May 25th, 2009
Poet Ruth Padel, who just a nine days ago was selected as the first women to hold the post of Oxford University Professor of Poetry, has been forced to resign. The forced resignation came after alligetions that Padel engaged in a smear campaign against Derek Walcott who was a favorite to be elected to the position. The Evening Standard has published details of an e-mail sent by Padel to one of its journalists in which she refers to a book containing “6 pages on Derek Walcott’s two cases of sexual harassment.” “I have acted throughout in complete good faith, but I can, of course, see that people can misconstrue that,” stated Padel. And she admitted that sending the e-mails was “naive and silly” but she stopped short of saying that they were wrong. “I do want to apologies to him, but I cannot apologies for things I have not done and I have not done the campaign,” said Padel.
