gender – The Orbital

31Jan

By Max FlemingNo Comments

News, Opinion

Are Bisexual People Greedy?

Max Fleming on why we need to consider love as a spectrum. The Bisexual community is often misunderstood by those in the LGBTQIA+ community and heterosexual folk alike. The spectrum of love that Bisexuals feel isn’t often brought to the attention of others and so hides in plain sight, perpetuating loneliness and isolation. The simple answer to the question ‘Are Bisexuals Greedy?’ is no. We are not greedy; we are not disloyal. We are not recognised for who we are. The easiest way to describe the feeling of being Bisexual is to liken it to a spectrum. On one side, you have an interest in one sex, and an interest in another sex on the other side. For example, some Bisexual men might lean towards other men. This does not mean that they are ‘gayer’. They simply have a preference ...

How an Investment Gap is Perpetuating Gender Inequality

13Nov

By Accalia SmithNo Comments

News, Opinion

How an Investment Gap is Perpetuating Gender Inequality

When most people think of investing, they think of Leonardo DiCaprio in Wolf of Wall Street or of pompous men in suits with briefcases; this thinking needs to change. Our society is built on what we value and how much we value it, and investment is one of the most influential ways we show our value of businesses and the way that many grow their wealth. But more men than women invest. According to HSBC only 2.4 million of their 11 million investing customers are women and just 23% of female adults in the UK hold an investment product, compared with 35% of men (Shares magazine). In a similar figure from Bph Wealth just 1 in 5 women in the UK hold an investment product compared with 1 in 3 men. Financial independence is key in gaining more freedom in the western world, something that is ofte...

27Feb

By Ryan GullifordNo Comments

Science & Technology

Women in Gaming

With 2018 now in full swing and the spring term well underway, the topic of women in video games and the gender diversity gap in the industry was brought to light in 2017, so let’s make sure that continues throughout the year. The video games industry has several factors influencing its negative perception and among them are key issues surrounding gender and the nature of these views. So, here we look at what’s causing the problem and how we can continue to solve it. Opportunities Through Education: A key, yet overlooked factor which has a large effect on the inclusion of women in the video games industry, surrounds the lack of support from the educational system. From a young age, women can be discouraged from pursuing a career in video games simply because they didn’t know it was ...

Sexism Storm Surrounds Royal Holloway Principal

23Jan

By Abbie CheesemanNo Comments

News

Sexism Storm Surrounds Royal Holloway Principal

Royal Holloway Principal, Professor Layzell has claimed the university has a “transparent and fair pay system” despite having the seventh worst gender pay gap in the country at professorial level. Speaking at his last Staff Open Meeting in November, he claimed the problem was instead rooted in the fact there are not enough women going for promotion. In a recording of the meeting obtained by Orbital Magazine, the Principal claimed that “there are certain protected groups where there is a natural tendency to not have a go and put themselves in for promotion - sometimes that’s gender, sometimes it’s the BAME group”. The Principal is facing backlash from his “natural tendency” comments, with one member of staff in the Geography Department telling Orbital that it was “an example of ev...

10% gender pay gap: stop victim-blaming, start bias proofing says UCU RHUL committee

10Jul

By Abbie CheesemanNo Comments

News

10% gender pay gap: stop victim-blaming, start bias proofing says UCU RHUL committee

UCU RHUL committee response to Abbie Cheeseman’s article A Feminist Institution with a 10% Gender Pay Gap? The UCU Royal Holloway local branch committee welcomes Abbie Cheeseman’s article entitled A Feminist Institution with a 10% Gender Pay Gap? She highlights the greater-than 10% gender gap in professorial pay at RHUL which the Times Higher Education (THE) this year reported was the 7th worst in the UK. She also rightly pointed out that this pay gap has been steadily widening in recent years. Cheeseman suggested that Gender pay gaps should not be seen as a direct case of sexism and considered various possible explanations for the pay gap increases. In fact the explanations given by the College are indirect cases of sexism. Cheeseman suggested that efforts to decrease the gap ...

14Jun

By Georgia BeithNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

And The Winner Is…

“Acting is the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, and that doesn’t need to be separated into two different categories.” These were Emma Watson’s words as she accepted the MTV Award for “Best Actor in a Movie” as a result of her role as Belle in Beauty and the Beast. Her acceptance speech not only expressed her gratitude for receiving the award, but also her joy at it being the first ever gender neutral award for acting. While the MTV Awards are not renowned for being the most prestigious, in comparison to awards like the Oscars or the Emmy’s, the 2017 awards mark a milestone for gender equality in Hollywood. Many, like Watson, expressed their approval of the move. Billions’ actor Asia Kate Dillon, who presented Watson with the award, perfectly summed up the motivation b...

12Mar

By No Comments

Lifestyle

Tackling Gender Codes this LFWM

Lifestyle journalist Chloe Hill discusses the changes in gender-normalisation at the most recent London Men's Fashion Week With the current strain on politics, now seems like a perfect time to discuss the perversion of the rules in terms of men’s fashion. This year’s Autumn/Winter 2017 collection overlooked traditional masculine codes and embarked on a new sense of style for today’s man. Designers were addressing political fear by diminishing the idea of conventional street-style and replacing it with androgynous, speculative pieces. Not only did this ignore the same-old masculine aesthetic that is often presented on the runway, but also introduced us to a more sensual and diverse man; one who can wear sheer fabrics, drapes, and embellishment if he wants to. At no point has Vivienne ...

28Feb

By Elizabeth RosenbergNo Comments

Lifestyle

FREE THE NIPPLE

Deputy Lifestyle Editor, Elizabeth Rosenberg, discusses how our nipples are a stepping stone to gender equality. We all remember Rachel Green, right? Jennifer Aniston's character in the hit sit-com 'Friends', [didn't] go on a break with Ross Geller, flatmate of Monica, quite often had her nipples out? What happened to that glorious time? I seem to recall everyone being completely in love with Rachel Green's ~aesthetic~ and her glorious nipples but nowadays nipples are no longer free. They are covered, they are shamed. Some might be aware of the #FreeTheNipple movement, especially as RHUL have recently launched an Instagram account entitled 'RHULANippleADay' where you can show off your own fabulous nipples. The #FreeTheNipple movement, and RHUL's insta, aims to show that female nipple...

12Jun

By No Comments

Opinion

Keep CALM

I’m walking through Waterloo Station and around me are posters and screens showing me the new summer fashion line and the blockbuster movies. With summer here, we are more than ever exposed to what the consumer market says we should look like, eat like, act like, be like. While the pressure on women is intense, the less focused and damaging stress is on men. With chiselled abs on store fronts and male heroes blowing things up and punching it out rather than talking it out on the silver screen and sport season reaching its peak, men are more than ever told that overcompensation is a key trait of their gender and this is dangerous, especially for our generation of young men. Defined as the ‘exaggeration of male stereotypical behavior, such as physical strength, aggression, and sexuality’, ...