'It's good that the Queen is dead': University socialist group slammed over celebratory forum
NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA: A university students’ group has been lambasted after it held an event to celebrate the death of Queen Elizabeth II by describing her as “one of the biggest dole bludgers”. As per reports, the University of New South Wales 'Socialist Alternative' group is behind the forum on September 15.
On their Facebook page, the group posted that they were holding an event called ‘It's good that the Queen is dead - A Socialist Forum,’ and wrote, “If you're also disgusted by the barrage of mainstream condolences for the death of Queen Elizabeth II, come join the UNSW socialists for a forum about why it's good to see her go!”
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The post also read, “The Queen is one of the biggest dole bludgers, spunging off workers' taxes while they choose between heat and food this winter, and oversaw one of the bloodiest empires in the world, second only to the US in its colonial and imperialist violence.”
But the Australian Monarchist League’s spokesman Alexander Voltz seemed frustrated with it as he told Daily Mail Australia, “The Australian Monarchist League is absolutely repulsed to have learnt that a University of New South Wales student society called UNSW Socialist Alternative yesterday hosted an event on campus called 'It's good that the Queen is dead – A Socialist Forum'. The University of New South Wales should, quite frankly, be embarrassed by the ignorance of its students.”
“So too should the general public be appalled that the university's administration permitted a venue – likely at the expense of compulsory student amenities fees – for this anarchistic celebration to take place,” Voltz expressed.
However, The University of New South Wales (UNSW) defended itself by saying, “Our university is a place where many different views and opinions are expressed and vigorously debated. We do not shy away from what is controversial and expect those engaged in these debates to treat others with respect. UNSW supports freedom of speech within the law and has an unequivocal commitment to freedom of speech. We will continue our efforts as a university community to ensure our campuses support freedom of speech in a safe and respectful environment.”
Besides, UNSW Socialist Alternative club member Shovan Bhattarai explained the objective behind organizing the event that happened on Thursday, September 15. Bhattarai told Daily Mail Australia, “The last week has been an eye opener for many students at UNSW who have come up to our information stalls to tell us all the crimes of the British Empire they've learned since Lizzy kicked the bucket.”
“The jewels in the crown that sat on her head and the dozens of castles she owned are all testimony to the stolen wealth from the colonies and the drain the royals have been on the public purse today. Here in Australia, Indigenous people continue to suffer oppression that started with the invasion of Australia by Britain. So to see government buildings lower the Aboriginal flag - a symbol of resistance to oppression - to half mast was sickening,” he noted.
Cherish Kuehlmann, who is also part of the group, said, “We need to abolish the monarchy. It represents everything that's wrong about the stark inequality and the lack of democracy in the world today. Her death giving us a public holiday is the only good thing she's done. On September 22 we will be joining hundreds of protesters in Sydney demanding justice for first nations people.”
However, it was not just the students of the University of New South Wales, the University of Queensland's students also have strong words against the late Queen. The student-funded publication 'Sempre Floreat' published an opinion on September 9 — a day after the Queen’s death. The title of the essay was ‘Goodbye to the Queen of nothing, really’ and it stated, “This sickening display of solidarity for one of the richest people on the planet, who literally inherited her title, and who wielded little genuine authority or power, seems to be nothing more than a collective delusion or mass hysteria.”
The piece added, “In reality, there was nothing extraordinary about the ex-Queen at all. Her entire life was an example of the banality of evil, of a person whose personality and agency were absolutely irrelevant to history. While the ex-Queen presided over innumerable symbolic events and as head of state for multiple nations, her entire role and social position – the immense assets of the Crown Estate, valued at over 15 billion pounds, for example – was and will continue to be predicated on the total inactivity of the monarch. The monarchy as an institution is nothing more than a monument to social parasitism, of the concept that immense wealth and privilege belongs to a few due to god-given rights while the majority of us scrape by with whatever we can.”
But Voltz did not agree with the narrative as he claimed that the university should “hang its head in shame”. He also urged the monarchists to stop “their generous philanthropy” until both the universities take measures to “curtail the ideological and commercial abuses which they seemingly perform with alacrity”.