Dr Rhian Elinor Keyse

An Inclusive History of LGBTQ+ Aversion Therapy: Past Harms and Future Address in a UK Context - Kate Davison, Katherine Hubbard, Sarah Marks, Hel Spandler, Rebecca Wynter, 2024 From the 1950s, aversion therapy gained an international foothold as a behaviourist means to alter what was then considered ‘deviant’ behaviour. Using primary r...

Latest publication: ‘An Inclusive History of LGBTQ+ Aversion Therapy: Past Harms and Future Address in a UK Context’.

Co-authored with four excellent collaborators including @rebeccawynter.bsky.social (the others are not here yet).

journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

So proud of fantastic Edinburgh UCU comrades and friends 🥲 an important win in a thoroughly bleak landscape

Namibia to mark German colonial genocide for first time with memorial day Concentration camps and pseudoscientific experiments were used by German officials to torture and kill.

Namibia to mark German colonial genocide for first time with memorial day as claims for reparations continue
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Former Israeli PM Ehud Olmert says his country is committing war crimes Leader from 2006 to 2009 says Palestinian victims are at ‘monstrous proportions’ and Netanyahu heads a ‘criminal gang’

It’s taken the English-language media a few days to report this but I think it’s major. Olmert was a hawk from the Israeli right, sidekick of Sharon, rejected Camp David, oversaw the 2009 Gaza war — so when even he is talking about war crimes, that’s significant

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/m...

Thank you Anna. Unfortunately the motion fell off the agenda due to time. If we need to bring it back next year, we will. The issue isn't going anywhere and neither are survivors in UCU.

Statement in solidarity with the UK trans and non-binary community As campaigners focusing on gender-based violence within higher education, we are extremely concerned about the consequences for trans and non-binary people of the recent Supreme Court judgement on …

Powerful words from @the1752group.bsky.social, who work to end sexual misconduct in universities:

"The Supreme Court judgement risks making trans and non-binary people even more unsafe...these shameful figures on the prevalence of sexual violence and harassment...are likely to grow even higher."

Can't pretend I'm not bitterly disappointed that this fell off the agenda due to time. It's painful for survivors to bring these issues and to have to repeat often vexatious and triggering debates. But, we'll try again next year.

I used to live 2 mins from RAMM and considered it my personal collection. Loved that place. Glad to see wonderful things still happening

Reminder that this is on the agenda at UCU Congress this coming weekend

Cc: @lottelydia.bsky.social @annabull.bsky.social @alixdietzel.bsky.social @vickyblake.bsky.social @the1752group.bsky.social

It's almost like people are making excuses for things they don't want to do for other reasons isn't it

Delighted to be one of those elected as Associate Fellow yesterday 🥳

Do I know any #skystorians heading to the Oxford Weston Library anytime soon who might be able to take photos of a file?

thank you my love. and thank you for your support in this work, always. I know it matters to us both (and is partly how we became friends!) Almost can't believe we're still having the same arguments but I'm really hoping delegates will stand with survivors, and evidence, here.

Honestly, I feel sick at having to stand up at Congress for what must be the 6th year in a row to speak about attitudes to GBV in our union. As a survivor, it's wearing and the trauma symptoms are strong this week in the run-up. Please stand with survivors and support this motion this week.

I'll end with two practical steps:
Find out who your congress delegates are and urge them to support HE38 - and ask them how they voted when they get back.
Pass the @the1752group.bsky.social model motion in your own branch.

"But what if my wife wants to study a degree at my institution?"

On these edge cases: no one is asking anyone to get a divorce! This is about staff *entering into* new relationships with students.

UCU resource pack This page introduces a FAQ and a model motion to support UCU branches in the UK in putting forward a motion to prohibit staff from entering into intimate relationships with students over whom they …

1752group.com/ucu/

The pack has a model branch motion, along with a range of interesting research and resources that members can use to learn more about why this matters.

Several UCU branches have passed motions calling for bans on staff-student intimate relationships already. I was pleased to work with @the1752group.bsky.social on this resource pack for @ucu.org.uk branches, setting out the research and the need for a strong UCU stance, with some practical steps.

In short, these issues aren't going anywhere. From a purely practical point of view we need to decide where we stand, and I hope it's with survivors.

Medr/2024/05: Tackling violence against women, domestic abuse and sexual violence in higher education - Medr

In Wales, Medr is gathering information on tackling domestic abuse and sexual violence in higher education:

www.medr.cymru/en/News/medr...

Office for Students’ regulation: our perspective The Office for Students (OfS) has published their regulatory requirements – to come into effect from 1 August 2025 – for all higher education institutions (HEIs) in England to address harassment an…

For institutions in England, OfS is introducing a regulatory duty on this issue from August - institutions will be expected to demonstrate clear steps to protect students. UCU needs a clear stance in the inevitable negotiations with employers.
1752group.com/office-for-s...

HEC passed a motion last year to be discussed at the HESC which was sadly cancelled due to the failure of UCU management to resolve the dispute with their own staff around workplace racism and toxicity. So, we go again this year.

UCU claims to challenge 'all forms of sexual violence'. Let's start with action rather than platitudes. and take a strong position on this. Clear rules protect staff and students alike.

When the union fails to stand against this kind of abuse, it sends a message to survivors (who are often members) that it's not just their abuser against them, nor their institution, but their whole *trade union*.

Sexual violence task group The sexual violence task group was made up of 13 UCU members who worked together to produce research and recommendations which will inform UCU's campaigning in this area.

It's all there, in union branding, in the 2021 UCU Sexual Violence Task Group report: www.ucu.org.uk/article/1081...

It also matters that *UCU* has a position on this. When all this was happening, I was a UCU member. PGR members and casualised members of staff are, the union's own research tells us, most vulnerable to gender based violence and harassment in the workplace.

I ended up doing a combination of leaving the country, interrupting my studies, and avoiding being on campus, all to avoid the situation. It should not have been on me as the survivor and a student to manage this. It should have been on the institution to protect me.

As it stood, with no ban and no protection in place, when the relationship turned abusive, there was no protection and colleagues closed ranks to protect one of their own.

My abuser (staff member in the dept where I studied, no current, but 'potential' responsibility) refused to disclose. There was no way to make them. Even if they had, would there have been regular check ins about whether the relationship had become abusive? How would this be managed?

Other solutions suggested include introducing 'registers' or asking staff to disclose to HR/the employer where they have such a relationship. This is problematic for reasons I can personally attest to as a survivor.