JUS UIB MEMES – frå farsott til saga blott

Injuria.no • 21. juli 2018

Skrevet av André Habbestad
Bilder: JUS UIB MEMES

‘’JUS UIB MEMES’’ er for mange på Dragefjellet eit kjent og kjært namn. Stort meir enn namnet har likevel dei færraste visst noko om. Dette er historia om Facebook-fenomenet som fekk kultstatus på det Juridiske Fakultet.

Frå fenomen til institusjon 

Juss, UiB, og memes. Dette skulle visa seg å vera ein potent kombinasjon. Sida, som først gjorde liv ut av seg hausten 2014, har underhaldt både studentar, tilsette, og utanforståande, og har per dags dato 3 919 likarar. 

Medan dei første innlegga på sida sjeldan kom over eit tosifra antal likarklikk, kunne innlegg frå den seinare storheitstida koma opp i mange hundretals reaksjonar. Alle tidlegare rekordar vart sprengte då sida gjennom ein såkalla ‘’Hitler-reaksjonsvideo’’ – eit klipp i frå krigsfilmen ‘’Der Untergang’’, teksta på ein måte som har lite med slaget om Berlin å gjera – dreiv gjøn med dei infamøse tingsrettseksamenane til Ingunn Myklebust. Dette innlegget resonnerte tydelegvis blant studentane, som sikra videoen nesten halvanna tusen likarklikk. 

Jusstudentane var ikkje dei einaste som visste å setja pris på morosamhetane JUS UIB MEMES lirte av seg. Også professorane Hans Fredrik Marthinussen og Christian Franklin tok ved ulike anledningar turen innom kommentarfelta, sistnemnte med ein solid dose sjølvironi: Franklin sin reaksjon på Hitler-harselaset var å konstatera at han grua seg til årets NIRI-kurs. 

 

 

 

 


Eit anna innlegg som tydelegvis traff blink omhandla Marthinussen, og hans beskjed om at han ikkje kunne stille på storgruppe grunna halsbetennelse.  

Meme-positiv professor 

Marthinussen svarer følgande på spørsmål om hans tankar rundt sida konkret og studierelatert harselas generelt:

‘’Jeg tenker at det er en naturlig måte for studentene å avreagere litt. Vi som ansatte må tåle litt uskyldig moro, så lenge det ikke blir ufint. Det handler vel litt om å få ut litt frustrasjon og press. Samtidig må man også være litt forsiktig - det er ikke offentlige personer  det er snakk om stort sett, men helt vanlige folk som prøver å gjøre en best mulig jobb for studentene våre. Stort sett synes jeg UiB memes håndterte det bra. For min egen del (for jeg fikk vel min share med memes) synes jeg i hvert fall det var godt innenfor rammene for uskyldig moro.’’

Skuggane bak skøyarstrekane 

Kor kom så dette frå? Redaktørskapet bak sida har så langt vore eit einaste stort mysterium, og sida har heller ikkje gitt lyd i frå seg sidan i fjor haust. Injuria har no den store gleda å kunne presentera ein meir eller mindre eksklusiv prat med skuggane bak JUS UIB MEMES, til glede for ein studentmasse sveltefôra på memes. 

Frå gruppechat til Facebook-side

‘’Det hele begynte med at vi var en guttegjeng som hadde en chat der vi postet memes og gjorde litt narr av jusskulturen på Dragefjellet. Fordi - let's face it - jusskulturen er litt sær. En av gutta tenkte at dette var for bra for at det ikke skulle deles med andre. Dette var i perioden da memes ble populært, og jussen hadde ikke en egen facebook-side. Han tok da grep å opprettet JUS UIB MEMES. Tanken var at et par andre skulle finne humoren vår morsom, men det tok jo helt av. Plutselig så vi at andre jusstudenter, professorer og andre innenfor jussens verden likte og dele memesene våre. En av de mest populære memesene våre nådde ut til 66 000 personer. Det var positivt at flere så, og kunne gjøre narr av, hvor sær jusskulturen på Dragefjellet er: Man skal være tæn, fit og ha A i snitt, og det eneste man kan spise er rugsprø med avokado.’’

Stygge bilete av Tande

‘’Det tok vel bare noen uker før nesten hele jussen hadde likt siden vår. Deretter smittet den over på andre fakulteter og jussfolk. Vi har vel egentlig ikke gjort oss opp noen tanker om hvordan det føles å stå bak et slik fenomen. Vi fortsatte egentlig bare den gamle chatten vår, men med den forskjellen at nå var den offentlig og tilgjengelig for alle. Vi vet forresten ikke om den er elsket av alle. Vi prøvde å tulle litt med jussen i Stavanger og Lillehammer for å skape litt "banter" mellom fakultetene. De bet rett på limpinnen og kom med krasse kommentarer i kommentarfeltet. Det var ekstra morsomt for oss, men tror ikke de elsket det. Hva gjelder anonymiteten så skjønte våre nærmeste venner hvem som stod bak ganske fort. Men vi følte egentlig ikke noe behov for å bekrefte det fordi vi ville at meme'sene skulle stå i fokus, ikke hvem som lagde de. Det var likevel svært vanskelig å holde på smilebåndet da vi hadde Tande som storgruppeleder i M2, og han klagde på at JUS UIB MEMES bruker «stygge» bilder av han.’’

