The Oppidan Press Edition 3, 2016 - #RUReferenceList Edition

8/17/2019 The Oppidan Press Edition 3, 2016 - #RUReferenceList Edition

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(Ed 3) Contents

Ashleigh Dean

Protests opposing systemicrape culture at Rho-des University, and the

institution’s alleged failures toaddress cases of sexual assault,have been ongoing since Sunday17 April.

Protests were instigated follow-ing the anonymous publication ofa list of 11 Rhodes students (pastand present) accused of rape and/or sexual assault. Te list, entitled“RU Reference List”, was pub-lished on Sunday, 17 April on theFacebook page RU Queer Confes-sions, Questions and Crushes,

which has since been deleted.Te post was then shared ontothe Rhodes SRC Facebook page,rapidly capturing attention acrosscampus.

Students congregated and be-gan marching to the residences ofsome of the accused, mobilisingmore students on the way. Two ofthe accused were forcibly broughtout from their residences, beforeassembling at Purple Square (out-side the Drama department). Oneof the accused was released, andthe second was forced by protest-ers to remain at Purple Squareuntil Monday morning.

Barricades were erected onPrince Alfred Street during theseprotests, before being removed bymanagement preceding the startof the academic day. Protesterssubmitted a list of demands tomanagement around 9am, con-tinuing demonstrations through-out the day, with marches aroundcampus mobilising students anddisrupting academic activities.

Vice-Chancellor Dr. Sizwe Ma-bizela’s response to the demandsat 4pm was perceived as com-placent and failing to provide a

viable solution to the demands by

protesting students. Students metat 7pm to address this, concludingwith the establishment of a partialshutdown: a suspension of aca-demic activities on campus, withoperations such as the HealthCare and Counselling Centresand dining halls operating asusual. However, management didnot recognise the legitimacy ofthe shutdown, allowing lecturesand tutorials to continue. Tesewere disrupted throughout theday on Tuesday by the protestors.

Students gathered at PurpleSquare again on Tuesday afer-noon. A #NakedProtest also took

place, with many students protest-ing topless and bearing messagessuch as “still not asking for it” ontheir skin. Te situation was tensedue to a strong police presence,until Mabizela persuaded theSouth African Police Services(SAPS) to leave. Mabizela thenaddressed the students, statingthat police were not allowed oncampus.

Barricades remained up andguarded by students overnight.However, just afer 8am onWednesday, police began shoot-ing at students with rubber bulletsand discharging pepper sprayand stun grenades at the LucasAvenue and South Street en-trances to campus. Five studentswere arrested on various charges,including obstruction of a publicroad. One of the students had apanic attack in the back of a po-lice van, which was ignored by thesurrounding officers. Te studentsremained in the van for over anhour before being driven aroundtown, and then taken to the JozaPolice Station. Once the courtreceived the charge sheets, thehearing proceeded, commencing

at 4pm so that the students would

not be detained overnight.Campus was officially closed on

Tursday and Friday, with man-agement stating that the academicproject would proceed as usualon Monday, 25 April. Members ofuniversity management laid an in-terdict against protesters, restrict-ing their legal scope of action bycriminalising the disruption oflectures and the barricading ofentrances to campus. Te VC gavea media-only press conference at11am on Friday, which was fol-lowed by a press conference heldby the student body and the taskteam appointed to address the

issue. Te VC stated that the “stu-

dents have a right to be angry”,and that, “one rape is too many.Rhodes University will neverprotect a r apist”. Mabizela alsoapologised for pushing a studentoff of the Prince Alfred street bar-ricade on Wednesday morning, inan attempt to clear the road.

An open forum was held for allRhodes students, staff , and seniormanagement on Saturday at 3pm,which was followed by a meetingat the Drostdy Lawns with thestudent body, academic staff , andNational Education, Health andAllied Workers’ Union (NE-HAWU), where management’sresponse to the demands was readout.

Following a vigil held on theSunday evening, it was decidedthat the best way to continueprotest within the scope of theinterdict was to encourage lectur-ers to use their allotted times tofacilitate discussion around rapeculture. Tese were supplementedby talks held by the Critical Stud-ies in Sexualities and Reproduc-tion (CSSR).

