Dr. Maythee Rojas, the Women’s Studies advisor and our professor for Community Service Women’s Issues suggested last Tuesday February 5 that we (the women’s studies majors in her class) seem to be in this “women’s studies bubble”. Many of us laughed and I wondered to myself what, if anything, is wrong with that? When we left class that day however, whatever bubble that existed was suddenly transformed from a protective screen into a magnifying lens with which we witnessed the usually mundane trash can in front of the bathroom being turned into an altar of filth.

Atop a foundation of party trays and Mardi Gras decorations was an inflatable sex doll placed firmly on its knees with its hands and “genitals” wrapped together with bright blue tape. The doll had gray hair painted on beneath its Mardi Gras mask, disturbingly implying that this sex doll was elderly. The two men most likely responsible for this despicable doll wore Mardi Gras hats and were playfully putting their final touches on it.

A woman who appeared to know the two men stopped and complimented the doll, informing them that the best part about it was her “cute mask.”

The six to eight of us who stumbled upon the scene were not so amused. Our bubble, we found, didn’t extend outside of the classroom. It couldn’t protect us from the violence against women and sexual terrorism on campus that we were reminded of every evening as we pass the strange men or “chaperones” meant to protect us.

“What’s this for, a party?” I ask the guys as I take a couple pictures. Their smiles suddenly transfigured into apprehensive stares as they each began stepping away from the trash can. One man began to flee the scene and requested that we not get him in trouble.

“This promotes violence against women!” senior women’s studies major Desiree Gifford exclaimed, pointing at the doll. The man leaving looked back and smirked. He muttered that he wouldn’t say that and disappeared. She spoke up again telling the other man to look at it, pressing that it definitely does. He looked back over his shoulder and remarked that it was “only tape” before he too had disappeared.

Some of us were angry, some hurt, some confused. In order to get it out of the sight of the women and men in the hallway, senior women’s studies major Moriah Meeks and two other women popped it and buried it in the trash can inside the bathroom. Afterward, I left the scene with fellow junior women’s studies majors Erin Hale and Alaina Chamberlain with whom I witnessed the entire spectacle.

“The worst part was that a woman was endorsing and reaffirming it. For some reason it’s worse when women participate.” Erin commented.

Alaina responded, “What was clearly intended to be a joke carries different meaning for women who have or know somebody who has experienced kidnapping, rape, or other forms of sexualized violence.”

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Enough already. Will somebody wake these college kids up to the fact that they have to share this world with all of us? Even women!

If I was a female, I'd only go to a females only college.

One of the big reasons why I don't go to a 4 year college is because I don't want anyone to associate me with this type of behavior and culture(or subculture or whatever it would be called).

I've been seemingly discriminated against at the workplace recently and one of the reasons may be that I'm a young male. I've tried to assure during misc conversation that I don't engage in promiscuity for any reason. I've avoided using certain words that women would find offensive. Not that I use such words anyways. I've even worn the black marker X's on my hands incase anyone knows the straight edge meaning(I'm well qualified to wear the X's). But I'm afraid the males who do this on college campuses and elsewhere may still ruin it for me. I don't want to wear some extravagant Christian shirt or anything like that because I'm what many would call an atheist. But I dunno, will it come to that?

I was referring to guys on college campuses that engage in behavior like that blow up doll, assault women, etc. Not the ones who wear X's on their hands. The ones that drink beer and get into trouble probably ruin people's views of me since I'm a young male even though I don't do those things. If there's some secret hand signal or something to wear for others to know I'm a feminist, I'd like to know. I've already had women try to get me fired at the workplace behind my back.