On Tuesday The Chronicle reported a disturbing case of vandalism on East Campus that was directed against the LGBT community. A phrase that can be considered nothing less than hate speech was reportedly scrawled on the Giles Dormitory bench late Saturday night and has now been on display for several days.
Whether or not any substantive change will come of it, it is always important to call a wrong a wrong, and the Duke community should recognize that this offensive act is inappropriate and intolerable on a college campus.
As opposed to the irreverent puns that have adorned East Campus benches for years, but like the swastikas written in Giles this October, this vandalism crossed a certain line in the sand. Whether or not it was meant as a prank, whether or not the vandal was drunk and whether or not he or she was affiliated with the University, this incident is inexcusable and reveals something about the Duke community.
Of course, the identity of the vandal or group responsible remains unknown. And it is impossible to know if there was malicious intent or if it was painted in thoughtless jest.
Indeed, it is very possible that the perpetrator may not have intended to cause any uproar or to make anyone feel out of place. But if this was the case, it is still no excuse. The vandal should have thought more seriously about what it means to write that word in public on a college campus.
And, sure, it all could have been a joke. But to dismiss it as such only encourages the notion that, in general, casual uses of derogatory terms for gay people are OK.
The word carries with it a long history as a hateful term for homosexuals. Its negative, even threatening, undertones are unequivocal. It is not a word to be used lightly. What does a closeted gay student think to himself when he reads that word on a dormitory bench?
What's more, the vandalism has remained intact and undisturbed for days, aside from some fliers taped to the bench beside it. And when most students read the news story in The Chronicle Tuesday, it seems they had a disturbing non-reaction.
Our collective indifference to this act shows something severely jaded about the Duke community. The vandalism apparently just did not come as much of a surprise.
This attitude is most disappointing in light of the fact that this year Duke was ranked in the top 20 most LGBT-friendly college campuses in the nation.
The programming and guest speakers hosted by the LGBT Center go a long way to help foster an open and accepting atmosphere on campus. Moreover, the e-mail circulated by LBGT Director Janie Long in response to the incident was a thoughtful and appropriate response-about as much as administration can do in a case like this.
But there is only so much that the University administration can do to foster the kind of tolerant environment that should exist on a college campus. The remaining share of the responsibility falls on us, the students, and we are not holding up our end of this bargain.
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