Selina Todd

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Selina Todd
Born1975 (age 47–48)
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Academic background
Alma mater University of Warwick
University of Sussex
Institutions

Selina Todd (born 1975) is an English historian and writer. From 2015, she has been Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Todd's research focuses on the history of the working-class, women and feminism in modern Britain. Since 2017, Todd has also been president of the Socialist Educational Association. [1]

Contents

Early life

Selina Todd was born in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1975. [2] After schooling at a state comprehensive, [2] she completed her undergraduate degree in history at Warwick University. [2] She took a Master of Arts degree and then a doctor of philosophy degree in history at the University of Sussex. [2]

Career

After holding a Scouloudi Fellowship and Economic and Social Research Council Post-doctoral Fellowship at the Institute of Historical Research, [3] Todd was elected to the Ottilie Hancock Research Fellowship in History at Girton College, Cambridge, in 2004. [4] The following year, she was appointed a lecturer at Warwick University, [5] and in 2007 took a lectureship in modern British history at the University of Manchester. [3] In 2010, she was appointed a Fellow at St Hilda's College, Oxford, and a lecturer in history at the University of Oxford. [6] In 2015, she was awarded the title of Professor of Modern History in the University of Oxford. [7] She was vice-principal of St Hilda's College between 2014 and 2017. [8] She has held several editorial roles, including serving on the Board of the historical journal Past and Present . Her biography of Shelagh Delaney, Tastes of Honey was published in 2019. [9]

Since 2017, Todd has been president of the Socialist Educational Association. [10] As of September 2020, Todd is a lead researcher at the Oxford Martin Programme on Women's Equality and Inequality. [11]

Views on transgender topics

Todd and over 30 other academics signed a public letter sent to The Sunday Times published on 16 June 2019 which claimed that universities paying for LGBT diversity training by Stonewall stifled academic debate because "tendentious and anti-scientific claims are presented . . . as objective fact". [12] [13]

In January 2020, Todd revealed that she had been warned of threats against her on social media; after an investigation at her request, Oxford University arranged security guards to accompany her to lectures. [14] Todd received threats from trans rights activists for making public her views on the need to protect female single-sex spaces - such as women's refuges and rape crisis centres - which they deemed transphobic.[ neutrality is disputed ] She said: "In the world today democracy is under threat and therefore we all have to defend the right of people to have freedom of speech and freedom of debate." [15]

In February 2020, Todd was no platformed at a celebration in Oxford, which she had helped organise, of the 50th anniversary of the National Women's Liberation Conference of 1970. [16] [17] [18] [19] An invitation to speak, which had been accepted by Todd, was withdrawn on the eve of the event. When another event speaker, Lola Olufemi, withdrew in protest at Todd's association with the campaign group Woman's Place UK, [20] which Olufemi accused of transphobia, [19] Todd wrote in response: "I refute the allegation that I am transphobic, and I am disappointed that the organisers have refused to uphold our right to discuss women's rights – one that the original organisers had to fight hard for." [21]

In November 2021, Todd wrote to The Times to criticise the Athena Swan scheme provided by the educational charity Advance HE as promoting a "controversial view of sex and gender". [22] [23]

Select bibliography

Todd's research focuses on the history of the working-class, gender and feminism in modern Britain. [8] Her 2005 book Young Women, Work and Family in England 1918–1950 won the Women's History Network Annual Book Prize. [3]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Professor Selina Todd will be the new President of the Socialist Education Association". St Hilda's College, University of Oxford. 21 July 2017. Archived from the original on 29 December 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Selina Todd (History 1997)", Development and Alumni Relations, University of Sussex. As archived at the Internet Archive on 27 August 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "Dr Selina Todd" Archived 13 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine , The University of Manchester. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  4. ↑ "College notices: Girton College" Archived 27 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine , Reporter (Cambridge University), 28 July 2004. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  5. ↑ "Warwick welcomes – Dr Selina Todd" Archived 27 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine , University of Warwick. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  6. ↑ "Appointments, Reappointments, and Conferments of Title" Archived 27 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine , Oxford University Gazette, 1 July 2010. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  7. ↑ "Recognition of Distinction: Successful Applicants 2015" Archived 27 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine , The University of Oxford Gazette, no. 510915, October 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2016.
  8. 1 2 "Academic Staff – Dr Selina Todd" Archived 22 November 2016 at the Wayback Machine , St Hilda's College, Oxford. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  9. ↑ Kellaway, Kate (25 August 2019). "Tastes of Honey by Selina Todd review – illuminating life of Shelagh Delaney". The Observer. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
  10. ↑ "Professor Selina Todd will be the new President of the Socialist Education Association". St Hilda's College, University of Oxford. 21 July 2017. Archived from the original on 29 December 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
  11. ↑ "Professor Selina Todd". Oxford Martin School. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  12. ↑ Somerville, Ewan; Griffiths, Sian (16 June 2019). "Stonewall is using its power to stifle trans debate, say top academics". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 4 April 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.(subscription required)
  13. ↑ "Letters to the Editor: Boris deserves to lead the party he's wrecked". The Sunday Times. 16 June 2019. Archived from the original on 19 February 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2020.(subscription required)
  14. ↑ Turner, Camilla; Somerville, Ewan (23 January 2020). "Oxford University professor given security guards for lectures after threats from transgender activists". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  15. ↑ "Oxford professor given protection following threats from trans activists". BBC News. 25 January 2020. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  16. ↑ Thorpe, Vanessa (1 March 2020). "Echoes of 1970 as row breaks out at celebration of feminist conference". The Observer. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  17. ↑ "Oxford University professor condemns exclusion from event". BBC News. 4 March 2020. Archived from the original on 6 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  18. ↑ Woods, Judith (6 March 2020). "Selina Todd, the academic the trans lobby is desperate to silence". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  19. 1 2 Pasternack, Ellen (7 March 2020). "Oxford professor disinvited from conference". Cherwell. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  20. ↑ "Woman's Place UK". Woman's Place UK. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  21. ↑ Todd, Selina (29 February 2020). "WOMEN'S LIBERATION AT 50 – THE TALK THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN. BY SELINA TODD". FiLiA. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  22. ↑ Ames, Jonathan; Ellery, Ben (6 November 2021). "University gender course offered by Advance HE is unlawful, barrister says". The Times . Archived from the original on 6 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  23. ↑ Todd, Selina (3 November 2021). "FEARS FOR ACADEMIA". The Times . Archived from the original on 3 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
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