Sunday 29th June 2025
Blog Page 387

Union speaker described as denying “autistic trans people – and autistic people as a whole – agency over their lives”

Issy Kenney-Herbert
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Union speaker described as denying “autistic trans people – and autistic people as a whole – agency over their lives”

CW: Transphobia, ableism.

The Oxford Union has sparked controversy after inviting Dr Debra Soh as a speaker, describing her as a “renowned Canadian science columnist, author, political commentator and academic sex researcher… [whose] research indicates that abnormal sexual preferences are results of neurological conditions rather than learned behaviours”.

Debra Soh has described autism as a “mental health condition”, stating there is “definitely a correlation between autism and gender dysphoria” as “‘for some people with autism they fixate on things, go through periods of being really into one thing – gender could be one of those”.

The Oxford SU Disabilities Campaign told Cherwell: “Soh’s comments describing autism as a ‘mental illness’ betrays her lack of understanding of the matters she attempts to speak on, and her suggesting that the existence of autistic trans people is a result of ‘fixations’ attempts to deny autistic trans people – and autistic people as a whole – agency over their lives.”

“The continually documented attempt of anti-trans individuals (including J.K. Rowling) to draw focus towards trans autistic people as incapable of understanding their own identity represents only one part of a wider attack on trans individuals in an effort to block trans people from the respect and healthcare they are entitled to. The attempt to invoke autism within this attack does not do anything to consider autistic voices, merely using autism as a vague talking point to dismiss trans rights, and should be thoroughly rejected not just by trans activists but disabled activists as well.”

In a statement published on their Facebook page, Oxford SU Disabilities Campaign said: “The Oxford Union’s invitation of Debra Soh represents another instance of the Union’s continued willingness to uncritically platform individuals whose harmful views are widely documented.” Alongside their statement, they shared the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign’s statement, also published to their Facebook page, in which they wrote “her positions are unequivocally transphobic” and cited “the point in inviting her is for the Union to excite controversy”.

Soh has also been accused of “anti-trans” views by the Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign. In interviews, Soh has stated that “most of these kids who feel gender dysphoric, when they reach puberty they will outgrow these feelings and are more likely to grow up to be gay in adulthood.” She further wrote an article in 2017 titled “Why bans on conversion therapy are misguided”. Debra Soh’s book contains a chapter title “Myth #3: There Are More Than Two Genders” as well as appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience categorically saying ‘Gender is not a spectrum’. In September of 2020 she also authored the article “How the Nonbinary Trend Hurts Those with Real Gender Dysphoria”. Her repeated reference to “rapid onset gender dysphoria” and how it “contradicts gender-affirmative care” has been described in an article by two academics as “best explained by transphobia and research study biases, it does not withstand scrutiny”.

In their statement, Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign outlined Debra Soh’s qualifications: “a Canadian neuroscientist who made her reputation studying paraphilias (that is, sexual fetishes and associated behaviours) before leaving academia and taking a hard turn into criticising the idea of gender identity, supposed early transitions in trans youth, and efforts to outlaw conversion therapy. She is not an academic, and when she was, trans health was not her field; she is hardly qualified to comment on these issues and her positions are unequivocally transphobic.”

Oxford SU LGBTQ+ Campaign’s statement went on to say: “we note that this is not even the first time this year we have been compelled to comment on the Union’s practice of inviting anti-trans speakers. That transphobia is viewed by the Oxford Union’s leadership as an acceptable belief to platform, even a reliable source of attention, continues to exemplify a culture at this university that is profoundly anti-trans. This culture will not change until the University and the student body, as well as the Oxford Union, take steps to understand the damage and their decisions to tolerate, tacitly support, or even encourage transphobia causes to trans students, to our studies, and to our lives”.

The SU LGBTQ+ Campaign told Unon members: “It is your money that helps perpetuate this atmosphere. You might consider donating to charities that work to support LGBT people, especially young people, who are most at risk from conversion therapy, such as the support line Outline, youth group Gendered Intelligence, or the UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group, which aids LGBT people from all over in the application process for asylum in the UK.”

The Union President, James Price, told Cherwell: “I’m proud of the work of so many people for putting together such a diverse, broad and hopefully-thought-provoking term card that includes speakers across the political spectrum. The Oxford Union champions free speech, alongside robust scrutiny and debate. It is, was, and will be a place that debates important issues, and no one will ever be allowed to speak without being robustly challenged and taken to task for their views. We will always welcome the help and advice of anyone who can help us better do that, and we will always ensure, even in a virtual term, that members will be able to have their questions put to every speaker.”

Cherwell also approached Dr Debra Soh for comment.

Image Credit: ToppertheWombat / CC BY-SA 4.0

Tuition fees to be temporarily frozen prior to review

Charlie Hancock
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Tuition fees to be temporarily frozen prior to review

University tuition fees for UK residents will be temporarily frozen before the government comes to a decision about whether to cut them, according to the government’s interim response to the Augar Review of post-18 education.

Tuition fees for UK residents have been capped at £9,250 since 2017. Fees have not risen in line with inflation, leading some universities to complain that they lacked the money to fund some degrees as a result. The Department for Education said: “We intend to freeze the maximum tuition fee cap to deliver better value for students and to keep the cost of higher education under control. This will initially be for one year and further changes to the student finance system will be considered ahead of the next comprehensive spending review.”

The review outlines the government’s plan to make technical education more attractive to school leavers. Only 10% of British adults hold a level 4-5 technical qualification as their highest level of education, compared to 20% in Germany. The government says their expansion of apprenticeships and increasing investment in technical education will help them achieve this.

