Warwick SU joins NUS in latest initiative to tackle ‘lad culture’

The University of Warwick Students’ Union (SU) was announced among nine others as partners to the National Union of Students’ latest initiative to tackle university ‘lad culture’ on 7 August.

NUS’ Lad Culture Pilot Scheme sees ten UK SUs collaborate to develop policies to tackle lad culture on campus.

‘Lad culture’ is defined as competitive male chauvinism disguising itself as ‘harmless banter’ in a 2012 NUS study.

Though it has been linked with classism, racism and homophobia, the main concerns surrounding it relate to the treatment of women. A dominant lad culture in universities is said to lead to increased sexual harassment and violence, according to the report.

“Lazy excuses for banter”

Susuana Amoah, NUS Women’s Officer, said: “NUS will be working closely with Warwick Students’ Union to identify what its unique issues are and how we can best support their local strategy for tackling lad culture on campus.”

“We need to recognise that marginalised students are more important than lazy excuses for ‘banter’,” commented Warwick SU women’s officer Josie Throup.

“This initiative is across ten universities, meaning we’ll be able to learn from how other students unions and societies have created a campus culture of respect for women and minority groups.”

Luke Pilot, welfare and campaigns officer for Warwick SU, praised the scheme’s focus on “inclusivity, equality and diversity.”

“It’s about making sure we have zero tolerance for sexual harassment and that we all treat it with the sensitivity it deserves.”

This scheme will benefit both staff and students and fortify a culture of consent at our University.”

NUS’ latest Lad Culture Audit Report and the Union’s analysis of policy and practice to tackle lad culture, suggested that just over half of UK universities acknowledged or developed policies to deal with sexual harassment.

The audit highlights that, while the majority of universities implemented policies to tackle equality and diversity, bullying and harassment, only one in ten UK universities have policies concerning the display of sexist and discriminatory material.

Victims urged to solve the situation

The report highlights a lack of formal complaints procedures for victims of harassment and violence, with some institutions advising victims to solve the situation “informally” first.

One institution allegedly recommended in their HR booklet that, “speaking to the person who is causing you distress is always an informal option and an approach preferred by many in delicate circumstances.”

The booklet added that some individuals were unaware of the “offensive effect of their behaviour”  and would naturally stop when it was “brought to their attention”.

Second-year Film and Literature undergraduate Lauren Nwenwu commented that typical ‘lad’ behaviour can be most harmful in parties or other (drunk) social situations as it could, “perpetuate almost neanderthal impulses, like predatory actions towards women and violent postulating, self-justified by the pack-mentality of the group of ‘lads’.”

“Harmlessly comical to dangerously extreme”

Lauren’s reaction to institutional input from Students’ Unions to tackle the culture was mixed: “For SUs to attempt to tackle [lad culture] on that level will, for sure, heighten awareness, but not necessarily erase it.

“It is a generational trend that in the public eye, ranges from the harmlessly comical to the dangerously extreme, so as fast as universities get the ball rolling on these workshops and open discussions, lad culture might just simply drop out of trend, and remerge in a few years’ time under a new name.”

Second-year Philosophy, Politics and Economics student Lanre Ige told The Boar that lad culture was potentially a reaction a world which is “a bit more feminist with a bit less abrasive masculinity.”

“Not all bad”

Lanre noted the harmful effects of sexism perpetuated by the culture, but added that not all of lad culture was “bad.”

“I don’t think universities should stop boys from being drunk and a bit rowdy as long as they don’t hurt or offend.”

Both students agreed that student unions could lessen the damage caused by some practices encouraged by lad culture, but not reverse it altogether:

“The culture has its roots in thousands of years of hypermasculinity, which the SU can’t change,” Lanre continued.

“But it can stop lad culture turning from an ironic thing to a harmful practice by stopping people for things like sexual harassment.”