http://www.newsobserver.com/580/story/504355.html
Letter:
Published: Oct 30, 2006 12:30 AM
Modified: Oct 30, 2006 01:50 AM
It's a shame
Whenever I hear about the Duke lacrosse team incident, I don't hear the word "shame." Whether these young men are innocent or guilty, the fact remains: their conduct was shameful.
Inviting exotic dancers to a drunken team party is not acceptable conduct, but shameful. These young men represent a church-affiliated university. Weren't we once shamed to be involved in such a scandal? By today's standards this appears to be acceptable, expected behavior from college students. What are we teaching our youth? Have we stopped teaching them about shameful behavior?
Duke's mission statement includes: "...by carefully selecting students of character, determination and application... to provide a superior liberal education to undergraduate students, attending not only to their intellectual growth but also to their development as adults committed to high ethical standards...." These young men need to be held to that same higher ethical standard.
One online dictionary's definition of "shame":
1) A painful emotion caused by a strong sense of guilt, embarrassment, unworthiness, or disgrace. 2) One that brings dishonor, disgrace, or condemnation.
We must recognize a shameful behavior and to re-educate ourselves and youth about what is shameful.
Mrs. H. H. Gillam Jr.
Edenton
I bet Mrs. Gillam, Jr does not give a flying f about the worse than shameful behavior of the pimps. Because those pimps do not exsist in her holier than thou universe.
Not feeling sorry for precious, but I bet Mrs. Gillam does not even consider the beatings precious could suffer at the hands of her pimp or a nutjob.
Mrs. Gillam's letter is almost comical in omitting any chastisement of women who do this sort of thing for a living. What about their accountability and the same expectations of them as young people? Yes, they're now older than the boys, but not by that much. It wasn't long ago that they were the same ages as the boys. What about their upbringing and character? Or are they automatically excused because they are black and ostensibly poor? Sleaze is okay then?
Somebody ought to give Mrs. Gillam an eyeful of ADA Crouch's website. I'd like to hear her commentary on character, expectations and the like in the context of ADA Crouch's conduct.