Ulster Rugby trial -continued

Hmm yes he did. I don't think the headmaster's fondness for "moral courage" penetrated there.

NI is a small place- my DTwin's on this thread ffs

Marking my place - did Olding go to BRA? Devastated if he did as that's my old school & it's fantastic!

Twixes, I think (not sure) the not-legally-rape victim in this case went to a Protestant school. There is a strong tradition of protesting in the nationalist community (civil rights marches etc). Many of the names on the twitter #ibelieveher are Irish and therefore probably Catholic. Which may be where the "Republican bitches" (or whatever slurs you have seen) come in. I believe these people are objecting not because the men involved in the case are Protestant, but because they are nasty misogynists, and because the protesters have a social conscience and some feeling for their fellow (wo)man, not because they're taking the opportunity to kick the posh Prods. As a (lapsed) Protestant, I'm happy to join them.

Really curious about this reporting restriction thing

I am half expecting the judge to keep the restriction there indefinitely.

Marking my place until I finally remember my password - need to name change and come back in a bit! NI too small to take chance of recognition!!!

Chaos, I didn't know about the misogyny. Like Germaine Greer said, "women have no idea how much men hate them". Well not hate exactly. After all, you don't hate the burger you're about to consume.

Thanks Sonic. Think my cynical mind is maybe going into overdrive.

Hadley Freeman’s article is really important this long after the case. I am very happy that the anger is carrying on about this case and what it shows about the appalling system we have which is so stacked against women.

Yes- good to keep the momentum going.

And regarding misogyny, I think the misogyny at the school is just the same as in NI in general (which I'd say is pretty high), as a school it's not any better or worse than the rest of NI society.

Chaosandchocolate I understand completely. There is an uneasy air of something accompanying all of this and I don’t blame you. Norn Irn is very small at times.

About 250-300 pupils per year, Twixes.

Really wouldn't think there was a sectarian element to it. I think Methody is pretty mixed (think it was 50/50 in my day). There was never any sectarian undercurrents that I was aware of. I think, given the socioeconomic status of the majority of families that attend the school that it would certainly consider itself well above that.

Thank you for the new thread. Hadley Freeman’s article is really important this long after the case. I am very happy that the anger is carrying on about this case and what it shows about the appalling system we have which is so stacked against women.

Chaosandchocolate, I hope you don’t mind me asking but was there a culture of misogyny within the school or is this all a surprise to you.
Unlikely as it is, i'm slightly unnerved by the chances I may have gone to school with other posters. God knows what some of my peers thought of me then. Other posters sound like they were much wiser in terms of how they viewed the culture.

That guardian article is spot on and so terribly sad.

Placemarking as on the old thread...😊

I went to to school with Olding at BRA- he was three or four years below me.

We didn’t have the same kind of rugby culture- it was the most important sport at the school, but there was a massive importance put on what was acceptable behaviour. The headmaster at the time put a lot of store in raising gentlemen (and ladies...) and punishments were dished out when anyone could have potentially brought the reputation of the school into disrepute.

NI is a complicated area at the best of times, is there any possibility there could've been a slight sectarian element to any of this??

I'm completely speculating by the way but I wouldn't be surprised if it was a factor. I saw some scrote on twitter saying something about republicans that got me thinking.

Thanks for the Hadley Freeman link. She is indeed angry. I'd say irate.

In the South we have the same thing with rugby schools but the big ones/ones that do well in the various Cups are all single sex. How many pupils per year in Methody?

I don't have the fierce loyalty as I parachuted in at the age of 16 to do my A levels; I didn't grow up going to Fullerton then through the younger years at Methody so always felt a bit of cynicism at the Methody Uber Alles stuff.

Chaosandchocolate, I hope you don’t mind me asking but was there a culture of misogyny within the school or is this all a surprise to you?

Thanks for the link old

Love Hadley and am convinced she's a mumsnetter - something about the style.

She is angry.

Came on to post a link to Hadley's article. Yet another great bit of writing.

Another ex Methody pupil. It's been surprising to read other views as before this anyone I knew was fiercely loyal to school. From my point of view this trial has been painfully close to home.

Great article. So depressing tho

power that was my experience too.

The glorious Hadley Freeman is talking about the trial in The Guardian today - “What does the Belfast rape trial tell women?” It is a fantastic, angry piece of writing. www.theguardian.com/fashion/2018/apr/04/what-does-the-belfast-trial-tell-women-make-a-complaint-and-youll-be-vilified
(Don’t think I’ve linked correctly but please read!)