Category: Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

I read the racial harassment article in the April 13th issue with great disappointment, concern and also anger. As a seven year member of the Alumni Board and the liaison to the Black Alumni Association and the Black Student Government, I am offended and disappointed that any incident like this should or would occur on any campus, especially on the Bucknell campus. I am in total agreement with President John Bravman’s statement that this will not be tolerated at Bucknell.

When I entered Bucknell in 1949, I joined Phi Lambda Theta fraternity which had been reorganized by returning WW11 veterans. At the time, Phi Lamda Theta was the only non-national, but also the only non-sectarian interracial fraternity on campus. It was only one of five, at the time, in the entire United States. Many years after my graduation Phi Lam became a chapter of the national fraternity, Chi Phi, only after insistence from our alumni board that we remain non-sectarian interracial. No Phi Lam alumni would support or tolerate discrimination on any basis. I was proud to be part of an organization that accepted everyone as equal and truly represented the ideals of this great country. There is no place for individuals, either on campus, or throughout America who do not respect the equality of all.

Nina Banks is absolutely correct in stating that the campus community needs to become actively involved in honest conversations on this issue. I believe that the Alumni Board should also consider discussing racial problems that develop.

If, after thorugh investigation, these harassers or any future harassers, are identified as Bucknell students, the university policy should be “expulsion.” They do not represent what Bucknell in reality stands for.

Walt McConnell, MD ’53

To the Editor:

I’m disheartened to see that the person who wrote the slut-shaming opinion piece (“A Female Perspective on Modern Chivalry: Women Need to Face the Facts,” Nov. 10, 2011) last semester wrote a piece about sexual assault on campus and victim blames throughout the entire article (“Protection from Sexual Assault Requires Cooperation,” March 2, 2012.).  This is a poorly worded, poorly researched article, and I’m ashamed that this was in my school newspaper.

Firstly, the onus of prevention of sexual assault is on the perpetrator of assault, not on the victim. People can do everything in their power to protect themselves from assault and still be assaulted. It is not up to the victim. Secondly, the assumption that women are the only victims of assault is incorrect. They are the  majority, but there are thousands of people who do not identify as women who are assaulted each year. Thirdly, the women on this campus are women. We’re old enough to claim that title, let us have it.

I am up in arms, Sarah Morris. I’m furious that The Bucknellian allowed this to be published. We have such a huge problem with sexual assault on this campus, and the pervasive idea that women are responsible for protecting themselves from an assault is what contributes to people not wanting to report an assault for fear of being told it was their fault. This stance does the whole institution injustice. I’m frustrated that you, as a member of the sex that is most frequently assaulted, believes that you or any of the rest of us can somehow prevent an assault. Again, the only person who can prevent assault is the person who is going to commit the assault.

I think this campus would benefit from some more informed, unbiased research in this area. Perhaps attending a presentation or panel on sexual assault on campus would open our eyes. There are several interesting and relevant discussions in this area happening on campus on a regular basis, such as the Speak UP Bucknell Peer Education program, the Double Take Project and speakers hosted each semester by the Women’s and Gender Studies office and the Women’s Resource Center, as well as many others.

Alyssa M. Gockley ’13
Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies

To the Editor:

Yes, we have all made/heard the joke that philosophy majors are a bunch of stoners, but I was offended to see this depicted in last week’s edition.  The cartoon depicts a philosophy class and the featured homework assignment is a marijuana leaf, accompanied in the next frame of students smoking and remarking that “It all makes sense now!”  It offends and degrades the brilliant professors our university employs as well as downplays the efforts of philosophy majors.  A major myself, I can’t imagine smoking weed before reading Kant’s “Critique of Pure Reason” or Plato’s “Republic” and expect to get anything out of it, or expect the whole universe to finally make brilliant sense.

A knowledge in philosophy requires reason, deep thought and superb analytical skills—if anything, weed would prevent this.  Studies have shown philosophy majors outshine all other majors on LSATs, GMATs, etc. because of these exact skills.  I hardly think that these students are high when taking the standardized exams.

An understanding in philosophy—metaphysics, epistemology, ontology, ethics, aesthetics—is complicated and rooted in deep thought that requires legitimate reflection, not a stoner understanding such as “wow, everyone should just get along,” that is just the tip of the iceberg!

Hannah Zachary ’12

To the Editor:

Whoa, Nelly! This spring, the Bucknell University Concert Committee has chosen Grammy-award winning artist Nelly to perform as the main act in the Gerhard Fieldhouse on Friday, April 13. The Concert Committee is excited to bring such a major act to campus.

Although the committee has received a great deal of support and excitement surrounding the upcoming show, we have also received some negative reactions, primarily from faculty who are offended by the choice. Issues of gender, race, pornography and mistreatment of women have been raised surrounding one of Nelly’s many videos, made for his 2003 song “Tip Drill.”

In an open forum last spring the Concert Committee hosted a panel discussion that included faculty, students and staff discussing programming content as it related to speakers, concerts and other entertainment brought to campus. The Committee decided to host this event after much faculty reaction to concerts such as Ludacris, T-Pain and Ke$ha. While certainly an enlightening discussion, it quickly became evident that there are no easy solutions when the issue of “offensive content” is debated. The committee was asked to and agreed to host post-concert discussions so the campus community could have the opportunity to share reactions to any given show.

