News All This Fuss Over A Plastic Cup...

[Orglethorp]

I've been debating whether or not I should enlist the opinions of the community here over this local news issue for over a week now, but a letter to the editor appearing in yesterday's campus news paper written by an acquaintance of mine made me a little angry. Sorry if this isn't the best board for it, but I definitely think it falls under the category of "News & Debates."

I attend Memorial University of Newfoundland (MUN), in the faculty of engineering, and we've recently come under fire from media sources across the country. Why? Someone was offended by the slogan on a novelty drinking mug handed out at the traditional start-of-semester off-campus engineering drinking party.

On the first Friday of both the fall and winter semester every year since the 1970s, the Engineering Student Society organizes safe transportation and secures a large outdoor venue for all interested Engineering students (who are of legal drinking age) to come out, get drunk, and mix with their future colleagues. ID is checked when students get on the bus. The event is (rather unfortunately) known as D-Day. I thoroughly disagree with the naming choice, but this is what the event has been called for over 40 years now. That's not the point of this story.

This year, the plastic novelty mugs handed out featured a cartoon drawing of a sexy female character that resembles a cross between Betty Boop and Jessica Rabbit. The slogan is "If she's thirsty, give her the D(day)." It's catchy, it's meant to call out the current pop culture issues regarding rape culture, and it makes a play on the event name. I agree that it's not the best one they've ever used, but I can recognize a joke when I see one. People are losing their minds complaining about this, and I just don't get it. A young woman I've come to know in the last year wrote a letter to the editor of our campus news paper, titled Absolutely Ashamed. The line that got me going was this: "Women who allow this type of behaviour are just as bad as the men who started to make women second-class citizens in the first place."

Hold up, girl. The fact that I can take this joke for the innocent play on words it was intended to be makes me sexist? Really?

A commentor on this letter (on the paper's website) claims that while the joke is sexist in their opinion, the issue is actually that it made the event unsafe for the few ladies of engineering in attendance.

Again, hold up! MUN is among the top in Canada in terms of the percentage of female students in Engineering programs. We're hardly an extreme minority. I also truly believe that we've got some of the most genuinely kind and respectful young men in our program.

Here are some facts that everyone complaining about this issue forgets to mention in their arguments:

- These mugs were handed out at a private party that was neither held on campus, nor run by the faculty. It's not a school matter, nor should it have ever become national news.
- 6 of the 14 members of the Society executive board who voted on this design are female. That's nearly half. If they had been offended, this would not have passed.
- To the extent of my knowledge, no one at the event indicated that they were offended, and no one was assaulted, let alone because the mugs told them to behave in a such a way.
- Alternative slogan suggestions from those who are offended (mostly arts students and non-students) such as "If she'd thirsty, give her water" completely miss the fact that the slogan plays on the event name, and that the purpose of the event is to drink beer.

I'm a fiercely independent woman who's always looking out for the rights and well-being of others, regardless of their sex. I think the fact that I can recognize that this was a joke and shrug it off shows my maturity, and does not suggest that I'm sexist against my own sex. Quite frankly, I'm feeling more marginalized and attacked by those who are making such a big deal out of this than I ever was by the mug. If a woman who has been raped can laugh at this joke, then it's really not that bad!

My opinion would be different if anyone had been offended, assaulted or otherwise marginalized at the event / by the mugs, but they weren't. Do I like the slogan? No. Do I think this is such a big deal? Not at all. I think this has been blown way out of proportion.

I also think that if people really want to complain about the society's biannual private party, they should attack the event name (D-Day). That is what I call offensive and worthy of making a fuss over.

What do you think?

 

[ronin47]

"If she's thirsty, give her the D(day)."

I'm afraid I can't comment on whether or not this is something worth getting so upset about, simply because, I don't get it. :confused:

 

[Orglethorp]

I didn't get it at first either, actually. I thought it's just because I don't normally think with a dirty mind as a default, but I'm beginning to think it might be a regional thing. "The D" refers to a certain male body part.

 

[Hashi]

"The D" refers to a certain male body part.

Oh... I'm sorry but I was appalled by this. I don't think it's been blown out of proportion if there's a fuss about it.

I think considering whether anyone at the event was harmed or offended isn't the point. Something like this isn't likely to incite a crime at a party. But I think it is likely to affect attitudes generally, and can only reinforce objectification of women. Even if it's on such a small scale, I don't think it should be happening at all.

