Madeline Grant, Oxford University Student, Boasted About 'Great Rack' To Win Librarian Job

Madeline Grant Pixellated Facebook

The Huffington Post UK   First Posted: 5/03/2012 12:47 Updated: 5/03/2012 17:11

An Oxford University student has provoked outrage after she used her "great rack" to attempt to win votes to become a librarian.

Madeline Grant, 19, reportedly used the slogan "I don't hack, I just have a great rack", in her bid to become Union Librarian at the university. But her proposed manifesto has prompted accusations of sexism, with one Oxford student union member calling her actions "deeply offensive".

An Oxford union member, who has not been named, told the university's student paper Cherwell: “Whilst this manifesto is clearly meant to be humorous, it shows a distinct lack of judgement. It is disappointing to see female members of committee campaigning on the back of gender at all, let alone in a way which pro­motes the use of sexuality.

“This year’s three successive female presidents are tes­timony to the fact that the Union has moved far beyond outdated sexual stereotypes and it is deeply sadden­ing to see women objectifying them­selves in manifestos.”

The Oxford Union have now insisted the slogan was not part of her published manifesto although a spokesperson admitted it may have appeared in a physical draft copy.

"A number of elements of Madeline's proposed manifesto were deemed inappropriate, and were removed from the final version," the Oxford Union spokesperson said.

The student's eventual manifesto, which has been published and distributed to union members now reads: "I don't hack, I'm just here for the craic."

Grant, who has posted a number of pictures of herself in various states of undress on Facebook, also said she was "committed to helping members pull" and had dated a "shady Japanese businessman for Union ball sponsorship".

But this is not the first time Grant, who is studying English Literature and Language and works at clothes store Hollister, has made headlines. In 2010, her mother Sally Jones wrote an article for the Daily Mail complaining her, ahem, "painfully shy" daughter, who also calls herself Madeline Jones, was turned away from London Fashion Week for being "too fat".

But despite the controversial proposed manifesto, Grant defended her actions telling the Cherwell: "I hope no-one is offended by my manifesto - it was only meant to be a light-hearted satire on an organisation which is often seen very seriously."

The National Union of Students Women's Officer Estelle Hart said:

"Whilst these comments are obviously ill-advised they are symptomatic of a culture that tells women that their only worth stems from their looks.

"Instead of focusing on the ill-judged comments of one student and using it as an excuse to publish salacious photographs the media would be better placed in examining the impact a culture of objectification has on young women who face constant harassment of their campuses.”

CORRECTION: We have changed the reference to Grant's original manifesto from "manifesto" to "proposed manifesto" as it was not published.

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17:41 on 06/03/2012
need to see pictures of said rack
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13:53 on 06/03/2012
Her definition of a "great rack" lacks supporting evidence and exists only in her mind.
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Gayle Force Winds
Want some wine with that micro-bio?
07:45 on 06/03/2012
I surmise the rack she referred to is the one holding library books. And yes, Madeline...you may use that in your defence.
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bushfailure
05:17 on 06/03/2012
Prove it.
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vividrick
I came, I saw...I had a cup of tea!
01:36 on 06/03/2012
I'd be wary of her CV from now on...
09:57 on 07/03/2012
I was always told a CV should project your best points - two in her case !!!
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Quis Custodiet
Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes
01:22 on 06/03/2012
Who would have thought that trying to sell yourself on T&A at an intellectually serious institution is a bad decision?

...Oops.
15:49 on 06/03/2012
You obviously have never been to the Oxford Union.
20:32 on 05/03/2012
What an enormous fuss over nothing. And now, publicising it and deeming it 'news' is just going to be deeply humiliating for the poor girl. If this had been posted at ANY other University, it'd be laughed off, not labelled as retrograde sexism.
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Quis Custodiet
Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes
01:21 on 06/03/2012
Publishing it is a valuable lesson for other wanna-be prostitutes like her. You never know when selling yourself on T&A will blow up in your face. In her case, it happened rather early.
19:52 on 05/03/2012
This is not newsworthy and it is incredibly misleading. The manifesto which all Union members received did not contain the words "great rack" or any allusion to such. The "correction" which you posted so prominently at the very bottom of the article does practically nothing to make amends for this oversight. Good day.
18:24 on 05/03/2012
Since she is quite flat chested I can't see the comment as being an attempt at wining votes or like an attempt at humour. People go out of their way to find things offensive they need to remove the stick.
18:02 on 05/03/2012
You journalists are sickening. I know this girl and you are using pictures you have found from her FB account from when she was much younger.
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15:29 on 05/03/2012
Any chance we can all get a look to see if we agree with her self appraised idea of 'greatness'?
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JustinP213
I dislike all political parties.
16:23 on 05/03/2012
Good question.
18:38 on 05/03/2012
Apart from that, when I go to the library, I don't expect to be disturbed by the slapping of over large jugs, or distracted by my books being flipped to the floor as the librarian turns to answer a colleague.

Or to put it another way, what does having a ogleable frontage have to do with checking books in and out?
If it can't go on the CV, then appearances should be only looked at for presentation, neatness of attire and cleanliness.
If the head honcho is fooled in to taking someone on because their hooters are generously proportioned, then can he be said to being objective in his employment selection procedure?
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BigWillyG
20:45 on 08/03/2012
Yeah, pics or it didn't happen.
21:33 on 08/03/2012
Just found her on the Daily Mail site,............ great rack???...Rack o' ribs more like.

More meat on a toothpick than she has on her chest.

But she's got a terrific body, and legs to die for.
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paulwl
15:08 on 05/03/2012
What she said was O.K.!!!!
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14:29 on 05/03/2012
"great" is a real stretch here...
14:35 on 05/03/2012
here here!
14:26 on 05/03/2012
When you find yourself reading an article like this you know that the taking offence brigade have gone too far. So she said she had a "good rack" whether it was meant to be funny or not who cares? When I was at uni students union candiates made plenty of stupid gags in their campaigns in an attempt to win votes. Indeed some of the entertainment rep candiates frequently boasted about thier pulling power with women and the drink fuelled nights out they would arrange. The union member who found it "deeply offensive" quite simply needs to 'get a life' and in the process ask themselves why a woman is not allowed to use her sexuality (after all young guys are not going to stop being interested in women's 'assets' anytime soon) to win votes, indeed it is shocking enough to make national news, but when a man does it it doesn't even cause a ripple.

Also I must say I am offended at your comment that she has posted pictures of herself "in various states of undress". I had a look for myself and I hardly think pictures of her out surfing count and quite frankly your comment is borderline defamatory.
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Miserable Swine
18:08 on 05/03/2012
When I was at uni, most of the student elections were just as lame as this one I`m reading about now. As a male, I am not unaware of the other guys who kept yapping on about how much they could drink, or how many girls they could...you get the picture. I`ll put it down to the vagaries of youth, but it`s pretty sad when a young woman has to try and market herself like a `slapper` (as we used to say at uni). If it were a male talking about the size of his todger and so on, how would that `go down` (no pun intended) I wonder?