St John’s College have offered political asylum to members of the Crescents, the male Drinking Society at Trinity Hall, after it was forced to disband.
The move was announced to students, fellows, and alumni in a statement by the College Master.
“We’re pleased to announce that, using revenue generated from sales of College-branded signet rings, St John’s will provide a safe and secure space for public schoolboys who, through no fault of their own, have found themselves without a Drinking Society.
“These young men have indicated that the footage captured is not of a Drinking Society event, and that the individuals in the video simply happened to dress similarly, drink alcohol, and all be sex pests by sheer coincidence.
“Either way, Drinking Societies are as much a part of this University as the bricks, mortar, and institutional misogyny with which it is built, and it is appalling that they have been subject to this persecution.”
The move comes just days after the Crescents were banned from the Trinity Hall Bar after misbehaving in Wetherspoons, which they are still allowed to enter.
Following the incident, Dr Emily Milton, Dean of Trinity Hall, made members of the Crescents apologise publicly for being caught. In a statement, she confirmed that the Society will receive no further funding from College, apart from a ‘send-off’ grant of three million pounds.
“It is unforgivable that the College has allowed an exclusive environment of misogyny, debauchery, and privilege to develop in its midst. We will be replacing the Crescents with the ‘Half-Moons’, a group which will allow members to explore misogyny, debauchery, and privilege in a more inclusive setting, wearing T-shirts instead of shirt and tie.”
Meanwhile, a mysterious vigilante justice group going by the name of ‘Grudgebridge’ is understood to have started a petition via Change.org calling for all drinking society members to be executed in public.
Grudgebridge founder Marcus Atherton, who has fled to the Ecuadorian Consulate for his own safety, defended the move.
“All we are doing is submerging students in water for prolonged periods. Those who float can be identified as drinking society members and burnt at the stake accordingly. To describe this as a witch-hunt is simply ridiculous.”