exeposé The South West’s Best Student Publication
FR
E
E
ISSUE 719 23 JUN 2021 exepose.com @Exepose
THE UNIVERSITY OF EXETER’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1987
RUGBY CLUBS SPEAK OUT AMIDST ALLEGATIONS OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT, ASSAULT AND RACISM
Image: Pete Syme
EXCLUSIVE Oliver Leader de Saxe and Lucy Aylmer Editor and Deputy Editor CONTENT WARNING: SEXUAL ASSAULT, RACISM
T
HE Exeter University Rugby Football Club have launched an internal investigation following a series of allegations against rugby players on social media ranging from sexual assault to racial abuse. Posts on anonymous Facebook platforms Exefess and Confexeter allege numerous instances of serious offences, including sexual assault and harassment
SPORT
outside popular student nightclub Timepiece, as well as racial abuse and xenophobia outside accommodation blocks. Other allegations were made on the private university group Overheard at University of Exeter, with one poster alleging that a group of rugby players damaged her car whilst shouting abuse. The post received nearly 1000 reacts on Facebook. Keith Fleming, the Director of Rugby at the EURFC, stated in a comment to Exeposé that the “EURFC takes these allegations extremely seriously”, and made clear that club management “were unaware of any allegations against any members of the club” up to this point. Fleming also stated that “as yet, nobody has approached the club regarding
The EUWRFC’s walking bus initiative PAGE 32
Images left-right: IMDB, Wikkicommons
any of the accusations on Exefess and Confexeter” but emphasised that if they did so “their concerns will be treated with the utmost respect.” A member of the EUWRFC stated in response to the allegations that “we want to show that we can come together and make a difference” and that “committee discussions are focused on how to make these positive changes.” The club is currently organising a walking bus initiative so members do not need to walk home alone at night. Exeposé reached out to one of the women who made posts on Overheard for details. Alexandra Saidi, a Masters student studying Finance and Management, alleged that she and her friends were fol-
SCREEN
lowed home from Timepiece in May by a group of rugby players, who then proceeded to harass the group. Saidi explained that following her post on Overheard, the incoming EURFC captain reached out to her to express a sincere apology on behalf of the club. These allegations of harrassment come amidst wider calls for education providers to address the increasing numbers of sexual harassment cases on campus. According to reports, 26.4 per cent of female undergraduate students experience sexual assault or rape at university. Esther Huntington-Whiteley, a spokesperson for Everyone’s Invited, an activist website that shares survivor testimonies with the purpose of “eradicating
A look into LGBTQ+ representation in cinema PAGE 26
rape culture”, stated that their “testimonies have been increasing exponentially” in recent months. She went on to say that it is “demonstrative of the kind of traction the movement has been gaining and is reflective of the situation at schools and Universities at this exact moment in time”. The University of Exeter has received the most testimonies of any university from Everyone’s Invited, appearing in 65 of the testimonies thus far, with students lamenting the misogynistic behaviour and rape culture that is seemingly accepted on campus.
Continued on page 3.
MUSIC
A profile interview of Wolf Alice PAGE 21