To the Editor:
In discussions of recent campus events, some students have spoken contemptuously of Hanover Police and their recent efforts to crack down on underage drinking on campus; another argued that Philip Aubart '10 was hateful and treacherous for reporting cocaine use to the police. A glance at the reader comments on The Dartmouth's website shows even harsher opinions. Is the hostility misdirected?
We have a democratic system in order to garner input from citizens, and this input is fashioned into the laws we are all expected to uphold, which is what Aubart, Safety and Security and Hanover Police have done. But what, then, of the civil disobedience of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement? They broke the laws because they did not agree with them, forcing society to confront those unjust laws. By serving underage individuals, are the fraternities standing up for something in which they believe? Are students who use illegal drugs social pioneers? No. Their clandestineness and unwillingness to take responsibility for their own actions simply reinforce the negative image of Dartmouth students and the Greek system; both seem disrespectful, hedonistically self-serving and devoid of any political clout.
If you disagree with the law, then challenge it by writing to your governor or by protesting, not by ostracizing those who serve it. It is unjust to persecute those who abide by the system that we have set up as a community. Attack, instead, either those who break the rules that govern that system or, if that seems inappropriate, change the system itself to better reflect our values.
