gair rhydd
FREE
CARDIFF'S STUDENT WEEKLY
freeword - EST. 1972
ISSUE 918 MARCH 08 2010
Can you keep a secret?
The plight of refugees
Cardiff students tell Features their naughtiest secrets, from love scandal to family feuds. Shh... >> page 12
>> page 8
Opinion finds out what life is really like for refugees at the Pashtun camp in Calais
PHOTO: MIKE MORGAN
Beauty pageant turns ugly
NUS Wales slam student beauty pageant for exploiting women even though it raised money for children with terminal cancer Ceri Isfryn News Editor
NUS Wales has been subject to heavy criticism after it staged a protest outside the final of Miss University GB - an event held in aid of children with terminal cancer. The final of Miss University GB was held at the Cardiff branch of Oceana and was in aid of The Joshua Foundation – a charity which arranges activities and trips for children with terminal cancer. A crowd of between 20 and 30 gathered with placards outside the venue to protest against “the exploitation of women for monetary gain”.
Flyers distributed by protesters claim that “judging women based on their looks erodes their human right to be treated as equals. This is why beauty pageants are an issue for all women, not just those involved in the contest.” Protest organiser and NUS Wales’ Women’s Officer, Estelle Hart, said: “I don’t think exploiting women in the name of charity is any better than in the name of business. There was a reason that the event was held in a nightclub - they would have made a profit from drinks sales.” However, Sarah Cornelius Price, who founded the foundation in memory of her son Joshua, who died of cancer at the age of five, questioned their actions.
Addressing the pageant’s audience, Mrs. Cornelius Price said: “As the mother of a child who died of cancer, I think I’m in a good position to advise young people to grasp every opportunity they’re given and to live life to the full. “Regardless of the kind of empowerment the people outside are talking about, for me, empowerment is about being able to look good, feel good, and most importantly, do good, which is precisely what the young women competing today have done by raising money for the foundation.” Speaking to gair rhydd after the event, Mrs. Cornelius Price, who is the director of the company Welsh Women Mean Business, added: “When I was just 28 my son was diagnosed with
cancer, and I was 30 when he died. I don't want to belittle anyone’s views but women are struggling with much bigger issues everyday than whether it's okay to have brains and looks.” The 11 contestants collected a combined total of £6,000 for the charity. Competitors were required to partake in a black dress round, a swimwear round and an evening wear round. They were also required to make a presentation for the judging panel, which included Cardiff Blues rugby star and Cardiff University Medic, Jamie Roberts. The applicant who collected the most amount of money will be crowned Miss Charity and will work as an ambassador for the foundation, helping to raise funds while getting
involved in the families' experiences. But Ms. Hart maintained: “I’m very much pro-choice and agree that a woman should be able to do what she wants with her own body. But there’s an issue when people make choices that are harmful to other people; beauty pageants promote the idea that women should be viewed simply as sexual objects and so they devalue a large proportion of society. “We’re not criticising the women who have chosen to take part. The crux of the matter is that the idea of lining women up and judging them according to male-defined standards is harmful to our society.”
>> continued on page 2