op-ed
I currently hold five different jobs on campus, including my Editor in Chief job here at Reporter. In addition, I hold an off campus job and attend school full time. At the time of writing this, I have five more days until I am paid again for my work on campus. I also have $10 in my bank account to last me until then.
To whom it may concern, My name is Erich Lehman, co-curator of WALL\THERAPY. I also work full time here at RIT, which is where I read the article with Alex Vadas in your September 2014 issue. While Alex is absolutely entitled to his opinion about our efforts, I was troubled by a number of factual inaccuracies that he chose to share that were not fact-checked by the writer.
I am writing in response to the letter to the editor by Ms. Martha Vargas Bogliani regarding Message Center Remembrances.
I am very upset over the way the RIT administration handled notifying the death of a friend of mine. His name was Dominic Clemente-Gould and he was a very special person in the lives of many. One of the hardest things for me at the moment is to refer to him in the past tense ... Especially since he was the closest to the epitome of a vibrant and lively soul that I have encountered to date.
RIT has every reason to try to ensure that many people return to Imagine RIT each year. Not only does the festival provide a great opportunity for attracting new students, improving the view of the school within the public eye, and simply showcasing many of the amazing things that students do on this campus, but it also provides thousands of people with an enjoyable and interesting Saturday.
I have a few things I would like to say to you regarding the Reporter advisory board decision to limit the availability of this reporter issue.
I am very saddened that the issue will be barred from complete public disbursement. A topic that is solely about humans and human processes and interactions should not be considered profane or obscene. Humans all have some gender, somehow everyone identifies with something at least. So it would be for the public good that we have a forum to learn more about it, or a platform for discussion to be brought up. I hope that this is reconsidered.
I'm a 20 year old female student here at RIT. When I was a junior in high school, I was raped. My body was violated by my then boyfriend. I don't think he understood what he did to me. He spoke to me the next day as if nothing happened. Even to this day, I still have nightmares and have trouble overcoming this awful situation. I don't know what could have changed to prevent my rape from happening.
There is a difference between being bombarded with images of sex and images of sexual health. While our generation has gained a reputation of being liberal and open about about sex, gender expression, and sexuality, much is still swept under the rug of shame and embarrassment.
I have no problem with Reporter Magazine. During my time at RIT I found it a refreshing source of information about RIT and an alternative viewpoint as to what's going on around campus and in the Rochester area. I do, however, feel that the administration is justified in preventing the normal distribution of this issue during Imagine RIT, no matter the importance of the content. I also feel that this situation could have been handled better.
I'm very interested in getting a copy of this issue, and I understand that we need to spread information about this topic to everyone. So, that makes it reasonable to assume that Imagine RIT is a great place to do this. However, there are factors we need to consider. Open-minded parents will have no problem with the issue, and might grab a few copies for their children. Open discussion about these types of topics are generally welcome in those households.
I am a proud parent of an RIT student. We spent many years teaching our children moral, religious and ethical values we believed were important for them to learn. By the time our children leave for college they have had a lifetime of living by our rules and examples. We have taught them as much as we can and we hope that when they arrive on campus, they have not forgotten the years of values we help to instill. Sexuality is a difficult topic for many people, young and old.