Doing good with Vindicat
This is us, too!
It’s the Monday after King’s Day, and Groningen’s canals are littered with beer cans and all kinds of trash. ‘Perfect day to do this’, says Vindicat alumnus Thijs, as he scoops a can from under the Herebrug with a grabber, standing in a small boat. ‘A lot of people always party on the boats and then toss their empty cans and cups in the water.’
Once this patch is clean, fellow Vindicat member Julius steers the boat on to the next floating pile of rubbish. Elsewhere, other boats with members are also fishing waste out of the water.
It’s day one of Vindicat in Action, a week of community-focused events for the student association’s 42nd lustrum. The goal? Strengthen ties between the association and the city—and show a more positive side of Vindicat.
Reputation issues
Because if you ask the average local what they think of Vindicat, the answer isn’t exactly glowing: stories of neglected geese in student houses, food fights in the Sushi Mall, leaked sex rankings, hazing scandals, and more recently, members (on a non-official ski trip) peeing in a hotel lift and wrecking a door.
I’ve had an amazing time here, so this is the least I can do
That has to change, says rector Wibe Kaak. ‘People know us from the past, but we want to show what the association stands for today. We would like to show Groningen what we’re really doing, and the things we do for the community here.’ So this week, they’re cleaning the canals, going on an outing with the elderly, cooking with refugees, and playing sports with disabled children.
The idea came from business and philosophy student Francesca Houber. She hopes it’ll become an annual tradition: ‘It led to a moment of reflection on where we stand as an association and what direction we want to take in the future.’
Competition
For Thijs, it’s about giving something back to the city. ‘I’ve had an amazing time here’, he explains. ‘So this is the least I can do.’ There is a bit of incentive, though: a competition between houses and committees for who does the most volunteer work. ‘Yeah, it’s kind of mandatory’, admits Julius, who’s on the action week committee.
He and his twelve housemates are taking 150 kids go-karting later. It might win them tickets to an FC Groningen match or a boat trip. ‘Go straight ahead, straight ahead!’ Thijs directs Julius as he fishes a weed bag out of the water.
Julius helped sort out the funding to make all of this happen. In the end, they managed to raise €20,000. That money is being used for events like Tuesday’s canal cruise with elderly Groningers, followed by lunch at the club house with ‘Oma’s Soep’—a soup initiative to fight elderly loneliness.
Sports and games day
Wednesday was all about the younger crowd. The Grote Markt was packed with inflatable football fields, a trampoline, and food stalls. Kids with paint-splattered clothes sat at picnic tables making art, while others took part in an egg-and-spoon race—broken eggs everywhere.
I prefer to blame individuals, not a whole group
The day was organised together with Kids United, a local sports club for children with physical or mental disabilities. ‘It’s the spring holidays now, so we tried to plan everything in the city centre so everyone can join in’, says Francesca. A German tourist and his family even jumped in to play a game.
On the sidelines, locals Ingrid and Marchien smile as they watch. ‘It’s really nice to see’, says Ingrid. ‘I liked what they did for the elderly too.’
Marchien pauses for a long time when asked what she thinks of Vindicat. ‘Well’, she eventually says, looking uncomfortable, ‘I am a bit concerned about some things I hear, but I’d rather blame some individuals rather than a whole group.’
So much hate
That’s exactly what rector Kaak hopes for. ‘Vindicat has 2,000 members—you can’t watch them all 24/7’, he says. ‘But I still feel responsible when something happens.’ Even things like that ski trip, which technically wasn’t under Vindicat’s name, still damage the association’s image.
It makes me sad that people only see the negative
‘It makes me sad that people only see the negative’, says Amelie, a Vindicat member helping run one of the events. She’s been a member for four years. ‘Wibe and Francesca put so much time and effort into the association, but they still get so much hate because people assume the worst about Vindicat.’
For mum of three Linda, at least, the association is doing something good today. ‘They might not have the best reputation, but this is thoughtful, and it brings a lot of positivity’, she says.
Cooking together
In the evening, the smell of fresh coriander and parsley drifts through the halls of the club house: Vindicat members are cooking side by side with a group of refugees who normally work in the kitchen of the Humanitas Café. Together, they chop ingredients and stir pots of food.
On the menu are dishes from the refugees’ home countries—like a Persian herb omelette. ‘It’s called kuku sabzi’, says Mina from Iran. ‘It has fresh vegetables and herbs, walnuts, and cranberries.’
Mina had never heard of Vindicat before, and neither had Sam from Yemen, who made kibbeh. ‘I think it’s nice they do this’, he says. In the dining room, Vindicat members sit alongside refugees, and other walk-ins are also welcome tonight.
On the last day of the action week, the Grote Markt is once again transformed into a giant playground for kids. Taxi driver Gerard is there with his grandkids, who are bouncing on the trampoline. ‘I’ve been driving taxis for 35 years now, so I know Vindicat very well. I kicked them out of my car many times, because they always talked down to me’, he says. ‘But what they’re doing today? I like that.’