Sunday 26th April 2026
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Controversial costumes are an issue of imbalanced privilege

Tarini Kumar
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Controversial costumes are an issue of imbalanced privilege

A recent spate of controversies surrounding insensitive costumes worn to college bops has sparked much debate around what is and isn’t appropriate to wear. Just last week, an able-bodied LMH student was reprimanded for dressing up as Steven Hawking for a ‘Dress as your degree’ bop.

Many criticised the lack of sensitivity in the specific prop choices he made, such as his decision to sit in a wheelchair. This criticism seems to insinuate that there exists a more ‘appropriate’ way to dress as Hawking.

So often, particularly in cases such as these, people try to assign ‘levels of appropriateness’ – as though there exists some hierarchy Steven Hawking costumes, within which the perfect getup can be picked out so as to ‘appropriately’ imitate him. Yet doing so overlooks the main issue, the true grievance, of such acts.

This was not an isolated incident as former bops have seen cultural appropriation dressed up as fashion and outfits deliberately chosen to shock. The most infamous of these is the ‘middle America’ costume, worn by a student at a Christ Church bop last year and a Harvey Weinstein costume appearing at an LMH bop.

Costumes are, by nature, like caricatures: they exaggerate and magnify certain aspects of a person or a group such that they become parodies, amplifying and endorsing existing stereotypes.These are the same stereotypes that are used in daily life to denigrate and humiliate the people of that group.

These costumes act as a funhouse mirror, in which people see what their identity represents to most of society, reflected back at them. To don an outfit which reduces whole groups to mere accessories, to spare parts, is audacious and, frankly, entirely unfair. This is especially the case at college bops, where you will likely come into direct contact with individuals who have been, and continue to be, seriously affected by such stereotypes.

Ultimately, the issue is one of imbalanced privilege. When someone is able to assume a particular appearance without ever having faced the struggles that come with it, and use it as a “costume”, they are in a position of power. To use that privilege in this way is not only unfair, it makes light of wider issues. In the case of LMH, it denegrates the struggle those with disabilities frequently face in a society that discounts or ignores them.

Of course, many argue that simply wearing an item of clothing traditionally belonging to a minority group doesn’t constitute mocking it – the line between cultural appreciation and appropriation is undoubtedly blurred.

Parul Sehgal of The New York Times writes, “what cannot be disputed is how profoundly we exist in one another’s imaginations” – we are allured and deeply interested by that which is different from us, constructing fantasies of what it would be like to be entirely unlike ourselves. To shut ourselves off from interacting with one another in this way would be wrong and ultimately counterproductive, but with this interest needs to come real knowledge of and respect for the big picture.  It is not wrong to admire other cultures, it is wrong, however, to cherry pick aspects of it for a party.

Activist Bell Hooks writes, “Ethnicity becomes spice, seasoning that can liven up the dull dish that is mainstream white culture” – people so often use this fascination, this interest in other cultures to feel transgressive or to be provocative and funny, anatomizing it to extract and adopt only the parts deemed desirable, disregarding the rest.

I’m not suggesting that people are always intending to be cruel or provocative, or to commit any sort of great theft of culture, but obliviousness to this wider context is just as hurtful and, at this point, inexcusable; it’s not acceptable, nor is it really fair, to claim ignorance.

Kenan Malik terms appropriation more a “messy interaction” than any sort of a crime, and maybe so – but it’s about time that people learned how interact, to use an oft thrown around word, appropriately.

Fashion in 280 characters or fewer

Skye Humbert
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Fashion in 280 characters or fewer

There’s a new breed of fashion commentator – and no, it’s not the next round of budding freshers writing for Cherwell Fashion, such as myself (I know, I’m excited too) – it’s a social media phenomenon. High fashion twitter has been undercover too long not to be recognised for what it really is: bitchy, overbearing and bloody addictive.

If by any miracle you’re new to social media, fashion or just being opinionated in general, here’s what it is: HF Twitter is a circle of accounts, often hidden behind an icon of Daphne Groeneveld or Megan Fox, that comments on upcoming trends, reviews recent editorials and collections and promotes a glamourous yet unrealistic view of life all in 280 characters or less. In fairness to the community, it means I can keep up with the new SS18 collections far better via the endless colour co-ordinated photosets than by spending £4.50 on a magazine. I experienced practically the entire Victoria Secret 2017 show through a 30 second video, a picture of Candice Swanepoel retweeted 1000 times and, ironically, a singular thread explaining the evil machinations of the Victoria Secret Corporation.

But as with everything to do with social media, anonymity is dangerous. The come backs can be hurtful, unfair and personal and some of the debates are worse than talking about Brexit on a crew date. The world of HF Twitter gets bitchy. And I mean really (really really really) bitchy. I had my own dose of condescension when I outed a girl for calling a £150 La Mer eye cream ‘essential’. She told me ‘I agree if you don’t care about getting bags under your eyes you shouldn’t buy”. She’s right about one thing: the bags under my eyes are simply not worth spending £150. Those of us on a student budget cannot relate. That I can get over, but more than that, the community is free to join, but quickly becoming exclusive. Still, it’s a guilty pleasure of mine to sit back and enjoy reading quote tweet after quote tweet and threads venting about other threads. If you have a thick skin and are still intrigued, simply make a twitter account and follow the right people: look for handles with the brands ‘Dior’, ‘Gucci’ and ‘Prada’ paired with the words, ‘angel’ ‘fairy’ or ‘hoe’.

When you love fashion, and want to talk about it, it’s almost too easy to get sucked in. It’s even easier to forget that these accounts are run from an age range of 12+, with unsurprisingly no credentials or experience. The best part is when a HF Twitter account truly believes they’re the glamazons they aspire to be and begin coaching on how to achieve this. Trying to clear some chronic acne? Well, by following the right accounts, you can get fully unqualified dermatological treatments including, but not limited to: ‘drink lots of water!’, ‘use Mario Bedascu rose water daily!’, ‘eat greens 5 times a day!’ They might even tell you which face wash is best for your star sign! Of course! It all seems so obvious now! It’s tiresome trying to ignore the not only fake but almost damaging health tips, especially when these accounts are run by girls, (and guys!) who’ve hardly hit hormonal acne. Somehow, they dream of becoming both the editor-in-chief of Elle magazine as well as doing nothing all day as a rich socialite, eating breakfast in bed and living in sweet, sunny Sorrento, Italy.

Now, I’m not shitting on dreams here and I’m not even one to say you can’t have it all – I’m just trying to keep a level head when ‘10 tips to an easier life’ are being relayed to me through incredibly abstract and probably toxic gifs from Sex and the City. Maybe it’s all a matter of attracting the lifestyle you try to project: if you retweet a picture of your icon wearing haute-couture then you might truly be able to afford haute-couture one day, right? It’s nice to feel glamorous. It might be even nicer to have your followers believe that you’re glamourous. Does it work? Should someone let them know? Probably not…but I digress.

Yet despite my criticism, I’m hooked. As an avid follower of the community, there is a lot to respect. High Fashion twitter definitely calls it as it is. Taking no nonsense when Kylie Jenner released her £300 makeup brushes, unearthing Naomi Campbell’s vindictive actions towards fellow models and employees, and withholding applause for the Balenciaga’s SS18 collection which literally sells ‘refugee’ clothes as luxury items. HF Twitter doesn’t sit around supporting everything it sees, and sometimes finds itself a venue for worthwhile discussion. With instantaneous access to commentary, you can vouch on someone saying what needs to be said. And if you’re passionate, why not?

But where does this community stand in the world of fashion? What do they offer? How much do we care? Well, there is something unbelievably satisfying about being able to criticise an industry that is asking to be criticised. Fashion is not about how you look, but whether you look good. And this world of commentary does just that: they questioned Dolce and Gabbana’s AW17 collection, plastered with the supposed ‘favourite’ teen icon Justin Bieber, and saw straight through Kendall Jenner from the start – her lack of talent, experience and evident problems with using the same facial expression every time she is on the cover of Vogue. In some small ways, these accounts can go against the trends they’re told to like, the collections they’re told are good and the models they’re told are enough to show diversity on the runway. Suddenly there’s an opening to share your opinions, which is arguably what the fashion industry thrives on – although this space has been limited previously to the most elite people in the business. Commendably, these accounts even stand by their tweets and the opinions they share, they’ll defend them to the point of being blocked. Even Nietzsche said, “he who cannot put his thoughts on ice should not enter into the heat of dispute”: HF Twitter is always ready for a fight.

It’s not obvious yet how this small corner of the industry will affect the world of fashion, or what kind of legacy it will leave, if any – except the odd tweet that gets over 30k likes. High fashion will remain unobtainable to the masses, but the conversation is undoubtedly more accessible. Maybe they’re doing a better job than Vogue, Vanity Fair and dare I say it … even Cherwell?! What took me almost a 1000 words to say they’re doing in 280 characters or less.

Life on the streets

Bessie Yuill and Jeevan Ravindran
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Life on the streets

It’s hard to walk down any street in central Oxford without seeing a rough sleeper – in fact, you could say it’s impossible. As students, we’re constantly told that we should be doing something about it – but there’s always a tendency to think about the politics and not the people involved. It can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the magnitude of the issue, and forget that rough sleepers are just ordinary people. The only thing that separates them from us are four walls.

We decided to look beyond the faceless statistics, and speak to some individuals about the stories behind homelessness in Oxford. Everyone we talked to was open about how they had ended up sleeping on the streets. Andy, a Big Issue seller, told us that he had been homeless for the past nine years, after divorce and time in prison had stripped him of a support system.

His story is not uncommon: relationship breakdown is one of the most common causes of homelessness in the UK, and insufficient rehabilitation after prison sentences can also sabotage any kind of second chance in society. Just a two-minute walk away, we met Justin, 43, on George Street – he blamed his homelessness on a lifetime of difficulties, which began when he was just eight. Marion, who regularly busks on Cornmarket Street, described marital upheaval as well, and said he made a conscious decision to leave, rather than uprooting his young children.

The fact that his departure was voluntary, however, reportedly prevented him from receiving help or benefits, as he was classed as ‘intentionally homeless’. He came to Oxford to stay with a friend, who later also lost his home. In a time of cutbacks and austerity, it’s chillingly easy to see the way in which safety nets can fall through when people are struck by sudden disaster. One idea which is emphasised by many national homelessness charities is that we’re all “just one pay check away from homelessness”. The council was an object of scorn to those we interviewed, and it’s easy to see why.

