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Edinburgh student feels she has to change her accent after being called 'rough'

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date10 April 2024
AuthorLee Dalgetty
Publication titleEdinburghLive (Scotland)
Lilian, who is currently a first year Scots Law student, says she's had experiences of being shamed for her accent already. In a clip uploaded to social media from the 93 per cent club, she tells of being told she sounds "really rough" within the first week at university

The 93 per cent club are a student run charity who hope to "dismantle the class inequality" and "break down the structural barriers" for those who went to state schools in the UK. While Lilian struggled with her accent, she pushed through and found friends who "accept her for who she is".

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Speaking in the clip, Lilian says: "I'm currently a first year Scots Law student at the University of Edinburgh.

"I feel as though my accent is at times a challenge for myself, I feel as though I tend to change my accent up a little bit. You'll probably hear it.

"Sometimes I find it quite hard in front of a camera, actually, not to speak more proper. I feel as though in lectures and tutorials especially, I start to speak a lot more like this - a lot slower, a lot clearer.

"I tend to speak with a strong accent, I kinda say 'aye' and 'naw'. A lot of slang in my day-to-day speak."

Lilian says that in her time at university, she's already had experiences of being shamed for accent. She continues: "Just in freshers week, I was told that I sound really rough.

"I've overheard quite a lot of conversations between some other students, some more well-off students, that don't really have the financial worries that you get coming to university. I often have struggles about how I'm going to pay rent, how am I going to be able to afford all of textbooks, my materials for my course.

"I feel as though we are looked down upon in a sense, we're not really adequate. We shouldn't be attending, however it's totally untrue.

"Everybody deserves to have a really good education and do what they...

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