This holiday season, I’m reminded of how lively campus becomes, and how various festive celebrations and traditions will take place in the next couple of weeks. But I’m also reminded of one tradition in particular that might bring feelings other than holiday joy – the annual ECO 101 streak, where a couple of men run into the lecture, wearing only shoes and festive head/neck wear, and throw candy to the crowd of students.
While this is an event that some of us might think of as a relatively harmless prank, a funny occurrence that livens up the mood of a mundane day in lecture, there are others who find it offensive, disruptive, and insensible.
As a result of witnessing it, some of us experience feelings of revulsion and extreme discomfort, find it difficult to concentrate on class afterwards because we are disturbed by what happened, or feel helpless because there was no way to avoid this when it occurred in a public lecture. We might be especially disturbed when we see people we know participating in the event.
Others of us hold it to be a wrongful action on the part of the participants and thus something that ought not to be continued. James Martin ‘GS mentions that by interrupting class, students are not “honoring the professor in his position.” Another friend who had witnessed the event last year was very disturbed by it and believed that the students participating were not respectful of the audience’s wishes.
Moreover, lewdness is a disorderly persons offense in New Jersey, and this occurrence satisfies all elements of a lewdness charge. Participating in this tradition is risky and symbolizes defiance for the law.
We as a campus pride ourselves in showing respect for all members of our community, especially towards those who might find certain controversial actions and behaviors offensive. We also pride ourselves on being a community that upholds the law; to knowingly break it is not in line with our principles. Nor should we seek to escape responsibility by running away from the scene after having caused a disruption, as seems to have been the case with perpetrators of this offense in past years.
Thus, I’m asking whoever is planning to organize or be involved in the event this year to seriously consider respecting their fellow students and the law by not doing so. While I am not aware of the motivations of students who participate, the reasons I’m giving demonstrate that an event like this isn’t in line with the commitments and traditions of the University and its community, and thus it ought not to happen again.
May we continue to spread holiday joy while being respectful of those around us.
Annie Lu is a computer science major from Brandon, Miss. She can be reached at daol@princeton.edu.
Read More
Sitting in at Princeton: proud past, shameful present
Keith Wailoo“To be sure, university leaders of the past were critical of students’ employment of sit-ins as a protest tactic, but they were willing to meet, debate, and — occasionally — even listen and change course.”
“To be sure, university leaders of the past were critical of students’ employment of sit-ins as a protest tactic, but they were willing to meet, debate, and — occasionally — even listen and change course.”
The ‘fun’ model just isn’t sustainable: a plea against hookup culture
Julianna Lee“Understanding and practicing commitment is key in forming and maintaining these relationships. Trust is essential. Making sacrifices for each other and for the family is necessary. If we don’t practice these skills now, we can’t expect to suddenly become good at them when the right time comes.”
“Understanding and practicing commitment is key in forming and maintaining these relationships. Trust is essential. Making sacrifices for each other and for the family is necessary. If we don’t practice these skills now, we can’t expect to suddenly become good at them when the right time comes.”
Faculty letter to U. admin calling for VP Calhoun’s resignation
Guest Contributors“We demand the immediate resignation of VP Calhoun, in whose leadership we have lost all faith following her untruthful and, in our opinion, deliberately misleading representation of student protesters, that has proven to be the real threat to the Princeton University community.”
"We demand the immediate resignation of VP Calhoun, in whose leadership we have lost all faith following her untruthful and, in our opinion, deliberately misleading representation of student protesters, that has proven to be the real threat to the Princeton University community."