Support in Oxford has been noticeably depleted in recent years, as a result of central government cuts – although the city council is not necessarily to blame, homelessness needs to move up the local and national agenda.

Lucy Faithfull House was closed in February 2016 and bulldozed in 2017, and Marion acknowledged the impact of this decision. “All of them are going to be gone,” he fatalistically predicted, “it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”

He even suggested that rough sleepers would end up pitching out in council offices – both as a practical solution and a karmic form of protest. Andy also noted that the shift from three shelters to two had left many people worse off, saying that the issue of homelessness “has no bounds. Race, colour, sex.”

He was more optimistic, however, about the positive changes that selling the Big Issue had brought about in his life. The worst thing about homelessness, in his view, was being “dumped on the street” with no structure or support at all.

Justin also described a feeling of being trapped by circumstance, highlighting the fact that being unable to pay for a phone severely hindered any attempt to look for a job. At the end of our interview, he asked us to look at the time and date on our phones for him – a striking reminder that the barriers of money and technology meant that something as simple as the time of day was unavailable to him. He also stressed that any impairments to his speech completely ruled out sympathy from passersby, let alone potential employers, since everyone would assume substance abuse before they believed anyone was legitimately unable to talk.

Marion, on the other hand, said that the worst part of everyday life on the streets was looking out for his own possessions, in an occasionally “ruthless” atmosphere. He felt that some people had no sympathy, since they assumed all rough sleepers had sabotaged themselves by choosing a certain lifestyle – the same justification members of the council made, in his opinion.

Choosing not to help the homeless because of stereotypes around drinking or drugs is certainly an argument which you regularly hear from students, even if it does come from a place of concern. When asked, Andy and Marion both spoke highly of students who volunteered in Oxford: Marion said the majority of students were “good as gold”, while Andy also conceded that students were “mostly all right”.

Volunteers, like those working through On Your Doorstep or drop-in cafe The Gatehouse, were clearly appreciated, but not all student interactions were described as positive. When Justin was asked, he described a violent encounter – being kicked by a student repeatedly, for no reason he could explain to us. He was clearly upset about the experience.

Simeon Cope is a man who has also seen the cruelty and kindness of the streets. Vikki Cope, his wife and a well-known local poet, passed away in November at the age of 43. She had been homeless for more than 20 years, and had contracted pneumonia after a heart bypass. Her case demonstrated the inadequacy of health services for homeless people – an inadequacy which results in both the unacceptably low life expectancy of the homeless UK population.

In 2011, the NHS estimated that, among rough sleepers, the average life expectancy was 47 for men and 43 for women, a statistic which is startlingly low compared to the life expectancy of 77, among the general population.

However, students who knew Simeon brought a silver lining to his situation. He was dealing with his grief while still homeless, struggling to find his next meal while mourning his wife. A JustGiving page was set up for donations, in the hopes of finding him somewhere to stay while he tried to regain employment in the wake of this loss.

Although the page exceeded its original goal, complications around a lack of guarantor mean that students are currently seeking to raise £2,400 to secure him a place for five months, since the housing company won’t accept a shorter term. Simeon is still regularly begging outside of St John’s.

It is not just fundraising and volunteering that enables us to help people like Andy, Marion, and Simeon: it is also important that we stay politically involved. As stated, the council shut down one shelter in 2016, and the government continues to refuse help to rough sleepers, disallowing them on meaningless criteria such as the requirement to have a “local connection” to the area, or spend 6 months sleeping rough to obtain this connection.

Until recently, the government has made little effort to improve infrastructure for homeless people. The Homelessness Reduction Act which was passed last year offers some hope for change, but has not been seen yet. As part of the Conservatives’ 2017 election manifesto, Theresa May also promised a ‘rough sleeping taskforce’ which would act to help house all rough sleepers by 2027. Those of us who care need to make ourselves heard on these issues and make sure these promises are fulfilled.

Above all, however, the problem lies in a lack of empathy. This is clear in the recent case of Conservative council leader Simon Dudley, who demanded police use legal pressure to clear Windsor of its “epidemic of rough sleeping and vagrancy” before the royal wedding in May: homeless people are seen as a problem to be dealt with.

The difference in lifestyle between formally dressed students on their way to a £200 ball and people who struggle to find enough to eat every day could seem impossibly vast. It could be easy to see the numbers as a faceless issue in the same way as Simon Dudley: something to be swept away to avoid feelings of guilt or shame.

Homelessness is an economic, political, and social issue, but first and foremost, it is a personal one. This simple idea can be lost amidst intellectual discussions which create distance between the larger issue and homeless people themselves. We should be listening to the stories of rough sleepers, and engaging with them as people, instead of a faceless, political issue.

Beautiful Things preview – ‘brilliantly captures a microcosm of London life’

Alex Jacobs
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Beautiful Things preview – ‘brilliantly captures a microcosm of London life’

Set in South East London, Beautiful Thing revolves around five characters living on a council estate. Fifteen year old Jamie (Lee Simmonds) lives with his erratic mother Sandra (Emelye Moulton) and her latest in a long string of boyfriends, Tony (Callum Coghlan). Their endlessly infuriating next door neighbour is Leah (Francesca Amewudah-Rivers), who has been kicked out of school and instead spends her days lounging around and listening to Cass Elliot records. Across the hall, Ste (Chris Dodsworth) lives with his abusive father. The situation eventually gets so bad that he starts to spend the night top-and-tailing with Jamie, but this soon starts to develop into something much more than a friendship.

