Biggus Titus of Oxford University

[Forecastsayssnowbutthereisnosnow]

Sadly, not a Monty Python sketch.

Matt Rattley, a large bearded bloke who wears giant fake breasts, appears to be happily working at Oxford Uni.

I was really hoping this wasn't true but there is even a youtube video with him talking while wearing the giant breasts and red lipstick, applied to a degree any circus clown would be accused of overdoing it. The video includes a slide stating he works as a lecturer and tutor in the Biochemistry Dept at Oxford. He's also on LinkedIn.

I mean, how obvious can it be that this is a sexual fetish which he is involving unconsenting students and staff in???

Dr P on X has been (correctly) very robust on this case:

""This is Matt Rattley saying, "I can do whatever I please and nobody can stop me".

This is highly antisocial, abnormal, boundary-violating, paraphilic behaviour.

And we should not be afraid to say so."

Repeating the term 'fetish' is not evidence of argument or critical thinking.

Do you think it's a normal thing for a man to wear large fake breasts at work

Why do you think he wears the massive fake breasts @oxfordfeminist ?

'7. A person subjects another to harassment by engaging in unwanted and unwarranted conduct which has the purpose or effect of:

• violating another person’s dignity, or
• creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for another person.'

https://edu.admin.ox.ac.uk/university-policy-on-harassment#collapse1072106

Nope. Sorry. We've already had the "this is a witch hunt" thread. Too late, thanks for trying.

How anyone can justify a man wearing highly-sexualized accoutrements in a supposedly professional setting, in which we know if a woman were wearing/displaying the same, she would be disciplined, is beyond me.

Can you find the university or college regulation that everyone should breathe at all times? And follow the laws of gravity?

He put himself out there, on social media, for the attention. Do you think he's not enjoying his limelight? Perhaps he would have a quieter, more professional, low-key life if he didn't post pictures of himself online wearing enormous fake breasts.

Or perhaps he's having the time of his life at others' expense? Enjoy your lunch with him. Just don't imagine he isn't using you for some kind of weird validation while you're eating your salad.

Or maybe they should turn up with massive fake tits too - and a lovely fake beard to complete the ensemble

If it's fine for him to look like that, it should be fine for anyone

Exactly. The point of this definition is that for the behaviour to constitute harassment, the victim would need to have actually interacted with the person in question. Not just taken a dislike to them on the basis of stuff they've read about them on the internet.

I'm off to do some marking now. Curiously enough, the marks will have nothing to do with the way the students who submitted the work choose to dress during my tutorials.

If you're fine with men dressing and behaving inappropriately you have a lovely time.

In a fetish club, with good management, which will include strict rules on not inflicting your sexual kicks on non consenting others, particularly those not in a position to tell you to stop.

For goodness sake any normal person can see straight through this, your boundaries have been completely lost.

The number of silly women busily enabling these behaviours ....

I'm off to do some marking now.

Oh dear, did you not have time to see my question @oxfordfeminist ? That is a shame.

We are not saying he's harassing us. We are saying by parading his fetish in the classroom he is creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating and offensive environment for his students.

Enjoy your marking in your ivory tower.

So no empathy for any of your students who might at some point have to deal with him, and might feel they have been subject to harassment? No?

Enjoy your "marking."

He’s creating a hostile work and studying environment with his physical presentation which is entirely within his control.

I googled their name and a student pops up on an Oxford Uni reddit thread saying what a helpful tutor they are, and recommending them to another student. Their videos also seem to indicate that they are strongly committed to good pedagogical practice.

You'd think being helpful is a basic requirement for a tutor.

If you are an academic you would know better than to argue a point you can’t prove.

Silly, yes. But, "Oxford" "feminist"? Woman? I doubt it.

Idly wonders whether any student complaining about feeling intimidated, ridiculed, degraded or offended by this man would get the same treatment as your other students?
It's the knowledge that men like this will always be excused by those in authority and power in universities that stops ordinary students from feeling able to complain about such grim and offensive sexualised behaviour.

They'll just keep quiet, avoid as much interaction as possible (as he's apparently noted) and will hope to get out of there without attracting the attention of the tone deaf who defend him and the bullies always on the look out for women speaking up for their rights without permission.

I did wonder if it was BBT himself. Oh, the honour!

Reform are TWAW. Farage has been quite clear about it. Women don't matter to him. No conflict there.

Those of us who teach at Oxford

Do you really? And here you are, weighing in to the debate with such insouciance about your employer's reputation. I'm sure Oxford is deeply grateful to you.

Oxford Uni staff are required to complete sexual harassment training every year.

Well that's very reassuring and thank you for sharing. I wonder if there are any measures for how effective that training is. Is it as effective as unconscious bias training, say?

Can you find a university or college regulation that is being violated here by what you choose to perceive as a 'fetish'?

I don't suppose he has violated any university regulations, though no less than if he were wearing a large knitted willy to work. A thought experiment that we discussed upthread if you have been following so far.

I'm off to do some marking now.

You too eh? It's that time of year and this is a nice little distraction.

tbh I wouldn't be remotely surprised at a female (as in actual women) member of Oxford uni staff coming on here to justify it

Gilead wouldn't have worked without the aunt Lydia's

We're back to "We properly intellectually cleveratious deep-thinking OxoCantabrigian edumacated complicatorial tutorialising quirky strange special folx have the capacity to relaxably inclusivically diversably delight in jettisoning boundaries and trampling old-fashioned concepts like consent."

For the record, if any student comes to me and tells me that a tutor is making them feel uncomfortable, I will absolutely pursue the matter. As will my colleagues. I'm not afraid to whistleblow; I've done it before. There are still many instances of abuse of power in academia, and it needs to stop.

Complaints about a tutor from people who have never even met said tutor are a completely different story.

I am going to give every colleague (and every student) the benefit of the doubt until there is evidence to the contrary.

Vilifying someone with no evidence = witch hunt.