The review shows that the government is considering implementing the Augar Review’s recommendation that students would have to meet a minimum entry threshold to attend university and be eligible for student finance. This is intended to reduce university drop-out rates.

President of Universities UK, Julia Buckingham, criticised the plan: “Enforcing minimum entry requirements for prospective university students would be a regressive move, preventing students from disadvantaged backgrounds whose prior educational experiences have adversely affected their grades from attending university and ignoring the evidence that many of these students excel at university.”

The Augar Review recommends that minimum entry requirements would be subject to a contextual evaluation of a student’s circumstances. By the review’s calculations, if minimum entry requirements were set at 88 tariff points, 38,000 students from England would not be accepted to university. After applying “a specific version” of the UCAS Multiple Equality Measure to contextualise their applications, the number of ineligible students would fall to 6,000.

Commenting on the report, the National Union of Students expressed concern that “setting a minimum entry requirement to higher education will be a significant barrier to students’ choices and their potential. We must ensure that our funding and admissions system makes higher education accessible to all.”

Bodleian Bangers: Alan Rusbridger

Matthew Prudham
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Bodleian Bangers: Alan Rusbridger

Starting a new music series where we ask Oxford dons and alumni about their favourite tunes, artists and composers, Matthew Prudham speaks to Lady Margaret Hall Principal and Former Guardian Editor-in-Chief Alan Rusbridger.

MP: So, to start us off, what is the one song you can’t you keep listening to at the moment?

Alan: So I, nearly all the music I listen to is classical. Does that matter?

MP: No, that’s fine! 

Alan: So that the answer is I’m very obsessed with the last 45 minutes of Act I of The Marriage of Figaro. It has an incredible structure where it begins with two people, three people, then four people, then five people, finally, and six people. And it’s each bit within it is contrasted with a bit before, and every tune is astonishing. The drama, the pathos, the weight, the sparkling energy,  the musical invention… if you want 45 minutes of music to die to the last bit of the first act of Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro is as good as any 45 minutes of music.

MP: That’s quite a statement. I’m pretty sure that’ll attract some debate! If you had to choose one album or work to be the only thing you would hear for the rest of your life; something that wouldn’t get too repetitive but that you could enjoy listening to over and over again. What would it be?

Alan: Let’s say Bach’s St. John’s Passion. I myself, like a lot of people, sort of underrate Bach because he’s not romantic – his language was more limited and he was writing with sort of smaller forces. Though it’s more intimate than your Romantic opera, The Passion holds a power and intensity, emotional depths and heights. It’d obviously a huge work, at whatever it is, two and a half hours? It’s about the most profound subjects, it holds incredibly revolutionary harmonies and orchestrations.

I mean, it goes from sort of enormous numbers where you see a composer playing for the first time with a possibility of brass, with incredible Baroque trumpets – but also some of the most precious parts. I went to a performance once in King’s College, Cambridge, sitting very near the Viola de Gamba; and Bach writes for whole sessions of just a Viola de Gamba and voice. The Passion can be very small, almost like chamber music, and it can be enormous as if it was an opera or mass. If the challenge is to find something that that you were trying to endlessly fascinating, that would be it.

MP: Who would you say that are the most in the three most important artists or composers in your in your life, which made the most personal impact? 

Alan: I would say Schubert was one of them. Again, I came quite late to Schubert; I sort of thought he was a poor man’s Beethoven, but actually, he’s incredible – especially his range. I mean, just recently I’ve been playing a lot of his song cycles on the piano; his sonatas, his chamber music, his the symphonic music – it’s just an array of astonishing output: 900 and something pieces!

Also, I’m going to say Benjamin Britten. He’s been a sort of hinge into contemporary music for me, with which sometimes I struggled. And I think Britten at his best was the opera Peter Grimes, which feels to me as so contemporary because it’s about society and outcasts from society. If you think about Trump’s America and the kind of populist mobs that exists in Peter Grimes, you know, it’s a very contemporary opera. I think Britten was an admirable, brave person and a humanist as well as a brilliant composer.

And increasingly, Wagner would be. Again, it’s funny how you develop as a listener. I thought Wagner was such a boring and verbose and I wasn’t interested in the plots, but then flipped. I mean, when you talk about the last 45 minutes of Figaro, listen to the last 45 minutes of Act III of Die Walküre. If you’re not in tears by the end of that…  I’m still not really interested in the plots – all that German folklore and myths leave me a bit cold.

I’ve just bought Alex Ross’s book, Wagnerism, the effect of Wagner on the world since his death, his impact on music. At the time, being called a Wagnerist could be pretty damning abuse; people cared enough about music that, concerning Brahms and Wagner and Verdi, you had to be one camp or the other. Can you imagine that right – saying I’m, I’m a Maxwell Davis-ist or a George Benjamin-ist. It’s not that centralised any more. 

MP: So, for a bit of nostalgia for the normal times where we could have fun and enjoy things. What was the last and the best concert that you’ve attended? 

Alan: The last concert I attended was at the Royal Festival Hall in March last year. So just as the pandemic was all kicking off, it was George Benjamin’s 60th Birthday concert. So, the programme was full of music by him, but also with things like the Janacek’s Sinfonietta – you know with the big trumpets (imitates trumpets)…That was the last concert I went to, sadly…

The best… I went to Austria in 2008 when Alfred Brendel was giving his last ever concert. And I went to the Musikverein which an incredible concert hall in Vienna. Just because, you know, there was a man grew up in Austria during the Second World War, and has been a sort of Titan of music. I just wanted to be there for the last time he ever played in public and it was very moving.

