On Tuesday, 6 September, a meeting was held at Centre for the Book where Vice-Chancellor Dr Max Price intended to present on the feasibility of free education for UCT. Representatives from various organisations, such as the University of Western Cape, Equal Education, and the National Research Foundation, presented their views and ideas at the Commission of Inquiry Into Higher Education and Training (Fees Commission).
News
On Thursday, September 8th, voting for the 2017 Humanities Student Council officially commenced. One candidate in the running to be elected, Laurent Balt, came under fire when the phrase ‘you called me a whore for talking to guys’ was penned on several of his campaign posters around campus. This comes after claims from an anonymous source that he is misogynistic and has made problematic statements to her in the past.
On September 7, Leo Marquard Hall was occupied by students protesting patriarchy within the residence. This was as a result of the House Committee interrogations, which had taken place the previous evening. Those attending the interrogations raised issues with three of the candidates, who were deemed to be problematic, and it was demanded that one of the candidates withdraw from the election.
As a part of Women’s month, the Red Wings Project: Cape Town (Red Wings), in partnership with the United Nations Association of South Africa in Stellenbosch (UNASA) and Deloitte, delivered pads and held workshops at both Langa and Matthew Goniwe High Schools on Thursday, September 8 and Friday, September 9.
Penny Sparrow Back in Court
Former estate agent Penny Sparrow’s court case for labelling black people ‘monkeys’ in a rant about littered beaches, continued in the Umzinto Magistrate’s Court on Monday. The Sparrow case was the first of a year of outbursts which have landed several people in trouble. Last week, another estate agent, Vicky Momberg, appeared in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court after allegedly uttering racial insults at a black police officer after a smash and grab in Johannesburg.
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Opinions
How do we really talk about sex? Language, sex, and power all work simultaneously. The way we talk about sex exposes how society really works and what, ultimately are its flaws. From the stigmas surrounding masturbation to the language of sex being oppressive, and sometimes intimidating and violent, it is apparent that language creates realities, especially social realities.
If you search ‘Why I Stopped Watching Porn,’ on YouTube, a sheepish Ran Gavrieli will tell you that he adores junk reality shows, that he cannot sing, and that he was once addicted to porn. He’s not alone. On three counts. A 2014 survey conducted by the Barna Group in the US revealed that 63% of 18- to 30-year-old men watch porn at least several times a week. 21% of women watch it as frequently.
I’m sitting cross-legged on my friend’s couch, drinking wine and laughing in near hysterics. We’re discussing Louise’s* latest sexual escapade. It was after a night out in Observatory and the next thing they knew, they ended up back at her flat. After the initial awkwardness, which was mostly to do with being in a well-lit room without another fifty people and pool tables, they got down to business.
‘It took him a solid five minutes to take my bra off!’ Louise exclaimed.
Talking about sex, during sex, is good for sex. Talking about sex when not having sex is also good for sex. But mostly, talking about sex makes sex less of a thing. Everyone won’t feel so alone about the fact that the sex thing is not as instinctively natural as breathing. F***ing is like learning how to walk: you’ve got to stumble and fall, scrape a knee, and get back up again before you master it.
Nobody could ever have prepared me, a naïve 18-year-old fresh out of high school, for the storm of change that occurred in my first formative years of university. I’ve gone through haircuts, changed my view on politics and, yes, did the delightfully clichéd thing of discovering myself.
Features
Gender stereotypes are harming the technology industry, and this student society is doing something about it.
Investigating the link between personality type and sexual compatibility
Sports
Sports need to be inclusive - where is the gender equality? What about the media's representation of women?