Calling a club night P.U.L.L. isn’t offensive, it’s embarrassing

Earlier this week the University of St. Andrews made history, hitting the headlines for their nightlife for the first – and quite possibly last – time.

One of their student union club nights has been forced to change its name after pressure from the university’s FemSoc.

The night, previously known as “P.U.L.L.”, has now changed its name to the much less controversial, and much less memorable, “The Bop” because the original name “alienated people who aren’t interested in the sexualised nature of clubbing.”

That’s what Jo Boon, co-ordinator of St Andrews’ FemSoc thought anyway. She began a petition claiming the name was “inappropriate” and “not inclusive of all students”. Somehow, it gained 500 signatures overnight, and as a result the student union bowed to public pressure.

Just as cringe and forgettable as every other club night name

The SU defended themselves by saying the name was merely an acronym of “Postgraduates and Undergraduates Loving Life”, a completely harmless and unbelievably cringe name which just happened to spell out something else when condensed down to its starting letters. This fact seems to have got lost among the outrage though. I mean, how can we live in a world where it’s OK to name a club night “Postgraduates and Undergraduates Loving Life?

How dare they tell me to love life? What about all the people who go clubbing to forget their stresses, or to avoid their lonely bed for a few more hours, or just to escape another Saturday night of ITV. These people may not appreciate being subliminally told they need to spend their evening loving life.

Obviously, this is a ridiculous argument, and anyone making it would be laughed out of the smoking area, but apparently it becomes different when the word has something to do with sex.

It’s not like the club is only allowing people in if they have a minimum of five condoms in their pocket and a tube of lube. They’re not operating a “strip while you search for a shag” policy and they’re not serving rohypnol daiquiris. It’s simply your normal disappointing club night in a sweaty student union room, but with a slightly suggestive and utterly cringe-inducing name. At worst, it’s embarrassing but it’s definitely not encouraging anyone to start committing sexual assault.

A lot of the people going to the club will be there to pull and there’s no escaping that fact. If you think the only way people get together is after a three course picnic at a National Trust property, then wake up: most people end up in bed with the person who bought them a Jägerbomb, not a limited edition Ted Hughes anthology.

These same people are always going out to get lucky, whether they’re heading to a club called “Pull” or one called “Mutual Respect”, so stop pretending the name matters and lighten up.

There’s a reason no one in Spoons looks like they’re there for a cuddle.