UniLad Magazine Forced To Pull 'Surprise' Rape Article After Twitter Backlash

First Posted: 31/01/2012 17:03 GMT Updated: 04/12/2012 10:55 GMT

UPDATE: UniLad creator Jamie Street faces disciplinary action from his university.

An online magazine aimed at university students pulled a controversial and derogatory article about rape victims after a huge Twitter backlash.

The National Union of Students (NUS) has called for the website UniLad, which claims to be the "number one university student lad's magazine and guide to getting laid" to be pulled down over the article.

In an article titled "Sexual Mathematics" it stated:

"If the girl you've taken for a drink... won't 'spread for your head', think about this mathematical statistic: 85% of rape cases go unreported.

"That seems to be fairly good odds."

The writer then adds at the bottom of the piece: "Uni Lad does not condone rape without saying 'surprise'."

The article has now been deleted from the site, which appears to be based in the UK, and an apology has been posted on Twitter. Despite taking it down, the post has continued to provoke outrage online.

One Twitter user, Sarah McAlpine (@sazza_jay) questioned the magazine over the comments, only to find she was asked "Are you a dyke?" by the publication's Twitter feed.

McAlpine replied: "Obviously you know you did wrong or you wouldn't have amended the article. You are not saving face by harrassing me."

Uni Lad then continued: "We know we did wrong and it has been removed. That wasn't harassment, it was a question.

McAlpine, a recent graduate from Kent University, said she found the site "almost laughable".

"It's a 101 for misogyny. It seems to be run by a group of infantile boys caught up in a relentless willy waving contest, measured by how horrible you are to women."

The 22-year-old, who was co-founder of the Feminist Society at Kent, said she did feel there is a "culture of misogyny on university campuses".

Far from being a harmless student blog, UniLad is a money-generating website, complete with merchandise. The site has nearly 70,000 "likes" on Facebook and more than 2,000 followers on Twitter and claims to have an average daily visit count of 8,000.

The website, which says it was founded by "Alex Partridge", has six other writers, including one "top wench".

Lorna Naylor, is the only female writer for the site and she wrote articles such as the one pictured above, titled "The Problem With Slags".

She tweeted one writer for PR company esPResso saying: "nothing i have written has been controversial".

Another writer, Jack-William Cantwell, emailed Huffington Post UK saying he had been "inactive with the company for around five months".

National Women's Officer for the NUS Estelle Hart has called for the entire website to be shut down for its "misogyny".

"Words cannot describe my anger at seeing this website. These pathetic attempts at humour feed into a view in society that women are to blame for the violence committed against them.

"The casual trivialisation of rape suggests it is something other than a despicable violent crime and whilst I'm reluctant to give this website the oxygen of publicity we cannot let them get away with such degrading attitudes towards women.

"Removing one vile comment from the site barely scratches the surface of its misogyny. The whole site should be taken down until they have radically over-hauled their editorial policy.

"This article does not stand alone; there are countless others with similar misogynistic and degrading statements and 'tips' about women."

"Jake Gallagher", (@ChefJake_) is one of the more prolific writers on the site. His articles include "How to pull a fresher" which begins: "Fresher girls are especially vulnerable".

One of Gallagher's "tips" is: "NEVER BUY HER A DRINK. That’s the 3rd tip. Buying a girl a drink is so clichéd and immediately you lay down your cards." He rounds off by saying: "Stick it to her! BOSH".

Another piece recounts one of his experiences with a girl. "She was loving it, the slag," he writes. "Now I was in charge of the little slag.

"My walk of shame was now a walk of pride."

Another post, this time by "Jamie" describes women as "hoards of sluts teetering around in mini-skirts and stilettos" and a "medley of minge".

The NUS's Estelle Hart added: "Referring to women as wenches and slags can't be laughed off as 'banter' when just this week the head of the CPS in London has said that jurors preconceptions about women has a negative impact on rape conviction rates.

"The rape conviction rate in the UK is, at 6%, one of the lowest in Europe and that’s with less than 20% of rapes ever reported to the police.

"Violence against women is a serious and current issue on university campuses and it is intensely irresponsible to target their violent misogynistic attitudes at students.

"NUS’ Hidden Marks report revealed that one in seven women students have been the victim of a serious physical or sexual assault and the website's writers should think about that before joking about rape again."

McAlpine added she had been "blown away" by the amount of support she had received via Twitter.

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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Dan Hydar
11:25 PM on 04/19/2013
Does anyone have a link to the actual article?
11:46 PM on 02/13/2012
People really need to shout down these boys when they hear and see them on their streets or at their local pub. This behaviour is criminal.

I think people should contact their local MP, PM, local reps if they really think these individuals should be punished.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Seymoreclearly
Get your info from more than one source!
04:06 PM on 02/06/2012
I always find it rather interesting that some guys will express themselves like this & think it doesn't reflect some deep-seeded issues with gals in general. Look at the language they use, look at their push-backs. I mean, if all you want is a hole, go dig one. If you really like women, why don't your attitudes -as reflected by what you write- reflect this?

