Letters to the Editor

An offensive display To the Editor:

This letter is in regards to Saturday's Homecoming football game and the Penn Band performance. During halftime, the Penn Band shuffled onto Franklin Field and celebrated women at Penn by making a giant "36-24-36." During the human formation, there was a loudspeaker announcement that said something to the effect of, "We celebrate the important contributions of 125 years of women at Penn."

I find this horribly inappropriate. Homecoming is supposed to be a time of celebration, and 125 years of women at Penn was supposed to recognize the struggles and accomplishments of Penn women. Reducing our work -- past, present, and future -- to breast, hip and waist measurements is disgusting. This type of stereotyping and oppression has led to women's continued objectification. To see this type of abuse paraded across what I have come to know as my "own" Franklin Field is both disheartening and disturbing.

I cannot imagine what planning committee allowed for this to happen but I would hope that this type of degradation not happen in the future.

Kandice Zeman

College '01

No offense intended To the Editor:

We, the student board of the Penn Band, would like to clarify any misunderstandings that may have resulted from our performance this past weekend, and publicly apologize to any members of the Penn community who may have been offended by our halftime show. In retrospect, we realize that parts of it may have seemed inappropriate to some members of the audience.

While celebrating the place of women within our own organization, we were poking fun at the fact that Princeton did not admit women as undergrads until 30 years ago. Perhaps the inconsistencies of the Franklin Field sound system made it difficult for some to hear the joke, or, more broadly, an unfamiliarity with our genre of performance caused some members of the audience to misinterpret our formation "36-24-36."

We never intended the joke to insult, belittle or objectify the women of Penn. Like any good-hearted Penn students, we simply were trying to make fun of Princeton.

The entire show was written by students, both male and female, none of whom were offended by its content. We feel each person has a different definition as to what is appropriate and what is not, and we did not think that this show crossed that point for the majority of the Penn community. It was honestly meant to celebrate women within our own organization, and, of course, at Penn.

However, we do understand how certain aspects of the show, particularly the formation, could have been misconstrued, and certainly regret having performed it as such.

We are truly sorry if our show offended any members of the Penn community. If you have any more questions or concerns, please contact us at pennband-board@dolphin.upenn.edu.

Laura Magnotti

College '02

The writer is president of the Penn Band.

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