The Cambridge University Labor Club has previously accused the society of “fostering transphobic rhetoric under the guise of free speech”.Maeve Halligan for Varsity
The Cambridge University Society for Women (CUSW), the first Cambridge University student group which plans to limit its membership to “women at birth”, has received £13,810 in donations, according to its GoFundMe page.
This comes nearly three weeks after three students founded the association, whose initial announcement drew considerable national media attention and words of support from several public figures.
The Cambridge University Labor Club has previously accused the society of “fostering transphobic rhetoric under the guise of free speech”.
In the interview, Telegraph claimed that the club’s three founders – president Maeve Halligan, treasurer Thea Sewell and secretary Serena Worley – had been “labelled as TERFs and shunned by their peers”.
The list of donors includes a number of public figures, including Alex Gerko, the Russian billionaire and Britain’s 20th richest man, who donated £3,000.
Lucinda Platt, professor of social policy and sociology at LSE, donated £500 to the society. In 2023, Platt participated in the Sex Matters campaign group’s guidance on collecting data on biological sex.
He told University: “As a Cambridge alumna with a lifelong commitment to women’s rights, I am delighted to support an organization with women’s concerns at its heart.”
Daily Mail columnist and Michael Gove’s ex-wife Sarah Vine donated £50 University: “If the society was founded by current students, it is assumed that they feel some kind of need for it. I always support women’s organizations.”
In addition to receiving large donations from several prominent individuals with no ties to the university, the society’s supporters appear to be dominated not by current students, but by alumni of the university.
There is no evidence that the group has a strong support base among current students.
In the club’s Instagram post last Sunday (11/11), they claimed to have received 20 membership applications from students and 60 applications from alumni to join the “alumni” group, as membership is limited to current students.
This contradicts Gerko’s statement Universitycommented on her donation: “I believe in gender rights, a view shared by the majority of Cambridge students and the vast majority of the UK population. Well done to CUSW for providing a platform for these views.” Gerko did not mention the sources for this statistic he provided University.
In addition to GoFundMe, the association has received support from the Free Speech Union (FSU). The organization supported “race realist” Cambridge professor Nathan Cofnas against criticism of his research, which claimed that under a meritocracy the number of black professors at Harvard would drop to almost zero.
Its founder and general secretary Toby Young announced University that it received the organisation’s Ian Mactaggart scheme, which offers student clubs up to £1,500 per term. The program claims to “promote a culture of open debate, independent thought and free expression among young people in the UK, particularly students”.
In 2021, a large number of students walked out over free speech campaigns at their FSU-affiliated universities. In an email to the organization explaining their resignation, the Bristol Free Speech Society students wrote, “We were led to believe that (the group) was independent of outside organizations, especially the one most of us are concerned about, FSU.”
Harry Walker, president of the Bristol Free Speech Society, had spoken out personally: “Organisations like the FSU are just continuing the culture war.” At the time, an FSU executive said, “I’ve always been very open about FSU’s involvement and sponsorship,” while Young declined to comment.
Halligan, speaking on behalf of the society, claimed that the FSU was a “non-partisan organisation” that has supported figures from across the political spectrum.
“We are proud to receive a grant from an organization that articulately and effectively advocates for free speech in our society,” he added.
Halligan said the donations would be used for public events, publicity and campaign materials for the charities, and “a big part of why some people have donated” was to give the group funds to defend against potential legal action.
Halligan said: “Our membership consists entirely and exclusively of women currently studying at the University of Cambridge, but we have a group of ‘alumni’ and another of current researchers and professional services.”
He added: “The Gofundme page was a way to make sure the donations were public and visible from the start.
“People verbally expressed how happy they were to see the society started, and some pointed to how women have had to defend their rights over and over again throughout history. These sentiments were often followed by requests for donations to the society.
“CUSW is not politically aligned and we have supporters from across the political spectrum, including many who are openly left-of-centre. We are proud to receive both a small number of larger sums and many smaller donations.”