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Well, here’s a new one. The University of Manchester Student’s Union passed a resolution at their first meeting of the year which bans clapping at their events and will instead use “jazz hands” (British Sign Language clapping).
The student newspaper, Mancunion, wrote, “It was argued that the loud noise of traditional clapping and whooping pose an issue to students with anxiety or sensory issues. BSL (British Sign Language) clapping – or, jazz hands – would be a more inclusive form of expression.”
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Liberation and Access Officer Sara Khan authored the motion, called ‘Making Senate More Accessible’. It resolved to swap out audible clapping for BSL clapping at SU events, and to “encourage student groups and societies to do the same, and to include BSL clapping as a part of inclusion training”.
The National Union of Students (NUS) has been using BSL clapping since 2015. Khan’s motion received little opposition in Senate.
Each motion needs a 66% majority to get passed and is voted on by members of the student community including representatives from University halls, student media representatives, random members of the student body, and SU exec officers.
In 2017, Durham University’s student union proposed a similar motion at the National Union of Students conference calling for the ban of clapping and whooping at NUS events because it excludes deaf people and might “trigger anxiety.”
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[Metro]