Union to lobby against ALERT statue installation

The Union Council has voted very strongly in favour of lobbying against the installation of the controversial ‘ALERT’ statue, set to be installed in the summer this year. The proposal was passed by Council with 29 votes for, 1 against and 2 abstaining.

EDI and financial issues were some of those raised in opposition to the statue’s installation.

An amendment to the paper that tabled the proposition, suggesting that the Union refer only to the Queen’s Lawn area as ‘Dongoor Plaza’ from now on was rejected. Felix is chagrinned by this.

The paper sparked controversy within the Union, due to a figure contained in the paper fully depicting two possible perceptions of the statue’s form, which can be seen in the image accompanying this article. Fighting fire with fire, the figure is used to show how the statue can be perceived as phallic, by even more explicitly showing said phallus.

Following certain, unspecified meddling within the Union, a retracted version of the paper was distributed shortly after the first, but with the diagram’s modesty slightly more in tact.

The paper also expressed complaint that students had not been consulted prior to ALERT’s installation being agreed.

One of the Union’s resolves will be to share this paper, including the accompanying diagrams, with “College Council and other relevant members of the college”. It is also stated that “If the phallic interpretation is not understood by the College, [the diagram] should be used to explain the ambiguous anatomy of Alert”.

The statue, donated by alumnus Brahmal Vasudevan and his wife Shanthi Kandiah, is set to be installed this summer. 

It will weigh 67 tonnes and be 6.12 meters tall. 

The statue has been designed by prominent sculptor Antony Gormley, who said “The work will beckon towards the passers-by on Exhibition Road, providing a point of interest and intrigue, and encouraging a closer look”.