Ikkje over streken

‘’Stort sett har det ikke vært et problem, men noen ganger har vi måtte ta noen runder internt på hvor grensen går. Når personer på ulike måter frivillig har stukket nesen sin frem i offentligheten, så har vi imidlertid senket terskelen for å lage humor om det. Vi føler vel vi stort sett har truffet, selv om det var en gang vi måtte slette et innlegg om noen som følte seg støtt. Det har imidlertid aldri vært vår hensikt å henge ut noen.’’

Punktum satt? 

‘’Punktum er nok satt for vår del. Vi er ferdig på UiB, så da er det vanskelig å vite hva som rører seg på fakultetet. Det vi imidlertid hadde håpet var at noen andre ville overta. Siden jusstudiet er såpass krevende er det viktig at man kan tulle litt og ikke ta seg selv så seriøst. Vi får tilsendt forslag til memes innimellom, og som man ser av det siste innlegget er det nok flere som gjerne skulle sett at siden ble ført videre, men for vår egen del vet vi ikke lenger hva som er treffende.’’
 

Kavalkade: Det beste av JUS UIB MEMES

 

 

Av Hannah M. Behncke, Eylül Sahin and Sabrina Eriksen Zapata – ELSA Bergen, Human Rights, Researchgruppen 24. april 2025
Oppression isn’t always loud - it can be the quiet erasure of culture and language, stripping minorities of their freedom to express who they are. Language and culture are two of the most important means to keep one's identity alive. Unfortunately, many minorities face extreme repression regarding their background. The Kurdish ability to perform their culture in Turkey has been a long struggle. This is still the case today, where the Kurdish minority face backlash for speaking their language. This article will look into the Kurdish fight to protect their identity in Turkey. To gain a deeper understanding of the diverse perspectives on this issue, we interviewed a Kurdish and a Turkish citizen of Turkey about their views on the Turkish state's treatment of Kurds. Legal basis Although several international legal frameworks exist to protect minority cultures and languages, Turkey has not incorporated them into its legal system. Article 27 of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights explicitly states that “minorities shall not be denied the right […] to enjoy their culture, [...] or to use their own language.” However, despite ratifying the ICCPR, Turkey made a reservation excluding Article 27. Similarly, the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages requires minority languages to be accessible in education, judicial court proceedings, and in the media. However, Turkey has not ratified this charter. Domestically, the Turkish constitution does not recognize Kurds as a minority. In fact, article 42 explicitly prohibits the “teaching of any language other than Turkish as a mother tongue to Turkish citizens”.1 As a result, the Kurdish language lacks legal protection, unlike Ladino, Greek, and Armenian, which are safeguarded under the Treaty of Lausanne (1923).2 Historical overview After the Ottoman Empire's collapse, the 1920 Treaty of Sèvres promised Kurdish autonomy, but the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne nullified it, dividing Kurdistan among Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria without self-rule.3 Under Atatürk, Turkey enforced homogenization, banning Kurdish in public, closing Kurdish schools, renaming villages (1924) and forcibly relocating Kurds—even though most Kurds did not speak Turkish.4 The state criminalized Kurdish, promoted Citizen, Speak Turkish! and justified relocations as a tool to suppress identity.5 The Sheikh Sa’id Rebellion (1925), led by Kurdish nationalists and Islamists, was brutally crushed, triggering long-term conflict. Martial law and mass deportations lasted until 1939, while uprisings in Ararat (1930) and Dersim (1937–38) faced massacres, bombings, and poison gas, drawing parallels to the Armenian Genocide.6 Allegations of British support for Kurdish rebels persist, but remain debated.7 Kurdish political movements resurfaced in the 1960s and 1970s, with the Kurdish Democratic Party of Turkey (1965) and the Marxist-Leninist PKK (1978) engaging in armed resistance. Turkey designated the PKK a terrorist group in 1997, followed by the US and EU.8 Forced displacement continued, with over a million Kurds migrating between 1950 and 1980 due to state violence and poverty.9 The 1980 military coup further suppressed Kurdish politics, banning education (1982) and publications (Law No. 2932, 1983).10 Despite lifting the language ban in 1991, Kurdish broadcasting remained illegal until 2002. From 1984 to 1999, Turkey destroyed 4,000 Kurdish villages, displaced three million people, and killed tens of thousands in its campaign against Kurdish insurgency.11 The 1991 language bill allowed limited private Kurdish use, but public use remained restricted. Some progress followed in the 21st century, including Kurdish-language broadcasts (2004), a state-run TV channel (2009), and Kurdish as an optional school subject (2012), though full linguistic and cultural rights remain elusive. Oral storytelling (Dengbêj) persisted despite restrictions. Between 2013 and 2015, Turkey’s peace talks with the PKK, involving