I was shown the first act of the play, which swiftly draws its audience into the characters’ lives. The in-the-round staging echoes the play’s microscopic examination of its characters, and is used imaginatively and effectively by Isobel Hambleton and Daisy Collarile to create tableaus with the actors which I could almost picture as a photograph series, as well as complementing the naturalistic feel of the play. I also imagine Hambleton’s directing will work well in the Pilch, and the black box theatre seems to be an excellent choice of space for a play which relies on the strength of the bonds between its characters rather than any sorts of bells and whistles with the set.

The touching nature of the domestic relationships is excellently portrayed, and all of the characters are depicted with nuance and care. A particular standout is Simmonds, whose expressiveness and broad emotional palette bring depth to a complex character wrestling with his identity. He provides thoughtfulness and sensitivity without excessive angst. Amewudah-Rivers and Simmonds also play beautifully off each other, recreating all the humour and freshness of young adults.

Leah and Jamie’s relationship feels vibrant, the quick fire dialogue between them echoing typical fifteen year old chatter. Dodsworth as Ste portrays a wonderful mix of teenage swagger and vulnerability. Although the romance between Ste and Jamie was only just starting out in the section I was shown, the naivety and fire of an adolescent love affair was brought out well, and I could tell this would blossom beautifully in the second half of the play. The delicacy with which their relationship unfolds is delightful to watch, and has been handled well by both Hambleton and the cast.

Simmonds and Moulton should also be commended for drawing out the complexities of Jamie and Sandra’s relationship. Moulton’s portrayal of a mother who is simultaneously trying to act as a mature adult figure for her teenage son and also enjoy her life on her own terms comes to blows with Simmonds’ Jamie, who is trying to forge his own path in struggling to find his identity. The depth of the love which the two of them have for each other is clearly visible, even in moments when they become physically violent. Contrasted with Jamie and Tony’s awkward, fumbling conversations as step dad and son, played for good comic effect by Simmonds and Coghlan, their intense relationship is both touching and turbulent without being over-dramatic, and feels very authentic.

Beautiful Thing brilliantly captures a microcosm of London life, encapsulating the feeling of the domestic situation being magnified and set against a backdrop of a much bigger society. The tender yet volatile nature of family dynamics and teenage relationships is excellently brought out. Moments of sensitivity are set off by brilliant flashes of comedy, refusing cliché or melodrama to create a highly enjoyable piece of theatre.

Impressionists Tate review – ‘impressive and surprising’

Jonathan Egid
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Impressionists Tate review – ‘impressive and surprising’

In 1870, as Paris was pounded by Prussian artillery, the besieged citizens of the then walled city were reduced to eating rats, zoo animals and household pets. Meanwhile, the group of artists who came to be known as the impressionists were far away from the city they so famously and originally depicted. Most had escaped across the channel, to avoid conscription, political strife and the attendant horrors of war, and made their temporary homes in Victorian London.

London was at this time perhaps the largest metropolis the world had ever seen, the capital of the British Empire and a global hub for trade, finance and industry; a strikingly different kind of place from the recently Haussmanised Paris of Napoleon III. It was also filthy, crowded, and, in the eyes of at least some of the exil painters, rather wet and dour. The Tate’s new exhibition, Impressionists in London, aims to present a view of Victorian London as it was seen by that unique generation of painters, and to shed light on how their encounter with the city shaped both the art of the developing school, and subsequent depictions of London.

The Introductory section of this new exhibition does an excellent job of situating the works in the grim context of the Franco-Prussian war and the internecine strife of the semaine sanglante which followed. We see contemporary photographs of the ruined Tuileries palace and the Hôtel de Ville, which are lent a ghostly quality by the long exposure film cameras, as well as striking charcoal sketches of the summary executions of Communards, which lasted long after order had nominally been restored to Paris.

But after this intriguing introduction, the opening rooms of the exhibition fall rather flat. There are far too many tedious pieces that showcase little more than the uninspired taste of the Victorian art-buying public, and of the willingness of French artists to indulge these tastes. The bland frivolity of these pictures jar in the way that they contrast with the morbid seriousness of the introduction.

The only real highlight in the first four rooms is a pair of complimentary works, one by Alphonse Legros, and the other by a precocious sculptor he brought to London, a young man by the name of Auguste Rodin. The two works, a sketch of Rodin by Legros, and a bust in bronze by Rodin of Legros, both masterfully represent the one-time friends in their preferred medium. The faithfulness of these works to their subject was made apparent by the ease with which I could imagine the intense, brooding figure depicted in the painting creating the sculpture, and vice versa. The sheer power of these two deeply serious faces, and the conviction with which they are realised, stands in stark contrast to the anaemic presentation of the previous rooms.