#RUReferenceListPage 2: Photostory, 18 April

Page 5: #RUReferenceList

Page 6: Photostory, 19 April

Page 8: Vocabulary

Page 9: Chapter 2.12


Page 12: Carla’s Statement

Page 13: Interview with Natasha


Page 16: Guilt

Page 17: Identifying the enemy

Page 18: Photostory, 22 AprilPage 20: Trigger Warnings

Page 21: Editorial

Page 22: Photostory, 23-24 April

The outcry over rape culture at Rhodes University lead to national attention.

#RUReferenceList lay at the centre of this coverage.

“TW”: Te content of this edition may behighly triggering to many as it focuses on theissues of the protests and experiences of manythat were present. We therefore wish to warn

you of the content as it addresses rape, sexualassault and police brutality”


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19 April 2016Students gather at the ‘Purple Square’outside the Drama Department for the #NakedProtest. Numerous male and female students removed

their shirts and held signs to protest against rape culture. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

The police threaten to use force if the students contravene the law. The crowd then join hands in solidarity to display their peaceful and

unintimidating approach to protesting. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

While the #Nakedprotest was met with resistance from SAPS, protesters refused to move or be intimidated. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

Abongile Milani James shows her anger towards the police officers after they intimidated and argued with her. Students were met with

more resistance than expected from the police, but they maintained their convictions and stood together. Photo: BRONWYN PR ETORIUS.


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PatriarchyAn unjust social system that consistently places menin positions of dominance over women. Tis has aprofound eff ect on society as a whole, through con-stantly undermining women, as well as feminine traitsin both genders, and contributing to a cycle of socialand economic discrimination. Te patriarchy is subtlymanifested through the lack of female leaders and thepay-gap as well as the overriding violence and microag-gressions directed at women in their daily lives.

Feminism

A movement for equal rights regardless of gender.Feminism is not about the superiority of women, butis rather about the promotion and struggle for equalitybetween genders based on history of oppression of peo-ple assigned female at birth. E.g. Feminism is necessarybecause women are still paid less for the same work inmost Western economies.

Intersectional feminismIntersectionality, the core concept of intersectional fem-inism, is a concept used to describe the ways in whichracism, sexism, homophobia etc. are interconnectedand cannot be studied or examined separate from oneanother. For example, a white cisgendered woman couldnot understand, never mind represent the struggles of ablack, queer woman, and this is why it is essential thatall sections are considered and represented adequatelyas they are all interconnected.

RapeA type of assault usually involving sexual intercourse orother forms of penetration perpetrated against a personwithout that pe rson’s consent.

Rape cultureTis is the normalisation of male violence in our societydue to oppressive attitudes particularly with regards togender and sexuality. Part of rape culture is the victim-blaming of sexual assault victims and slut-shaming ofwomen’s sexuality.As said by Natasha Piprek: “Rape culture is such a hugething, it is not just about rape e ither, it encompassessexual violence and even domestic violence to an extentand just basically dominating other people, through sex.”

Consent

To give permission for something to happen. Withregards to sexual consent, this is what is required to havebeen given by both partners before any bodily contactis made. Without this consent, these is no guaranteethat each person is comfortable or willing to participate.Consent must be given and enthusiastic.

MasculinityPossession of the qualities traditionally associated withmen. Tese traits are expected of men and so dene howcertain people who identify as male behave as a result. Itis this masculinity that the Men’s Rape Culture Talk lastweek questioned, and asked the individuals in the crowdto question in themselves.

Misogyny Misogyny is the unfounded contempt for women basedon deeply-ingrained ideologies and prejudices. It is aby-product of the patriarchal society we live in. Tereare countless examples of misogynistic behaviour ex-perienced by women in their daily lives such as sexualdiscrimination, sexual objectication of women as wellas gender-based violence.

