Amber Rudd and no-platformed at Oxford Uni

[mindtheclegs]

Did a quick search and couldn't find this as an own thread (added to Selina Todd's one but thought it worth a seperate one).

Her Tweet:
twitter.com/AmberRuddUK/status/1235838618221948928
"Badly judged & rude of some students last night at Oxford to decide to “no platform” me 30 mins before an event I had been invited to for #IWD2020 to encourage young women into politics. They should stop hiding and start engaging. #FreeSpeech"

The Oxford Uni article:
www.oxfordstudent.com/2020/03/05/unwomen-oxford-cancels-amber-rudd/
The group is called UNWomen. UnWomen?! And they apologised for hurtz and feels felt by non-binary and 'womxn'. Dressed up in dismay around her politics but they bloody knew her history before asking her to speak, yes?

The Guardian neglects to mention 'UnWomen' apologising for hurting their 'womxn' and 'non-binary' community in their article.
www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/mar/06/amber-rudd-hits-out-at-rude-oxford-students-after-talk-cancelled

order-order.com/2020/03/06/amber-rudd-no-platformed-oxford-students/

"Rudd is, of course, on police files as the perpetrator of a “non-crime hate incident”, after an Oxford University Professor Joshua Silver reported the then-Home Secretary’s 2016 Conservative Party Conference speech to the West Midlands Police." (One for Harry The Owl?).

I really suspect that this was not about Windrush at all.

The government needs to get a handle on this. Institutions who no-platform speakers are breaking the law. There should be clear and very strong consequences for doing so.

I really suspect that this was not about Windrush at all.

Completely agree - although that is assuming the protesters went to the trouble of looking up which Home Secretary introduced this policy. Amber Rudd took one for Theresa May there.

Of course, the free speech on campus crisis is STILL just a right-wing conspiracy.

Slow clap for the Guardian on another fine example of accurate reporting.

Have they really called themselves 'Unwomen'?

Yes I know I'm missing the point but sometimes it's the only way I can deal with these dangerous idiots.

UNwomen or Unwomen? Whatever, they're UNdemocratic, Unkind and definitely UNlikely to succeed in life if they can't ever listen to opposing views. I hope they're not studying law, because they really will have their mind blown if the lecturer asks them to take a stance they don't agree with and argue for it.

Have they really called themselves 'Unwomen'?

Ironic isn’t it Floisme?

I think it’s UN as in united nations:

www.unwomenuk.org/

I think they have student champions and societies in universities.

Apologies if I am stating the obvious.

Presumably at such short notice she had already travelled there. Erm why would the apology be to the NBs etc if it was about Windrush?

Why did they no-platform her? Politicians make good and bad decisions all the time. The ones who make bad decisions, especially if they subsequently recognised this, would surely make the most interesting speakers? Wind rush went publically belly up as far as politicians are concerned and even if she wasn’t then going to talk about it, to have that information your opinion would hopefully give you more depth. Even if she was shallow and couldn’t see what went wrong then surely students at Oxford should be able to cope with that. It comes down to a lack of critical thinking and being afraid to have to do so.

I'm no particular fan of Amber Rudd, but how bloody rude to invite her and then cancel an hour beforehand.

No, I think they are called UNWomen, but Unwomen better reflects what they have just done.

This says it all to me "The statement continued, “We are deeply sorry for all and any hurt caused to our members and other wom*n and non-binary people in Oxford over this event.”"

UN women's term card has been laughable this semester, so it's not a surprise they have been this spineless. Their other events were 1) a celebration of female bodies inspired by the Dove adverts. Yay, we are all beautiful! There was no suspicion at all of an advertising campaign created by a massive corporation which relies on women feeling bad about themselves to sell products. No interrogation as to why women need to be beautiful in the first place.

2. They invited a panel of men to talk about Emma Watson's 'he for she' campaign, because it's super important that we hear about feminism from men.

3. They keep using terms like women* and womxn.

Apparently Amber Rudd was cancelled due to the Windrush scandal - I love how in the Daily Mail piece the president of UN Women tries to blame the African Caribbean student society because 'they have a lot of influence.' She can't even own her decision. But I'm very suspicious. if it was to do with Windrush why apologise to non binary members and not black members? They are a complete embarrassment.

