I'm Ellie (she/her), a third year classicist at Magdalen and your disability columnist for this year! Activism and writing are my passions so I'm hoping to combine them in this column. You can usually find me procrastinating in one way or another - working on things with the SU Women's Campaign, dreaming of the day charity shops can open again, and spending far too much time on Twitter.
In the second instalment of her column, Disability Looks Like This, Ellie Redpath describes her experience of sensory overload, and examines how we can make public spaces kinder and more mindful. Artwork by Emer Sukonik.
“Usually I absolutely love a trip to big Tesco – who doesn’t – but if I am alone there or having a particularly bad day it all becomes too much, and not only because the eerily silent and bright lower floor is inherently quite a spooky, liminal space. It’s happened to me since childhood because of my learning difficulties – being neurodivergent means that I’m more sensitive to becoming overwhelmed.”
“If I properly listened to the disorder, I’d wrap everyone I loved in bubble wrap and wrap myself up in it too and put us all in a room with walls and floors made of pillows and make sure we took our vitamins every single day and then maybe I wouldn’t ever have to be anxious again. But even that probably wouldn’t work.”
In the first instalment of her column, Disability Looks Like This, Ellie Redpath explores her experience of OCD and its pervasiveness in her daily life.
“To tackle the violent attacks, we must tackle the culture which allows them to happen, and it’s this same culture that allows men to shout obscenities or stalk a woman on the street and get away with it.”
Ellie Redpath discusses the need to tackle violence against women. TW: harassment
“It’s clear that this has gone far beyond a misunderstanding of the cab rank rule, and is instead a matter of whether marginalised students feel safe, supported, and welcome at Magdalen – which, it is emerging, many do not.”
Ellie Redpath gives her perspective on President of Magdalen Dinah Rose QC’s legal representation of the Cayman Islands in their bid to overturn gay marriage.
“After years of activism centred around raising awareness in perhaps too shallow a way, the underfunding of mental health services across the UK is becoming a bit of an elephant in the room.”
Ellie Redpath examines the limitations of current mental health campaigns and initiatives.
TW: in-depth discussion of mental health issues, mention of mental health crises
Ellie Redpath writes about how this Christmas presents an opportunity to change how we think about food and exercise.
Ellie Redpath talks about her experiences after participating in the Oxford vaccine trials.
Ellie Redpath discusses why we should stop talking about Adele’s weight and instead focus on her musical success.
