It was the political thinker and beard enthusiast Karl Marx who first wrote in the 1880s that “a spectre is haunting SUs, the spectre of unscrupulous student marketing companies” * and just like his critique of capitalism Marx was right about this.
Not a week goes by without hearing something through the student movement grapevine about the latest newsletter, web content or event idea that seems to have been dreamed up by Jeremy Clarkson’s more offensive, less charming younger brother.
Then last week I was forwarded an email from Student Beans which aside from the isn’t-the-idea-of-being-gay-funny “lolz” and some objectification of sports women contained an article on Vajanuary which is apparently when…
Females let their pubic hair grow throughout January, preferably raising money for charity whilst doing so, though it can be done purely for sport too.
The whole basis for this is that the notion of women having pubic hair is somehow hilarious, making fun of a natural part of women’s bodies and stating that the unnatural ideals dictated by the porn industry are not just preferable but correct.
Student Beans isn’t alone creating the illusion that it’s focused on improving the student experience when it’s actually focused on profit margins.
The other main offender is BAM who this year in their gendered freshers’ bags (blue for the boys, pink for the girls) distributed lads mags full of the most vile misogynist rhetoric.
These companies are exploiting campus communities and student identity and utilising students’ unions to make money whilst using market techniques that are in direct contrast with the values at the heart of our movement and consistently show a callous indifference to the welfare of the people they are meant to be providing services for.
So when it comes to my discounts and lifestyle articles I’ll be sticking to my extra card mailing which is what Karl Marx would have wanted.
*This is not the real opening line of The Communist Manifesto, although if it was 20th century politics would have had a different vibe