Opinion – Page 19 of 31

9Nov

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Opinion

The Millennial Rep

Millennial usually refers to someone born in the 1980s or the 1990s, but we now see it being used as an insult. It means narcissistic, self-obsessed, lazy, ‘snowflakes’. There is a growing trend of articles bashing this generation – we’re too liberal, too obsessed with social media and, single-handedly responsible for the decline of various industries. Some of these claims do seem to be true on the face of things. For example, we are more liberal than previous generations within our politics, and we are less likely to stand for discrimination than our grandparents would have been. It seems to me that this is the nature of any evolving democratic society. We have a growing understanding of human rights, and we want to be accepting of each other. The value of this claim is lost, howeve...

8Nov

By Emma HalahanNo Comments

Opinion

Cultural Allyship: Make It Count

Cultural appropriation is the adoption of certain elements of a culture without the consent of that community nor a full understanding of why such elements are important. It has continued to make national headlines with scores of celebrities being accused of adopting cultural icons such as dreadlocks and henna without a full appreciation of their significance to communities around the globe. Much of the controversy surrounding cultural appropriation concerns the people who believe their appropriation is just a gesture of appreciation and a recognition of the beauty of such elements. Fundamentally, though, this idea is rooted in an orientalist thought process which reduces items to simply ‘beautiful’ and ‘mysterious’ objects, void of any deep sentimental or spiritual significance. So how...

5Nov

By Holly FeenyNo Comments

Opinion

Hugh Hefner: Feminist or Chauvinist?

Since his recent death, Hugh Hefner has been labeled a feminist. Throughout his career, he often talked about wanting to rid society of prudish attitudes towards sex, and how this benefitted women. Through his work, he claimed to be striving for sexual liberation, and through Playboy, advocated for increased birth control accessibility and the legalisation of abortions in the US. Therefore, many have described him as a feminist ally, suggesting that he did extremely beneficial work for women’s rights. However, whilst sex positivity and feminism are both great, Hugh Hefner did nothing to benefit either of them. His work building a pornographic empire was, in fact, intrinsically damaging, as the industry is renowned for its exploitation of women for male gain. Through Playboy, many hav...

Lock Her Up: A Shot At The Prison Experience

2Nov

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Opinion

Lock Her Up: A Shot At The Prison Experience

Trigger Warning: Self-harm, Suicide East London is home to a great many things: Olympic Park in Stratford, The Tower of London, Emirates Air Line Cable Car, a Board Game Café and the many quirky bars of Shoreditch. One ‘quirky’ bar is causing controversy with the theme it chose. ‘Alcotraz’ is a new prison-themed bar in East London based off of Alcatraz Prison and prison systems in general. The bar is only open for three months and the exorbitant entry fee of £30 guarantees an orange jumpsuit for the person to wear throughout the session, which lasts one hour and 45 minutes. At first glance, this may seem like a fun idea for a London night out with your friends. But it’s not. It is incredibly problematic and should make us all think of the endemic issues within the prison and judicial...

2Oct

By Bethany GoodingNo Comments

Opinion

The Ballot Box Advantage

On the 8th of June, an unprecedented number of 18-24 year olds turned up to vote in the general election Theresa May had called for just two months earlier. The following day people took to Twitter claiming that 72% of young people had voted in the snap election. Although this figure is now believed to sit at around 66%, this remains the highest turnout for young people in 25 years. The rise of young voters was also seen in the EU referendum when 64% of under-25s voted. This is still such a small number when compared to the 90% of those aged over-65 who voted. In the referendum, 71% of under-25s voted Remain compared to 36% of over-65s, so it stands to reason that the outcome could have been significantly different if there were a higher number of younger voters. These facts have cause...

26Sep

By Emma HalahanNo Comments

Opinion

A Prescription for Stigma

Could taking a pill your doctor has prescribed you turn you into a murderer? This is the awful premise that viewers of BBC’s Panorama were presented with as they tuned in to A Prescription for Murder?, an hour long feature into Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants and their potential link to extreme violence. The episode presided over the case of James Holmes, who walked into a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado and opened fire, killing 12 and injuring 70. Holmes had no previous record of violence but 17 weeks before the killing he began a course of sertraline, an SSRI anti-depressant. Panorama is supported by Professor David Healy, who helped with James’ defence but was never actually asked to provide evidence. Within the story, Healy asks us to consider that if...

22Sep

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

The New Voices of Podcasting

The advent of podcasts saw the movement of media consumption into the online space, and changed the relationship between creator and audience. The continued decline in TV ratings reflects a change in the way that we seek out entertainment. We’re no longer satisfied by ‘what’s on’ and thus, podcasting allows for people to produce and consume exactly the content that they want, with minimal or no cost to either party. This format also supersedes the barriers to entry posed by traditional media – all you need to make a podcast is a microphone and a good idea. What has ensued is a new wave of minority voices infiltrating a new platform, affording the representation not seen in TV or radio broadcasting. Lack of representation of minority groups in traditional media still poses a significant ...

19Sep

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Opinion

A Bone to Pick

Netflix' new film To The Bone stars Lily Collins as Ellen, nicknamed as Eli, a girl struggling with anorexia nervosa and portrays her journey towards recovery as she is admitted to a new in-patient facility for sufferers of eating disorders. When the trailer was released earlier this year, there were many who thought of the movie as groundbreaking, with some hailing Netflix, and writer & director Marti Noxon, for portraying an often stigmatised and usually difficult topic. There was also praise for the production team leading the project, many of whom suffered from or had experience dealing with eating disorders (including Noxon), using their own stories to shape the narrative. However, it also sparked controversy due to critics' views that it may, in fact, be glamorising the illnes...

The Political Theatre Losing its Audience

19Sep

By Jack O'NeillNo Comments

Opinion

The Political Theatre Losing its Audience

For centuries we have heralded ourselves as the champions of democracy, but could you think the same after watching PMQs? Political disenfranchisement has always been there, but I now think it is in fever-pitch. With politicians rattling their cages like an imprisoned animal, jeering and sneering like a pantomime crowd and waving their papers like they were at the races; how many people can truly relate to the political theatre of PMQs? Despite the questioning of Prime Ministers being a part of British politics for centuries, PMQs was not formally established until later in British democracy’s life. In 1881, with William Gladstone as PM, questions to him were fixed to certain time-limits. This became more structured in 1953 when Winston Churchill agreed for questions to be submitted on ...

18Sep

By Emma HalahanNo Comments

Opinion

So This Is Student Activism?

For many, student activism denotes the image of sit-ins, marches, protests and glamorous arrests with nights spent in a cell for the cause. That was the student activism of our parents and grandparents generation: unapologetic, radical and at the core of the nuclear disarmament, civil rights and women’s rights movements. This, however, is the 21st century and the face of activism and what it means to be an activist has changed significantly. Are students still at the heart of global movements? For previous generations, universities underpinned radical movements. They were the organising body mobilising large groups of students, many of whom were learning about the world's injustices in detail for the first time. Fuelled by anger at the establishment, it’s the students that gave us the s...