I think he was about 80 and it was great to see somebody go out at the peak of his powers.. I’ve been to concerts with very distinguished old pianists who were sort of a bit past their best, whilst Brendel just decided to go while I’m still at the top of my game. He performed Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 in E-flat and then a solo piano piece at the end, and it was all there. But I think it was a brave thing to go at his time of choosing. 

MP: I’m going to try and test your your knowledge of the the music of the youth; what artists do you think that this year’s freshers are listening to right now? 

Alan: Adele? (Laughs)  

MP: What should they be listening to instead?

Alan: The Beatles?

MP: I mean, the Beatles are fantastic. You can’t knock that.

If you’re talking about music, it’s going to sort of stand the test of time and was revolutionary – surely The Beatles?

MP: Do you have a favourite Beatles record? 

Alan: I think…. the White Album. 

MP: I completely agree! It’s just the amount of adventure and that found it so many genres of music in one album. When you say “You know, the Beatles – they invented heavy metal. Some people are bemused because they can’t imagine them being the same band.

So, let’s imagine that it’s late at night at the old Guardian offices, and you need to hear something to get yourself through the last checks of an edition. What are you putting on to give you that extra push something that will motivate you?

Alan: Well, I went through a phase when I was at college, during my university years, listening to the Grateful Dead. I think people felt they were sort of caught up with acid and were quite far out. And if you followed them, people would call you a “Deadhead”. So, I was kind of semi-“Deadhead” for a bit.  There’s an album called Wake of the Flood.  Before the pandemic, I took up swimming while listening to music through waterproof earphones. It’s immensely energetic, invigorating, motivating music. So, yeah, that would be a good choice.

MP: Fantastic. And so finally, if you could sum up Oxford in a piece of music, what would you choose?

Alan: Elgar’s First Symphony in A Flat in the sense that I think sometimes people listen to Elgar, and they think it’s very grand and is about Empire in some sense. But actually, if you listen to it, it’s very tender and vulnerable and emotional. And so sometimes I think Oxford can seem very sort of formal and unchanging and unbending; but actually, the people are what makes it special. So, if you look beneath the surface, as well in that Elgar Symphony, you’re into a completely different sound world – but you have to look beneath the surface, and the same is with Oxford. 

MP: That’s a very apt way of describing Oxford. Well, that’s all the questions that I had to ask. Thanks so much for your time! 

Alan: Well, if one person tunes into one of those things and finds out that they like it, then it’s definitely worth it. 

Find the full playlist for the interview on the Cherwell Spotify: @cherwellmusic.

Dear diary: new year, new me?

Elsie Clark
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Dear diary: new year, new me?

Since 2016 I have kept a diary, and over the past five years I have somehow managed to write in it every single day. No breaks, no omissions: just 1825 pages of my random scribblings from the ages of 14-19, peppered with strange anecdotes and long tangents on events of interest to no one but myself.

And since 2016, on the page marked ‘January 1st’, I have written my New Year’s Resolutions, apparently in the desperate hope that by setting them down in pen they might actually come to fruition. But out of the 15 goals I have set for myself over the past five years, I’ve only stuck to one! This leaves me with a staggeringly unsuccessful 6.67% success rate when it comes to New Year’s Resolutions.

Wondering how I had gone so wrong I looked more closely at what I’d resolved to do, and as I did so several common themes emerged:

1.    Attempts at fitness: “do some form of exercise once a week” (2016); “exercise at least once a week” (2017 – unoriginal copy of last year’s resolution); “exercise 3-4 times a week” (2018 – a massive increase on the previous year’s target. Not sure where this sudden unjustified enthusiasm for the gym came from).

2.    Healthy eating: “eat less unhealthy food” (2016 – uselessly vague); “not to eat mindlessly” (2021 – broken mere hours into the New Year when I found out I wouldn’t be allowed back to Oxford until at least the 25th and had to eat 2 bowls of Shreddies in rapid succession just to feel something).

3.    Relationships: “Do something re my crush???” (2018 – questions marks suggest I was already highly sceptical that I would ever do this); “get over my crush” (2019 – a resolution achieved, but only in the year after I set it so it doesn’t count).

Interestingly, the one year for which I made no resolutions at all was 2020. Perhaps deep inside I knew what was to come and that I should not bother – or I simply forgot to write them down. One or the other.

Why do we set these unconvincing and often unachievable targets every year? With the emergence of the #selfcare movement there has been increasing backlash against the idea of ‘New Year, New You’, most notably from celebrity activist Jameela Jamil who stated on Instagram last week that “we deserve to focus on a happier and more mentally stable us” rather than “the stupid fucking diet and detox industry”.

She has a point. Many, myself included, feel pressure to overhaul themselves come January 1st, throwing out their ‘old self’ along with the Christmas tree and the Bounties at the bottom of the Celebrations box. No one better embodies this desperate desire for change than Bridget Jones, who lays out her New Year’s resolutions on the opening pages of Helen Fielding’s genius novel. She asserts, amongst other things, that she will not “smoke/spend more than earn/get upset over men/bitch about anyone behind their backs”, but instead will “stop smoking/be more confident/be more assertive/eat more pulses/form functional relationship with responsible adult” and so on.

