Monday 9th June 2025

Opinion

Academic imperialism and the war on Oxford

For centuries Oxford has balanced town and gown, but increasing college acquisitions are jeopardising the city's very essence

The fate of Oxbridge Launchpad shows only the University can improve access

The most rewarding thing I did in my first year at university was to...

International students enrich, not endanger, our universities

The first line of the “About” page on the University of Oxford’s website makes...

Beauty without a purpose: Nature and the Oxford mind

Our recent spell of sunshine has offered a welcome opportunity to rediscover the natural...

The Uyghur genocide and global inaction: Responsibility to Protect

" China, one amongst a host of global superpowers, exists in a ‘buffer zone’ from humanitarian intervention. To take action against the Chinese government is simply undesirable to the global community, over fears that it may lead to adverse economic consequences for major powers also." After President Biden dismissed the mass internment of Uyghur muslims in China as something that could be attributed to 'different cultural norms', Molly Simpson considers the reasons for the lack of international response.

Society Spotlight: Oxford Social Impact

"Consultancy gives you power to influence decisions at the highest levels of management within governments and organisations. A consultant can make sure that positive social impact is an important factor at the forefront of the decision making table." Scott Hextall and Henry Grandage write about how consulting can be more than just being a “corporate sellout”; it can make a difference.

The misogynist within: calling ourselves out

TW: Mentions of sexual violence "Rather than teaching men that to assault is wrong, society teaches women to do all they can to avoid it." Flora Dyson unpacks the phenomenon of internalised misogyny and questions how we can tackle it.

The continued failure to tackle rape culture within schools

"It is overlooked that everyday experiences of sexism are the norm for female students. This normalisation enables sexual assault to be depicted as exceptional - this must be challenged."

A View Into Both Worlds: Being Mixed-Race in Oxford

CW: Racism, mentions of violence "Throughout my time in Oxford, people have blindly made jokes about the food I eat, my various foreign mannerisms, and other misplaced snubs at the expense of the Asian community. Maybe they thought I’d find them 50% funny. Maybe they didn’t care to realise they were not." 

The Conservatives’ attack on the ECHR: A Long Time Coming

"Scrapping the ECHR and starting afresh with a ‘British Bill of Rights’ would embolden the government with both symbolic and literal power." Ciara Garcha investigates the history of the 'British Bill of Rights' and considers how it would impact the UK's relationship with the European Union.

Hanging in the (im)balance: the state-private school disparity in Oxford

"It is now time for private school students, committed to building a better future for all young people, to use their privilege and voice to pressure these institutions." Fionn McFadden investigates potential solutions to Oxford's state-private school disparity.

Gun Laws in America Are The Problem: Trust me, I Grew Up There

CW: Violence “Crouching in a corner and holding your breath as you hear voices and sirens outside is the norm for me.” Three years on from the Parkland shooting in Florida, Anvee Bhutani uses anecdotal experience to argue why gun reform is necessary.

Defending Democracy: why we must prevent the protest bill

"While civil liberties have no doubt been altered during the pandemic, the current situation is temporary. This legislation will not be." Natasha Voase examines the 2021 Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill and its sinister implications

Is this the end of the gig economy?

"In European countries, the rising popularity of apps such as Uber, Uber-eats and Deliveroo has put a strain on welfare states; in recent years, there has been an expanding number of workers who are dependents of a company, without receiving the social security that comes with such dependence." Johannes Moehrle argues for the improvement of workers' rights in the gig economy.

The ‘Foxification’ of British news: the impact of new right-wing media in the UK

"Even though the stringent regulation of broadcasting in the UK means that these networks will not be overtly one-sided or spread ‘fake news', they are worrisome. A new fixation on ‘opinionated’ and ‘politicised’ news commentary will feed into ‘bubble culture that isolates viewers in echo chambers." Biba Jones discusses the entrance of GB News and News UK TV into the British media landscape.

Anti-racism workshops aren’t a waste, they’re essential

CW: racism. Stories about Oxford and the various policy decisions its constituent colleges make periodically find their way into the national press.  I did not,...

Why we should listen to the activists of 2020

"You don’t need to “be an activist” to take action." Matilda Gettins explores why, today more than ever, it is important to reflect on social protest movements.

General Motors’ stake in China’s Electric Vehicle market

"The Chinese government is, on the whole, more committed to the EV transition and they have promising start-ups. I forecast that China’s EV market will continue to lead global demand and there will be a rise of Chinese automakers." Gabriel Ng looks at the future of electric vehicles and General Motors' involvement in a burgeoning Chinese market.

The Next Giant Leap

"Developing nations just simply have seldom attempted things like this before, but these programs would be a good chance to set up governmental, industrial, and academic infrastructure that would place them at the frontier of development in space." Harry Chapman argues that the outlook for Thailand's new lunar programme is anything but negative and why developing nations participating in space exploration might be a better idea than it seems.

As a non-Zionist Jewish student, David Miller’s rhetoric harms me too

CW: antisemitism. If you asked me to sum up what I think of when considering my own Jewish identity, the images that would come to...

Navalny: A New Hope?

“Why are you still alive?” CBS news show 60 Minutes’ Lesley Stahl asked Alexei Navalny in 2017 as he was building momentum in Russia...

“There Is No Pandemic”: A First-Hand Insight into Oxford’s Anti-Lockdown Protest

"He agreed to talk to us, but only after insisting that we remove our face masks (“unless you’re undercover police”)."

A Return to the Roaring Twenties

Some modern writers however are predicting that the pandemic will have changed our attitudes towards intimacy forever. Some have even gone so far as to declare the death of the handshake and the hug. However the 1920s is not just renowned for a cultural revolution but also a sexual one.

Banglatown: why Brick Lane cannot fall victim to the gentrification of East London

The Truman development should not go ahead at any cost. Brick Lane is one of the many locations that make London such a diverse, vibrant and welcoming city. We cannot as a community or a country allow commercial profit and gain to take precedence over years of history that form part of a collective identity.

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