It's objectifying because of the combination of:
- the stereotyped sexy visual
- the use of "she" and "her" - making a woman literally an object in the grammatical sense and not a person in her own right
- representing the woman/women as something you do something with - your decision, your action, not hers
- the implications of the pun and the action being something sexual and, while not inherently without compliance/choice, not inherently with compliance/choice either
- the association with "giving her what she needs" - and the reader deciding what the woman "needs" (which is in one sense sexual), not the woman
- I think there's also a subtle, unintended association with getting a woman drunk and taking advantage of the situation. Others may feel this is too subtle, but if you think about how effective advertising can be in creating subtle associations in people's minds, I think it's significant.

Seeing things as OK if intended as humorous is risky in my opinion. It's the excuse that's always been used (thankfully at least less so now) for rape jokes, racist jokes, and all sorts of offensive statements.

I also think that some women approving, including women who have been raped, doesn't matter. If a significant number of women - and men - who had no involvement in it thought it was fine, that would be one thing. I'm not clear whether that's the case or not.

But in the case of women and men who were involved to think it's fine, I think maybe you don't have enough distance from it. You're considering it knowing the intentions behind it. Someone else is only going by their reaction to what's in front of them.

People can also be very influenced by a group decision, on a subconscious level possibly even adjusting the view they might hold if the group as a whole took a different view, because on some level they're thinking along the lines of "If five/eight/ten other people think X, then X obviously must be right"..

I think this can be especially so if some people are now feeling under attack, and the attack might be wrongly directed (at them personally, or at what could happen at the event). I think it's a shame those things were brought up because to me it confuses the issue. To me, the issue is that a group of good people made an error of judgement, and that the mug is offensive and likely to reinforce negative attitudes, whatever the original intention was.

I'm afraid I don't see how on earth it calls out pop culture/rape culture. Could you say in what way you think it does this to see that image and slogan together on a mug?

I don't think the people who made the decision or approved of it are bad people or sexist. I do think the decision was a mistake.

 

[Kintsugi]

Orgle, I was an undergrad, and a bunch of my friends hosted regular on-campus public yet unofficial parties (not hosted in any way by a school organization or student life) that were extremely popular. One time they did one called "thug life." The poster features a baseball mitt, a ball cap, and a dollar sign.

The whole campus FLIPPED OUT. Professors were writing OpEds about it for months. One girl who was wonderful and I loved dearly crazily did it for her Anthropology DISSERTATION and got away with it. Why? Because the title "thug life" was apparently racist.

What?
I'll add a bunch of students came to this party dressed as 1920s Irish/Italian gangsters.

People are just nuts sometimes and put their agenda into everything that could be remotely construed as oppressive.

I agree that the name of the party is really the story. But hey, it's a private party. So what gives? Does that mean I can't have a private bachelorette party with a department I work with on my property where I have a penis-shaped cake or a stripper we demoralize? Not that that's my idea of fun. But if it was, who cares?

It's not like these students had to attend this private off-campus party. Their GPAs weren't at risk if they didn't use the offending cups.

Sorry that was long. This stuff is ridiculous. What's *really* offensive is that media is okay with covering this fluff but not real issues of sexism and sex-biased violence.

 

[Kintsugi]

@Hashi I think you're correct that this was a judgment lapse, and I also agree that there are some harmful implications to the slogan. But I also think that there are a lot of other harmful norms that people could get worked up about that are systemically supported in a way that this little thing is a part of and fuels but that are more pressing and much more the responsibility of "the people."

Like people should be outraged at persisting statistical disparity in wages based on gender. We could create better social policies to attempt to end that. Or marketing on a much grander scale than a little party's slogan, like how if women aren't just assumed to be homemakers in advertising, then marketers misguidedly make men look completely stupid so that women are just "helping the helpless," so to speak. Oh, men can't help that they're so clueless, I just have to save him from himself by doing it.

I just think it's easier for people as a large group to pick fights over relatively minor stuff rather than attacking much bigger related issues.

One thing I was confused about, though, @Orglethorp , is how this is "calling out" rape culture? By mimicking it?

I have a suggestion that proves Canadian newspapers should hire me... They could have had a pretty girl sitting across from a young man at a candlelit table with wine that reads the same thing. Makes me think of d(ate) day personally.

*shrug*

 

[ronin47]

The problem is it is completely open to interpretation. It is an inherently subjective slogan. I didn't even understand what it was supposed to say let alone communicate because it is so arbitrary. Quite frankly I think if you are going to distribute this kind of innuendo you've got to be prepared for people to take it the wrong way.

Case in point. A guy walks into a store wearing a shirt that says "I love balls."

Now, I think there's a million and one ways to interpret that. I walked right up to him and asked him about and he said he got it at an event that was raising funds for and awareness of testicular cancer research and prevention.

So there, a vulgar comment, but the motivation behind it was completely honorable. But you might see how someone would look at it and think he was just some kind of masochistic pervert.