25 years on, these declarations remain funny because we are still making ones exactly like them: Bridget’s resolutions, like mine, could fit into the exact same Fitness/Food/Relationships categories listed above. So many of our years begin with such indefinable goals such as “get fitter”, “be happier,” or “be nicer to others” without setting out any realistic way of achieving them. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to improve, as long as it’s for the right reasons, but if you are going to make a resolution it has to be one you can actually stick to or measure. It’s all very well saying that I will eat less mindlessly this year, but what must I do if I want to achieve this? (This is a question with an easy answer I don’t want to accept: stop buying Shreddies.)

In the social media age I see more and more people resolving not to exercise more or eat less, but instead to “be proud of themselves no matter what”, “get help when I need it”, or “learn to say yes/no more”. These are more positive resolutions than Bridget’s list of musts and must nots. But I’m beginning to realise the arbitrariness of it all: why does it have to be ‘New Year, New Me’? Why, if you want to do something, can’t you just decide to start at any point in the year? If you want to take up stamp collecting, or pet more dogs, or stop listening to the same six songs you’ve had in your playlist since you were 14, why wait until January 1st to do it?

The single resolution out of the 15 that I did manage to keep dates back to 2016, where I announced that I would “write in this diary every single day”. I have managed to stick to it for over five years now, just because keeping a diary combines writing and moaning, my two favourite things. If the failure of the majority of my resolutions has taught me anything, it’s that you have to make them with conviction or there’s no point doing it at all. And I swear I really am going to stop mindlessly eating this year – just as soon as I finish this bowl of Shreddies.

Art by Rachel Jung

Not driving home for Christmas

Shreya Banerjee
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Not driving home for Christmas

Whenever I feel homesick, I find that my mind drifts to those things that have evolved into family traditions over time. This past winter vacation was no different, and although the childish glee of Christmas has frosted over for me, December is still a month enriched with small habits and special meals, each embedded with sentimental value. And so, though I was in Oxford for the entirety of this vacation, images from my childhood wove their way in and out of my mind: the twinkling of lights reflected in windows and the scent of silky onions, poking out from steaming trays of roast potatoes, inspiring my own Christmas dinner. Spending this winter vacation away from home, I considered what parts of Christmas I feel are the most essential, and by reworking old traditions and fashioning new ones for myself, I developed an antidote to this particular brand of sensory homesickness.

Vac is a time prescribed for rest. With hours melting away like butter in a pan, and days punctuated only by Netflix’s “Are you still watching?” messages, I couldn’t be further from the structure or schedules that term thrusts upon me. This psychological shift is, however, usually accompanied by a geographical counterpart, with all the components of my university life hastily packed away into bags and shoved into a car – except, with tests coming back positive back home, this time was different. At the end of 8th week, however, I was optimistic: the winter break – the one that always seems to whizz past, with only the 25th and 31st as markers of time – was my opportunity to fill in the blanks left by the term-time hullabaloo.

Growing up in a non-Christian household, I’ve long been accustomed to picking and choosing from popular traditions, especially during the festive season. As a result, I underlined panettone on this year’s festive shopping list, the Milanese sweet bread that my family ritually devour on Christmas Day, conscious of my cultural distance from religious activities that would simultaneously be taking place. In Oxford, I also bought my first real Christmas tree – I was previously committed to the practicality of the packaged plastic that I would adorn back home, but now, I can’t believe that nobody told me how good real pines smell.

One moment stands out to me when reflecting on my vac in Oxford. As I was walking down Turl Street, beckoned by golden streetlights bleeding into the fog of the inky afternoon, I realised the malleable nature of customs, and that I was forging my own traditions in this city day-by-day. It was a walk I’ve done countless times before (admittedly, out-of-breath as I race to the Classics Faculty), but it felt as though I’d discovered it anew as the cold wrapped around my fingers like a Christmas ribbon. I headed back to my room, furnished with an appreciation for this unique Christmastime and presents to tuck under the tree.

Spending unexpected time in Oxford outside of term has refreshed my relationship with the city. Now, passing the Rad Cam, I’m reminded of those who gathered (socially distanced) outside the enduring monument at midnight on New Year’s Eve. We took it in turns to cry out, “Happy New Year!” – to those here during term, those here all year round, and to those who can’t wait to return.

Oxford student street style

Leia Liew
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Oxford student street style

Walking around Oxford, on the Tescolator, in the Pret queue, in the Gladstone link, even when on a bike, flashes of fashion catch my eye. Everyone has a different sense of style and knowledge of what works specifically for them. But I love variety – that’s what makes the world so much more interesting. Being an avid “papper”, I decided to put all these photographs of Oxford-esque fashion inspirations onto a grid, @itsoxfstyle, and share it with the world. Apart from being an inspiration to my own fashion sense, I hope that others can see my platform as a spark for their own creativity.

The kind of garments that you don undoubtedly creates an impression about you as a person, including your vibe, and the crowd you find yourself in. Oxford is a university where you will always have at least one mutual friend with someone you walk past on Cornmarket, and so what one wears is almost an identification with a certain group in Oxford. Clothing, on an Oxford student, is integral to crafting an identity. As much as people like to argue that first impressions don’t count, I disagree. A simple compliment on someone’s buffalos can create a friendship, and a question about where someone got their corduroy jacket can initiate an outing to Gloucester Green market. What you wear automatically attracts a particular type of person. 