In looking at Top 40 artists or specifically the hip-hop genre, it is difficult if not impossible to find an artist without content issues that are deemed offensive to one person or another. Most of the artists have some content skeleton in their closet. Certainly with little to no radio play, and not even mentioned in a quick Google search of Nelly songs, most Bucknell students (or the public at large) don’t know “Tip Drill.”  It most definitely is not a the defining song in his career.

When considering the Nelly invitation for the spring concert, the Concert Committee looked at his amazing award winning career, including his BET Best New Artist Award and his MTV Best Rap Video of the Year Award. Additionally, in June 2002, Nelly dropped the album “Nellyville,” featuring chart-topping hits such as “Hot in Herre,” “Air Force Ones” and “Dilemma,” which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard music charts. Nelly would go on to win three Grammy awards for this album including Best Rap Solo Performance (Male), Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Nelly has been nominated for a Grammy nine additional times. Nelly has released four more albums since “Nellyville” and songs such as “Over and Over” and “Just a Dream.” Billboard named Nelly the No. 3 top Artist of the Decade (2000-2009). In addition to his music ventures, Nelly has appeared on television and in two films. He co-starred in 2005’s “The Longest Yard” and has starred on TV shows such as “90210” and “CSI:NY.”

The Concert Committee also considered Nelly’s success as a philanthropist and entrepreneur. One of Nelly’s most significant contributions has been his dedication to philanthropy. Nelly runs the 4Sho4Kids Foundation which is dedicated to improving the quality of life for children with development disabilities such as Down’s Syndrome and children born addicted to drugs. The foundation assists families by providing educational classes and healthcare resources in the St. Louis metropolitan area. He also started the “Jes Us 4 Jackie” in 2003 to help raise awareness about bone marrow transplants for African Americans and other minorities. Nelly began the campaign after his sister Jackie was diagnosed with leukemia in 2003. She later lost her battle with cancer in 2005. Nelly has participated in other philanthropic efforts and continues to emphasize his commitment to charity. Nelly has had multiple shoe contracts with brands such as Nike and Reebok. He was also a part owner of the Charlotte Bobcats until 2010. Nelly is also the owner of two clothing brands, Apple Bottoms and Vokal. His brand Apple Bottoms promotes positive messages towards women’s body issues, emphasizing that clothes should fit the woman, not vice versa.

Acknowledging the complexity of content in today’s culture, the committee is prepared to respond to concerns and will host a post-concert open forum. We are asking, however, why this task falls solely on our shoulders. If the Concert Committee is asked to host open forums to progress campus climate in a positive direction, shouldn’t faculty, staff and other student groups be held to the same standards when speakers, politicians, and other groups are invited to campus and deliver messages not universally accepted? Or is the real question this: is an open forum required to process and debate every controversial event?

– The Bucknell Concert Committee

To the Editor:

As a woman on this campus, I am deeply discouraged by the announcement of Nelly headlining the upcoming Spring Concert here at Bucknell. I am deeply concerned by the message that bringing such an artist sends to the Bucknell community, given Nelly’s notorious affinity for degrading and objectifying young females in the name of entertainment. Furthermore, I am disappointed that the University would endorse such a message given the overwhelmingly negative nature of the Campus Climate Report in regards to sexual assault.

The Campus Climate Report revealed that women routinely experience unwanted physical and verbal sexual advances at parties, and that as a university, Bucknell ranks in the top five among peer schools of reports of forced sexual interactions. The report also acknowledged that the social scene at Bucknell is controlled by men and driven by alcohol. As a woman who has been the brunt of these negative, alcohol-fueled interactions on this campus, and having both personally experienced the pain of sexual assault, as well as helped friends struggle through their own experiences, I am disgusted that a place I have considered my home for the past three years would sponsor an artist that shows no respect for more than half of Bucknell’s student population.

My first encounter with Nelly’s degrading portrayal of young women in his videos and lyrics was at Common Ground, a University-sponsored retreat. A documentary was shown that focused on the negative and hypersexual portrayal of women in the media. Nelly’s “Tip Drill,” along with its video, was a centerpiece in the documentary. Lyrics from the song include: “It must be your ass ’cause it ain’t your face,” and “It ain’t no fun unless we all get some/I need a tip drill/We need a tip drill.” The definition of “tip drill” also bears looking up; it brings to light much of the disgusting nature of the song. The video that accompanies the song contains images of barely clothed women having money thrown at them and champagne poured on their backsides, which culminates with Nelly taking a credit card and swiping it through a woman’s butt crack.

The use of women as sexualized props in music videos is not by any means confined to Nelly’s “Tip Drill,” but nobody can deny the pervasive nature that these videos have in the larger culture, and it sets a startlingly low standard of behavior for students. As an institution that is admittedly struggling with creating a respectful male-female dynamic on campus, it is troubling to me that as a student body, we would support hosting an artist who has historically stood in stark contrast to the ideals that we are trying to promote. It makes no sense to me that Bucknell would invite such an inspiring artist, John Legend, to come to campus, and then within the same semester, invite Nelly. In light of recent events, specifically the empirical evidence presented in the Campus Climate Report, how can we deny that these messages will unfortunately continue to inform our peer relationships here on campus? If there ever has been a pivotal moment to definitively change the campus climate and prove that we are actively working to become more informed and respectful students, is it not now? If we truly believe that the statistics in the Report were not indicative of the Bucknell student body, then why not prove it to ourselves?

Christine Perry

Class of 2013