So, in short, those who chose to print and distribute the slogan need to take responsibility for it.

 

[cherryblossom]

What do you think?

Now that I understand the innuendo of the slogan, I'm totally with Hashi. I think the 'joke' is entirely in bad taste, I can totally see why it has offended people.

Clearly the press had enough of a story to print it, which suggests that someone (or perhaps more than one person) who attended the party chose to inform the press of this incident, presumably because they were offended or deemed the slogan to be in poor taste.

Regardless of whether this was a 'private party' and off campus, it was organised by a Student Society, and as such they where representing the University. Education, is in the public interest, so that makes this sort of incident newsworthy.

Not only where the Student Society representing the University, but they invited a whole lot of people that they didn't know to join the party. It was a very bad judgement call to place a potentially offensive slogan, that had no common ground with the group of people attending. I don't think it is in any way similar to an individual holding a private party for a people they know well. What a shame, the Student Society couldn't have come up with some sort of engineering or student based joke /slogan to use instead.

Also, having a sexist slogan which objectifies woman at a party for engineers (traditionally a male orientated domain) makes this whole scenario even worse in my opinion. I just hope that the organisers, instead of trying to defend their decision, accept that is was in bad taste and apologise.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Poor taste. It's effectively saying "she's thirsty? Cum in her mouth" (oral sex). Yeah, a bit too much for my tastes, but fully expected from college frats and sororities (I went to one of the biggest party schools on the east coast but wasn't a part of the party scene)

 

[rainy_daze]

Why? Someone was offended by the slogan on a novelty drinking mug

I haven't read the whole post yet as I write this, but seriously Orgle, my brain is already screaming at the fact of people being offended about things way too easily, and media sources across your country printing stories about a cup. Seriously - that just isn't news. It irks me. I'm annoyed by these stories in my country (the silly ones that are not newsworthy) and on your behalf as an engineering student whose university is getting pelted by stories printed.

It's not a school matter, nor should it have ever become national news.

Exactly.

the purpose of the event is to drink beer.

This made me giggle.

I'm going to come across as pretty naive, but it only became an innuendo for me when the "D day" is printed on the mug. Before that, when I hear D-Day, I'm thinking of a military reference. Others may disagree, but I don't find it offensive. I think it's daft humour. Really, if that offends you, then the stuff that is really sexist must make your head explode. I do get offended by a culture that treats women as being unequal, inferior, unworthy of the same opportunities as men, as sexual objects, and the list could go on. A daft Jessica Rabbit/Betty Boop-esque cup for a university party? There are bigger things to get offended about, and a stupid cup is the least of things that happen to or are said about females to get vocal about. If I was that offended by the cup, I would have channelled my feminist anger into something else,

@Hashi: I do agree with a lot of your post

I just think it's easier for people as a large group to pick fights over relatively minor stuff rather than attacking much bigger related issues

and I think that is the best point made on the thread.

I know people are offended at the cup and calling the party D-Day, but I'm not. As Orgle said, it's a party, women were involved in designing the cup and there were women there, and the only purpose of the event is to drink beer. I guess I find the reaction to it blown out of proportion. It's not like the engineering students are against women or something. It is about what was the intention, and it was to give away a free cup, promoting their event/highlighting it and making a silly joke with a catchy picture. Geez.

Are there people who consider that cup to be a rape culture slogan? Is it offensive now to make a stupid joke?

Are people offended by SlutWalk, because the use of the horrible word in the title? From wikipedia: "Participants protest against explaining or excusing rape by referring to any aspect of a woman's appearance, and call for an end to rape culture."

 

[Privateer]

What's wrong with calling it 'D-Day'? Is this some vicarious civilian over-touchie-feelyness about a certain day in 1944 or something else? 'D-Day' is just a term that means 'the day that X event takes place' and nothing more, except in the way that 'Ground Zero', meaning the epicentre of an event, has also been adopted by the press to refer to a single use of the term.

There's no need for pantie-bunching, surely? Americans seem to be so very sensitive and lacking in humour about absolutely everything these days. Always looking for something to be offended by.

It's not good for you, you know, as a culture or as individuals.

 

[Orglethorp]

While D-Day does tend to be used to describe any "day that X takes place," true, I find it disrespectful to take a word/phrase commonly associated with a high profile battle wherein many lives were lost and apply it to a gathering of drunk 20-somethings who attend a university that is named in remembrance of the soldiers of both World Wars. I'm also formerly a history student, and that D-Day is always going to be the first thing I think of upon hearing the phrase.

It's also not necessarily an American thing to be offended by the misuse of such words. I'm Canadian, myself.