In a recent op-ed, "Ain't Nuthin' But a Blame Game" (May 2), Michael Kreicher '08 concluded that blaming hip-hop music for the problems of racism, sexism, homophobia and violence in society is a convenient but invalid way to address these very real problems. I agree with his arguments, but I would like to focus more specifically on the issue of sexism. While any attempt to address sexism at Dartmouth and beyond is a good and necessary thing, the blanket-statement, activist style in which sexism is often addressed needs to change.
There has been plenty of good discussion on campus and in the country at large lately concerning sexism-related issues. In a forum sponsored by Dartmouth's Sexual Assault Awareness Program and the Afro-American Society, Dartmouth students discussed the film "Beyond Beats & Rhymes" and its examination of the effects that rap music have on our society.
In the national arena, Russell Simmons' Hip-Hop Summit Action Network issued a statement in late April that called for the recording industry to bleep out misogynistic words in songs, arguing that such words are just as damaging as regular profanity. While I am a proponent of free speech, and I believe that artists should not be held to the same standards of truth and tastefulness as radio hosts like Don Imus, I think Simmons' proposal is a good one simply because it takes on some sort of civic responsibility for a widespread social problem.
However, Simmons' proposal is an example of the inefficiency of blanket activism. While bleeping out sexist words that are arguably more offensive than normal curse words is a positive gesture, it is not a very effective measure in combating sexism. Even when offensive words are bleeped out in songs, it is obvious to me what the original word was. For anyone older than age ten, bleeping out words really doesn't change the pervasiveness of racist, sexist or otherwise profane terms.
The reality is that Dartmouth students are young adults that refuse to let the recording industry teach them not to say the word "shit;" the mere idea of abstaining from cursing just because it is impolite is laughable for most. Since we take matters into our own hands in this regard, however, it is time for us to do this concerning matters of sexism as well.
Recently, I attended a Women In Leadership discussion, "Sexism in Society." Sadhana Hall, the assistant director of the Rockefeller Center, opened the discussion by sharing her experiences with sexism. She outlined a concept that is essential to the fight against sexism at Dartmouth and elsewhere today, encouraging us to constantly ask ourselves when we think we are faced with sexism, "is it my perception, or is it his or her intention?" This question is so important for Dartmouth students who seek to synthesize their own opinions from the evidence and various viewpoints available to them.
The question of perception was important to me during Convocation this past fall. As a freshman, I was excited about attending a school whose members had just welcomed me by dying their hair crazy colors and teaching me to Salty Dog. As a woman, hearing from the Student Body President that it would be next to impossible for me to be happy at Dartmouth glaringly contradicted everything I had experienced over the past week.
Tim Andreadis '07 was addressing a topic that varies greatly from situation to situation and from individual to individual. Personally, I do not find myself a victim of negative sexism on a daily basis. I do not believe that there's any one overriding source of sexism at Dartmouth, nor that there is any one overriding solution to sexism in the world.
That being said, I do think it is necessary for everyone to fight against sexism in his or her daily life. As Kreicher argues, hip-hop music is an easy scapegoat to blame for sexism in society; perhaps we need to examine the peers that we do allow to influence us every day. The fight against sexism needs to be an individual one. Only through constant self-examination and discussion can we define negative sexism, and only then can we pinpoint and address what each of us as individuals can do to improve everyone else's Dartmouth experience, regardless of whether we are male or female.