However, things pick up significantly in the fifth room, where we see in greater detail exactly what fascinated the French artists about their new home. Some were captivated by competitive sports matches and the crowds that these drew, others by the lights of Leicester square. A favourite subject was the London parks, in which, unlike the formal gardens of Paris, one could walk on the grass. The paintings of Camille Pissarro convey a genuine affection for his adopted home – there is an evident warmth to his depictions of south London streets and train stations, and his Hampton Court Green, a gorgeous, damply luminous scene of a summer cricket match (a game in which he took a passionate interest), is a fond and tranquil paean to that most English of institutions.

In room 6 one of the most impressive and surprising paintings of the exhibition is displayed, a huge canvas of the Thames and the palace of Westminster by Guiseppe de Nittis. Set next to Whistler’s pioneering, highly abstract studies of fog, so beloved by Oscar Wilde, the work has an almost antiquatedly traditional feel, yet it surpasses everything else exhibited in its attention to both the effects of atmosphere and light, as well as to the human and architectural aspects of the scene. The palace of Westminster has never been depicted with greater admiration, and the Thames workers smoking tiredly on the bridge are hugely compelling, likeable characters. The pinky-orange flecked clouds which rise from their pipes, mingling with the fog and dirty air, stand as fine artistic depictions of smoke.

But even if rooms 5 & 6 hadn’t significantly upped the ante, the penultimate room would easily justify the entire exhibition. In this room eight of Monet’s Views of the Thames are collected together, including six studies of the river and the houses of Parliament from Westminster bridge. The composition of the paintings are very alike; the palace remains the same size in all, although viewed from marginally different angles, and the only other variation is the position of the sun and its reflections on the river. The paintings structural similarity emphasises the minute attention to near- imperceptible detail with which each was created. In one canvas the sun hangs high in the sky, a great fireball radiating strands of colour, whilst in others it rests just out of frame, casting a diagonal slant of golden light over the river and its fogs. The palace varies from a ghostly apparition in the background to an imposing, tangible presence, silhouetted against the sky. In each picture we see Monet’s unique genius for the observation of light, working at its most penetrating and creative, as well as his ability to draw out deep visual differences from the smallest deviation in atmosphere or time of day. The pictures collected in this room exhibit the very, very best of what one of the greatest of painters could do, and consequentially what impressionism was able to achieve when it was most visually indulgent, yet also most strictly honest to immediate sensation.

The sheer quality of this final room does pose problems for the exhibition as a whole. The interest of the first half was largely that of seeing Victorian London through the eyes of French artists fleeing a ruined Paris and a humiliated France. But the stand out paintings of the exhibition are not those of the young, starving Monet of the 1870’s, but of the wealthy, established Monet of the early 20th century, revisiting ‘impressions and sensations of the past’, in which the central interest is not London at all, but his eternal muse of light, and its interactions with water, fog and cloud. Whilst the exhibition overall is therefore perhaps a little underwhelming, it’s still very worth visiting; go and see those Monet’s while you can.

Drunk tanks can save the NHS

Dani Dean
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Drunk tanks can save the NHS

As we stumble through ‘Dry January’ many of us evaluate the effect of alcohol consumption on lives. However, what we forget is the effect that this consumption has on our NHS. ‘Dry January’ comes not only as a welcome prospect to our livers, but also to those who are there to pick up the pieces.

It has been estimated that twelve to 15% of emergency room visits in the UK are due to acute alcohol intoxication, with this figure being as high as 70% on weekends. When the NHS is already stretched to its limits, is this really the best use of vital medical resources? As NHS England chief executive, Simon Stevens, has recently stated; it is the ‘National Health Service’, not the ‘National Hangover Service’.

In an attempt to deal with the NHS resources that are being taken up by the effects of alcohol intoxication, cities around the UK have begun to introduce Alcohol Intoxication Management Services – commonly known as ‘drunk tanks’. The idea is that any inebriated person is taken to an enclosed room, often fitted with seats and recliner beds, where they can let the worst of their hangover wear off. The centres are intended to have medical staff present who are equipped with IV drips, pumps and defibrillators so that, if required, even patients that are dangerously intoxicated can be dealt with.

These ‘drunk tanks’ have already been set up in cities around the UK including Newcastle, Bristol, Manchester and Cardiff, however it seems that there is now call for these to be put out on a more national level. However, there is potential for concern. This initiative is not a new one in Eastern Europe, where in places like the Czech Republic and Poland, ‘drunk tanks’ have been in use for a number of years already.

However, there has been and continues to be controversy over the way that they are run. It has been claimed that those who have visited the Polish ‘drunk tanks’ have often been subject to terrible conditions. To make this worse, there is no fixed charge for this service which means that occupants can be charged extortionate amounts for, what was most likely intended as a low-key night out.

Undeniably, this raises questions surrounding the standards and cost of the service. However, if we ensure that regular checks and inspections are carried out, then this doesn’t need to be an issue. People will have to be employed for this task and combined with the set-up costs of this initiative, it seems only logical that charges should be made to those using the service. Again, a limit should be imposed by the government that restricts charges to a set amount.

Some people are worried that this could signal the start of a decline in NHS services, with the future giving rise to charges being implemented for treatments of illnesses that are essentially ‘self-inflicted’ – those associated with alcohol or drugs. However, with the NHS being stretched to its limits, and A&E waiting times hitting records that have never been reached before, these patients are not being turned away from A&E but merely referred to a place where they will get the help they need at the time that they need it.

