Police are investigating a Cambridge drinking society, which has been banned by the university, after a group of men were filmed appearing to chant rape songs in the middle of the day while walking down a street.
The video, which was taken by a student, shows a large group walking down a street in Oxford, singing "she's too young", "15 years" and "rape". Uploaded onto YouTube, a description reads: "A group of 20 or so young men (possibly part of some university society) walking through Oxford singing about rape… filmed by a friend who confronted them about it."
It is believed some of the men are members of the all-male drinking society Wyverns, from Cambridge's Magdalene College, due to one of the group wearing a jacket with "WGP 13" emblazoned on the back. According to the Telegraph, it is thought to stand for Wyverns Garden Party 2013.
The student who filmed the chanting reported the incident to Thames Valley Police and told the Telegraph: "I think they knew they were doing something wrong but it’s the group mentality. I spoke to one and said, ‘Don’t you find this offensive?’ He said, ‘Why is it offensive? We are actually promoting women’s issues.’ After they said that to me I was speechless.
"I think it was the fact that they were chanting feminist slogans, but in this case it was drunken men staggering and chanting in a jostling way. It was taking slogans out of their context and presenting them in a way that was offensive."
Student paper the Cambridge Tab posted extracts from a conversation on Facebook identifying the students members of Wyverns.
The Wyverns Society were forced to cancel their annual jelly wrestling competition last year, after considerable pressure from fellow students and members of the public. Bikini-clad women would be paid to wrestle in a paddling pool full of jelly, while students from the college ogled.
Last weekend, two thousand Cambridge students descended on the university city for a booze-fuelled party, known as Caesarian Sunday. Earlier this year, drunk Cambridge students wreaked havoc at a local hospital, causing "operational difficulty" for staff.
A spokesperson for the Wyverns Society said: "The Wyverns would like to condemn the actions of those seen acting inappropriately in Oxford this weekend.
"This was not a Wyvern organised event and the video shows no current student to be taking part in the disgraceful chants.
"We find the behaviour seen in the video appalling and hope those who are involved are made to apologise."
Cambridge University added: "If indeed these students were from Cambridge, their behaviour is deplorable. The colleges and university will be investigating."
A statement from Thames Valley Police read: "We received a call on Sunday which was a report of a group of men using offensive language in Cornmarket Street, Oxford, on Saturday evening at approximately 7.30pm. Our officers are in the early stages of making enquiries."