How to blag your way through politics

Are you more won’t than woke when it comes to talking politics? Do you despair at any mention of David Cameron, tremble at the thought of Theresa May, or cower away from Corbyn?

Difficult grown-up conversations will inevitably occur during freshers’ week as you all try and convince your peers that you learnt more on your gap year than just how to find diarrhoea remedies in a Thai pharmacy. Instead of educating yourself on policies and current affairs like the newly formed adult we know you’re not, here are some helpful hints and tricks for blagging your way through.

Brexit

Need to know | In June 2016, the UK held a referendum on whether the UK should remain a member of the European Union. Although the consequences of this remain unclear, the result was 52% in favour of leaving the UK. Since the election, the British economy was considerably weakened, leaving the pound still at a 30 year low.

Tryhard, much? | For the referendum result of 52% in favour of Leave, turnout was more than 71%, but that means that the non-voters could have swayed the result in favour of Remain. About 64% of 18-24 year olds voted, but did so overwhelmingly in favour of Remain. We need to “trigger Article 50” to leave the EU, then we have two years. Some European superpowers (Germany) say that they won’t negotiate with us on things like trade deals before then, and they won’t go easy on us, which could be a big problem.

Israel vs. Palestine

Need to know | Israel is the world’s only Jewish state, but it’s referred to as Palestine by the Arab population originating from that area. Although there’s a millennia long history of arguments over this piece of land, as a result of the persecution that the Jews faced in the second world war, they tried to establish a home in Israel, much of the chagrin of those who felt it was rightfully theirs. There have been attacks on both sides from groups whose charters call for the destruction of the other state. So far, peacemaking attempts from many organisations, such as the United Nations and the American government (the Oslo Accords), have been unsuccessful.

Tryhard, much? | Although 83% of the world’s countries recognise Israel, in general, global support comes down on the side of Palestine. Although negotiations from the American government seem hopeless now, they recovered from the collapse following Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s rejection of Israel’s peace offer in 2001. Israel and Hamas (a Palestinian organisation) have both deliberately injured civilians in this conflict.

Clinton vs. Trump

Need to know | The USA has two major parties: the Republicans and the Democrats. Registered voters can vote on a leader of the party (in the primaries) ahead of the entire country going to the polls for the new President. For the Democrats, who currently are in power, the leadership race was closely contested by Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, with Hillary just winning. For the Republicans, Donald Trump is their candidate.

Tryhard, much? | Hillary has the experience to run the country, but she’s unpopular. Donald Trump claims to represent the opinion of the silent majority of Americans. The campaigning seems to have turned into a lot of mud-slinging about the health of the candidates and past scandals.

#BlackLivesMatter

Need to know | The hashtag #BlackLivesMatter was created in 2012 after the death of Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenager who was shot and killed in Florida. Black Lives Matter has since become an international activist movement campaigning against racism and violence against black people, and demonstrating that to the public and governments, black lives matter less.

Tryhard, much? | The All Lives Matter response wilfully rejects the idea that racism plays a role in the treatment of a certain group of people, silencing black voices, rather than asserting that all human lives are equal. This year, a lesser-known Black Lives Matter UK movement was founded. The ways in which black people are marginalised in the UK are different to in the US, with young black men in the UK disproportionately dying in the mental health system, and being up to 17 times more likely to be stopped and searched.

The crisis in Syria

Need to know | In 2011, as part of the Arab Spring, anti-government demonstrations began in Syria, which escalated to a civil war between the government and rebels. Since then, 125,000 civilians are believed to have been killed, and more than ten million people have been forced to flee their homes. Many are seeking refuge in Europe, which has had a mixed response. Taking advantage of this chaos, an extremist group, ISIS, have significantly grown in power, and are fighting to establish themselves as a religious state. Several countries, including the UK, have conducted airstrikes on Syria, despite protests against the inevitable civilian deaths.

Tryhard, much? | ISIS were able to rise to power as a result of the power vacuum created by the dissolution of Saddam Hussein’s regime during the Iraq War. The Chilcott inquiry exposed Tony Blair’s false claim of evidence of the existence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Some suggest that this affected the decision to send British and American troops into Iraq, despite warnings that this might destabilise the Iraqi government.