Hmm...I think Windrush is a shameful chapter in our history but you would have thought our brightest young minds would jump at the chance to quiz Amber Rudd (and Theresa May)about it.

I was wondering if unwomen was some new gender

what's the difference between wom*n and womxn?

or is it a competition for the silliest neologism

or are they just daft wnkrs?

They invited a panel of men to talk about Emma Watson's 'he for she' campaign, because it's super important that we hear about feminism from men

Emma Watson is a useful idiot.

I think that, by refusing an opportunity to hold a politician to account, Oxford students have played straight into the government's hands. We've already got the Cabinet refusing to go on the Today programme and getting away with it. Johnson must be thinking Christmas has come early.

This is getting ridiculous! Real life does not have a “mute” or “unfollow” button.

I don’t agree with Amber Rudd’s politics. I think the way she treated the Windrush generation is shameful. I am unlikely to ever vote Tory. But she was the Home Sec of an elected government FFS! Whatever her politics, that doesn’t make her experience any less interesting to hear speak. Why didn’t the people who wanted her cancelled simply turn up and ask her a critical question?

I’m pretty Leftwing, votes Remain etc. But still chose to watch a documentary by Geoff Norcott that slagged off middle class lefties and “Remoaners”. I didn’t enjoy or agree with it, but felt it was important to at least hear another point of view.

No-platforming is equivalent to my 3yo screaming for Daddy to get out her room when he’s told her something she doesn’t want to hear.

It was a calculated insult to invite her and then rescind it.

But still chose to watch a documentary by Geoff Norcott that slagged off middle class lefties and “Remoaners”. I didn’t enjoy or agree with it, but felt it was important to at least hear another point of view

I don't know who he is. I'm a middle- class Remainer and I'm bored rigid of hearing the opinions of middle- class Remainers.

I think that, by refusing an opportunity to hold a politician to account, Oxford students have played straight into the government's hands

Not relevant. She wasn't invited on that basis. She was asked to speak on an IWD event about getting young women into politics.

Her actual politics are irrelevant to hearing about what inspired her, what facilitated her ambition, what held her back, advice for women considering a political career. It's idiotic of them to deny a platform for a former Home Secretary on that subject.

Are women more likely to be no platformed than men ?

Didolamenting He’s a stand-up, sometimes appears on The Daily Mash to talk about Brexit. The doc was on the BBC. It was rubbish - lots of sneering at middle class names - but in amongst that he did make me pause for thought about schools and social engineering. I was hoping for something a bit more thought-provoking to be honest. Maybe I’m weird, but I quite like hearing another viewpoint. I am emphatically pro-EU and anti-arms industry, but still find it interesting to chat with a relative who works for an arms producer. He feels future wars will be as a result of migration and the idea of a borderless EU isn’t sustainable. I’ll say to him “yeah, but I just look at Aleppo and think I’d do the same in their situation”. He agrees on a human level, but we disagree at an international strategic level. People have different viewpoints. There aren’t easy answers. I don’t agree with his views on migration and arms. But he is also an incredibly kind, generous, pragmatic, intelligent man. It’s just bloody social media that is telling younger generations they must demand ideological purity and nothing less.

Anyhoo...sorry for the tangent...

Not relevant. She wasn't invited on that basis. She was asked to speak on an IWD event about getting young women into politics.

Yes I know that but they have cited Rudd's links with Windrush as their justification for cancelling. I would have thought Oxford student would have had the wit to frame a question about it, had they so wished.

I think Windrush is a shameful chapter in our history but you would have thought our brightest young minds would jump at the chance to quiz Amber Rudd (and Theresa May)about it.

Quite. But UN Women is one of those naive groups who thought that it's possible to include males with gender identities without compromising the organisation's original focus and goals. The discussion would have undoubtedly centred on the men and their feelings (it was supposed be about Rudd's role as Minister for Women and how to encourage more women to get into politics).
I am so sick of this shit. These idiots will be running the country in the near future