Rowing team discipline unfair
I am a third-year member of AU’s Club Rowing team. Recently the team was disciplined by the Office of Recreational Sports and Fitness for an AUTO van-related infraction that occurred in the first week of September. While the team accepts responsibility for the incident, we strongly believe that the punishment meted out to us by Recreational Sports and Fitness Director Jocelyn Hill is beyond reason and will cause undue harm to the viability of the team.
On Sept. 5, an AU Crew member driving an AUTO van was involved in a minor accident. No one was harmed and damage to the other vehicle was minimal. The AUTO van was not damaged. The team’s driver exchanged information with the other party, notified Public Safety and left a voicemail with AUTO. Due to the well-publicized confusion at AUTO early this semester, no one at that office became aware of this incident in good time. Additionally, the team’s driver, we would later learn, was not technically certified. He had taken and passed the test and completed all the necessary paperwork, but for some reason yet to be made clear to either the team or to the driver himself, his certification had not been officially established by AUTO. The driver did not inform the team’s leadership of the incident.
We acknowledge that we are fault in this situation. Our executive board should not have assumed that the offending driver was certified until we received an official confirmation of the fact. The driver should not have assumed that his voicemail to the AUTO office would suffice in informing them of the incident. He should also have informed the team’s leadership. This situation could have been averted or mitigated had any one of these mistakes not been made.
As punishment, AU Crew has been forbidden from competing between Sept. 29 and Nov. 1. As Director Hill knew before rendering her decision, all but two of our races this semester occur between those dates. Chief among them is the famous Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston, the largest regatta in North America and one we were fortunate to gain entry to, given the event’s lottery system of admission. The novice squad’s first, second and third races also fall within this period. These novices have yet to race. Usually the team would get to appeal the decision, but Director Hill has cancelled that appeal, as is her prerogative.
The punishment does not fit the crime. While again we acknowledge making mistakes which led to an unauthorized driver using an AUTO van, the effective termination of the team’s fall season is a wildly inappropriate response by the Recreational Sports administration. Our transgression involved no mischief. We were under the honest impression that all our drivers were certified. Now we have learned that we are to be kicked while on the ground, as Student Activities is planning to deny us AUTO vans altogether for an unspecified amount of time.
AU Crew is a club of about 25 dedicated student athletes. Our workout schedule is designed with the aim of racing on weekends. Absent that goal, it will be difficult to maintain boat lineups and have team members apply themselves fully. What, with our oh-dark-thirty practices, p.m. workouts and the general unfamiliarity of the sport, retaining members is a challenge all by itself even in good years. Regattas are exciting and memorable events — the culmination of weeks of hard training. Without them, younger members may find the necessary motivation difficult to muster. And without AUTO vans, our ability to practice on the water for future races will be greatly reduced. Maryland, Virginia Tech and George Mason will be out there getting stronger and faster every day while AU Crew languishes for the wrath of a school bureaucracy that has lost its mind.
It is mostly beyond the scope of this letter to speculate on the motives of the folks at Recreational Sports and Student Activities, but one wonders whether those capricious shufflers-of-paper have forgotten that at least a part of their job is to advocate for the students and student groups and to adjudicate their cases fairly.
Philip Piatt Junior, SPA
Two weeks later, Joe Wenner still wrong
In response to Joe Wenner's article "President Carter, Please do America a Big Favor — Sit Down, Shut Up" in the Sept. 21 issue of The Eagle.
Joe Wilson's disregard for respect reflects centuries of racism that have been passed down to him from his forefathers. He has grown up in a society where it seems acceptable to talk down to those in marginalized groups and treat them as if they are inferior. Whether he does this consciously or not, his actions demonstrate racism that has, overtime, been internalized to such an extent that it becomes difficult to notice. Luckily for Wilson, he lives in a world that gives him privileges for being white. He has been afforded the opportunity to not think of how President Barack Obama and others in marginalized groups live.
Disrespecting the President seemed to come natural to Wilson as he acted with instinct. Such instinct again reflects a subconscious belief that he calls the shots for marginalized groups.
His message was something to the effect of "I'm right because I'm white." By yelling out of turn, Wilson forced Obama to listen to what he had to say, reminiscent of slave-owners demanding the attention of slaves. Wilson's behavior was similar to Rep. Geoff Davis' rhetoric. Davis' reference to Obama as "that boy" may seem harmless enough. When one takes a deeper look, however, it is easy to find the racial undertones that exist. Referring to African-Americans as "boy," white slave-owners degraded slaves by creating a sense of inferiority. Such thoughts carry over into modern society and become so commonplace that it becomes difficult to notice their racist origins. Wilson himself might not recognize the racism that is represented through his act of calling out. This does not suggest that his act was not racist, but rather that our society has become too numb, stubborn or naive to notice subtle acts of racism.
I find it extremely troubling that you believe Carter and others who are like-minded should quiet their thoughts on such an important issue. Racism permeates every inch of American society. By ignoring it, you are undermining its power and subsequently undermining the experiences of marginalized groups who face oppression and discrimination on a daily basis. Silencing racial forums does not solve the problem of racism nor does it make it disappear. Such silence rather fuels racism and allows those in power to keep power while further oppressing those with none. If our country were to follow the direction you seem to be promoting, I fear that we would backtrack to the days where only the voices of those with power are heard and respected. The days of slavery, forced segregation, and internment camps are not far behind when you ignore racism and how it affects everyone involved. Silencing issues that need to be confronted is perhaps the most damaging decision that could ever be made. Admitting that some in this country benefit from the oppression of others is not an easy task to do, as it requires one to take personal responsibility for devastating conditions. Denying its existence, however, worsens the problem and, while it may momentarily appease the minds of some, hurts society as a whole by denying equal rights to all citizens.
In the words of Elie Wiesel, "I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." Carter took a social, political, and personal risk by voicing an opinion that needed to be heard. The problem is not that he voiced his thoughts but rather the backlash that ensued. The fact that many were outraged by Carter's remarks suggests a sense of defensiveness on their part. People do not want to admit that they are part of the problem so, rather than confronting it, they choose to ignore it or pronounce falsity. I can't fault you for growing up in a society where discussions on racism are frowned upon and thus create uproar when interjected in the media. I can only hope that you take a closer look at why certain commentators were so quick to quiet Carter by calling his opinions false and what it has to say for our society that runs on structural racism.
Casey Pladus Sophomore, School of Communication
