The Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) rejected a proposal Oct. 24 to ban Robin Thicke’s song “Blurred Lines” within the student union.
Science representative Sarah Southey proposed the ban, saying that the song encourages rape culture.
“’Blurred Lines’ promotes rape culture, normalizes sexual harassment, and diminishes the importance of consent in sexual relations,” Southey said.
She also said the ban would foster a safe environment for students, and demonstrate that the SSMU does not support rape culture.
The ban would have disallowed the SSMU from playing the song, since it violates the organization’s safe space policy. The song would not be allowed in the SSMU building, including at the student bar. Other groups on campus would be free to continue playing the song.
Southey said the ban was not meant to lead to the banning of other songs on campus. Rather, she said this particular song “has the potential to harm students . . . because it is triggering but also because it encourages sex without consent.”
She said the song is particularly triggering to those who have suffered from sexual assault.
Mariam Nag, a third-year student at McGill, said although she thinks “Blurred Lines” promotes rape culture, she believes it would be more proactive to address the root causes of the issue.
“Banning [the song] is not addressing the fundamental problem, it is simply brushing it under some metaphorical rug,” Nag said. “I think it should be taken as an opportunity to start a discussion on the issue, which in this video are endless, but we can start with the topic of consent.”
The Edinburgh University Students’ Association (EUSA) banned the song Sept. 13, making it the first group at a higher learning facility to disallow the song at its student-run venues.
EUSA stated that “Blurred Lines” does not promote the organization’s policy on their commitment to healthy attitudes towards sex, which is why the ban was enacted.
Following EUSA’s decision, other student unions in the U.K. banned the song, including those from the University of Leeds, the University of Derby, and the University of West Scotland.
