Durham freshers! Why do you need feminism?

Tomorrow’s freshers fair will see new girls DU Fem Soc launch the ‘I need feminism campaign…’ in Durham. Charlie Gardiner-Hill finds out more


The Durham University Feminist Society has announced on their Twitter page that they will be holding a ‘why I need feminism…’ campaign photo opportunity at tomorrow’s Fresher’s fair.

The Tab spoke to the fiesty females publicity officer Flo Perry who said that the famous feminism photo campaign that has taken the nation by storm will be replicated at the DU Fem soc’s “outside stall and anyone is welcome”.

Tweeting up a storm…

Flo told us all about the origins of Durham’s newest strand of feminist fervour which was “started in early 2012 by a group of freshers who were quite rightfully appaled by the lack of a feminist society in Durham.

The newly elected all-female exec would, Flo said, “love to have some men run for positions” especially as they claim to already have male members.”

Asked if Durham needs feminism the passionate publicist was almost at a loss for words and exclaimed, “of course! anyone who says otherwise is deluded and has blinkers on.”

If they had a hashtag it’d be #dontbehaterz

The society is currently free to join but they have found that “to be a society you have to have a membership fee”. If they have to the society will only charge £1 for membership and expressed their belief that “you don’t need money to be pro-gender equality.”

This popular new branch of feminism in Durham appears to have taken off and to be much more reasonable than the cyber militant feminists who have been berating Tab comment pieces, the society’s Facebook cover photo is adorned with a mural which clearly professes that being a “feminist [does not equal being a] manhater”.

Be a lover, not a hater. Flo Perry (centre) will need a marriage of luck and passion to kickstart feminism in traditionalist Durham

The society aims to “make gender equality the subject of discussion” and hopes that by the end of the year “feminism won’t be such a dirty word in Durham” in the “uphill struggle towards gender equality”.