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Ruined Snow Penis Stimulates Debate (Loony Feminist Alert!)
Harvard Crimson ^ | Monday, February 24, 2003 | HANA R. ALBERTS

Posted on 02/24/2003 12:01:43 PM PST by MikalM

Ruined Snow Penis Stimulates Debate

When a few members of the Harvard crew team decided to build a snowy representation of the male anatomy on Feb. 11, they never imagined it would be so hard to keep it up.

The 9-foot snow phallus, constructed in Tercentenary Theater, was torn down just hours after its erection.

But its impression still sparked an intense debate, from dining halls to dorm rooms, over the appropriateness of public displays of genitalia.

Even The Economist magazine weighed in on the discussion, offering the destruction of the sculpture as evidence of American prudishness on its usually staid pages.

But women’s groups on campus have led a chorus of complaints against the snow penis, arguing that such a display is demeaning to women.

“It was offensive because it was pornographic,” said Amy E. Keel ’04, who said she and her roommate “dismantled” the giant snow penis.

“As a feminist, pornography is degrading to women and creates a violent atmosphere,” she said.

Keel said that her personal experience as a rape survivor makes this statue even more uncomfortable to observe.

“Men think they have the right to force that on you,” she said. “It’s a logical extension.”

Furthermore, Keel claims that she and her roommate were verbally and physically harassed by a group of roughly 25 men when they attempted to tear down the statue with a cardboard tube at 1:30 a.m. the morning after it was built.

“A few people came out and crowded me with their bodies and one person shoved me away from the penis,” she said. “It was gendered violence, because [their comments] were said in the context of our gender and accompanied by aggressive actions toward us.”

Though Keel assumed some of her harassers were among the creators of the statue, she said she could not identify any of the men.

And crew team captain Michael J. Skey ’04 denies that he or any of the other makers of the statue had been involved in the incident. According to Spey, the group left the Yard over three hours before Keel and her roommate tried to take down the snow phallus.

“We cleared out by 10:15 p.m.,” Spey said. “We had morning practice, and if guys are out there that late I’d be pissed. That’s why we did it so early.”

But regardless of the alleged circumstances surrounding the snow penis’ downfall, a controversy over the meaning of the statue lingers.

Women’s Studies Lecturer Diane L. Rosenfeld, who teaches Women, Violence and the Law this semester, said that the implications of the snow phallus go beyond the legitimacy of the statue’s presence.

“The ice sculpture was erected in a public space, one that should be free from menacing reminders of women’s sexual vulnerability,” Rosenfeld wrote in an e-mail yesterday.

She said the snow penis follows a long line of public phallic symbols, including the Washington Monument and missiles.

“Women do not need to be reminded of the power of the symbol of the male genitalia,” Rosenfeld said. “My guess is that they are constantly reminded of it in daily messages.”

A discussion about feminist perspectives on the statue, sponsored by the Radcliffe Union of Students, will take place Tuesday night in the Adams House small dining room.

But the makers of the statue said they intended to build the snow penis as a simple joke.

Skey said he came up with the idea to allow a few members of the team to “hang out together” outside of practice.

“We built it for fun, instead of building a snowman,” he said. “We built it specifically as a junior high prank.”

Skey said he never expected such national attention—or such heated opposition.

“Once it turned around into a huge sexism debate, it was like a giant keg of gunpowder waiting for a spark,” Skey said.

In spite of Skey’s intentions, Keel said she was offended by the joke.

“I have a right to speak out against the joke,” Keel said. “I criticize the motives of putting it up, but since they did, it is within my rights to put it down. It goes both ways.”

Skey said he agreed Keel did not do anything wrong by knocking down the statue.

“If people found it obscene, they had a right to rip it down,” he said. “That’s perfectly true.”

But Skey said he thinks that at a school like Harvard, jokes can be blown out of proportion.

“Smart kids overanalyze things,” he said.

—Staff writer Hana R. Alberts can be reached at alberts@fas.harvard.edu.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Extended News; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Political Humor/Cartoons; US: Massachusetts
KEYWORDS: academia; castration; demonstration; feminazi; feminazis; feminist; feministas; frigidwomen; harvard; idiotarian; itsjustsex; left; massachusetts; pc; penisenvy; politicallycorrect; protest; puritanism; putsomeiceonit; sexualbutchery; university; vandalism; victimology
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To: MikalM
Though Keel assumed some of her harassers were among the creators of the statue, she said she could not identify any of the men.

Probably because the men had their pants on.

81 posted on 02/24/2003 1:09:13 PM PST by judgeandjury (The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the state.)
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To: templar
Oh, lighten up! Look at some Dutch masters paintings. All of those frolicing peasants in states of tumescence, albiet clothed. No lie. It was in a coffee table book we had when I was a kid. I think my mother bought it to be sophisticated and never turned a page.
:)
82 posted on 02/24/2003 1:10:13 PM PST by annyokie
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To: MikalM
Well, I hope they never complain about how pinups in the workplace create a hostile environment for women anymore.

