Letters to the Editor 3/29/07

Train students for peace, not war To borrow from the line of dialogue employed by the editors, it is one thing to disagree with a demonstration, but quite another to grossly misrepresent it. The action we oversaw last week in no way sought to dishonor the service and sacrifice of those who have been killed in this immoral war.

The demonstration, as the news article correctly notes, was about Boston College's continued support of this war through the BC Army ROTC program, endowment investments in war profiteers, and the presence of weapons manufacturers that actively recruit on this campus.

However, to describe protesters "condemning students … as war-hungry individuals" not only misrepresents the purpose of this demonstration, it skirts around larger issues of institutional participation. It is plain to see that the federal government should be denounced for its actions. This, however, does not leave BC and other institutions connected to the war free from criticism.

BC, as a Jesuit Catholic university, should lead the way in severing ALL of its ties to this unjust war.

We should prepare our students for peace, not help train soldiers for war - which is the primary mission of the ROTC program. We should not support companies that profit from violence and destruction.

We should not honor political leaders who establish their authority on war, torture, and lies. And we should not stand idly by as weapons manufacturers continue to recruit BC's brightest students. If The Heights is serious about condemning this war, it must also be willing to condemn BC's complicity in it.

Cynthia Frezzo A&S '07

Nick Salter A&S '07

Empower survivors with CARE and control CARE Week brings awareness to sexual assault and rape, which are crucial in a college environment. I can guarantee that everyone knows at least one rape or sexual assault survivor. Late in my sophomore year, I began to realize that I was one of those people: I had been sexually assaulted by an ex-boyfriend. It was around that time that I went to "Take Back the Night" for the first time, although I wasn't fully aware of why I needed to be there. My denial ran so deep that it took me years to fully admit to myself that I had been sexually assaulted. Once I broke the silence, the world became a brighter place. I felt better simply by sharing my struggle.

The person who assaulted me was one of my classmates. We dated for almost a year. After we broke up, I made a point of avoiding him. I ran into him once in a while on campus and it always made me livid. In 2003, I went to "Take Back the Night" for the last time. I wanted that night to be important, but he was there. He ruined that night for me.

We graduated. I moved away from Boston. I didn't know where he went, nor did I care. It didn't matter as long as we were in different places. Like many other survivors, I fought to regain control. I struggled with trust issues. I tried to convince myself that, "Well, it wasn't really that bad." Yes, it was that bad. Yes, it hurt a whole lot. While I am well along in my healing journey, it will never be completely over. The best that I can do is tell my story and be a beacon of hope and strength for others. I can let go of being a victim and become a survivor. I recently realized that since the person who assaulted me is a fellow graduate, he has access to my home address and phone number in the online alumni directory. I asked the Alumni Association if it would be possible to implement more selective privacy preferences. I didn't want to take my home address and phone number out of the directory, but I wanted to block him and only him from viewing my personal information. Services such as MySpace, Facebook, and AOL Instant Messenger allow their members to block other users. I was informed that the current technology at Boston College does not allow for more selective privacy controls.

Why don't I just change my privacy preferences within the alumni directory? Sure, I could do that. I can pull my home address and phone number out of the directory. But I'm not going to. Then my friends with legitimate reasons to contact me can't find me. He wins, I lose. To be honest, I am not at all uncomfortable with having my information in the directory. However, it is the fact that I don't have full control over my information that makes me uncomfortable.

During this year's CARE Week, I challenge BC to put control back into the hands of the survivor. I challenge BC to update its technology, both in the alumni community and in Agora, to allow more selective privacy preferences. The technology is out there somewhere.

I challenge BC to protect survivors. I am one person with one voice, but I will fight for the thousands of people like me, both students and alumni, who have been hurt by other members of the BC community. I will not sit back and be complacent any longer. I will not be silent. I will fight until the violence stops. I will believe in hope.

Karen Stamm BC '03

Intellectual Integrity I believe Judah Landzberg should do a bit more research on the history of the Black Power Movement if he wants to properly summarize its ideologies. In the interest of intellectual integrity, I feel compelled to correct a few inaccuracies, leaving deeper issues to the certainly forthcoming response from Boston College's AHANA community. The Raised Fist emblem was associated with subverting authority, but the author ought to question the legitimacy of this authority. And, as for raising one race over another, there were many positions taken by various movements during that time; that particular notion of black racial supremacy was held by some but certainly not all, and certainly not by the Black Panther Party. The final formal position of the BPP before its radical decline was an idea called "intercommunalism." Grounded in civil rights and self-defense, the first bulletpoint of their platform affirms "freedom; the power to determine the destiny of the black and oppressed communities." The BPP is credited with giving rise to and cooperating with various other movements, like the Red, Yellow, and White Panthers. As legend goes, the seed of the BPP germinated when Bobby Seale and Huey Newton of Oakland, Calif., read Frantz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth. That text contains an extremely complex psychosocial theory of decolonization of the subject and quest for third-world sovereignty, remembered for its detailed understanding of the concept of legitimate violence. Violence was heavily theorized and analyzed in the Black Power movement; it is poor scholarship to denigrate a generation of thinkers who advocated meaningful and conscious violence. As for comparing the swastika incident with the raised fist posters, I think the author should prepare for more intense studies if he wants to compare such things. I'm sure there are several social theorists and philosophers who can help him understand how the non-organized, sporadic, and cowardly (i.e., no one has come forward to claim those swastikas) actions of white supremacy have little in common with the intentional propaganda of a highly visible minoritarian-community-organized campus group. Finally, the author's use of such terms as "racial equality," "counter-racism," and such worry me a bit, as each term is loaded with ideological import. I would strongly suggest that the author consider visiting the Sr. Thea Bowman House located at 72 College Rd., or perhaps attending a few TRUTH-sponsored events to educate himself. If he truly wishes to engage in critical thinking and challenge his own assumptions, he must have the courage to distrust his instincts and feel uncomfortable. I don't recall the exact quote, but I paraphrase Fanon when he implored, "Oh my body, make me always a man who asks questions!"

Wesley Saavedra is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences.