feminist – The Orbital

20Jun

By Becca BashfordNo Comments

Features

Books That Matter

In early December, I attended the Books That Matter launch party at The Book Club in Shoreditch. I was greeted by a group of friends and helpers excitedly pointing me to a table of feminist merchandise and a raffle in aid of ‘This is Our Period’, the room buzzing with excitement about the panel which was about to start. I was then introduced to Molly Masters, the founder of Books That Matter and quite frankly – an absolute sweetheart. She told me to grab a drink and make myself comfortable in the swanky underground bar while she prepared her opening speech and questions for the panel of authors and publishers. If you haven’t heard of Books That Matter, don’t worry. They’ve only been around for four months, but their success has been astronomical. Simply put, Books That Matter is a monthl...

Hanging up the Racket: saying goodbye to Andy Murray

Reigning Olympic Singles Champion, and 2-time winner of Wimbledon- Andy Murray is no normal sportsman. That’s why his news of retirement has come as a shock for both the tennis world and the public eye. The 11th of January 2019 saw the tennis player announce his plans to hang up his racket after a lifetime of playing; Murray announced that he had a difficult decision to make. Hoping that he could finish his golden career at the birthplace of British tennis, Wimbledon, it seems that his dream could be snatched away from him if the pain from his debilitating hip injury prevails, making the Australian Open his last tournament. Andy Murray looked to be a promising tennis star from a very early age- he won his first tournament at the Dunblane Sports Club as an under 10’s junior. Then in 2005...

Royal Holloway’s sexual assault victims deserve better

Feminism Society recently launched a petition to ban Blurred Lines by Robin Thicke from playing at Student’s Union venues. They released a statement on their social media outlets promoting the ban, arguing that the song “incites violence against women and utilises rape rhetoric and language that rapists often use to silence their victims” and “has no place on campus.” Don’t get me wrong, I don’t disagree with this argument at all. Back in 2013, when this song was first released, the song was heavily criticized worldwide for the use of misogynistic lyrics which degrades and objectifies women. Yet, despite this controversy, it remained very popular and was played very often... in 2013. So, why are Feminism Society trying to chase this up now? How often is it actually playing in the Student’...