Gene silencing drug shows promise against Huntington’s disease

Nina Billows
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Gene silencing drug shows promise against Huntington’s disease

In December, researchers at University College London revealed that they had made a breakthrough in drug trials showing the potential to stop the previously incurable hereditary condition Huntington’s disease. The drug, Ionis-HTTRx, operates by gene silencing and can lower the amount of toxic proteins in the brain, preventing neurodegeneration – the death of cells in the brain.

Many experts have described it as the biggest breakthrough in 50 years for neurodegenerative diseases. With 8,500 people in the UK suffering from Huntington’s disease, the new drug is a large step towards a potential cure. It also provides hope for treating similar conditions such as dementia and Parkinson’s disease.

Huntington’s disease is a genetic condition that affects 1 in 10,000 people in Western countries. On average, the effects appear between the ages of 30 and 50, but it can also affect younger people. The symptoms are caused by the build-up of a toxic protein known as mutant Huntingtin. The mutant protein is formed by having an excess number of repeats of glutamines within the Huntingtin gene on chromosome 4. The protein aggregates in neurons, resulting in cell death. This manifests into symptoms that affect the central nervous system including problems with movement, mood and cognition, gradually leading to death.

Moreover, the gene for Huntington’s is autosomal dominant, which means that you only need to inherit one copy of the gene from one parent to present the symptoms. It is predicted 25,000 people will suffer from Huntington’s disease in the UK in the next generation due to the 50% likelihood of it being inherited. For this reason, research into treatments has been essential.

The drug, Ionis-HTTRx, has been found to lower the amount of Huntingtin. The drug is structurally similar to DNA, being composed of antisense oligosaccharides. It operates by effectively ‘shooting the messenger’ that leads to the formation of the protein – because Ionis is similar to the Huntingtin gene, the mRNA that would normally create the toxic Huntingtin protein binds strongly to it, becoming inactive.

The drug was injected into the spinal fluid of 46 patients at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in London. The treatment was tolerated by the patients and significantly lowered the amount of toxic Huntingtin protein produced. The BBC interviewed Prof Sarah Tabrizi, the lead researcher of Huntington’s disease at UCL, who suggested that “the therapy one day may slow or prevent Huntington’s disease” and that the news is of “ground-breaking importance for patients and families”. It is hoped the drug can be refined and improved to be used to treat Huntington’s disease in the future.

Furthermore, similar proteins to Huntingtin are associated with the symptoms of dementia and Parkinson’s disease. For this reason, researchers hope a similar approach may be used to silence synuclein, involved in Parkinson’s disease, and amyloid and tau, for dementia. However, these proteins are less well researched.

850,000 people suffer from dementia, costing the NHS £26 billion a year. Through further research and combining the knowledge of geneticists and pharmaceutical experts, it is hoped more lives could be saved and pressures on the national health service will be reduced.

Pakistan’s cultural reinvention is spear-headed by its youth

Musty Kamal
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Pakistan’s cultural reinvention is spear-headed by its youth

It is strange to be writing about the reinvention of Pakistan when very few can agree upon what the nation was actually invented for in the first place. Much of the academia surrounding Pakistan’s national history questions the true reason why the nation was born out of the remnants of the British Empire.

This is often a question across university campuses, including Oxford. The Oxford University Pakistan Society hosted an event which discussed the perpetual existential debate the Nation finds itself in. The sentiment is, that once we know where the country has come from, we will know where it is going.

Often, when the founding of Pakistan is tackled in Western cultural depictions, it seems to revolve around the role of the nation’s founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. In films such as, the Academy Award winning, Gandhi (1982) – Jinnah is portrayed as a malevolent egoist in pursuit of a lasting legacy.

Similarly, in Chaddha’s Viceroy’s House (2017) the creation of Pakistan is seen as a one-man project. This is starkly different from the way the nation sees itself and its culture. Take for example the writings of the philosopher Allama Iqbal, who is known as one of the seminal poets of the 20th century. Iqbal wrote evocatively about a nation that would unite Muslims and provide a safe haven from the religious persecution that they feared in a sectarian India. Iqbal is credited for setting the tone for Pakistani narratives on the country’s founding.

However, this battle for the heart of Pakistan has actually shaped much of its history and the country seems to be in a perpetual flux as armies, politicians and foreign governments try to impose their idea of Pakistan onto the rest of the country. Reinvention is a constant reality for a country celebrating its 70th birthday. The more mainstream narrative within the country is that Pakistan was made out of a duty to protect the minority Muslim population from Hindu persecution after the British left the subcontinent in 1947.

Akbar Ahmed heavily indicates Jinnah’s sense of duty in his biography of the man. This duty is in contrast to later Western depictions of Jinnah. Pakistan was a nation created as a safe haven for Muslims, there is little disagreement over this amongst Pakistanis. However, domestically there is disagreement over if it was ever meant to be an inherently Islamic country?

This question lies at the centre of the country’s tussle for its identity and the debate acts as a distraction from the more pressing concerns of illiteracy, poverty and poor healthcare. During the course of Pakistan’s history, there have been three military coups, but its direction has almost shifted randomly between leaders with a liberal vision for the country and those who want to assert more conservative ideals.

