London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jan 05, 2026

Backlash as students reportedly told wearing second-hand clothes can be ‘example of white privilege’ in mandatory diversity test

Backlash as students reportedly told wearing second-hand clothes can be ‘example of white privilege’ in mandatory diversity test

British university students are being mandated to take a diversity course and test which forces them to agree with several notions concerning race, including that wearing second-hand clothes can be “an example of white privilege.”

Students at the University of Kent will receive a gold star should they correctly answer 13 questions concerning race and white privilege. If they answer incorrectly, they are redirected to take the course again, The Telegraph reports.

The course forces students to agree with a number of unusual statements, including the notion that wearing second-hand clothes without others blaming it on “the bad morals, the poverty or the illiteracy of my race” is an example of white privilege.

The four-hour course, titled ‘Expect Respect’ and seen by The Telegraph, also claims white privilege is present if someone “can go shopping without being followed or harassed,” as well as being sure of having “neutral or pleasant” neighbours. “I can do well in a challenging situation without being called a credit to my race” is also noted as a proponent of white privilege.

The test, hosted on student study platform moodle, also argues British society is built on systematic racism, including schools, courts, and churches.

“We expect all students, regardless of programme, level or site of study, to complete the module,” lecturers were told in an internal email. It continues to suggest that the course informs students of the behaviour that is expected of a Kent scholar.

The module is also “supporting everyone to ensure all members of our community are treated with dignity and respect,” a spokesperson for the university told The Times.

Unsurprisingly, the mandated acknowledgement of white privilege has not been well received by everyone, including staff at the university itself. Professors told The Telegraph that the move was a “philistine” betrayal of academia’s core values. One lecturer said they would not make their students take the module.

The opposition has also been very clear on social media, with many people focusing in on the contents of the test. Several people said they didn’t understand how wearing second-hand clothing was an example of white privilege. “We had hand me down clothes as children in the 60s, I just don’t understand how we got here and why,” one person tweeted.


Others claimed they also had to wear second-hand clothing and said their neighbours were “unpleasant … many violent and unpredictable,” but this was because they were poor. “Poor people don’t have the luxury of white privilege,” they added.

Some noted that surely wearing second-hand clothing “should be applauded for helping the environment,” as well as for helping the charities that sell them. Another person chimed in saying it was a “no-win situation,” explaining that you’re either causing climate change by buying new clothes or an example of white privilege for wearing old ones.

Some took aim at those responsible for creating the test, claiming they need to be thrown out of the university, even if it is the chancellor. Conservative commentator Darren Grimes told talkRADIO that the move was “breathtaking,” adding that it was a “university of contempt for white people. Universities are clearly indoctrination factories.”

This is not the first time British universities have awoken the fury of Brits with new “woke” measures. In August, Cambridge University said it would be adding explainer notes to statues in an archaeology museum to inform people that the white plaster casts didn’t reflect the diversity of the ancient world.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Maduro’s Arrest Without The Hague Tests International Law—and Trump’s Willingness to Break It
German Intelligence Secretly Intercepted Obama’s Air Force One Communications
The U.S. State Department’s account in Persian: “President Trump is a man of action. If you didn’t know it until now, now you do—do not play games with President Trump.”
Fake Mainstream Media Double Standard: Elon Musk Versus Mamdani
HSBC Leads 2026 Mortgage Rate Cuts as UK Lending Costs Ease
US Joint Chiefs Chairman Outlines How Operation Absolute Resolve Was Carried Out in Venezuela
Starmer Welcomes End of Maduro Era While Stressing International Law and UK Non-Involvement
Korean Beauty Turns Viral Skincare Into a Global Export Engine
UK Confirms Non-Involvement in U.S. Military Action Against Venezuela
UK Terror Watchdog Calls for Australian-Style Social Media Ban to Protect Teenagers
Iranian Protests Intensify as Another Revolutionary Guard Member Is Killed and Khamenei Blames the West
Delta Force Identified as Unit Behind U.S. Operation That Captured Venezuela’s President
Europe’s Luxury Sanctions Punish Russian Consumers While a Sanctions-Circumvention Industry Thrives
Berkshire’s Buffett-to-Abel Transition Tests Whether a One-Man Trust Model Can Survive as a System
Fraud in European Central Bank: Lagarde’s Hidden Pay Premium Exposes a Transparency Crisis at the European Central Bank
Trump Announces U.S. Large-Scale Strike on Venezuela, Declares President Maduro and Wife Captured
Tesla Loses EV Crown to China’s BYD After Annual Deliveries Decline in 2025
UK Manufacturing Growth Reaches 15-Month Peak as Output and Orders Improve in December
Beijing Threatened to Scrap UK–China Trade Talks After British Minister’s Taiwan Visit
Newly Released Files Reveal Tony Blair Pressured Officials Over Iraq Death Case Involving UK Soldiers
Top Stocks and Themes to Watch in 2026 as Markets Enter New Year with Fresh Momentum
No UK Curfew Ordered as Deepfake TikTok Falsely Attributes Decree to Prime Minister Starmer
Europe’s Largest Defence Groups Set to Return Nearly Five Billion Dollars to Shareholders in Twenty Twenty-Five
Abu Dhabi ‘Capital of Capital’: How Abu Dhabi Rose as a Sovereign Wealth Power
Diamonds Are Powering a New Quantum Revolution
Trump Threatens Strikes Against Iran if Nuclear Programme Is Restarted
Apple Escalates Legal Fight by Appealing £1.5 Billion UK Ruling Over App Store Fees
UK Debt Levels Sit Mid-Range Among Advanced Economies Despite Rising Pressures
UK Plans Royal Diplomacy with King Charles and Prince William to Reinvigorate Trade Talks with US
King Charles and Prince William Poised for Separate 2026 US Visits to Reinforce UK-US Trade and Diplomatic Ties
Apple Moves to Appeal UK Ruling Ordering £1.5 Billion in Customer Overcharge Damages
King Charles’s 2025 Christmas Message Tops UK Television Ratings on Christmas Day
The Battle Over the Internet Explodes: The United States Bars European Officials and Ignites a Diplomatic Crisis
Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie Join Royal Family at Sandringham Christmas Service
Fine Wine Investors Find Little Cheer in Third Year of Falls
UK Mortgage Rates Edge Lower as Bank of England Base Rate Cut Filters Through Lending Market
U.S. Supermarket Gives Customers Free Groceries for Christmas After Computer Glitch
Air India ‘Finds’ a Plane That Vanished 13 Years Ago
Caviar and Foie Gras? China Is Becoming a Luxury Food Powerhouse
Hong Kong Climbs to Second Globally in 2025 Tourism Rankings Behind Bangkok
From Sunniest Year on Record to Terror Plots and Sports Triumphs: The UK’s Defining Stories of 2025
Greta Thunberg Released on Bail After Arrest at London Pro-Palestinian Demonstration
Banksy Unveils New Winter Mural in London Amid Festive Season Excitement
UK Households Face Rising Financial Strain as Tax Increases Bite and Growth Loses Momentum
UK Government Approves Universal Studios Theme Park in Bedford Poised to Rival Disneyland Paris
UK Gambling Shares Slide as Traders Respond to Steep Tax Rises and Sector Uncertainty
Starmer and Trump Coordinate on Ukraine Peace Efforts in Latest Diplomatic Call
The Pilot Barricaded Himself in the Cockpit and Refused to Take Off: "We Are Not Leaving Until I Receive My Salary"
UK Fashion Label LK Bennett Pursues Accelerated Sale Amid Financial Struggles
U.S. Government Warns UK Over Free Speech in Pro-Life Campaigner Prosecution
×