Student art exposes rise in campus hate by Miriam Gottfried News Staff A multi-faceted art project was erected on Tuesday night by students concerned with what they perceived to be an increased level of violence and expressed hatred on campus since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The project extended from the central locale of the campus center to Olin and college row “We’d been witnessing incident of violence after incident of violence, and we didn’t want to let them go by as if each weren’t important on its own,” said Nora Houseman ’02, a co-facilitator of the University’s Queer Alliance and the initial project instigator. One part of the art project was a series of webs made out of yarn wrapped around trees near the campus center and in front of college row and of Olin. The project also included a timeline of incidences of campus hate and violence and a collage, combining photos depicting graffiti from the men’s bathroom in the campus center with violence and war-related clippings from The Argus and various national and international news sources. The webs bore signs that asked questions such as, “Is violence a disease or a symptom?” and “Why is there blood on the wall of the high rise lobby?” “In the end our vision was to show how violence and all of these different incidents are all webbed together and interrelated. We also wanted to show the complexity of this problem by using the webs,” Houseman said. Others involved in the project recognized the symbolic function of the webs because of the way the yarn interrupted the space that students usually occupy. “Violence gets in the way of our lives, and it’s really disruptive. Violence disrupts the lives of other people all over the world, so we are recognizing this by disrupting our own lives,” said Cara Herbitter ’03. “The idea was not to tell people what to think, but to get them questioning.” Some students who stopped to look at them praised the concept of the webs. “I thought it was a really good way of getting people’s attention,” said Caroline Lyddy ’04. “The yarn was very visible, and they were confrontational without being militant.” Others agreed but were confused about what the webs were supposed to represent. “I don’t really understand the symbolism, but the strings are an effective way to get people to read the signs,” said Lily Chapin ’03 There were also cloth badges pinned to the yarn with the words “Question,” “Think,” and “Act” for students to remove and pin onto their own clothing. “The purpose [of the words on the patches] was to make the campus think about this history and to make recent incidents known and encourage thinking about the responses of the administration, student body, and public safety,” said Julia Marcus ’03, another student involved in creating the project. “I saw a lot of people wearing them. We felt like it was a good way to make the art project interactive and disperse around campus.” In addition to the webs, a timeline of “reported violence and hate 1980-present” was written on a sheet hung on clothespins along the path leading up to the campus center. The timeline, which stated in bold letters, “Wesleyan: it’s time to air our dirty laundry,” listed 36 reported incidents up until Sept. 11 and nine incidents which have occurred since then. “It was pointing out something that’s been a big problem this year but hasn’t been a problem in previous years. I definitely have noticed an increase in violence this semester,” said Alex Krassner ’02. Peter Seidman ’04 had a different opinion about the timeline, saying that the selection of incidents conveyed a strong anti-fraternity bias. “I think frats and jocks are judged unfairly at Wesleyan. While I’m not necessarily pro-frat, a lot of people are quick to judge frats,” Seidman said. Marcus, who used the University archives, past reports to the Student Judiciary Board, and Public Safety alerts to find the incidents listed, acknowledged that the timeline was by nature subjective and incomplete. “ I think there’s definitely been a rise in aggression and violence since Sept. 11, and the frequency of incidents has been higher,” she said, affirming her stance of a recognizable increase in violence. Herbitter echoed these sentiments, saying that she felt an increase in aggressive and hateful behavior this semester. “I feel like there’s been a real breakdown in our community this year, and violence is a big part of that,” she said. “I’m not comfortable saying causation, but there’s no question that there is a correlation. It’s created a mood of aggression, strength, and masculinity.” Many students disagreed, saying that they did not notice a significant increase in incidents of hate and violence and that it was not surprising for them to see the list of past incidents. “Wesleyan is a microcosm of the real world, and there is hatred in the real world. I’m not saying that hate should be allowed, it would be ideal if there were no hate, but we shouldn’t be surprised that it exists here,” said Leila Estes ’03. Director of Public Safety Maryann Wiggin stated that she does not see the prevalence of violence and hate-related reports to be anything particularly unusual. “I think over the last months there has been an increase in disruptive behavior and violence,” she said, adding that the first six weeks of the school year are always a busy time of year. Wiggin also stated that she does not think it is likely that the incidents have any connection to the events of Sept. 11. Some observers of the project acknowledged the correlation between increased campus violence and the terrorist attacks, but thought that the influence of Sept. 11 was subtler. “I think [the violence on campus has] been happening since Sept. 11. I don’t think there is a direct correlation in people’s minds, but I think they’re subconsciously influenced by it, like a post-traumatic syndrome,” Lyddy said. “Sept. 11 has effected people so much, and sometimes they don’t even realize how much. I think a lot has changed since then,” Estes said, adding that the perceived increase in violence and hate might also be a result of the hyperconsciousness surrounding the Sept. 11 aftermath. Another element of the art project was the collage of photos and newspaper clippings. The photos depicted graffiti from the men’s bathroom, which included comments like “This isn’t the gay men’s room” and “This School vs. Taliban” with the subsequent addition of “We lose - too many fags.” “I think it’s a very interesting idea, but I’d also like to see excerpts from the girls’ bathroom in comparison. It’s like taking someone’s dirty underwear, pinning it up on a wall, and then complaining that it stinks,” said Joel Sanders ’02 Samantha Smith ’01.5 made a similar statement. “Equal opportunity would be nice. We should show the girls’ bathroom wall because there are some pretty bad things there too,” she said. The newspaper articles included in the collage focused primarily on violence occurring on and off campus and on the current military campaign in Afghanistan. “We wanted people to recognize the link between incidents of violence in the nation and violence on campus,” said Houseman. “The war can’t be separated from smaller incidents of violence that are happening here.” In front of the collage were plastic soda bottles with fins attached to their sides, filled with rotting food. Signs posted amongst the bottles asked, “Why are the bottles shaped like bombs?” “Why are the bombs filled with food?” and “Do you know what’s written on the men’s bathroom wall?” Mayuran Tiruchelvam ’03, who conceived of the ideas of the collage and food bombs, stated that he believes students should be left to interpret the meaning of the art for themselves. “This is obviously political, but it is not meant to be an explicitly anti-war message,” Houseman said. The meaning of the collage confused many observers, who were unsure about its intended message. “I’m confused. I want to understand, but I don’t,” said Marianne Moskowitz ’02 as she examined the collage and food bombs. The students who executed the project were not members of any specific campus group. Houseman sent an email to people she knew who she believed would share her vision for an art project dealing with issues of hate and violence on campus. “I was inspired by other campus leaders who called a meeting. When other people brought up the idea, it seemed obvious that there was a need for it,” said Herbitter who was one of those contacted by email. Many of the students involved in the project’s creation saw it as a welcome change from previous methods of protest and attempts at raising campus awareness. “Rather than organize another rally, vigil, speak-out, or write another Wespeak to the Argus, it was exciting to collaborate on an artistic project. It required a different energy,” Tiruchelvam said.

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