Thursday, March 28, 2024

Self-defense ad offensive, wrong

When I saw the ad on page 4B of the Monday, Feb. 12, 2001 issue of The State News, I initially thought it was some kind of joke. I am referring to the ad for a self-defense workshop sponsored by Alpha Xi Delta. I was appalled to see that The State News would print an ad that is so blatantly racist.

Having a picture of a man appearing to be Black with the caption, “This guy may be on your campus. Would you be prepared if you met him while walking at night?” is problematic for a whole host of reasons. Let me go through a few of these: 1. It reinforces the stereotype that racial-ethnic men are the perpetrators of violent crimes and sexual assaults; 2. It also reinforces the myth that people are most likely to get assaulted in public, at night when in reality most assaults occur in private domains such as a dorm, house, or a frat. house; and 3. The caption, “This guy may be on your campus” makes the assumption that “this guy” should not be on campus (as if he does not have a legitimate reason for being on campus, such as being a student).

What is even more appalling is that the ad is next to an ad for the celebration of Black History Month. The irony here is not acceptable.

In the future, I hope The State News takes more responsibility for the ads it accepts. Furthermore, I hope Alpha Xi Delta thinks about how it, as a campus organization, has fueled the perpetuation of stereotypes and myths.

Angela Pok
sociology doctorate student

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