Amsterdam student assoc. again loses subsidy due to hazing, sexism, culture of violence

For the third year in a row, the Amsterdam student association A.S.C/A.V.S.V. will get no subsidies from the city’s universities. The association has not done enough to restore the higher education institutions’ trust after various hazing and sexism incidents, Parool reports.

The A.S.C./A.V.S.V. lost its subsidies, valued at 15,000 euros, for the first time in 2021 after multiple prospective members sustained injuries during hazing. The incident report revealed few details, only stating the hazing involved beating, stomping, and extreme and persistent humiliation.

A year later, the association again got its funding stripped after members made multiple misogynistic statements during a lustrum dinner, describing women as “cum buckets,” among other things.

This year, a study by the law firm De Roos & Pen revealed that there is a culture of violence at the A.S.C./A.V.S.V. that has led to fractures, bruises, concussions, and assault. The association apologized for the years of structural violence, but it was too little too late.

The University of Amsterdam, the VU University Amsterdam, and the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences decided not to grant the association its subsidies this year either.

Last week, Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema said she was considering closing the A.S.C./A.V.S.V. According to her, the association has taken insufficient action to turn the tide of misconduct. She will closely monitor the association in the future, she said. “What happened in previous years is criminal behavior and punishable by law,” she said. "If necessary, I will close the social club for a longer period of time."

According to Parool, the A.S.C./A.V.S.V. isn’t facing any financial distress, despite the lack of subsidies. Last year, the Association of Reunists gave the student association financial assistance. “I can’t imagine we’d do that differently this year,” Arthur Kipping of the Association of Reunists told the newspaper. “I didn’t know that the association would not receive any money this year either. But there is more reason than ever to have good management and to contribute to it.”