I've been on campus for four years now and no one's ever asked me to take my shirt off. (Frankly, I'm a little hurt.)
But just last week, Playboy magazine hit campus in search of just that female students who would take their shirts off. It's all part of Playboy's infamous "Girls of the Big Ten" Calender.
I'm not sure exactly how long Playboy's featured the "Girls of the Big Ten," but the tradition of photographing undressed coeds has been a long standing way to get horny men to buy magazines. Something along these lines of mentality:
"Hey, Mel, check out these chicks in college dorms. College babes must really like doin' it."
Or:
"Hey Wally! Beaver! You goofballs see the swell new Playboy? I'm sure looking forward to it at State U!"
Whatever the case, it works and it sells.
It also stirs up a lot of protesters. Many University women were not amused by Playboy's presence on campus, despite the fact that Playboy's soft porn is featured alongside intelligent or witty writings. The bottom line of the magazine is simple: "We've got naked chicks in here."
So, you can see why many women were protesting the Playboy search for Big Ten girls. And rightly so. While Playboy has every right to exist, and probably will always exist, the reason for all the protest and anti-Playboy backlash is justified and valid.
Think of the situation like this: You're a college student, a woman at a nationally prestigious university. You work hard every week to get good grades, be an active student, develop your talents, cultivate your values, etc. For years, your gender has been seen as second-class, an also-ran, a collection of pretty faces with a few intelligent ones thrown in.
These days, things are looking up. While you still face harassment and discrimination, you feel that gender equality is becoming more of a reality. Or at least it's getting there. So on your way home from a 10 hour study session one slick and grey afternoon, you see a crowd of protesters. Investigating the cause behind the signs and the chants, you find out that Playboy is looking for models for "The Girls of the Big Ten."
This is how Playboy wants to represent you to the world: Pouty and big-eyed, your bra falling over your navel; smiling and playful, your underpants garnishing your ankles. And they won't even call you a woman - rather, they'll adorn you with the diminutive phrase "Girl of the Big Ten."
Now admittedly, there was a day when I saw nothing wrong with such an issue. In fact, when you're 14 or 15, and you get your hands on the issue, you see everything right with the issue. But the more intelligent, thoughtful, interesting females I meet at the college level, the more I realize that they deal with sexual condescension on a daily basis - being "hit" on, being hooted at, being oggled, the whole shabang. It happens more than some of us cavemen realize; you especially realize it when a woman you really care about has to deal with it on a regular basis.
So what the Playboy college issues do is simply perpetualize the tendency to look at women - no matter how smart, creative and unique - as objects. It's a slap in the face to the 99.9 percent of Big Ten women who aren't in the issue. It says, "Hey look, you work really hard, you're smart, but when it comes down to it, you're just a hunk of meat."
I will say that some of the protesters on campus last week had the wrong goals in mind: You can't deny Playboy its right to publish and print pictures of naked women. The magazine as an entity will not, and probably should not, be forced to go away. But you can protest the existence of these college girl issues: Maybe, just maybe, Playboy would someday consider stopping such an issue, such an insult to University women. Secondly, the women who did choose to pose for the issue should not be harassed. The freedom for a woman to choose what she wants to do with her own body must be protected, even if it does mean getting naked for Playboy readers.
Now then, let's get on to that last day of classes, when we all-men and women alike - can get buck naked in unison and streak across campus. Huzzah.
Dean may be reached via e-mail at deanc@umich.edu.