Student who is suing LSE doesn’t understand sexism
Published: September 15, 2011
HOW Tom Martin aspired to an MSc in gender, media and culture is puzzling.
He clearly doesn’t understand the term “sexism”. For clarity I would refer him to The Encyclopedia of Feminism by Lisa Tutt (1986), which has a full entry for “sexism”. It begins: “Term constructed by analogy with racism, first used around 1968 in America within the Women’s Liberation Movement, now in widespread use.”
It includes: “Although men also claim to be the victims of sexism, either in personal relationships or in regard to affirmative action programmes, this is more accurately known as ‘inverse sexism’ or ‘reverse sexism’, and is actually a response to the institutionalised sexism which oppresses all women. Like racism, sexism presumes an essential superiority grounded in specific physical manifestations...”
I think Mr Martin should return the course fees the university, foolishly in my view, refunded to him and drop his case against the LSE.
I don’t know how he can call himself a feminist.
Valerie Dunn
Weedington Road, NW5