I like to think that Oxford students (on the whole) have a “cool” fashion vibe, with a curious mix of garbs. With traditional grand buildings and dreamy spires as a backdrop, a bright Berghaus aztec print jacket, for instance, is a sharp, yet memorable contrast to the warm, yellow coloured sandstone surroundings. Beyond the Oxford sports kit, college or rowing stash, matching sweats, oversized hoodies with flared trousers, and the tasteful basics, Oxford students offer a plethora of individualistic outfits that I cannot wait to capture.

What do Oxford students wear? There is of course no distinct answer – what one wears to tutes is significantly different to what one wears to a sesh (or not?). However, I will try and list some refreshing recent trends that struck me. Delicious layering with detailed collars, vintage granddad patterned vests to style out the vagaries of the British weather, oversized rugby stripes with baggy jeans, statement necklaces that accentuate a thoughtfully minimalist outfit. Leather jackets to create a slim silhouette, tweed jackets for a pop of attention, classic corduroys to let the trousers do the talking. Graphic t-shirts with a shimmering long sleeved top hidden underneath, sharp blazers to add an edge with ripped jeans, chunky oversized “ugly” trainers paired with a checked skirt, unbuttoned blouses with long sleeved top and velvety trousers. 

What one wears in Oxford allows you to be a shapeshifter. There is no one word to describe exactly how Oxford students dress because it is just so varied and unpredictable. One word that I would not use to describe Oxford students, however, is sloppy. Whether it be the edgy hoodie or the Keith Haring top or the khaki chinos, there is always a spark of “fashpiration” to glean from any Oxford student strutting down Broad Street.

A friend of mine, Marnie Shutter who is also a great style inspiration, once said to me that clothing was an outlet for your inner creativity if you couldn’t paint or sing or write. Anyone can turn a piece of clothing into a piece of confidence. Oxford students dress to express and embrace. Ruffling through the racks of clothing in Oxford charity shops brings an exhilaration that cannot be replicated anywhere else. They are treasure troves in which you discover gems unique to your personality. Of course, Depop is an absolute gem of an app and Westgate satisfies our infinite needs but finding a piece so unique to you and you only – that’s an unparalleled feeling.

With a new batch of freshers settling into Oxford, however, who knows how the fashion scene in Oxford will develop? One trend I’ve certainly picked up on and cannot ignore is the “Tik Tok” style – perhaps some will take that style and make some twists & turns to create an unforeseen breakthrough in the Oxford fashion scene.

Fashion forecast: what fresh fits will define 2021?

Various contributors
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Fashion forecast: what fresh fits will define 2021?

ANNA ROBERTS:

The Bratz doll silhouette has been edging into style for a few years now, but in 2020 it really came into its own. Y2K style is everywhere, especially on Depop and TikTok. Indeed, the sale of vintage and second-hand pieces has also characterised 2020’s trends, partly owing to the movement towards environmentally-conscious fashion consumption.

How will the Y2K obsession translate into 2021’s trends? I’m predicting that flares and platform boots are here to stay. At the moment flares are somewhat fashion-forward, but 2021 might see the flared trouser becoming the staple shape for jeans (and anything that distances our legs from jeggings is good in my book). Personally, I love the resurgence of wedges: faux-suede wedge boots (like the ones your year 5 supply teacher wore) are a trend I fully endorse buying into. Flares and wedges as a noughties throwback coincide well with another 2020 vintage trend: the resurgence of the 70s silhouette. Not just bell-bottoms but also batwing and flute-sleeved tops and printed dresses are coming back. 2021 is shaping up to be a year of fashion throwbacks; I am looking forward to the twenty-twenties-does-noughties-doing-the-nineties-doing-the-seventies trends to come this year. Here’s to higher platforms, home-made corset tops, and low-rise bell-bottoms!

LARISSA KOERBER:

2020 was the year of loungewear and trendy masks. Pandemic attire may have been extremely comfortable, but its time in the spotlight should end.

2021 will likely witness the rise of warm, earthy colours, ranging from camels, terracottas to mustard yellows. The SS21 ready-to-wear collections of landmark fashion houses Gucci, Proenza Schouler, Louis Vuitton, Hermes and Dior showcased pieces in this particular colour palettes. Warm tones are solar, delicate yet bold, and embody a grounded, positive state of mind. They can perfectly be associated with bohemian-style garments and utility wear that will be here to stay in this new year. 2021’s colours bring warmth and security – they will light up our spirits and accompany us for what hopefully will soon be a return to normality. Travelling, exploring – earthy tones are the perfect fit for the adventures that 2021 will bring us. We cannot forget about their versatility: from camel blazers to mahogany, and, pourquoi pas, chartreuse flowy dresses, our entire spring/summer wardrobe will radiate mellow energy. Bonus point: they suit all skin tones and undertones, whether warm or cool!

Cherwell fashion certainly looks forward to witnessing this new trend, albeit remotely for now, but hopefully soon in our personal favourite fashion capital – Oxford.

MARIETTA KOSMA:

Just because we are quarantined, it does not mean that we cannot maintain our sense of style. Even though we are confined, we can still think out of the box. The elegance of the 19th century has inspired fashion over the years, from corsets to hoop skirts. However, an everlasting trend seems to be the Victorian era inspired sleeves. In the 18th century, wearing big puffs of fabric in one’s arms helped define the female figure. As women could not show off their waist or other body parts, bringing emphasis to their arms through the puffed sleeves was essential. However, gone are the days when ruffles and frills were branded ‘too girly’; the trend has been reiterated to give a high-fashion look that’s dramatic and structured all at once’. Victorian sleeves are timeless. They constitute a style statement as they do more than adding a feminine touch to one’s attire, they add a dramatic dimension. Wearing Victorian sleeves makes one look thinner, as they create the illusion of a slimmer waist by drawing attention to one’s arms. They provide a high-fashioned look so I believe that Victorian-inspired sleeves will continue to be a trend in 2021.

