First and foremost, it is necessary to commend The Signal staff for its editorial featured in last week's issue. The editorial, regarding the incident involving Mike Tracey and the police following Ann Coulter's lecture, was correct in highlighting that the facts have not been denied nor confirmed as of yet. We agree with the authors of the editorial that the situation is problematic, not solely because of the incident itself, but more so because of the reaction it provoked.
The overwhelming response in support of Tracey has proven that our student body is capable of rallying around an issue. What is disheartening is the limited scope of activism in which we have engaged here and the lack of similar energy or focus on other pertinent issues affecting our campus.
There are more than 1,300 people who have joined Tracey's Facebook group along with countless chalkings and dorm-storming advertisements, yet apathetic attitudes still thrive within our community. For example, in past years, we have failed to get more than 150 students to participate in a demonstration during Sexual Assault Awareness Month that represents the number of students sexually assaulted on our campus every year. That's less than 3 percent of our student body who participated, in comparison with the 22 percent of students who joined the Facebook group alone.
We invite students to maintain high levels of involvement and broaden their focus by participating in upcoming campus events that raise awareness around a diverse set of campus matters. In the spirit of true solidarity, let's use this as an opportunity to realize the power we have as a community and challenge ourselves to be more active.
Dave Parziale and Michelle Spiegel
