'T Zal: "We are in an identity crisis"

To have a pleasant chat with you, the Ghent foot soldiers, the members of student association 't Zal Wel Gaan emerged from their castles once again. In the April afternoon sun, Kaj Zwerver spoke about the clichés circulating about 't Zal. The interview takes place in 't Zal's premises on the Huidevetterskaai, a stately, chic director's residence along the Leie. The first cliché about 't Zal seems immediately confirmed: it is an association for the elite.

"We are indeed in a privileged position. As students, we have the time and energy to get together on Tuesday evenings and philosophize about life. If you can do that, you are privileged. We realize that, but that applies to every student association. Most students find themselves in a privileged social position."

"As an association, we try to keep things accessible: everyone is welcome every evening. We do not work with memberships, hazing, or a hierarchical board. Anyone interested should just come along."

You have been at odds with conservative student associations for years. You are polar opposites in just about every respect. How do you view them?

"We don't look down on right-wing associations; rather, we feel compassion for them. The organizers of Student Kick-Off forgot about us last year. Because we didn't have a booth of our own, we had to share one with… NSV (an extreme right-wing student association, ed.). When we saw that they had brought Vlaams Belang propaganda, we quickly arranged rainbow flags and put on makeup."

't Zal presents itself as the free-thinker collective of Ghent. Yet, students often regard 't Zal as an echo chamber of progressive thought. Is the woke label justified?

"Admittedly, 't Zal is indeed fairly left-wing. But of course, it remains fun to hide behind the idea that 'we don't take a stand.'" You can always have an interesting debate. There is often disagreement and there are often conflicting opinions. Sometimes someone even intentionally plays the troublemaker."

"It remains fun to hide behind the idea that we are not taking a stance."

"The term 'woke' is ambiguous. On the one hand, woke means daring to question yourself. That is a common thread throughout the history of 't Zal. If you look at it that way, 't Zal is woke. On the other hand, this term has become popular mainly through the right. It is their new way of generalizing left-wing ideology, and ultimately, ignoring it."

Sometimes there is criticism that it too often remains just empty words. Do you think 't Zal is doing enough?

We do engage in activism, but perhaps not enough yet. It would be good to make our voices heard more often on the left-wing spectrum, in order to counter the shift to the right within the university. I also believe that we need to reach more people from minority groups. We are in a bit of an identity crisis, but that is not a bad thing: it is an opportunity to reinvent ourselves. That is precisely why 't Zal has existed for so long, because we manage to renew ourselves time and again.