Yet, despite this ebb and flow there is always a sense that Pakistan is about to emerge from its crisis of definition to fully live out its potential. A potential befitting a country of 200 million people, vast natural resources, robust human capital and a spirit that has not been broken despite internal and external threats that have been fatal for less resilient nations. In fact, one of the most noted intellectuals in Pakistani History, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, wrote a poem entitled ‘Hum Dekhenge’ (1979), which translates to “We will see [a future]”.

The poem was made into a song and it has become a rallying anthem for the people of Pakistan during protests against the status quo. The poem speaks to the idea of Pakistan and how the dream of its founder has soured into a chaos exemplified by its messy history. When we discuss reinvention in Pakistan today, it is important to recognise the concrete strides being made versus the more cyclical changes that seem to have punctuated the national story. For example, it is easy to witness the alternation between military and democratic governments and feel a sense of despair.

However, the country is increasing its literacy, healthcare and is exporting a significant amount of culture via its music and film industries. Most notably, Zindagi Gulzar Hai (2013) and Humsafar (2012) are two of the most viewed drama series on Netflix and they were born out of Pakistan’s cultural capital: Lahore.

What is clear is that the youth of Pakistan is eager to take control of the country’s future and propel it in a new direction. 60% of Pakistan’s population is composed of young people, the second highest portion in the World (after Yemen) and the country faces a choice. Through political galvanization and expressions of culture the country’s vibrant youth is signalling a desire for a more equal and meritocratic nation. Despite the YouTube ban which was enforced between 2009 and 2015, the country was able to produce digital stars such as “Karachi Vynz” which has a significant following.

Moreover, a lot of Pakistanis are using their social media profiles to incite political change. During the 2012 national election, the reformist PTI gained millions of supporters amongst the country’s youth. They even made “Tabdeeli Aagayi” (Change has come), a politically revolutionary anthem, into a bestselling song. Yet, this excitement must soon be transformed into concrete strides forward or it will risk dissolving into a swamp of apathy and disillusionment. A far worse fate for this young country.

Yet, there is hope. Pakistan’s economy is growing at 5.2%, it has a higher number of university graduates than ever before and the Pakistani diaspora is engaging with the nation’s economy in a more proactive way than ever before.

What is key to the nation’s revival is that it must forge its own path, a Pakistani future. It must escape any notion of imitation for it will not work. Pakistan has always stood at a crossroad between the Middle East and Eastern Asia. The culture of Pakistan exemplifies this hybridity. Its religious philosophy is a combination of the hard line Wahabi Islam of the Middle East and the more flexible Sufi Islam of the subcontinent. Yet its cultural output is dominated by Sufi influence. The philosophy encourages the destruction of the ego as a path to salvation and it has contributed enormously to Pakistani music.

Qawwalli is a form of Sufi devotional music and it has become popularised again via Pakistan’s ‘Coke Studio’ music Label. The devotional music has been modernised by artists such as Ali Zafar and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan to appeal a younger audience.

Given Pakistan’s strategic location, deep cultural richness and vast appetite for reform – there is no reason why a country like Pakistan should not ascend into becoming a truly global power. Its reinvention should focus on ridding itself from the shackles of its history; history which most of its population is too young to remember. Reinvention is a word too familiar to Pakistan but there is an appetite for permanent change. Whether this demand is met will define the next century for the country.

This appetite is most palpable across campuses in Western Universities. The Oxford University Pakistan Society has recently become a good barometer for the appetite of the diaspora for change. One notable evolution is the increased cooperation between Indian and Pakistani students in discussing the issues of the subcontinent collaboratively rather than the more traditional segregation that was commonplace previous to the growing culture of collaboration and dialogue that we can see across the University.

The Society has hosted a number of debates, forums and talks by prominent figures in the struggle for Pakistan’s identity such as Asma Jahangir who highlighted culture as a major way in which Pakistan can escape its image as a repressed and introverted nation.

“Women are more than housewives, domestic servants and office secretaries”

Joanna Lonergan
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“Women are more than housewives, domestic servants and office secretaries”

This year marks the tenth birthday of Twilight, the 40th birthday of Grease, and the 50th anniversary of Manchester United’s first victory in the European Cup. That’s a pretty big year already.

But February 2018 will also mark the centenary of the ‘Representation of the People Act’, the culmination of the struggle for women’s enfranchisement which allowed all men and women over the age of 30 to vote, and the centenary of the Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act, allowing women to become MPs.

In December 1918, some women were able to vote for the first time in the general election. However, this was very much the beginning, not the end, of the story – it wasn’t until 1928 that the voting age was brought down to 21 and the franchise was extended so that men and women could vote on the same terms.

So, how did this development change the lives of women at Oxford?

To ‘set the scene’ a little, in 1879 Lady Margaret Hall was established as a college admitting female students. I suppose I should mention that Somerville was also established in the same year, but LMH had the idea first so we get the credit (100% unbiased journalism here). St Hugh’s opened in 1886, followed in 1893 by St Hilda’s. The last women’s college to be founded was St Anne’s in 1952.

To throw some more dates into the mix, on 7 October 1920, female students were granted the privilege of attending that beloved ten minute ceremony Oxford so grandly calls ‘matriculation’. After years of putting in all the work – without Bridge Thursdays or even Cellar to tide them over – women were now finally allowed to graduate.

