Thread by @RWLDproject

On the humanities. A THREAD

- for Mike's friends & colleagues at Portsmouth Uni in English Lit @UOP_EngLit, threatened with redundancy. It's proposed to slash the team by 60%.

Potentially 8 people will lose their jobs.

Please sign this petition -

change.org/p/vice-chancel…

But why should you?

If the Uni proposes it, it's necessary - that's the logic?

The business case that's been put forward seems to have some grave holes in it. I can't say any more about that, as I don't want to prejudice that route of challenge. But it certainly appears flawed

It's English, & I'm in History (or whatever) - I'm ok.

At the very best, that's a 'maybe.' But realistically, as we've seen elsewhere - Sunderland, anyone - this represents the thin end of the wedge.

It has implications for all of the humanities disciplines.

We're expendable, we don't do the 'right' things, we don't create value (all ludicrous ideas I know - but this it what it feels like).

This looks like a 'quick fix' solution - a piece of classic short-termism.

All of our degree programmes - across the Uni - will be impoverished if this goes ahead.

We'll lose excellent & dedicated teachers & researchers, rooted in our local community but connected nationally & internationally.

As a society we need - now, more than ever - the wide perspectives that teams like the English Lit one provide.

This isn't 'soft' work, or divorced from the 'real' world. It actively helps us understand where we are now. Without that, we're lost.

It helps us interpret, analyse, empathise, criticise, see a bigger picture and different ways of doing things.

It helps us imagine & dream. And yes, for the naysayers, we *need* to be able to do these things if we're going to adapt to the challenges we face, in the UK & globally

Many of these things are hard to put a value on, & so are easy targets for derision or the bean-counters who insist that a degree is simply about how much £££ you make afterwards.

Their lack of understanding of the purpose of education is clear to me.

I want a better society.

The humanities do exactly that. All of us - English, History, Music, Sociology - whatever the discipline may be.

To reduce it to bums on seats or widgets made or starting salaries just doesn't cut it.

(I should add - all of this is also true of colleagues made redundant in the sciences recently - no discipline is safe, it seems, but that's another story. For now: it is worrying all round.)

Within History we've worked closely with English Lit collegues over the years. To lose so many of them will affect us directly in terms of our teaching and research.

And they're our friends. I'm not sure what more to say on that, as it's hard to consider.

It'll affect undergrad & postgrad students, too. How can they possibly get the research-led teaching that is so important?

They're fuming - rightly so - & have been galvanising opposition (fabulous to see their activism & engagement in civic society: a credit to all concerned!).

The school we're all a part of is currently operating under a very dark cloud, as you can imagine.

Those of us in other teams are trying to support our colleagues & fight for them.

But we're also looking over our shoulders, wondering if we might be next?

And not least of all - all of the English team are *people*. They're devasted by what's proposed. How they can keep focused & carry on, I don't know - but they're trying to.

I hate seeing this happen. It's brutal & it seems - from the documents I've seen - to lack transparency.

It's being handled terribly by the University. Again, I don't want to air that publicly at this stage, as I don't want to have an impact on anything that might help the English team. But it shows a lack of respect, empathy & thought.

I appreciate that times are hard. But maybe - just maybe - there are other ways to solve the problem that's been constructed here.

So - to my colleagues & friends in English, I say: this is terrible & you have my support.

To those of us in apparently safe positions, I say: that safety might just be illusory. Let's act now to staunch the flow.

Please sign the petition - thanks

change.org/p/vice-chancel…

/END