Outrage as Oxford removes portrait of the PM after protest by students AND academics
OXFORD University sparked outrage last night by removing a portrait of Theresa May from its geography department in the wake of protests by students – and even academics.
The image of the Prime Minister had been unveiled last week as part of a display celebrating the university’s ‘outstanding’ female geography graduates.
But a group of hard- Left students claimed Mrs May was a ‘contentious figure’ because of her approach to Brexit and the Windrush scandal, and demanded the image be torn down.
They said the portrait was offensive to both ‘EU citizens’ and ‘decolonial scholars’. Some activists even pinned notes around the image reading ‘hostile environment’ and ‘let in every refugee, throw the Tories in the sea’.
The student campaign to remove Mrs May’s portrait was supported by a number of academics from campuses across the country, who shared the link on Twitter.
These included Priyamvada Gopal, an English lecturer at Cambridge; Felicity Callard, a professor of social research at Birkbeck, University of London; and Alison Stenning, a geography lecturer at Newcastle.
Yesterday, it emerged that Oxford had removed the picture, leaving a blank space on the wall of the School of Geography.
The university, which notoriously passed over Margaret Thatcher for an honorary degree, said it had acted due to fears that the image would be vandalised.
A spokesman insisted that staff hoped to put it up again soon in a position where it would be safe from any attack. But the move prompted fury from Sam Gyimah, the universities minister, who attended Oxford and is the son of Ghanaian immigrants. He said on Twitter: ‘Utterly ridiculous story from Oxford where now even portraits are being no-platformed. Politics aside, Theresa May is only our second female PM and an inspiration to many.
‘The faculty should get a grip and put the portrait back in a more prominent place – I’ll be happy to unveil it!’
Fellow Oxford graduate Bim Afolami, a Conservative MP whose father is Nigerian, added: ‘The absurdity of this. What is happening to this great university? I’m ashamed that my alma mater Oxford has allowed this to happen.’
Tory MEP Daniel Hannan said: ‘First, Oxford refused to offer Margaret Thatcher an honorary degree. Now the Geography School removes Theresa May’s portrait from an exhibition of female alumni. You’d think becoming PM was quite an achievement, but no, Oxford knows better.’
The row follows a string of incidents in which hard-Left students have tried to ban feminist and gay rights speakers, newspapers, fancy dress costumes and even statues from campuses over claims they are offensive.
Last night, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the decision was a ‘matter for the college’ but added that Mrs May took pride in seeing women achieve senior positions.
Mrs May graduated from St Hugh’s College with a secondclass degree in geography in 1977.
Her image had been displayed over a stairway in Oxford’s School of Geography and the Environment alongside 11 other notable female alumni. Each of the images is made from a collage of tiny photographs of other female graduates.
The subjects were nominated by current and former members of the department.
The department’s equality and diversity officer, Claire Hann, said of the display when it was commissioned: ‘ We’re keen to celebrate the successes of our women students and staff as much as those of men. We hope it will inspire our current students as they pass by the display each day.’ Other celebrated women include those from the fields of sport, business and academia.
Notably, there is also the late Marxist geographer Doreen Massey, who was an adviser to the Chavez regime in Venezuela. The student protesters, who called themselves ‘Not All Geographers’, launched an aggressive online campaign against the image of Mrs May last week.
One of their messages read: ‘Please [share] our condemnation of Theresa May’s portrait hanging in Oxford Geography and develop alternative histories.’ The group had planned to circulate a petition demanding the portrait’s removal.
One campaigner, Oxford PhD student Andrew Dwyer, said he was ‘furious’ about the artwork, adding: ‘I don’t really wish to celebrate a hostile environment for immigrants.’ A spokesman for Not All Geographers told student newspaper Cherwell: ‘ There was no consultation... Clearly at a time when there are issues with the Windrush scandal and the handling of Brexit, she is a contentious figure in a department with many EU citizens and decolonial scholars.
‘The main, and most basic, issue comes with the celebration of a sitting Prime Minister. Should a department align itself with the power of the day, when there are those who actively challenge it?’
A spokesman for the university said: ‘ The portrait was being increasingly obscured by posters bearing mainly humorous satirical messages. It has now been taken down and will be re-displayed so it can be seen as intended.
‘We remain proud of Mrs May’s success and that of all the graduates celebrated in the display.’
It comes three years after Oxford students ran an unsuccessful campaign to have a statue of the Imperialist Cecil Rhodes removed over claims it made ethnic minority students feel unwelcome.
‘Even portraits are being no-platformed’