Abdullah Öcalan, PKK commanders, and pro-Kurdish HDP intermediaries, collapsed—renewing conflict in southeastern Turkey.12 Arbitrary arrests, imprisonment, torture, and land dispossession persist, as security forces often fail to distinguish civilians from PKK members.13 How is the situation today? An estimated 12–20 million Kurds live in Turkey, making up approximately 14–23% of the country's population. The wide range in estimates is due to the absence of ethnicity-related data in official statistics and the social and political stigma that may lead some to conceal their identity.14 As Kurds originate from various countries, most today identify with the state in which they reside. Surveys suggest that many Kurds feel a strong sense of discrimination. Only 28% believe they are treated equally to ethnic Turks, while 58% report experiencing discrimination. Some have even been denied medical services and housing due to their ethnicity.15 To better understand these challenges, we spoke with a Kurdish individual from Elbistan, Turkey, who spent most of his life there before relocating. When asked if he had ever felt pressure speaking Kurdish in public, he recalled visits to public institutions where his family, unable to speak Turkish, had to use Kurdish, but were not allowed to. “It always made us feel fear and anxiety”, he said. He also described restrictions on Kurdish culture: “Whenever we listened to Kurdish music or played traditional games outside, we knew we were being watched. Some of my friends were even detained just for playing games with Kurdish music. It felt like our culture was a crime.” In contrast, a Turkish conservative nationalist offered a different perspective. While personally holding nationalist views, he answered the questions in general terms, arguing that Kurds are integrated into society and do not face systemic barriers. When asked if there was tension between Turks and Kurds in daily life, he dismissed the idea: “Generalizing Turkey’s sociology is difficult, but I don’t see any real barrier. I have Kurdish friends and colleagues, and background doesn’t matter to us. In cities like Istanbul, people aren’t judged based on race, religion, language, or culture.” Even though he acknowledged past discrimination, he viewed it as a historical issue rather than an ongoing one. While the two perspectives differ, they reflect broader discussions on the extent of cultural and linguistic inclusion in Turkey. Surveys suggest that many Kurds report experiencing discrimination, while some view Kurdish cultural expression as unrestricted. The extent to which Kurdish identity is freely expressed - or whether challenges remain - continues to be a subject of debate. The survival of Kurdish culture in Turkey In a survey conducted regarding Kurdish identity, only 30% of Kurds reported their Kurdish language skills to be “good”, and of this 30%, only 44% of them reported that their children had the same strong language skills.16 This suggests that it is harder for each passing generation to maintain and teach the Kurdish language. So how has the oppression impacted Kurdish ability to maintain their language? According to the latter interviewee “Kurdish is spoken openly, cultural traditions are practiced, and there are Kurdish-language newspapers and TV channels”. Media As mentioned above, the Turkish government continuously violates the “freedom of expression”. In 2021, Turkey was the country with most cases regarding violation to “freedom of expression” before the European Court of Human Rights.17 Regarding Kurdish media, there has been a consistent crackdown on Kurdish media platforms. There has also been consistent imprisonment of journalists either writing in Kurdish or regarding Kurdish repression. For instance, Nedim Turfent was sentenced to 8 years imprisonment in 2017 for covering the clashes between the Turkish army and the PKK. In his sentence, he was charged with “membership of a terrorist organization”.18 Education The Educational accessibility to teaching Kurdish has improved in the years. Students in cities with a high population of Kurds, can choose Kurdish as a subject in primary- and secondary school. In addition, some state level universities offer Kurdish programs. However, these educational means have been greatly criticized by Kurdish activists, in regard to the government lowering the quality of education by not supplying enough teachers and appropriate materials needed for the classes.19 Final remarks Language is not just a means of communication; it embodies history, culture, and identity. The Kurdish struggle for linguistic freedom in Turkey is a fight for existence, where legal barriers and social stigmas persist despite claims of progress. While the government insists on inclusivity, Kurdish activists highlight ongoing repression, and for many, fear and anxiety remain. The future of Kurdish identity depends not just on legal reforms but on broader acceptance within Turkish society. Whether true equality is within reach - or remains a distant hope - ultimately depends on who you ask.
Av Injuria 24. april 2025
I denne utgaven: Nordtveit, Ernst - " Rettar til nausttomt " - 1982