Editorial: I’m tired of people taking offence at female bodies

Last week we published the Sex Issue, and fuck, I was so proud of it. For the cover, we shot and picked an image that, in my mind, just seemed unbelievably strong. Tits out, relaxed, confident. A “fuck you” was shaved into their pubes because we wanted to promote ideas around sexual agency. It’s a fuck you to the weird, heteronormative ideas of virginity. A fuck you to sexual assault and violence. A fuck you to everyone who has shamed others around lack of sex, or too much sex. A fuck you to the policing and controlling of female bodies.  

However, not everyone agreed with this cover. A university café, where we have a stand just outside, filed a formal complaint that this cover was “offensive”, that we were subjecting people to this image, and asked that the stand be moved. We had a café employee ask that we remove the magazine from all public areas across campus. We also had a Zoom call with the University asking what our processes was for picking our covers. Whilst we haven’t received a single student complaint (who is the audience for our magazine!), we sure heard from a lot of adults who liked to speak on behalf of students.  

I understand some people may feel uncomfortable around these images. We even had the classic ‘won’t somebody think of the children?’ line thrown at us, uncannily like that scene from the Simpsons. God, I love the Simpsons.  

This year our covers, to name a few, have featured people snorting lines, taking acid, and smoking weed out of a banana. How many complaints have we received for this imagery you may be wondering? A big fat fucking zero. No talk of staff members having these ideas “thrust” in their faces or of young children being traumatised. But yet, the minute we put a woman’s body on the cover, suddenly these voices become very loud. And I don’t think that’s a coincidence.  

If you think the issue is about nudity, then let’s go there. For the last few weeks, we’ve had a photograph of a naked male torso with the word “Massive” blocking out his cock, as a sign on a bunch of our stands. Listen, we’re called Massive; if you think I’m gonna pass up the opportunity to make a dick joke, you’re wrong. But we had all the same factors here: nipples and a “very close” to the genitals cut-off. No one complained! And it wasn’t even a once-off cover, it was a stand. But because it was a male, it was normalised, not “offensive”. Fuck that noise.  

So, if you feel uncomfortable with our last cover, think about why. Re-examine your internalised (or not-so-internal) sexism. Free the fucking nip, it’s 2021. Free the pubic hair. Free it all.  

We’re a student magazine in a student space. As student areas flatting areas get more gentrified and parties get more policed, universities should be spaces for students! Since, you know, we’re paying enough fucking money for it. Simply put, it’s not our job to cater to children. But even if it was, children HAVE seen nipples before in their lifetime, believe it or not. Staff members have seen the word “fuck” before. And trust me, Massive has got plenty more fucks where that came from.  

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Caroline