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Melbourne school hits back at claims female students were 'slut shamed' in assembly.

A Melbourne state school has responded to allegations that its female students were slut shamed during a special assembly.

Kambrya College attracted national headlines last week after a mother of a pupil wrote a viral Facebook post claiming female students were told to lower their hemlines and not to send ‘sexy selfies’ in the wake of revelations about an online pornography ring targeting high school girls.

“Instead of laying blame directly where it falls – with the perpetrators – it seems her school decided the best line of defence was to haul the girls into a meeting and not just police their appearance, but thoroughly insult and denigrate them,” wrote Catherine Manning.

The principal of Kambrya College, Michael Muscut, told news.com.au that the intention of the Year 7-10 assembly has been misunderstood.

The vile forum containing thousands of images of women, seemingly uploaded without their consent.

“I want to be clear here and say that in no way did we suggest that what girls wear makes harassment or abuse acceptable. This is never the case,” Muscat said.

Muscat confirmed that single-sex assemblies were held, during which students were told to be "mindful of their digital footprint" while also being reminded of the latest uniform policy.

“The enforcement of our uniform policy and the abuse and the recent exploitation of girls online are separate issues and should be treated as such.

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“In public discussion about these two issues at Kambrya College they have, however, become linked. We regret this. It was never our intention that this should occur.”

The assemblies followed revelations by Mamamia about an online pornography sharing site that features numerous folders claiming to contain explicit images of students from specific Australian high schools. Authorities are currently investigating.

“As far as we are aware there has been no student involvement on the pornographic website, but if students become aware of any concerns, they should immediately seek the support of parents and Kambrya College staff,” Muscat told news.com.au.

A Kambrya College student hit back in a powerful protest speech. Image via Nine News/screenshot.
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In her Facebook post (above), Manning wrote that she was "mortified", claiming her daughter had been exposed to the school's perceived "slut shaming and victim blaming" attitude.

"The problem is not with the girls and the length of their skirts, nor whether or not they choose to share photos with their boyfriends or anyone else. It’s with the boys themselves; their sense of entitlement and sexist attitudes towards women and girls, their lack of respect, and the trust they CHOOSE to break," she wrote.

Manning, who runs relationship and self-esteem programs for boys and girls, yesterday told Mamamia that she went public after the school ignored her phone calls and emails about the issue.

"The initial response from the school was that the girls were overreacting, making a mountain out of a molehill," Manning told Mamamia.

"Since then, I’ve had a phone call from the school to say they’re happy to discuss the situation and find a solution to move forward. I had a very positive conversation with the school principal, and we have a meeting on Wednesday to discuss it further."

READ: "The horrifying moment I found my name on the Aussie Sluts forum."

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