LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Author: [no author name found]

To The Editor:

The words and ideas in Kevin King's article titled "Pop Quiz: Who's Fighting Here?" from the March 6 edition of The Campus have found equality with murder, as they have uplifted the predator and vilified the victim. They have aided rapists on this campus, in their attempt to silence those they have violated, furthering the cycle of hatred and violence. It is true that not all men at this College are rapists, and no one is claiming that they are. However, one cannot deny the fact there are those who HAVE grotesquely and animalistically subjected others to the will of their depraved sexual desires, fueled by inadequacy. Because the majority of those on campus are not aware of this type of behavior, does not change the fact that it indeed happens, more regularly than the administration is willing to admit. After the article's masterful declaration, it was brought to my attention that individuals close to me have been subjected, in one form or another, to sexual assault while on campus. Kevin's words, in all likelihood, have made individuals ashamed concerning that which they could not control. They have provided a home of secrecy and soundlessness for females who would otherwise have sought out the justice they are owed.
When a woman is molested, raped, defamed or victimized, men in our College community need to understand that the next victum could be their mother, their daughter, their sister or their future wife. The consequences of rape will never be lived down or effectively repressed. They will not be contained within a vacuum, or fail to achieve actualization in the lives of those we love. When good people stand silent and do nothing, evil prevails.

— Gail Gaddis '04

Dear Editor,

Steve Clarke's editorial last week stood out to me as perhaps the most coherent, well-written and useful editorial I have read in The Campus in quite some time. His argument that protest does not amount to political action, and that our campus community as well as our academic experience would both be improved by a move towards more substantive debate over issues like global trade is, in my mind, very applicable to the state of affairs at Middlebury today.
Clarke has sent a message to those self-anointed "progressive" groups who seek time and again the moral-intellectual high ground in political debate. His message, the way I read it, says emphatically that the rest of us do read "protest signs" and hear "protest slogans," and that our apathy, silent frustration, or business can no longer be counted upon by the groups which employ them.
For his troubles, I rather expect Mr. Clarke will receive little in the way of thanks from the many students who read his editorial and breathed a sigh of relief that someone out there said exactly what they were thinking. A far more meaningful reward, however, might come in the form of civil and reasoned responses by his critics — but only time will tell.
So, in the spirit of Clarke's argument, I say this: may a new day dawn on political action at Middlebury College that seeks not to blame those with whom we disagree but rather to propose new ideas and persuade others of their strength.
— Kevin King '02

To submit a letter, click on LETTER SUBMISSIONS on the left