-PJ

83 posted on 02/24/2003 1:10:17 PM PST by Political Junkie Too
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To: MikalM; Chad Fairbanks
This is a riot....

And the funny thing is, I once built a snow penis. And I am a chick. My other two room-mates and I had it in our yard at school.

But we didn't mean to build a snow penis. We were trying to build the space shuttle. (We were flight students, it was appropriate)

Imagine what that might look like as it weathered and melted. It stayed a remarkably long time. Everyone thought it was a penis. We tried to tell them it wasn't, but there wasn't any point, so we turned it into at least a good penis.

84 posted on 02/24/2003 1:11:16 PM PST by HairOfTheDog
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To: wimpycat
Also those cool Mexican man in a barrel souveniors that you press down and get a BIG surprise!
85 posted on 02/24/2003 1:12:03 PM PST by annyokie
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To: wimpycat
You said you'd never seen phalluses publicly displayed, but they were in Ancient Rome and Greece.

I must not have made myself clear. I am not in ancient Rome or Greece. How can I possible see them publicly displayed there? I'm talking about contemporary America, not extinct societies of 2000+ years ago. I doubt that their moral values were even vaguely like ours of today..

86 posted on 02/24/2003 1:12:16 PM PST by templar
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To: annyokie
All of those frolicing peasants in states of tumescence, albiet clothed.

albeit clothed. That's my point.

87 posted on 02/24/2003 1:14:05 PM PST by templar
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To: annyokie
A popular tourist item in Chile is a wooden Indian with a HUGE grin on his face. You pull his head away from his feet and you also get a BIG surprise. (That explains the huge grin! LOL!)
88 posted on 02/24/2003 1:14:13 PM PST by wimpycat (Well it's good that you're fine and I'm fine. I agree with you. It's great to be fine.)
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To: MikalM
She said the snow penis follows a long line of public phallic symbols, including the Washington Monument and missiles.

It troubles me that this woman is a teacher. If she would have just said a giant snow penis built on campus is offensive, and left it at that, I would have agreed with the woman. But such a moronic statement deserves ridicule.

89 posted on 02/24/2003 1:14:17 PM PST by cardinal4 (Get the UN out of the US and get the US out of the UN!!)
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To: johniegrad
My sentiments exactly. What I see is America's leisure class involved in a whole bunch of navel gazin' and faux agita.
90 posted on 02/24/2003 1:16:23 PM PST by Hemingway's Ghost (Ignore Alien Orders)
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To: MikalM
“It was offensive because it was pornographic,” said Amy E. Keel ’04, who said she and her roommate “dismantled” the giant snow penis.

Bet they had a ball doing that.

91 posted on 02/24/2003 1:16:30 PM PST by N. Theknow
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To: MikalM; hellinahandcart; KLT; countrydummy; ned13
“Men think they have the right to force that on you,” she said. “It’s a logical extension.”

Umm... Amy sweetie... We do. Have had that right for millenia ;-) Bend over like a good girl...

92 posted on 02/24/2003 1:17:02 PM PST by sauropod (It's OK to drive an SUV if it helps you get babes.....)
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To: templar
Whatever.
93 posted on 02/24/2003 1:17:50 PM PST by wimpycat (Well it's good that you're fine and I'm fine. I agree with you. It's great to be fine.)
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To: headsonpikes
Again, please.......lol
94 posted on 02/24/2003 1:18:19 PM PST by WhyisaTexasgirlinPA
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To: MikalM
“It was gendered violence...and accompanied by aggressive actions toward us (women).”

So what do these women do? They turn right around and do the same thing to men, by attacking the snowman, that they are complaining that the men are doing to them by building the snowman.

95 posted on 02/24/2003 1:19:30 PM PST by judgeandjury (The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the state.)
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To: templar
I don't want to sound silly, but the state of the erect penis is STILL quit obvious! I'm not offended.
96 posted on 02/24/2003 1:19:40 PM PST by annyokie
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
And Klintoon's unfortunate rape victim named Broaddrick? Where was NOW when she appeared on NBC? Out to lunch, and they still are. They and all RATs, female, gay or transvestite and otherwise are sewer scum, but that's an opinion guys.
97 posted on 02/24/2003 1:19:59 PM PST by Paulus Invictus (Coke make)
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To: ricpic
Are you sure you're not a writer? lol

There is something poetic in the thought of a bunch of militant feminists beating a giant snow penis........

98 posted on 02/24/2003 1:20:05 PM PST by WhyisaTexasgirlinPA
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To: MikalM
The 9-foot snow phallus, constructed in Tercentenary Theater, was torn down just hours after its erection.

If it stayed erect for several hours does that mean they melted viagra into the snow ?

99 posted on 02/24/2003 1:21:14 PM PST by Centurion2000 (Take charge of your destiny, or someone else will)
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To: wimpycat
Those things are a scream! My cousin had one that said "I'm a horny little devil", complete with three horns. (Two on the top of his head.)
100 posted on 02/24/2003 1:21:40 PM PST by annyokie
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