Staff and students have criticised City of Glasgow College as they accused it of failing to address concerns over a lecturer who exposed classes to far-right symbols.
Lecturer Russell MacEwan has tattoos of both the Wolfsangel and Black Sun symbols, both of which are associated with Nazi Germany and the far-right.
The former is banned in Germany and has been used by groups such as Ukraine’s Azov Battalion, North American group Aryan Nations and Italy’s Terza Posizione.
The Black Sun originated in the Third Reich and was used by the SS, and was deployed by the Christchurch shooter, Brenton Tarrant, and Payton S. Gendron, who killed 10 people in a mass shooting in Buffalo, New York.
Mr MacEwan previously used the name Black Sun for his industrial metal band, though says the name was not inspired by the Nazis.
In a Zoom lecture during the period of Covid lockdown, a swastika was visible on the fridge behind him.
The lecturer is also said to have directed students to his social media account, which featured artwork depicting the Zyklon-B poison which was used to massacre Jewish people and others during the holocaust, pictures of Nazi soldiers and Hitler Youth, a doll wearing a swastika jumper and a nurse wearing a flak helmet with a swastika on it.
Also on Mr MacEwan’s social media profiles was a painting on acrylic depicting a valknot, which has also been displayed by white supremacists.
The staff code of conduct for City of Glasgow College states that all staff must be “dressed appropriately for the work undertaken in the college” and that “all staff have a responsibility to positively promote diversity and equality”.
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It further makes clear: “You must not discriminate or commit an act of harassment against an employee of the College or a student/member of the public on grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment (including identity), marriage and civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins), religion and belief, sex (formerly gender) and sexual orientation.”
Staff at the college expressed concern that Mr MacEwan’s actions could be in breach.
A source told The Herald: “College management are aware of this Zoom recording and of the students’ complaints but the College has done nothing to address and investigate the very serious breaches of the staff code of conduct.
“This is typical of the way that City of Glasgow College routinely fails to follow its internal policies and investigate complaints.”
After a complaint was raised by students, in 2021 a Zoom meeting was held between Mr MacEwan and the head of the college's art course, Tom Elliot. Mr Elliot has since left his role, which was not related to the incident in question.
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In it the lecturer made clear he had no far-right sympathies but was interested in symbolism, and brought up his use of the symbols in his musical projects.
In response, students sent a letter clarifying that they were not accusing Mr MacEwan of being an extremist or a member of the far-right, but said that the display of the images made them “extremely uncomfortable” and that it had made members of the class feel unsafe.
City of Glasgow College’s complaints procedure outlines that students can lodge a complaint about “conduct, treatment by or attitude of a member of staff or contractor”.
It also outlines that a formal investigation should take place, with all evidence to be recorded in a Corrective and Preventative Action (CAPA) form.
A formal written response must also be offered. When responding to a complainant, "the college is obligated to provide an upheld/not upheld conclusion to each element of the complaint. Additionally, the response must also address the complainants’ desired outcome".
It's understood no formal investigation took place, despite students being unhappy with the conduct of both the lecturer and the response of the college.
It's understood staff have also raised concerns about the incident with college management in recent days.
Russell MacEwan said: “This matter was fully examined and dealt with internally by the college three years ago and, as I categorically said at the time, I have no sympathies or affiliation to any far-right political ideology and never have. I have never been a member of a political party and do not engage with students politically. It is all about the critique of art for me and I do have an interest in the power of symbolism, including the shock value of certain images.
“I recognised three years ago that it was naive of me to post some symbols on my private, pseudonym social media account which are associated with extremism, so I removed them and voluntarily agreed not to post any such images or symbols in the future.”
A City of Glasgow College spokesperson said: “We take great pride in the diversity of our students and staff and have some 150 nationalities on our twin-site campus, and we utterly condemn the divisive and offensive views of far-right politics. Equality, Diversity and Inclusiveness (EDI) is integral to everything we do and is fully embedded into our Strategic and Operational Plans. EDI values are also imbued through our curriculum and our Principal was the first in the college sector to sign the Declaration of Anti-Racism.
“Three years ago, some students in one of Russell’s classes raised concerns about him allegedly posting offensive and shocking images on a private social media account under an alias which was entirely unconnected to the college and to his work as a part-time visual communications lecturer. Although the students never formally raised a complaint against that lecturer, their concerns were taken very seriously and the issue was properly reviewed and scrutinised back in early 2021.
“Senior management, in the form of the former Dean of Creative Industries Faculty, explored the issue and held discussions with those students and then with Russell and faculty managers. There was never any question of illegality in this issue and Russell has always made it clear that he has never had any sympathy towards far-right or any other political ideology and nor has he ever pushed any political ideology on to his students. No prior or subsequent concerns have ever been raised by any of his students.
“The college has a strict social media policy for all college accounts and any linked to the college, but this was out of scope because it was a personal account with no connection to the college. Russell closed that private social media account, agreed to desist from posting any similar offensive images on any other accounts and completed EDI learning modules.”
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