To be clear, Mr Murdoch, the correct decision is No More Page 3

Over the last 44 years, The Sun has portrayed women on Page 3 as sexual objects.

Over the last 44 years, The Sun has portrayed women on Page 3 as sexual objects, solely for men's pleasure. Available and read in public places for all to see.

This feature has evolved within in a culture where sexual harassment and assault is now commonplace.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The culture I grew up in and the culture that persists in schools, nightclubs, and workplaces across the country is fuelled by the way men see women and how women are represented by the media.

It is one of the reasons women are not treated equally to men and why sexism is still a problem for most women.

So when the news broke this week that The Sun was dropping Page 3, I was elated. We had won. We had succeeded in having soft-porn removed from a self-proclaimed "family paper".

We all knew however, that the greatest achievement of this campaign would be the shift in public opinion away from representing women as sex objects and towards recognising women for their achievements. People who had never even considered the effects of media sexism were drawn into the debates.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But, in a cheap publicity stunt, The Sun's apparent determination yesterday (Thursday) that it would continue printing Page 3 has shown its brazen disregard for the real and detrimental effects of representing women in this way - as well as its total disdain for the overwhelming level of public support for the campaign.

The No More Page 3 campaign will continue to stand for the equal representation of women, arguing that our actions and achievements should receive equal coverage to that of men's and that women will not be defined by their looks alone.

We are a movement of more 217,000 people. We have risen against the might of a large corporation and will continue to rise and gain in number until The Sun permanently stops printing topless women on page 3.

Carmel Maria Offord has been active in the No More Page 3 campaign for more than a year; she set up the Brighton and Hove group last June. The group has more than 380 members and is very active in the city. You can find the group on Facebook (Brighton and Hove No More Page 3).

To sign the petition, visit: www.change.org/nomorepage3

Â