Student survey reveals a culture of sexism on campus: 'groping is part of a normal night out'

Sunday 10 March 2013

MISOGYNY masquerading as banter, jokes about rape, verbal abuse for belonging to a feminist group, being confronted by a member of a rugby team wearing a top reading "Campus Rapist" on the front and "It's not rape if you say surprise" on the back.

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REPORT BY RUSSELL LEADBETTER

A grim picture emerges of life on campus for females in a new report commissioned by the National Union of Students. It found half of all those questioned felt there was "prevailing sexism, 'laddism' and a culture of harassment" at their universities.

The NUS has called on Westminster's Women and Equalities Minister Jo Swinson MP to convene a nationwide summit on lad culture.The report, "That's What She Said: Women students' experiences of 'lad culture' in higher education", comes just days after "debategate" at Glasgow Univeristy where Rebecca Meredith, from Cambridge University, and Edinburgh student Marlena Valles were booed and heckled during a debating competition. Meredith later described the experience as "one of the most unpleasant incidents of my life".One female student quoted in the survey said: "The boys in my halls used to sing a drinking song about rape, which was just disgusting. I think there are a lot of jokes about women ... which actually serves to make you feel very embarrassed, nervous and uncomfortable."Another reported: "[It's a] culture in which misogyny and sexism is seen as cool or masculine, a lot of it revolving around sexist jokes and banter so that the sexism is trivialised so people who challenge it are made to seem like killjoys or people with no sense of humour."A third said: "I think with sexual harassment they think it's OK to grab a girl's bum or try and kiss her when she doesn't want you to, so I think sexual harassment is quite a part of lad culture." Participants described "lad culture" as a group of males with a "pack" mentality, often into sport and heavy drinking, where "banter" is often sexist, misogynist and homophobic. This plays heavy in the social side of university life, with extracurricular activities and sports singled out, and it was reported that sexism could spill over into sexual harassment and humiliation."Lad culture" was often evident on nights out with club promoters, not part of the students' union, advertising events using images which objectified women and offering cheap alcohol. Groping in nightclubs was also viewed by some as part of a "normal" night out.In a letter to Swinson, NUS women's officer Kelley Temple wrote: "The study found a worrying prevalence of 'lad culture' and the report will make uncomfortable reading for many of us – NUS and students' unions included. 'Lad culture' is a problem that needs to be urgently addressed."Laura Bates, of The Everyday Sexism Project, added: "The new research from the NUS confirms and reiterates themes that have arisen again and again across hundreds of young people's entries to the Everyday Sexism Project. Young women report being bullied, harassed and belittled, with sexual jokes and threats punctuating their experience of higher education."Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington and a campaigner on feminist issues, said: "It is important that the Government and universities listen to what students are saying, and challenge any normalisation of sexism on university campuses. This isn't about being killjoys, but about building a society where people can learn and thrive free from shame, harassment and abuse."However, Nicola Dandridge, chief executive of Universities UK, said: "It is important to remember that this is an issue for society generally, not just one confined to university students."Referring to the incident at the Glasgow University debating competition, a Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "There is no room for sexism or sexist comments in a modern Scotland. Student debating should demonstrate the highest standards that others want to emulate and we would expect all involved to take every necessary action to ensure it always does."A NUS report into sexism in university in 2010 reported that 68% of respondents had been the victim of at least one incident of sexual harassment on campus.

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Student survey reveals a culture of sexism on campus: 'groping is part of a normal night out'

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