he was being ejected from his seat.
While Azamati's Oxford Union membership was suspended for two terms, protesters called for McGrath's resignation. "In being publicly removed from the Oxford Union Society made me feel unwelcome in the Union, Oxford and even the country. I felt that I was treated as not being human enough to deserve justice and fair treatment," Azamati told The Times.
Senior university staff also alleged such racially discriminating behavior was hurting the chances of the institution of attracting more ethnic minority and working-class students.
Oxford Union said it apologized "unreservedly for the distress caused." Oxford University, on the other hand, said: "The Oxford Union is an independent society. The university has no control over its events."