Vocabulary: Words to get Woke

Chelsea Haith

Chapter 2.12 refers to the section ofthe South African Constitution thatprotects our right to safety and securityof person. In an attempt to highlightthe scourge of rape and sexual assaults

at our university, members of the SRCand the Gender Action Project (GAP) joined the nationwide protest to showsolidarity with rape survivors and tobring these problems to the attentionof our university’s management.

GAP was approached by a genderactivism group at Stellenbosch Univer-sity called Unashamed in early April tocollaborate on a nationwide campaignto end rape culture. Te campaign wasbegun at university campuses all overSouth Africa on Monday 11 April. AtRhodes University, members of GAPtogether with non-aligned students,members of the Gender Action Com-mittee (GenAct) and with the support

of Activism and Transformation Coun-cillor Naledi Mashishi put up posterswhich featured facts about rape cultureat our university as well as quotes fromuniversity management in response torape survivors and victims reportingtheir assaults.Tese posters were then taken down

by management and following this theorganisers of Chapter 2.12 put up alarge sign outside the library which read‘WE WILL NO T BE SILENCED’.Tis

protest was completely peaceful: studentsand staff participated by having theirphotograph taken with a sign that read‘Chapter 2.1 2’.Te purpose of this campaign is to

urge alumni, parents and interestedstakeholders to take note of the problem

of rape culture at universities and towrite to the universities in protest. Tistactic has become necessary becausestudents’ complaints are ignored or si-lenced by the university management orthrough the usually inadequate policiesregarding rape and sexual harassmentreporting and prosecution.

Even at a more senior level, membersof staff involved with the Gender ActionCommittee (GenAct) at Rhodes Uni-

versity have been working for years tochange the policies on rape and sexualharassment, to no avail, and have ex-pressed their frustration to me privatelyin the course of the protest.

Furthermore, 2016 will be the tenth

anniversary of the Silent Protest. Everyyear students and staff symbolicallysilence themselves, only to untape theirmouths in the Breaking the Silence cere-mony at the end of the day, during whichsurvivors share their stories. While theSilent Protest allows a space for sur-

vivors to hear one another’s stories, tocommune, heal and to create awarenessabout sexual violence in South Africa, itis worth considering whether the timehas come for a more vocal, more public

resistance to rape culture.However, the protest action of the

week 18-22 April resulted from the ac-tions of non-aligned students in responseto the #RUReferenceList, and was notinitiated by Chapter 2.12. While we sup-port any resistance to rape culture, it is

not accurate to praise or blame (depend-ing on which side of the fence you’re on)the members, organisers or participantsin Chapter 2.12 for the protest actionon campus. Chapter 2.12 has alreadyreleased a statement that reads:

“As Chapter 2.12 (Rhodes), we wouldlike to state that we did not publish the‘Reference List’ which has been circu-lated on social media networks sincelast night. Further, the organizers do notknow the identity of the person(s) whocompiled & published the list, or theintentions behind the publication.”

Furthermore, I’d like to stress that allmembers of Rhodes University Chapter2.12 acted in the protest in their personal

capacity and not as part of the move-ment. Lastly, I’d like to reiterate a secti onof our statement from 20 April: “We con-tinue to support any peaceful and non-coercive anti-rape culture protests oncampus. We encourage our supporters tocontinue showing solidarity, particularlyon social media, and supporting the pro-testing students. In addition, we ask thateveryone continues to support victimsof sexual assault and abuse through this

very difficult time.”

Chapter 2.12 explained

P h o t o : B r o n w y n P r e t o r i u s

Words by Leila Kidson, Leila Stein, Chelsea Haith and Lili Barras-Hagan

During the protest, certain terms proved to be incredibly important. The Oppidan

Press chose those that came up the most to dene for you.


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20 April 2016

Dr Mabizela stands in front of protesting students and asks police to stop using pepper spray and rubber bullets against students at the

barricades. The police still opened re with rubber bullets and used pepper spray on students. Photo: JOSHUA STEIN.

