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Editorial Board LXXXVIII JUSTIN THRIFT Editor-in-Chief
Illustrator’s Corner:
NELL O’CONNOR Managing Editor SARA CAHILL MARRON News Editor MARK MCDONALD General Manager
FLAMES OF THE TORCH
torchonline.com
The TORCH
27 Oct. 2010
OPINION
A warning sign for St. John’s This week the TORCH received two anonymous letters to the editor concerning the debate over recognizing the homosexual community on campus. While one of these letters addressed the writer’s opinion in a respectful and professional manner, the other letter was offensive in nature and disturbing to every staff member who read it. “It is so disgusting how you and your trashy newspaper are promoting homosexuality,” reads the letter, “The sad part is that young people today believe that homosexuality is just a life style. Well, it is… an abnormal lifestyle.” The letter goes on — in poorly written English — to belittle the TORCH’s endorsement of an official LGBTQ organization at St. John’s and the “joke that is in the White House.” But for many of us, the most disturbing part of this unsigned, typed letter was not the discriminatory tone or hateful intentions — it was the fact that this letter arrived in our mailbox via another St. John’s department. The letter came in an official St. John’s envelope, without postage. Recent events at Rutgers University have shaken the nation, especially the LGBTQ community. This letter is proof that similar events could easily occur on St. John’s campuses and that the feelings behind the hateful acts that drove Tyler Clementi to suicide are present even in our own community. The letter claims that there is no place at a Catholic institution for a homosexual organization. In addition, St. John’s has restricted their recognition of the LGBTQ community to their Safe Zone program, which is extremely limited in scope. However, there is no reason a Catholic institution cannot also be an
institution that recognizes, protects and works with their gay community. DePaul University, the largest Catholic institution in America and St. John’s Vincentian sister school, has a flourishing Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning and Allies (LGBTQA) Student Services. According to its website, the office provides DePaul’s community with various programs, services and events that are reflective of the needs of the students who come to it. The University also offers a minor in LGBTQ studies, introduced only five years ago. We urge St. John’s, now more than ever before, to seriously reconsider its official stance on an LGBTQ organization. It needs to wake from its slumber and confront the issues that are staring it in the face. Doing so will only enhance the college experience of all St. John’s students. The University can no longer afford to hide behind the veil of narrow ideas. The letter we received makes it all the more clear that not addressing the issue does as much damage as encouraging such ideals. While we understand the tough position St. John’s administrators are in, we urge them to think of the students who make up the LGBTQ community. The University should have the same courage it does in coming to school each day by defending the safety and peace of mind of all. We fear that letters like the one we received this week are a scary reminder of a specific and serious social mindset that exists today. The University needs to do its part to keep these beliefs from permeating its intellectual community. By taking precautions now, St. John’s can prevent serious issues from arising in the future.
TORCH ILLUSTRATION/MICHAEL MONTIJO
TORCH ILLUSTRATION/JAMES KERRIGAN
Letters to the editor To the Editor:
EDITORIAL POLICY Editorials are the opinions of the Editorial Board of The TORCH. Columns are the opinions of the author(s) and are not necessarily those of The TORCH. Opin-
ions expressed in editorials, columns, letters or cartoons are not necessarily those of the student body, faculty or administrations of St. John’s University.
TO CONTRIBUTE Mail letters to: The TORCH Letters, St. John’s University, 8000 Utopia Pkwy, Jamaica, NY 11439 E-mail letters to: torcheditorials@gmail.com
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It was truly moving to see the arrogance and disconnect from constituents (and possibly reality) demonstrated by our democratic congressmen at St. John’s University’s federal candidates forum monday night. In particular, I enjoyed the refined arrogance of Congressman Gary Ackerman, an aged arrogance from 14 terms of ripening in the halls of Congress. He has mastered the art of being insulting, demeaning and pompous simultaneously, all with a smile on his face. Ackerman demonstrated these abilities best when he sunk his teeth into one of our student panelists like Edward Cullen on prom night. It was amazing to watch Ackerman insult someone a quarter (?) of his age, based off a question he twisted the context of, and then used the non-contextualized question
to benefit himself. A true artist! It is no wonder our current Congress has served our citizens so well, just look at the outstanding representatives we elect. I find it baffling that some candidates advocate term limits; Congressman Ackerman has served 28 years and is still able to outline his beliefs and policy objectives with the word “yes,” such as his beliefs on the legalization of marijuana. There has never been a better time to vote Democrat. If our country is to continue to prosper as we have over the past 4 years, we must continue to elect arrogant, disconnected, democratic officials, like Ackerman. Kyle T. Collins President College Republicans St. John’s University