Despite these improvements, it wasn’t until 1974 that five men’s colleges – Brasenose, Jesus, Wadham, Hertford and St Catherine’s – began to dismantle their defences and allow women to enter their fortresses (shock horror). And, it was only a decade ago, in 2008 – when St Hilda’s accepted their first bunch of boys that all Oxford colleges officially became unisex.

It’s very well known that Oxford has a seemingly endless list of male political alumni – Clement Attlee, Edward Heath and David Cameron to name a few. Yet, since gaining admission to a previously male-dominated, ‘no girls allowed’ area of Oxford life, female graduates of the University, as far as my research has shown, have only fairly recently begun to take advantage of their newfound political rights.

The earliest example I could find was Barbara Castle, Baroness of Blackburn, who studied (you guessed it) PPE at St Hugh’s. She was elected as the MP for Blackburn in 1945 and served right the way through until 1979, making her the second longest serving female MP in the House of Commons.

Under Harold Wilson’s government, Castle held many prominent positions including Secretary of State. It’s possible that her university education had little impact on Baroness Castles’ later political career, however it seems that her time at Oxford stimulated her interest in politics – she was the Treasurer of the Oxford University Labour Club, after all.

It may not be to some people’s liking, but it’s impossible to write this article without referencing the one and only Margaret Thatcher. Though they admit to having “ambiguous feelings” toward their most famous alumnus, the first female Prime Minister of our great nation is the product of Somerville College.

Love her or hate her, it’s undeniable that she marked a massive progression in the political rights of women – to many people’s surprise, a woman actually could do the same job as a man. As for whether or not she later ruined the reputation of women in politics, well, that’s personal opinion.

Continuing on that line, Britain’s second female Prime Minister, Theresa May, also attended Oxford – specifically St Hugh’s.

Now, you might want to take a seat, because what I’m about to tell you will make you question everything you thought you knew – Mrs May did not study PPE. Theresa May, the woman who has her finger over the nucelar button, and the person currently leading us out of the European Union, in fact studied Geography (maybe they don’t spend all their time colouring in after all). Like Mrs Thatcher, whether you adore or abhor Mrs May, her position as PM is another historical point in the political rights of women.

Besides the only two women Prime Ministers ever to have served, Oxford has generated other female politicians of note (most of them Tories). Shirley Williams, one of the ‘Gang of Four’ who started the Social Democratic Party in 1981 and for a time was the leader of the Lib Dems in the House of Lords, graduated in PPE from Somerville College; Harriet Baldwin read French and Russian at Lady Margaret Hall, and is now the MP for West Worcestershire and the Under Secretary of State for Defence Procurement; and Liz Truss, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, read PPE at Merton.

Yet without the February 1918 Representation of the People Act and the Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act December 1918, none of these women would have the ability to make their contribution to British politics.

These Acts may not have been all-inclusive, but they did provide the momentum for change. Most importantly, they gave some women the opportunity to have their voice heard and forced men to accept that women were, and are, more than housewives, nurses, domestic servants or secretaries. Therefore it seems the impact on the women at Oxford was limited, however 1918 did mark a significant milestone for some British women. The informed women that emerged from Oxford University evidently took a while to fully take advantage of their newfound rights, but nevertheless, the importance of this centenary for the women of this institution should not be overlooked.

Recipe Corner: student kitchens

Anna Lewis
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Recipe Corner: student kitchens

As the first night of Freshers’ flopped to an end, I insisted a new friend had to see my staircase kitchen before we parted ways.

“It’s small,” I said. “Right,” he said, looking at the two electric hobs, microwave, and kettle.

On the shelves below was a hodgepodge of kitchen equipment bewilderingly abandoned by previous inhabitants.

We had enough mugs to put on a brew for the whole college. No cheese grater, though. “Really small.” The two of us were toe-to-toe, the only way to fit us both in. The small gap between my nose and his did not leave enough room to disguise his disinterest. He glanced around again, unimpressed. “Mine is smaller.”

In my last three years at Oxford, I’ve contended with more kitchen tribulations than any beginner cook should have to face.

From neighbours’ mums bustling in to cook a feast for their studying darlings, whisks mysteriously disappearing (who steals a whisk?), the water supply cutting off right after mixing all the other ingredients for pie dough, down to other people’s crusty plates covering every available surface – it’s a wonder I managed a single pot of pasta.

Yet I did, and so did the other nine people sharing that kitchen.

When my whisk disappeared, I got determined with a fork. I served up a rubbery, inedible pancake, howled with laughter and let someone else take over. We ate cream cheese bagels on the floor, dreadfully hungover, moving only to fetch each other more tea.

I plonked steaming bowls of curry in front of tired friends, with enough left over for seconds.

Now I’m living out, with the delights of a working oven at my fingertips. My new kitchen is the perfect place to experiment.

Still, I’ll be eternally grateful to the grot and cramp of college kitchens, because that’s where I had my first cooking lesson. Where I learnt the key to good dining: that it takes more than food to make a feast.

@aigroe

Don’t know your sieve from your colander? Stay up to date with Cherwell’s Food & Drink section this Hilary Term, where we welcome Anna Lewis’ weekly column on improving your cooking in student kitchens, and a weekly student-friendly recipe.

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