To the Editor:
I generally believe that cartoons should be allowed to stand or fall on their own merits, without additional commentary. But David Berenson's "Bear Bones" cartoon in the Oct. 13 issue of The Dartmouth accomplishes two things to which I would like to respond. First, it appears to me to present an "Afro" as the antithesis of female beauty; although Berenson is entitled to his opinions, I cannot help regarding this reference to the hairstyle once characteristic of a particular American ethnic group as pejorative. Others may disagree, but I don't think my reaction is an unreasonable stretch.
Second, he has perpetuated the misunderstanding invented by an off-campus student publication that the "dummy" entry in the "Green Book" is intended to entrap students. "Dummy" entries in campus directories are a common practice (at the University of Chicago, it is used in the faculty/staff directory). Their purpose is to prevent the use of directory information by those outside of the College (for example, to create commercial mailing lists). The second page of the "Green Book" states explicitly that the information contained within it may be used by members of the Dartmouth College community "in conducting the affairs of Dartmouth College and for other non-commercial purposes [italics in original]." Even the most literal reading of "affairs" would legitimate the use to which Berenson's cartoon character has put the directory. "Blanche Hill" never had a computer account; she does, however, have an address which enables the College Editor's office to determine whether someone from outside the College has illegally invaded the privacy of the Class of '99 by using the directory for commercial purposes. That is, the "dummy " entry is intended to protect student privacy -- we do not give out lists of student names to the public, nor do I think that students would wish us to.
I hope that it will not disappoint students to learn that deans have better things to do with their time than to entrap students in "forbidden" behavior. It is a paranoid fantasy to imagine that deans are monitoring student Blitzmail in order to intercept their social plans -- plainly stated, we don't usually care.
Almost without exception, our knowledge of infractions of the Community Standards of Conduct comes from reports by Safety & Security officers, who are responding either to student phone calls or behavior that they observe while on routine patrols of campus. Deans use their time primarily to help individual students capitalize on the academic resources of the campus and to find ways to confront adversity, whether of an academic, social or medical nature.
I am confident that students will come to their own conclusions about both of these matters, as they invariably do about others. Those for whom these issues have generated questions about the role of deans in students' lives might, I hope, consider speaking with me or other deans directly about them.
