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The President's Club Annual Gala - "Men Behaving Badly"

(660 Posts)
TerriBull Thu 25-Jan-18 09:55:46

I expect this is going to divide opinion, but what's your take on the Men Only charity event that's all over the news. However, for those not familiar, a bevy of young women, many of them students, were recruited through an agency for this event, they had to be slim and good looking they were told to wear sexy shoes and black underwear to go under the very skimpy dresses provided.They also had to sign a five page disclaimer, which they didn't get to read and weren't given a copy of. A couple of female undercover FT journalists were also amoung these young women and testified to appalling behaviour by SOME of the male guests. To give a flavour of the offers guests were asked to bid for "Plastic surgery to spice up the Mrs" hmm Jess Phillips gave a very good speech in Parliament imo saying these young women who were expected to act as hostesses "were merely bait" Personally I find it sickening that the guise of charity is used as a way to negate the bad behaviour in this sort of evening. I believe some of the high profile charities such as GOSH have told the now defunct Presidents' Club, where to stick their money.

gillybob Thu 01-Feb-18 14:24:15

My point is that there will have been men and women who attended or worked the event year after year, so I really fail to believe that word never got out in certain circles about what allegedly went on.

Bridgeit Thu 01-Feb-18 14:28:36

I think you could be correct ,but the staff had to sign contracts presumably so they didn’t spill the beans , this was an undercover journalist report hence some photos to add authenticity

gillybob Thu 01-Feb-18 14:28:54

Maybe that is the case Missadventure but could also be that she thought she had better appear disgusted and frightened now that the secret was out.

gillybob Thu 01-Feb-18 14:29:56

....and I imagine this event was not a one off. probably plenty of others still going on.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 15:28:13

I am sorry but this conversation on here just makes me feel sick.
How casn you justify men treating women like that in the 21st Century?
I am frankly appalled at some of you, and yes it's personal.
Some of your remarks are quite disgusting.

How else would you expect the woman who got the video out to dress if not in the uniform she was given?
That's what they were all dressed like.
If they were not dressed like that they would not have been allowed through the door.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 15:31:17

Well, it's over. The winners are the outraged feminists and the newspaper and the reporter. The losers are the charities and the girls who have lost their enployment, suppose it's their fault for not getting a degree and earning their wages in a respectable profession

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 15:52:48

They did not lose their employment. It was a one evening event and they were all paid for it.
There are lots of other events they can go to where they are treated decently.
I am surprised that a mother and grandmother of girls cannot see this.
As I asked before, but I don't think you answered, would you want your granddaughters to be treated like that?

Oldwoman70 Thu 01-Feb-18 16:02:09

I don't think anyone is condoning the treatment aimed at these women and the company who hired them should take a long look at its employee protection policies.

I also don't think that anyone as the right to dictate how a woman should earn a living. Would I want a relative if mine to take such a job? No I wouldn't but many of these women would not have had the educational opportunities to pursue other "respectable" professions, they may have had to leave school as soon as possible in order to help with family finances. If they choose to take a well paid job which requires them to dress in a certain way then that is their choice, the fault lies with the actions of a some of the men not with the women.

I understand some of the women who have worked at this function in past years have said it was bad this year in comparison - so perhaps we should all be looking at what appears to be a breakdown in values, casual sex, soft porn in main stream films, even the casual use of the kind of swear words which would have shocked in the past.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 16:31:35

Dj, girls have lost jobs with Formula 1 , Darts matches, Boxing Matches ,

I post about my grandchildren when I choose not when you ask.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 17:15:46

So you wouldn't like your granddaughters to have done it, but won't say so. It's okay for other people's grandchildren, though.
Why am I not surprised?

Oldwoman, many of them were doing it to supplement their money as students. Most of them were not as poor as you suggest. That sounded very demeaning, as demeaning as the work.

Jalima1108 Thu 01-Feb-18 17:22:26

I don't think anyone on here is justifying the way the men at the event treated the women.
There is no excuse for the way the men behaved but I doubt that they all behaved like that.

What posters are saying as far as I can tell is that women should not be condemning other women for the way they choose to earn money.

As someone upthread mentioned, each side was in fact exploiting the other, the women dressed provocatively to try to extract as much money from the diners for charity, and some of the men behaving badly and inappropriately.

Now, what about a campaign to ban cheerleaders? Their role always annoys me, I find them ridiculous. However, I don't think anyone is forcing them to do it, just as these women were not forced to take the hostess jobs.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 17:23:38

mmmm, students naive? Considering their choice of voting !

