diversity at the LSE

London School of Economics has been busy promoting the interests of students from all cultures and backgrounds in the last few months

By Raihan Alfaradhi

In the heart of the country’s capital, the London School of Economics (LSE) is bustling with activity. Its Students’ Union (SU) is one of the liveliest around, and with good reason.

The LSE attracts students from across the globe, and 70% of its students come from abroad. Over 150 different countries are represented by the student body. This makes the university a microcosm of the multi-cultural city around it.

To celebrate this, the SU puts on a range of events and supports a variety of national and cultural societies. In particular, we have the Student ‘RISE’ Against Racism Week, and the Global Week.

The annual ‘RISE’ Week was founded by the Mayor of London, and consists of a week of events and activities enjoyed by thousands year upon year. Students hold their own version of this across their campuses, and the LSE is no different.

This year, the Student ‘RISE’ week consisted not only of events orientated towards celebrating the diverse culture that exists at the LSE, but also bringing awareness to the issues of race that exist today.

Three of the prominent events which took place were the International Food Fair, Public Discussion, and Bone Marrow Registration.

The Food Fair highlighted some of the exotic culinary delights of over 25 national societies. ‘Supporting Civil Liberties and Diversity’ was a panel discussion involving Doug Jewell (Liberty), Yasmin Qureshi (Mayor of London's Human Rights Advisor) and Sabby Dhalu (Unite Against Fascism). Finally, throughout the week, students were given the opportunity to get themselves onto the international bone marrow register, where there is particular shortage of ethnic-minority donors.

The Global Week will be taking place in February, and aims to celebrate the various cultures of the students at the LSE. Events in the week range from the charitable to the sporting. The week culminates in the Global Show, which showcases the talents of the societies and their members through a variety of displays.

The Global Week takes place from the 13th to the 19th February 2006.