Students gather at the Purple Square to discuss the events that occurred in the morning. The crowd was lled anger and disgust as their

fellow students were arrested earlier that day at the barricades. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

Mic Halse, a Computer Science lecturer at Rhodes, walks away from the police officers and shows that Halse is just a harmless protester. Halse

has also been in the frontline of supporting the protest movement and stands alongside the students. Photo: JOSHUA STEI N.

Mercy Lynn Watama being arrested at the South Street barricade on the morning of Wednesday 20 April. Photo: JOSHUA STEIN .


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21 April 2016

Dr Vashna Jagarnath addresses students, who were encouraged to contribute to the list of demands and to agree upon the time-frames in

which they should be met. Photo: LAUREN BUCKLE.

Shortly after the conversations held at the Drama Department; students, staff and children join in a peaceful march around campus. Protest

songs were sung by the crowd as they walked up Prince Alfred Street and back down to the Clock Tower. Photo: BRON WYN PRETORI US.

Students join hands to ensure all those marching stay as a unied group. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

At the end of the march, the crowd gather at the Clock Tower and continue to sing. The emotions were high at this point and a few students

broke down in tears. The gathering was concluded by a prayer. Photo: LAUREN BUCKLE.


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22 April 2016

Students sing and dance as the press conference between management and the task team takes place inside Eden Grove. Students were

not allowed to enter the meeting, but this did not stop them from displaying their unhappiness with the Rhodes management. Photo:

VICTORIA BRIGGS.

After Dr Mabizela approaches the students, he informs them that he was not aware that he was expected to respond to the demands by

5pm that day. Dr Peter Clayton and Chrissie Boughey come forward and state that it is in everyone’s best interests for them to respond to

the demands the following day rather. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

Yolanda Dyantyi shows her frustration during the press conference in Eden Grove. Like many students, Dyantyi was unimpressed by man-

agement’s response to various allegations that arose during the discussion. Photo: VIC TORIA BRIGGS.

Corrinne Knowles and Professor Catriona Macleod reaffirm their position as being in full support of the students and their demands. They

agree that the way in which Rhodes deals with r ape and sexual assault cases is awed and needs serious attention.

Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.


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23 April 2016

Students, staff , parents and NEHAWU members gather in the Great Hall to hear Dr Mabizela and management’s response to the set de-

mands. A moment of silence was held for the passing of a fellow student, Londiwe Jobela before the discussion began. Photo: BRONWYN

PRETORIUS.

Various audience members show their dismay at some of the responses from management. They feel that they are not being respected as

human beings and that the interdict treats them as criminals during a peaceful protest. Photo: BRONWYN P RETORIUS.

Various audience members are eager to

ask questions regarding the way man-

agement handled the issues during the

week. Audience members were required

to request either Dr Peter Clayton or

Chrissie Boughey to answer their ques-

tion, or else Dr Mabizela had to answer it.

Students were unhappy that the respon-

sibility of justifying the actions of man-

agement during the police confrontation

lay with Dr Mabizela and demanded one

of the other members of staff to explain.Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

Dr Mabizela tries to remedy the conict

and unhappiness displayed by the crowd.

He explains that he respects all his of

students, but it is crucial to stay within the

boundaries of the law when protesting.



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Ed 3 / The Oppidan Press / 2524 / The Oppidan Press / Ed 3

Babalwa Magoqwana introduces the vigil which is held on the Sunday after the reference list was released. The vigil aimed to bringeveryone together who took part in the protests and those who may have been triggered by the week’s events.


Corrinne Knowles stands as a unied member of the crowd and listens intently to the speakers’ stories and reections. Knowles is one of the

staffmembers who has defended the students from the beginning of the protests Photo: BRON WYN PRETORI US

24 April 2016

The wall’was a place for individuals to write notes about their feelings, sympathies and support for all those aff ected. Photo: BRONWYN

PRETORIUS

A few members of the audience re

ect upon what the past week has meant to them as individuals. One of speakers includes Natalie Don-aldson who admitted that she was ashamed of being a member of staff at the university currently known as Rhodes and that she would

support the students no matter what. Photo: BRONWYN PRETORIUS.

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The Oppidan Press Edition 3, 2016 - #RUReferenceList Edition

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