op-ed Athletes are not the problem

Author: Dave Lee

For the last two weeks, the issue of homophobia and hate speech on the Middlebury campus seems to have taken center stage. After recent graffiti in Ross, Starr and other college spaces, I truly commend the administration and student body for their immediate reaction to the onset of hate speech and, more importantly, the commitment shown to making this place as accepting as possible.

However, I believe that the campus reaction has now stepped over the line. I walked into the library yesterday to view the brand new display that asks "What Can Middlebury College Do to End Hate Speech?" and what do I find? In typed, boldfaced letters, I read the statement "Stop Athletic Recruiting."

I am a senior here at Middlebury and happened to have played four years of varsity soccer. For the last two weeks, I have heard two professors and literally dozens of students joking that this problem could be solved by "not letting athletes in" or "getting rid of athletics entirely." This is an obvious allusion to the idea that those of us who take part in sports are somehow inherently more homophobic and hateful.

How can the Middlebury College community, a community which prides itself on being "accepting" and "tolerant," have the audacity to let such blaring examples of stereotyping and intolerance go unnoticed? This display is not only a complete embarrassment to the College, but it also takes away any and all credibility from the Middlebury Open-Queer Alliance and other gay and lesbian activists on campus. Do people really think that the best way to fight homophobia on campus is to alienate and degrade varsity athletes, who make up nearly 30 percent of the Middlebury student population?

In a sense, I wish I was speaking only for myself. In that case I would be content knowing that I was the only one who has seen this campus spiral into an abyss of political correctness and veiled intolerance. This, unfortunately, is not the case. There are hundreds of student-athletes at this college who feel the same way I do about the stereotyping of athletes and this is the absolute final straw. The fact that Middlebury not only allows, but actually condones these types of responses is so ludicrous and hypocritical that it makes me want to tear the entire display down - of course I wouldn't because I would immediately be charged with a "hate crime" and swept under the rugs of Old Chapel with the rest of the students who don't hold their same points of view.

The administration and those involved in the fight against homophobia have made it very clear that the rights of free speech don't extend to our secluded spot in the Champlain Valley. Saying "I Hate Gay People" and "I Hate Athletes" is essentially the same thing. Both statements isolate and degrade a group of people based on how they live their lives here at Middlebury. However, one statement is treated as hate speech and spurs dozens of deliberative dialogues while the other is greeted warmly by professors and non-student-athletes alike with a knowing glance and a chuckle. If I wrote on this very same board "Stop Accepting Gay People," would this be ok? Of course not.

In the process of trying to protect the rights of the homosexual population and those who fight for these rights, the administration and student body has, in effect, alienated almost one third of the entire college community. Personally, I am a firm believer in gay rights and also agree that hate speech should not be tolerated at this college. When this fight for enlightenment chooses to degrade and stereotype other groups of people, however, I can't help but be disappointed in the entire cause.

Dave Lee is a senior

from Mendham, N.J.