WomCam whiteboards hit Rad Cam in radical revolution
Think feminism is finished? Think again.
Think feminism is finished? Think again.
OUSU Women’s Campaign hit back against the patriarchy yesterday by broadcasting pro-feminist slogans.
Members of the public were photographed outside the Rad Cam and other locations holding whiteboards which read ‘I need feminism because…’, in an attempt to raise awareness of issues facing women and society in today’s world.
Male and female students alike came out in force on Monday to protest against sexism and misogyny.
Sophie Hall Luke, one of the event’s organisers, told the Tab: ‘It was really inspiring to see so many Oxford students coming to have their photo taken for Who Needs Feminism today.
“I think the breadth of responses we got highlighted the diverse ways in which feminism still matters to people.
“Sexist ‘banter’ is rife in university life, but with 1 in 7 women students being victims of serious sexual assault or serious physical violence, it’s important we remind people this isn’t acceptable.”
WomCam will be taking part in the Oxford branch of the One Billion Rising campaign on February 14th.
The group are holding a flash mob to raise awareness of violence against women. The campaign takes its name from the statistic that 1 in 3 women will be raped or beaten in their lifetime.
WomCam holds weekly feminist discussion on Mondays, 6pm, at Wadham.
Cai Gwynn Wilshaw, who took part in the campaign, told the Tab: “It’s easy to forget how often casual sexism is overlooked.
The OUSU campaign are taking the right steps in making sure gender equality is at the forefront of people’s minds.
“With so much potential for change at Oxford, it’s brilliant that there are people leading the charge.”
Elisabeth, co-chair of WomCam, told the Tab: ‘There are a lot of misconceptions as to what feminism is, and we wanted to make it clear that feminism is something everyone can support, and that gender inequality affects everyone in more ways than you might think.
“We are thrilled with the response we have received, and will be hosting an extra session this Thursday from 2 to 5 outside the RadCam to give people who missed out the first time a chance to take part.’
The campaign did not receive an entirely positive reponse, however; some offensive comments were made on photographs posted on Facebook.
The Tab have approached those responsible for comment, but the only response it received was the following from one poster: ‘just give me a couple of hours while i think of something clever to say’.
The poster has since chosen not to comment further, since ‘nobody is going to read that far down the article anyway’, but he did invite our journalist to interview him, saying, ‘just bring yourself, a pen, a notepad and a bag of Extra-safe condoms’. Because even misogynists are into safe sex. Wouldn’t want any more women over-populating their world now then, would they?
Have you been convinced of the relevance of feminism today? Let us know by commenting!
For more pictures gathered in the campaign’s extra sessions and the media response to the protests, click here.
For the rest of the pictures taken, see facebook.com/womcam or www.womcam.tumblr.com