Winter wardrobe essentials

Various contributors
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Winter wardrobe essentials

The only possible way to remedy the shortened days and Tupperware skies of winter is to imagine yourself as a sexy, mysterious, no-time-for-your-bullshit, French woman striding around snowy Paris. I propose that it is, of course, the humble beret that provides the fool-proof means to achieve this persona. Not only are they the height of practicality — the crown of your head snuggling under its toasty woollen duvet; one, or two, smothered ears warding off the bitter air and interminable conversation of your family members  — but berets, in their inherent flexibility, are also immensely creative. Being a beret-wearer is a substantial responsibility, the first burden being that of colour. I long for the day that Buzzfeed releases a quiz to distinguish between people whose ‘soul beret’ would be classic black, trendy red, jolly technicolour, or completely bejewelled. Next comes the importance of silhouette; only a Francophobe would consider beret-shaping trivial. A multitude of existential questions arise: does today beckon an exposed beret rim and a pouchy, free-standing beret body, or will you flatten the beret to your head, rolling the edge under itself? Will your beret defy gravity, balancing asymmetrically over one ear, or will you blasphemously centralise this almost divinely circular hat across your forehead? The world of berets offers endless opportunity, making it a winter essential in every sophisticate’s wardrobe.

Written by Isabella Reynolds

My winter wardrobe essential for this year has to be stash. Now, I know what you’re thinking ‘stash comes in many forms, and so calling stash an essential is just as specific as saying “clothes”’, and I was once like you, but, in these uNCeRtAin tiMeS, I’ve found stash to be pretty important. Not only does it remind me that I’m part of many different communities despite the fact that it’s been difficult to do anything in person for most of the year, but it allows me to irritate my family who already think I have my head up my arse about going to Oxford. For the two weeks prior to going into tier 4, I was able to use college stash to maintain meaningless college rivalries with total strangers that I saw on the tube. Despite being far too self conscious to actually speak to anyone wearing an Oxford puffer, I’m sure the frustrated eye contact did the perfect job, truly in the spirit of Christmas.

Written by Lily Kershaw

Undoubtedly the essential that must grace any wannabe fashionista’s winter wardrobe is the timeless long line coat. No other item can quite compare to the power such a necessity places upon the fortunate shoulders of the lucky coat bearer. Such a versatile piece can be styled up or down, paired with chunky trainers and baggy jeans to create an everyday look, or complimented by thigh high boots and a mini skirt to ooze a more sophisticated vibe. The possibilities are endless. Of course the varieties of patterns which can adorn such a coat are also endless. A personal favourite is the pastel block colour, with my own baby blue calf length coat being one of my favourite possessions. However, one thing is for certain, no matter what colour long line coat you wear or what you choose to wear it with, the feeling it gives you when strutting down cornmarket is unmatched.

Written by Rochelle Moss

It is cold outside. The harsh wind billows. The hairs that blanket your unforgivingly protruding ears are whipped into submission. You are alerted that it is indeed cold outside. 

In the past, to overcome such circumstances, one would reach for a marginally hideous hat their grandmother had knitted for the festive season (I truly love it nan thanks!). Not this year. Hell has descended on earth in the shape of two cotton balls and some wire. The Ear Muff.

Conceived with good intentions, the protective ear muffs have been thrust aside by their pointless, effortlessly fluffy counterparts, adorned by those desperate to make a statement. Not only are they far inferior to the trusted wooly hat appearance-wise, thermal ear muffs leave your eyesight fending for itself, as your hearing has all but disappeared. 

I end this incoherent ramble with a pledge to not succumb to society’s potential future craze. Not today, not tomorrow, not ever.

Written by Agata Gwincinska

The Punjabi Farmers Standing up for India’s Democracy

Ciara Garcha
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The Punjabi Farmers Standing up for India’s Democracy

Photographs of the ongoing Indian farmer strikes have trickled through to social media feeds across the world, in stark contrast with the relative silence of European media. Whilst many in the UK and Europe remain unaware of events in India, they amount to a bold attempt to secure the future of the world’s largest democracy.

The farmers that first flooded onto the streets of India a few months ago, trekking the over 230 miles from Punjab to Delhi, were raising their voices against rash reforms passed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. The new legislation opens the sector up to exploitation and manipulation by private corporations, removing safeguards for farmers and largely deregulating the industry. But with around three quarters of the Punjabi population being employed in agriculture and the sector making up around 25% of the state’s economy, the new reforms represent an attack on Punjab and the Punjabi people. 

Punjab, “the bread basket of India,” is home to mostly small and medium-scale farmers, with 85% of India’s farmers owning less than five acres of land. Thus, the preference and support given to large corporations by the new legislation has pitted the small-scale farmers of Punjab against powerful businesses, many with close links to Modi and his government. 

The protests have come to represent something more than just a struggle against a piece of farming legislation, but a struggle for India’s future. The reforms and the outcry in response to them must be viewed in the context of Modi’s six years as Prime Minister and the agenda he and his BJP party have pursued. As a proponent of Hindutva—the ideology of Hindu-Indian nationalism—many of Modi and the BJP’s policies fly in the face of the secularism that India was founded upon when it achieved independence in 1947. 

