The National Union of Students’ LGBT+ Campaign has passed a motion to ban gay representatives because gay men allegedly “do not face oppression” and, instead, perpetuate oppression.
During its annual conference, the United Kingdom’s National Union of Students’ LGBT+ Campaign passed Motion 104, intended to “defend “safe(r) spaces and no platforming.”
While the majority of the motion was dedicated to defending “essential” safe spaces and attacking “damaging” free speech, part 5 of the motion reads:
Misogyny, transphobia, racism and biphobia are often present in LGBT+ societies. This is unfortunately more likely to occur when the society is dominated by white cis [non-trans] gay men.
While part 6 of the motion reads:
The reps system exists to ensure that societies committees can always have a reserved place for groups which disproportionately face oppression within the LGBT+ community.
And part 7 reads:
Gay men do not face oppression as gay men within the LGBT+ community and do not need a reserved place on society committee.
One of the items resolved in the motion, therefore, is to “encourage LGBT+ Societies that have a gay men’s rep to drop the position.”
However, at the same time, motion also states:
Providing prejudiced people a platform on which to express bigotry justifies academic debate over people’s personal experience of oppression, which further marginalises oppressed groups.
Yes, according to the NUS LGBT+ Campaign, gay men should not have representation in gay groups because they are not only not oppressed, but they also actively perpetuate oppression through “[m]isogyny, transphobia, racism and biphobia” if they are white and cis. And, apparently, broadly attacking the experiences of gay men as oppressors does not create an “academic debate over people’s personal experiences of oppression.”