Tom Armston-Clarke (Derwent first-year)
The University of York appears to be a breeding ground for those who cry sexual harassment at everything. Having worked in ‘the real world’ for four years I can say that it isn’t nice. I wouldn’t repeat some of the things I have heard in the workplace, as it was horrible. You simply cannot close everything down that causes offence to someone in society. We will end up with nothing at all. Loads of universities have accounts with far more offensive material but they don’t get closed, this is probably because the ones who would get offended just don’t read it.
Nick Dunn-McAfee (Vanbrugh third-year)
You have the right to say what you want, but not anonymously. A gaggle of pseudo-politicos seem to be throwing dummies out of prams and screaming “FREE SPEECH” like it actually has relevance. So if you want to tell the girl reading Tolkein that you want to “wear her like a ring”, go for it. In a free society, you’ve got a right to say what you want but you also have to live with the consequences. If you can’t deal with these, then, like your sexual fantasy involving that flirty PhD tutor dressed as a young Margaret Thatcher, keep it in your head.
Millie Perkins (Women’s Officer)
Sexual harassment is prevalent amongst students, as shown in the recent survey, and as such we have a zero tolerance approach to sexual harassment. ‘Spotted’ may have had good intentions however without proper moderation the comments had become awash with body-shaming and unsolicited sexual propositions. Every student has the right to work in peace without the worry of being publicly and anonymously judged on their appearance. I welcome the mature response shown by the moderators and feel it was the right thing for them to do.
Anmoli Sodha (Derwent Chair)
Like many others I found it an irresistible source of procrastination. Many posts were lighthearted and well intended but some were unnecessarily harsh and it made me think twice about the way I looked in my library sit-ins. People are stressed over exams, they don’t need to be made to feel self-conscious in a communal study area. Laughing at other people’s expense is inappropriate. The situation however called for moderation, not shutdown. The owners of the page responded maturely to criticism, and I look forward to seeing the original site revived with more appropriate self-vetting of posts.