The 2019 Citizenship Amendment Bill is a recent example of this nationalist agenda, which sparked controversy and anger within India and across the world. The bill removed the right of Muslim refugees from certain neighbouring countries to claim Indian citizenship, an explicit expression of the BJP’s narrow view of what it means to be Indian, which was brought into the political mainstream with Modi’s rise and election as prime minister in 2014. Protests against his Citizenship Amendment Bill were met with brutal state repression, as well as paramilitary violence. Similarly, peaceful protesters demonstrating against the farming laws have been met with tear gas, water cannons, rubber bullets and batons. As images emerge of protesters feeling the wrath of a storm of rubber bullets, or an elderly Sikh man cowering as a paramilitary member swings a baton over his head, India’s claim to being the world’s largest democracy seems increasingly dubious.

It is not difficult to see how the changes in agricultural law are an extension of the Hindutva agenda. As the farming sector is home to approximately 16 million Sikhs, making up nearly 60% of the state’s population and much of the agricultural workforce, the farming bill appears to disproportionately target India’s Sikh population. Punjab is a vast, diverse state and the continuing strikes have been assembled of farmers and allies of all faiths and backgrounds, united and standing in solidarity. However, it is not unreasonable to think that an attack on the home of India’s largest Sikh population was motivated partially by narrow, discriminatory ideas of Indian nationalism. Yet, in standing together—Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus amongst others—and journeying through the streets of India, Punjabi farmers are not just resisting unfair legal reforms. They are fighting for India’s proudly multi-faith, secular and democratic character. 

As one of the states divided by the outgoing British colonial administration in 1947, Punjab has had a difficult history relating to religion. But these protests have showed a positive view of the diversity within Punjab and India itself, flying in the face of the BJP’s Hindu-focused ideas. Images of Muslim protesters serving the traditional Sikh meal, langar, to their compatriots, or of farmers of all faiths standing guard whilst Muslim demonstrators pray, show the significance of these protests. For an India which is having its secular commitment tested by the BJP’s agenda, scenes of solidarity emerging from the ongoing farming strikes inspire hope that an inclusive, diverse, positive future is still possible for India.  

The strikes have also inspired movements beyond India. British Punjabis and diaspora groups across the world have stood in solidarity in a range of places including Leicester, San Francisco, London and Toronto. As home to over 700,000 Punjabis, the largest ethnicity amongst British Asians, the UK has seen several demonstrations in support of the striking farmers and in solidarity with those facing repression in India. In Leicester and London, car rallies were held, bringing traffic to a standstill in the capital as demonstrators assembled outside the High Commission of India. British Sikhs in particular have been at the forefront of the demonstrations in the UK, as 92% of Sikhs in the UK have ties to agricultural land in India. For many Sikhs within India and around the world, agriculture is intertwined with their heritage and an attack on independent Punjabi farmers has, to many, translated as an attack on Sikh culture and identity. The global Punjabi population is therefore playing a part in resisting an attack on such a fundamental part of Punjabi culture.

The events playing out in India, coupled with the global outcry, have, however, failed to capture the attention of many sections of western media and politics. Indeed, even Prime Minister Boris Johnson—the head of government in a country with one of the largest Punjabi communities in the world—seemed completely unaware of the ongoing strikes. When quizzed about the state’s brutal treatment of protesting farmers by Labour MP Tan Dhesi, Britain’s first turbaned Sikh MP, Johnson responded that he had “serious concerns about what is happening between India and Pakistan”, but that they were “matters for those two governments to settle.” Johnson’s apparent and complete ignorance of events in India is both shocking and alarming.      

Even as British Indians take to the streets to stand in solidarity with the striking farmers, the Prime Minister, eyeing a post-Brexit trade deal with India, remains ignorant or otherwise disinterested in the crisis. In accepting an invitation to meet with Modi in January despite his discriminatory agenda and the current turbulent backdrop, Johnson seems to be tacitly accepting events in India instead of raising his voice in opposition. Of course, the relationship between Britain and India has been a historically brutal one of centuries-long British colonisation and repression. But if India and Britain are to move forwards, the Prime Minister must first educate himself on what is actually happening in India and present democratic opposition reflecting the concerns of the British Indian population when he meets Modi in January. 

The global Punjabi diaspora and allies across the world hope for a peaceful future for Punjab and India, but with Modi and the BJP at its helm, this seems doubtful. Some have claimed the number of participants in the ongoing demonstrations is around 250 million—nearly four times the population of the UK—which would make them the largest mass demonstrations in history. And though such an important story has failed to gain the attention of the western public and its leadership, the ongoing protests are of paramount importance to global politics and the international climate. 

In boldly standing against the reforms, even as rubber bullets rain down on them or they feel the wrath of the water cannon, the striking farmers are fighting for their livelihood and are standing on the front lines of the very future of India’s democracy. Punjabi-born Canadian poet, Rupi Kaur, summed up what is at stake for Punjab and India: “The ultimatum is clear…democracy or majoritarianism.” As the BJP worryingly pursue their nationalist agenda and crack down on peaceful protests with terrifying force, Indian democracy depends on its people standing up courageously. The Punjabi farmers are fighting for more than just their future and industry, but for the future of their country as they know it.

Northern Neglect: COVID-19 Restrictions and the North-South Divide

Rachel Rees
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Northern Neglect: COVID-19 Restrictions and the North-South Divide

With the chaos and double standards of local lockdowns, the government has failed the North.

