FemSoc and Cuth’s Rugby kiss and make up…almost

Despite their previous conflicts, Sam Cuthbert said that the history between Cuth’s Rugby Club and FemSoc was “in the past” and so yesterday the spotlight was on panelists:

The panel. Minus controversial Tom.

Nicole Westmarland
Professor of Criminology at Durham University, co-Director of the Durham Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse

Kathryn Royal
Volunteer with Rape Crisis

Quentin Sloper
Head of Sport, Music and Drama for Experience Durham

Hannah Lowther
Team Durham Student President for the 2013/14 academic year

Tom Newman
College Sport Manager at Durham University

Serge Chapman
President of St Cuthbert’s Society JCR at Durham University

The debate was lively, but descended into shouting after Tom Newman told an anecdote about girls rating his group of friends depending on the breakfast they would cook them the morning after.

If you believe that cereal rating is comparable to serial raping then you may want to attend…

On being deemed “a cereal” there were outcries from a male audience member telling him to “shut up” as his story trivialised the experiences of real victims of sexual violence.

One truly vocal audience member, Betty, stormed out during Newman’s concluding comments.

Chapman, despite being a self-declared ‘lad’, summed up the issue as predominantly male based and that men in general should learn to speak to women, and each other, with more respect.

Reconciling their differences. Flo Perry with the Cuth’s Rugby team last term

One enlightened second year said, “they didn’t really discuss the relationship between sexual violence and lad culture. And people kept breathing into the microphone, which was fucking annoying.”

More debates are to be held this term.