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‘It’s okay to be white’ sign found in Hartley Library

Students are speculating whether the sign is linked to Emily Dawes’ war mural tweet


A sign reading "It's okay to be white" was found in the Hartley Library late last night.

The group of students who found the sign told The Soton Tab they thought the sign is perhaps a response to Emily Dawes tweet, labelling The Rothenstein Mural as a "mural of white men" that should be "painted over".

It is not known who printed off the sign but it is believed the sign has now been taken down.

The sign was originally found on the floor of the library foyer. The students, who did not wish to be named, then stuck it up on the pillar to take the above video. They said they left the sign up because they "didn't fundamentally disagree with it".

One of them told The Soton Tab this was because "Emily Dawes was fundamentally incorrect in what she said, the issue with murals that celebrate white men is not that they are white men, it's that the artist chose not to represent other demographics in most instances.

"Mostly I just wanted it to be recognised that someone thinks this is worth raising so I'm not going to tear it down as that's ignoring the issue."

The Rothenstein Mural is dedicated to all students who served and sacrificed their lives during the War, and hangs in the University of Southampton's Senate Room.

The University of Southampton and the Hartley Library have been contacted for comment.

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