Members of London’s Savile Club vote against letting women join

36 comments

1. While I might question the quality of the arguments presented ultimately they are a private club who can chose to admit or exclude whoever they please. More broadly I don’t think a handful of men only london clubs are a particularly big deal one way or the other.

2. Hot take: there’s nothing wrong with sex-based private clubs. People need to accept that.

   Men wanting a men’s only space or women wanting a women’s only space is probably healthy for society.

   This is a non-issue.

3. >The Savile Club, one of London’s last remaining gentleman’s clubs

   It’s in the name.

4. Interesting that it was more the younger members who wanted to exclude women, I had expected it to be the older ones.

5. Everyone deserves their own dedicated space except men?

6. Bad news for the other 72 genders, no really this is a non story and if men want a men only space it’s up to them , same goes for women only spaces , total non story

7. Ok so

   As a normal person who gives a shit

   It costs 1800 a year to be a member

   The average rent in London is 2100 a month

   So the people who join have most of a rent payment to spend to hang out in a club

   99% of the men in this country wouldn’t be able to afford to be a member

   So should we really really care about the 1% of women who could be members who are banned because of there gender from being able to go to a private club

   The guardian once again trying to help the rich liberal elite more than the common population

8. Are men the only group in society not deemed deserving of their own space?

9. Why aren’t men allowed to have male only spaces?

   We’re constantly told that women need spaces, but whenever men want the same they get hated on.

   Just more of the same gender hypocrisy?

10. And why isn’t the guardian tackling single sex mosques ?

11. Just spotted the guardian journo’s surname was Gentleman. Made me laugh, at least.

12. Men aren’t allowed things of course

    Women’s only clubs? Yeah! Empowering!

    Men’s only clubs? Noooo that’s evil!

13. Fine by us, the women’s only clubs are better anyway!

14. Let’s flip this the other way.

    Women’s only club votes against letting men join

    Do you think that would get the same response? Given that the stance from the WI is: No. The Women’s Institute is based on the idea of bringing women together, providing them with educational opportunities and the chance to make a difference in their communities. Therefore, the WI is set up as an educational charity with a constitution which states that membership is only open to women.

    https://www.thewi.org.uk/faqs

    I mean the WI is a bit tamer than the Savile Club but the same comment could be made if we are talking about other genders joining a men or women’s only group. Think there will always be some places where it will just be for one gender only. That’s perfectly fine and people need to get on with it.

15. And why shouldn’t they? There are plenty of women only clubs.

16. Good. Noone seems to give a shit that the women’s institute or any other women-only group.

17. As a woman I love having female only spaces, especially things like my gym when I feel nervous about working out. I have zero issue with male only spaces. I actually think we should have more separate events, both sexes benefit from it.

18. Yeah and as a man I’m not allowed to ‘Women in XYZ’ industry events, even though they are great networking opportunities. So what?

19. Feminism is all about crusading on behalf of upper and upper middle glass women for the right to join exclusive members’ clubs. Did I get that right?

20. I would assume the majority of men wouldn’t be able to join this club either.

21. I’m as left as they get and I agree this is a non-issue. We need to move past these type of headlines.

22. The same people getting pissed off at this are likely the same people who got annoyed when straight women started showing up at their LGBT bar in London awhile ago.

23. When are they going to make gay porn more diverse?

    Whenever I watch it its only dudes. I dont know how thay can get away with it in this day and age.

24. Ok. Fine. It’s their club and they can let in whoever they want. If girls want a club the can go make one of their own.

25. A friend of mine is a member so I’ve been to the Savile club a few times.

    It’s a lovely space; they have a fantastic rotating art collection, a decent bar, a lovely courtyard, house band etc. It’s a nice place to spend an evening. It’s a bit old-fashioned and it still has a dress code for men and a ban on mobile phones in the communal areas.

    Members are allowed to bring guests, including both riff raff like me and women. I’ve always found that a bit odd and quite exclusionary but in some ways that is the point of a club, they’re free to admit or exclude whomever they choose. 

    Maybe once upon a time gentlemen’s clubs were a foundational part of British society but today they feel more like social clubs.

26. Why would anyone want to force their way into a place they aren’t wanted?

27. Just let people have their own clubs.

    Who gives a shit?

    I run a warhammer club, and I’m trying to stop people turning it into a classic games room. Just let people do their own thing.

28. What’s the point of a gentleman’s club that lets in ladies. That’s what country clubs are for.

29. Typical Guardian ivory tower slop.

    Ask them the same questions about women’s only spaces – and watch their position flip like a fucking pancake.

30. There are plenty of female only clubs. Why can’t men have the same? What’s the deal, here?

31. As a feminist, this is fine.

    Let men have their own spaces. Women have ours. Not everything has to be gender-mixed. Jesus Christ.

32. Why would any self respecting woman want to be part of this club anyway? Begging to be part of a crusty old man club is more embarrassing

33. And this is a problem how? So what if men want their private spaces, hardly an issue. Nothing wrong with wanting to get away from women for a few hours.

34. This is one of those occasions where any women against this decision should actually think twice about it.

    Makes no difference to me if both genders have their own spaces or neither have their own spaces, but, if I was someone that wanted to deny women of their women only spaces, I’d very much want this decision to be made illegal, then I could argue that if men can’t have men only spaces, then women can’t have women only spaces.

    Sometimes it is best to loose some battles to win the war.

35. Good on them.

    A tiny subsection of weirdos will care (see Reddit).

    Normal people will shrug their shoulders. If they register at all.

36. I’m not against having certain spaces for specific identities, I’d want to have a straight men’s only space with us men with common interests only in people outside the room can hang out and likewise gay and bisexual ones can have their own spaces separate.

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