On the 16th of December, London and the South East entered Tier 3, and then, the newly created Tier 4 soon after. Public figures ranging from London Mayor Sadiq Khan to footballer and sports commentator Gary Lineker lamented the socioeconomic implications of the increased restrictions for London and surrounding areas- but for onlookers in the North, this is nothing new. 

Since the first local lockdown in Leicester in June, the highest restrictions have been consistently concentrated in the North and in the Midlands. Incredibly, now is the first time since July – 5 months ago – that certain northern areas have not been subject to the harshest set of restrictions, compared to the rest of the nation. Throughout, government intervention in the North has been defined by merciless inflexibility and an unwillingness to provide communication, financial support, or resources, accompanied by a heavy dose of double standards.

The government has consistently displayed an overreliance on harsh, restrictive measures for the North, in a clear disparity with its treatment of the South. Most recently, London’s Tier 2 status after emerging from national lockdown on 2 December came under fire: in the week leading up to the end of lockdown, London’s coronavirus infection rates were 174.1/100,000, higher than Middlesbrough (170), Manchester (166), Nottingham (152), Leeds (150), and Newcastle upon Tyne (128) , all of which were placed in Tier 3. Below-average infection rates in large parts of the North East and Greater Manchester throughout early December exacerbated this controversy, with Andy Burnham, Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester, tweeting that it was “hard not to conclude” that “when cases rise in the North, the North goes under restrictions”, but “when cases rise in London and the South East, everyone stays under restrictions”.

Inadequate communication further demonstrated government disregard for the North. On the 31st of July, a ban on all indoor socialising affecting almost 5 million people across the North was announced at 21:15, less than 3 hours before the measures came into effect and the night before Eid al-Adha festivities were due to take place. For Health Secretary Matt Hancock, blame fell on those “not abiding to social distancing”, while the Conservative MP Craig Whittaker targeted the Muslim population that now found itself bearing the brunt of the restrictions. Hartlepool and Middlesbrough councils were informed about new October local lockdowns only five minutes before press announcements, and Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle City Council, condemned the consistent failure to communicate and consult with local authorities. Later that same month, it was in the middle of a press conference that Andy Burnham found out about Greater Manchester’s £22 million Tier 3 test-and-trace funding, a figure that came to £8 per person, prompting his desperate, blunt response: “It’s brutal, to be honest”.

Manchester’s mistreatment is just one example of the consistent failure to provide adequate financial support or resources for Northern areas affected by restrictions. It was only after London’s entry into Tier 2 in October that Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced support for UK businesses affected by restrictions, just days after Manchester’s requested £65 million support package was refused and following months of restrictions for some areas, prompting criticism of Northern neglect from Labour figures including Burnham and Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds. Furthermore, mass testing in schools was offered to London (then in Tier 2) and the South East in early December, but not immediately to Northern Tier 3 regions, many of which had already raised concerns about schools with the government. When Hull saw an infection rate of 770/100,000 and 3 in 10 students off school in mid-November, requests from city officials, headteachers and NHS bosses were met with silence. Similarly, Kate Hollern, Labour MP for Blackburn, tweeted that Lancashire officials had raised concerns about schools “for weeks”, and yet “this level of support was never offered to us” – proof that “the government is treating the North as second class citizens”.

In some Westminster circles, there seems to be a mentality that the North – that far-off land of greyness and poverty – deserves it, with the 2019 Tory advance into former Northern Labour heartlands perceived as a free pass for the government to do whatever they want. In Parliament, Chi Onwurah, Labour MP for Newcastle Central, raised concerns with Michael Gove about the combination of Brexit and coronavirus restrictions, accusing the government of “totally letting down small businesses in the North East and across the country”. Gove’s reply: “The north-east is Tory”; a bold claim for a party that holds 10 North East seats to Labour’s 19, and a response that Onwurah condemned as “arrogant and complacent”.

Such arrogance and complacency define Conservative attitudes to the North. They may have made deep inroads into the North in December 2019, but their government shows nothing but contempt and disregard for their newfound constituents, an attitude that can only alienate Northern voters and MPs, as the newly-formed Northern Research Group of red-wall Tory MPs warned in October. Labour has an opportunity to not only regain seats but also make real changes, as the regionalised trauma of local lockdowns and the popularity of regional figures like Burnham has made the case for more devolved local government. This is a policy Labour can -and should– get behind, with Labour mayors currently holding all the Northern combined authority mayor positions: Greater Manchester (Burnham), North of Tyne (Jamie Driscoll), Sheffield City Region (Dan Jarvis) and Liverpool City Region (Steve Rotheram). As Burnham notes, in Westminster “decisions are too far from the ground”, and instead, “we need that strong voice at the regional level”. This is the way to ensure competent and effective regional policy, without double standards or negligence.

These double standards and negligence are nothing new, but are simply more prominent under COVID-19 policies. Under the Conservative-led austerity of the 2010s, the average Northern council saw local government cuts of 34% compared with 23% for the South, while the five areas with the largest cuts were all in the North: Barnsley (40%), Liverpool (32%), Doncaster (31%), Wakefield (30%), and Blackburn (27%). This is hugely relevant to the COVID-19 pandemic: a report by the Northern Health Science Alliance drew a direct correlation between the region’s vulnerability to COVID-19 and austerity and its exacerbation of Northern economic deprivation, calculating the Northern death rate during the first peak (March to July 2020) as 57.7/100,000 higher than in the rest of the country, and echoing the Guardian’s identification of the North’s “health crisis” in February 2020. In COVID-19 policy and beyond, the government continues to view the North as expendable, both politically and economically, putting lives and communities at stake.

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