Oldwoman70 Thu 01-Feb-18 17:32:00

dj I certainly did not wish to sound "demeaning". I had to leave school early in order to help with family finances as my father was injured in an industrial accident (this was before compensation claims). I would not condemn anyone for doing any job - no matter what the reason. My condemnation is for the way that some of the men acted. Are you not being unfair to these women by stating that because you wouldn't want your family to do it then they are not allowed to CHOOSE to do it? Should they not be allowed the freedom to make that choice?

Eloethan Thu 01-Feb-18 18:12:29

Probably if the women had made a big fuss, reported the behaviour to the police, etc, etc, the agency would be unlikely to give them further employment. Anyone who works for an agency - whatever the field of employment - learns very quickly that it is unwise to complain about anything.

This sort of portrayal of women does not just affect the women involved - it affects every woman - the way that women are viewed and treated by men, and by other women.

Statistics show that women are significantly under-represented in more senior work roles and in many instances, even if they achieve such roles, they have not received equal pay and equal treatment. I believe girls must, if only subliminally, notice this under-representation. They must also notice that another way for females to achieve success is to writhe around in pop videos with very little on (which many people on here have complained about) or to use what physical assets they have and take on overtly sexual roles in order to market newspapers, events, products, etc.

Of course, marketing companies are quite happy to use these sorts of methods because it helps them make a lot of money. But I think it is unwise to collude in this sort of objectification and marketisation of women. The end result, as was demonstrated in this particular event and as other gransnetters have reported, is that male/female relationships become even more unequal and lacking in mutual respect and kindness.

Do those who disagree with stopping young women being used as "eye candy" in F1, boxing and darts events, etc. also believe that it would be a good thing if we still had the Benny Hill Show, Miss World and page 3 photographs? Have a look on the internet at advertising posters from the 50's and 60's and I'm sure most of you will be shocked at the sexism and racism displayed. It is only because people started to question the ideas behind them that things changed.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 18:46:02

The women dressed the way they did because it was uniform given to them by whoever organised the dinner.

Someone else who hasn't bothered to read the link.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 18:49:35

Please use the sharing tools found via the email icon at the top of articles. Copying articles to share with others is a breach of FT.com T&Cs and Copyright Policy. Email [email protected] to buy additional rights. Subscribers may share up to 10 or 20 articles per month using the gift article service. More information can be found at www.ft.com/tour.
www.ft.com/content/075d679e-0033-11e8-9650-9c0ad2d7c5b5

The uniform requirements also became more detailed: all hostesses should bring “BLACK sexy shoes”, black underwear, and do their hair and make-up as they would to go to a “smart sexy place”. Dresses and belts would be supplied on the day.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 18:57:09

Eleothan, your support for women for one section of women is admirable but why should women who choose to be eye candy ,as you dismiss them, be ignored?

You want to take away freedom of choice from one section to strengthen another section.

Not every girl leaves school with A'levels , some with one or two GCSE's, what should they do? Serve in shops to the proffesional women? Clean their houses? stack supermarket shelves , yes all respectable jobs, but is it fair ?

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 19:20:43

The pay that these women got for being available for men who knew they were going to the most un-pc party of the year was £15 an hour.
I'd rather my granddaughters worked in shops than did that.
My brother in law has stacked shelves, as have two of my nephews.
You'd better stop before you insult too many other people, Annie.

Jalima1108 Thu 01-Feb-18 19:36:52

being available for men
That rather makes them sounds as if they were being offered for prostitution which they weren't.
According to one young woman who was employed on that evening, a whole group of other women arrived later after the main proceedings, she was only surmising why.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 20:04:51

Jen, no idea why I thought with your private schooling etc your brother would have gone to university, good for him earning his living in a supermarket, more so with a sister teaching and another brother a music teacher.

Nothing wrong with working in a supermarket but I think it so easy for women to say this is what other woman can do if not gifted academically because being a hostess etc is not helping professional woman achieve equality.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 20:09:06

Read the link again, jalima.

durhamjen Thu 01-Feb-18 20:10:49

Annie, don't make things up about my family. Or at least do me the courtesy of reading/remembering properly.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 20:27:51

I give up. I said I complimented your brother for earning his living working in the supermarket, he could so easily have lived on the dole . And dj you did say your brother taught music when we discussed free musical instruments for all children.

Anniebach Thu 01-Feb-18 20:29:11

Oooops, my error , your brother in law earned his living in a supermarket, well I compliment him dj

Bridgeit Thu 01-Feb-18 20:46:39

Well I am surprised to read that the pay was £15 per hour, & although that’s much more than the hourly rate for ‘normal jobs’ in a way it makes it worse because these girls wither or not anyone agrees with it definitely deserve more money than that !