On Thursday, February 6th, I stood at the Cambridge Union, opposing the motion ‘This House Believes Donald Trump is a 21st Century Fascist.’ It wasn’t my first time speaking at the Union, nor my first time taking a position that leaned to the right of Cambridge’s political mainstream. During Michaelmas, I spoke in favour of the Conservative Party in another debate. Yet, on both occasions, once the applause had faded and the crowds dispersed, I found myself facing a similar, disheartening reaction from some.

The comments were not critiques of my arguments or thoughtful rebuttals. Instead, they were dismissive remarks suggesting that I had only adopted these positions for “male attention” or that I “didn’t actually understand” the arguments I was making. I’d love to say these were isolated incidents, but the reality is that, as a woman on the right of the political spectrum at Cambridge, this kind of reaction has become all too familiar.

“There is a peculiar irony in being labelled a “traitor to the gender” in an environment that prides itself on open-mindedness and intellectual curiosity”

There is a peculiar irony in being labelled a “traitor to the gender” for holding right-leaning views in an environment that prides itself on open-mindedness and intellectual curiosity. Cambridge, after all, markets itself as a bastion of free thought and rigorous debate. My experience has often been quite the opposite.

Let me be clear: disagreement is not the issue. What is troubling is the manner in which certain political perspectives are dismissed not on their merits, but on the assumption that those who hold them must be either intellectually deficient or morally suspect. And for women, there is an added layer of condescension – a patronising incredulity that we could possibly have arrived at these views through critical thought rather than personal insecurity or external influence.

I am not here to argue that my political views are beyond critique. Far from it. But, some of the hostility I’ve encountered doesn’t feel like critique, it feels like a refusal to engage. And that refusal, I believe, speaks to a broader issue at Cambridge: a discomfort with genuine ideological diversity.

“Some of the hostility I’ve encountered doesn’t feel like critique; it feels like a refusal to engage”

I have seen this pattern play out repeatedly. Centre-right views are often caricatured as inherently extreme, and those who express them are swiftly pigeonholed. The irony is stark. In an era where “inclusivity” and “tolerance” are buzzwords, it seems these values often extend only to those who conform to a particular set of beliefs.

This hypocrisy of tolerance is not just frustrating, it is intellectually stifling. Universities should be places where ideas are tested, debated, and refined. But, when certain perspectives are dismissed outright, not because they lack merit but because they are unpopular, the entire academic community suffers. The echo chamber becomes tighter, and the quality of our discourse diminishes.

I am not asking for agreement. What I am asking for is respect. Respect for the idea that people can, in good faith, arrive at different conclusions. Respect for the possibility that someone might hold views you find disagreeable without being an attention-seeker or a traitor.

Navigating student politics at Cambridge has taught me a lot. I’m not saying everyone who disagrees with me is dismissive – many challenge my views with real thought and respect, and I value that. Nevertheless, if we really care about tolerance, it can’t just apply to people we agree with. Too often, my gender is weaponised to discredit me. The assumption that my opinions are driven by attention-seeking rather than intellect is deeply insulting, not just to me but to any woman who deviates from mainstream opinions. We need genuine ideological diversity and respect for all voices, or our claims of tolerance will remain nothing more than empty words.

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