The Jan. 13 cartoon, "The Mobile Party," virtually advocated violence against gays (all in a light-hearted, satirical way, you understand). As a lifelong journalist, I naturally have an affinity for freedom of speech, and here on campus I've been an advocate for The Observer. It generally performs an important service for this community. But last Wednesday's paper represented a monumental lapse of judgment by the editors. (I appreciate their prominent apology on Friday.)
We would be wrong, however, to just point fingers at the individuals who implausibly let this offensive comic into the paper, or even its creators. While their errors cannot be excused, they apparently thought they were engaging in humor that would be acceptable on this campus. What does that say about us? We'd better find out.
Matthew V. Storin
faculty
Jan. 15
