2008 Woodie Awards
Writer, Clarion lacks tact
Katie Dunker, Health Promotion Coordinator, and Lisa Ingarfield
Issue date: 5/15/07 Section: Letters to the Editor
Dear Clarion,
In response to the "Balancing work and See-saw-athon" article recently published, we'd like to briefly express our disappointment in the nature of a particular description used within the piece.
This article gave several pieces of sound advice regarding how students can enjoy spring quarter at DU. However, referencing that "Ladies, leave the pumps at home because Driscoll lawn's soft grass can't be expected to hold a heel, no matter how anorexic you might be," was in poor taste.
Mr. Blom, who wrote the article, apparently lacks the understanding of what it means to be slender versus anorexic. While I respect Mr. Blom's right to use descriptive language, making light of a serious mental health illness that plagues college campuses, DU being no exception, was out of line. In our society, men and women are constantly bombarded with images of what is "attractive" and "normal." By including a sexist and thoughtless sentence in this article the Clarion has shown little tact and is simply fulfilling the careless social constructs created by mass media. We expect more from the Clarion staff. In the future-stick to descriptive adjectives that do not stigmatize segments of our campus population.
Sincerely,
Katie Dunker, Health Promotion Coordinator, and Lisa Ingarfield
In response to the "Balancing work and See-saw-athon" article recently published, we'd like to briefly express our disappointment in the nature of a particular description used within the piece.
This article gave several pieces of sound advice regarding how students can enjoy spring quarter at DU. However, referencing that "Ladies, leave the pumps at home because Driscoll lawn's soft grass can't be expected to hold a heel, no matter how anorexic you might be," was in poor taste.
Mr. Blom, who wrote the article, apparently lacks the understanding of what it means to be slender versus anorexic. While I respect Mr. Blom's right to use descriptive language, making light of a serious mental health illness that plagues college campuses, DU being no exception, was out of line. In our society, men and women are constantly bombarded with images of what is "attractive" and "normal." By including a sexist and thoughtless sentence in this article the Clarion has shown little tact and is simply fulfilling the careless social constructs created by mass media. We expect more from the Clarion staff. In the future-stick to descriptive adjectives that do not stigmatize segments of our campus population.
Sincerely,
Katie Dunker, Health Promotion Coordinator, and Lisa Ingarfield
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