It seems to me you wouldn't find the subject of rape, or instruction on how to get away with it by characterizing as "just good ol' boy fun!" very funny if some big burly dude bent you over your school desks, now would you? So why do you think women shouldn't find your banter offensive?
03:55 PM on 02/06/2012
It is obvious that this article was written in bad taste and suggests your chances of "getting away with" committing a rape would be 85%. Completely disgusting. However, I did learn something from reading this article and that is.... If I ever found myself in a position where I had to decide between reporting a rape and keeping it quiet, I would report it immediately. I would contribute to the decline of that 85%. No one should get away with this and the power to ensure that they don't is in the hands of the victims!!!! Report it ladies! Don't let them get away with it.... Ever!!!!
06:18 PM on 02/03/2012
If you think that is offensive look at what the top *wench* writes. It's horrific that this is a woman giving young men free licence engage in this behaviour. To be honest it is more upsetting in some ways than the *rape banter*
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:SMmxc4Yo0rkJ:unilad.com/2011/11/the-problem-with-slags/+lorna+naylor+unilad&cd=2&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=uk
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Thismortalcoil
Science is the poetry of reality
01:19 PM on 02/05/2012
Tragically sad. the writing is poor, the grammar is poor and the lack of thought that went into it demonstrates the whole problem with the 'it's only a joke' defence.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Paul Wagland
Resistance is fertile
11:49 AM on 02/03/2012
Just to bump this back to the top...

For those claiming that rape jokes can't be linked to men's opinions of women, have a look at the comments from some of these little darlings:

http://nomadicutopianism.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/unilad.jpg

(Thanks to alikichapple for posting this earlier)
This comment has been removed.
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HUFFPOST BLOGGER
Ramy Khuffash
10:18 PM on 02/02/2012
This is the kind of thing men (and women) joke around about. Being crude, shocking and disgusting can be fun but I very much doubt that any of these guys think rape is ever acceptable. Have you ever been on sickipedia? These is clearly a demand for this kind of writing.

I'm not saying I agree with it, specially on a student website. I'm just saying that people can get a thrill out of writing or reading shocking, crude statements.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Paul Wagland
Resistance is fertile
11:29 AM on 02/03/2012
I agree with your points. I imagine it's also quite a rush to break into someone's house, or drive at 140mph on the M25. Most of us choose not to do these things because we understand the consequences can be very bad, and outweigh any short-term positives.

And that's precisely why I object to the 'humour' portrayed here. The positives are that a few people will find it briefly funny. The consequences are that our culture is slightly more insensitive to rape and violence towards women. It's not a great trade.
10:04 PM on 02/02/2012
These boys disgust me. It's because of boys like them that women jump when a man walks by them at night even if he's just walking his dog as it turns out or going to his own car or apartment. We live in a culture of fear and terror and it hurts, alienates and embarrasses men and women and everyone.
Because of people like the Unilad writers we don't accept roadside assistance or open the door when men knock at our homes. This is very serious and it hurts everyone. There's no telling who will give birth to a girl. You will love her and you won't want to see her devastated by violence. Take these boys down.
02:29 PM on 02/02/2012
Time for these writers/students to get a job (kick them out of Uni) and interact with the real world.
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novabird
Lover of Life, Radical Centrist
11:54 AM on 02/02/2012
Statements that encourage university males to practice rape need to be fought and challenged vigorously. I am glad to see that is happening. But I am also sad because we have been fighting these battles for a very long time.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Thismortalcoil
Science is the poetry of reality
07:41 PM on 02/02/2012
Well said. The time has come for gender hatred to be given the same legal status as racial hatred.
11:47 PM on 02/13/2012
EXACTLY!!!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
summer261987
if only~~
09:02 AM on 02/02/2012
total crap magazine!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
mary clyne
Life is a gamble,be careful how you roll the dice
03:08 AM on 02/02/2012
Rape of any kind is not a joke, only people who have never been though this horrendous ordeal would find something like this a joke
Some parents have a lot to do with it if they would teach their children RESPECT for other people then we would not have all of these problems, further more than that a lot of psychologi­st talk a whole lot of wash.
The problem with society to day is no one seemed to want to be held accountabl­e for their actions and they have people making excuses for them.
I can only pray that some Ijiot would not read his article and take his advise
11:21 PM on 02/01/2012
Sweet baby jesus, this is disgusting! I for one am glad that I don't know a single man that would think this is funny, much less agree with it. Shady crap like this sells mags but 99% of the men in the world don't buy into this type of thing.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Paul Wagland
Resistance is fertile
06:41 PM on 02/02/2012
Thank you for raising an important point, but my fear is that the figure is rather lower than 99%. When I was at uni there was definitely a considerable amount of this 'humour' going around.
10:08 AM on 02/03/2012
Sorry Grace you're wrong. 96% of men buy porn that describes women as b****es and sl*gs, who***res who are constantly panting for men. They commission porn that shows rape as something that women, girls and children want and which allows them, when caught after the act, to plead ignorance and say well I thought she would agree/was agreeing. Its male propoganda to make their violence against women and children a 'misunderstanding' and something they can't be held responsible for. And its not a minority. Lad's mags distribute messages about women that are indistinguishable from rapists' views on women and they are bought by the majority of 16 - 24 year old men. This isn't a minority viewpoint by men, its mainstream which is why it is so prevalent within EVERY male media outlet.
05:41 PM on 02/01/2012
To stop the idiots thinking only feminists are women, I'm a man, I think this is disgusting, I've never liked UniLad and rape is the one thing so many people seem to find hard taking seriously, which startles me.
12:11 AM on 02/02/2012
It's funny one has to be some hardcore feminist to be against rape and have an issue with people making jokes about it. One should think that would be a minimal requirement to not be a completely despicable and useless human being.
I'm feminist, but I get all up in things like objectification in the media and debilitation's relation to beauty standards and that kind of jazz. Being anti-rape is like being anti-puppy-kicking.
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novabird
Lover of Life, Radical Centrist
11:57 AM on 02/02/2012
Years ago when I was a university student I remember being shocked when a man in my class stated he was a feminist. Today I am encouraged to see that many men support respect and equality for women.