Dear The Campus,
What the FUCK made you think it was okay to depict such vulgar language in the campus newspaper, particularly on the front page?
Correct your behavior!
There was an Admissions open house on Saturday, and dozens of prospective students and parents were on campus, many of whom had access to the campus newspaper.
It is misleading to portray the larger campus body as mannerless vulgarians.
That is not to say we should sugarcoat the college, but this is not how I want our community to be depicted or perceived.
There was a group of students who thought it was okay to wear t-shirts with crude language at a formal discussion.
I believe, because of this behavior, they are not worthy of the attention or respect of their fellow students.
This is true, especially in a situation in which, in my opinion, they received sympathy from the majority of the campus community.
There are right ways of going about doing things, and wrong ways.
Be an intelligent being, as I’m sure you are all, and make the correct judgement call.
Sincerely,
A. Rahman
Carlos Lopez • Nov 30, 2010 at 1:11 am
My response is only to one of Kritika’s comments. Gandhi, Dr.King and Mandela didn’t need to wear shirts that would catch anybody’s attention because the issues were blatant. We have tried to take different approaches when dealing with issues of racism on Allegheny’s campus but nothing tacit and happy would work. Had we had a regular meeting in the campus center trying to provoke change without some radical form of advertisement with such short notice nobody would care to come or even realize that there was an issue that many people feel strongly about. In fact, had we not worn those shirts we wouldn’t be having this very valuable discussion right now.
Ray • Nov 22, 2010 at 1:40 pm
I have to disagree with Mr. Rahman here. Great photojournalism will capture the mood of an event and make you want to pick the paper up. This photo did both, and also left people talking about it. How many other times have you seen a more thought provoking photo in The Campus? Also, the role of a newspaper is to portray what happened at an event. If Rahman is unhappy with the t-shirts worn by students, maybe he should take his anger out on the students who wore them to a public event. The Campus, and photographer, saw that this was the level that the anger was at during the event. To find captivating photos on a small campus is very difficult, and the photographer should be commended for capturing such a genuine but certainly bizarre occurrence on this campus. Also, the fact that Rahman uses the same word which he condemns also displays a lack of sincerity of credibility with his argument. As for the argument about it being visit week. WHO CARES. The Campus is not a PR agency with a goal to make Allegheny look great — their goal is to print what’s happening. If that’s what happened, so be it. Don’t be mad at the paper for printing the news. Nice work, Campus.
Kritika Kapadia • Nov 21, 2010 at 11:27 am
My response to this is sort of complex. While I kind of see the place the writer of this letter is coming from….though I do not think I would have chosen those wordings exactly…I think he was trying to say a battle against injustice cannot be won with insult, guilt and ridicule. Kat, Jessica, you will find very similar instances of humbleness in Mahatma Gandhi’s beliefs, as in Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King and others. I don’t think Gandhi wore a ‘SALT TAX-FUCK NO’ swadeshi t-shirt while he lead the dandi march. Neither did Mandela pose with a ‘APARTHEID FUCK OFF’ one. I don’t think King said ‘I have a FUCKING dream’. But today, people respect and idealise them and look up to the movement they stood for. To this day, their story is told to be among the most successful battles against the atrocities on humankind.
Kat- I can also see the place you are coming from. I do agree it is a very well clicked photo…and it sends out a strong message..and it is worth a 1000 words…but maybe my recently introduced to liberal independent American thinking could not eliminate my 21 years of conservative, traditional, ‘multicultural’ South Asian background….and I flinched when I saw the photo…
As far as Jessica’s idea goes, to a certain extent yes I agree. I don’t think social equality achieved and acts of insult can be diminished if the process is not CONSTANT…dynamic and guilt-free. I don’t think only reaction in the face of an incident is conducive to developing a more accepting campus atmosphere. However, I emphasize that as hard as it is,this movement cannot come from a place of guilt and shame…telling ppl they are ignorant brutes will not be beneficial in the long run.
Lastly it is important to not put people into boxes….and assume the writer of this letter is coming from a place of cultural ignorance. He is a person on colour himself,a Bangladesi who is often mistaken for an Indian (they are all the same anyways right?) and a Muslim who is often mistaken for a terrorist. (Oh common they ARE all the same.)
Peace.
Jessica McGrady • Nov 19, 2010 at 2:24 pm
This is exactly why we need annual, mandatory multicultural/social justice seminars for our faculty (and students).
Kat Bengston • Nov 19, 2010 at 9:28 am
I can’t decide whether I find this letter just plain appalling or completely hilarious. Students walked around campus in Blackface, the administration made no statement about it and the only response organized was instigated by a student group, and you decide to speak up because you’re upset students wore shirts with profanity? Because it just wouldn’t do for prospective students to see what Allegheny College is really like?
“I believe, because of this behavior, they are not worthy of the attention or respect of their fellow students.”
I disagree. I have even more respect for ABC now. They handled the situation ridiculously well. This sentence would be better suited as a response to the students who decided to wear Blackface on Halloween. What is most upsetting is that you are clearly rationalizing your lack of response to the true issue by blaming the students who are forced to deal with racism every day.
The New York Times and any other legitimate newspaper would have run that photo. It’s a damn good piece of photography–it speaks a thousand words.