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The Behrend Beacon
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ii Calendar Page Editor Assistant News Editor
Rob Frank Dan Sneddon
BEHREND
Beacon
“Professionalism
with a personality”
Penn State Erie,
the Behrend College;
First Floor, The J. Elmer Reed Union Building,
Station Road, Erie, PA 16563.
Contact The Beacon at:
Telephone: (814) 898-6488
Fax: (814) 898-6019
ISSN 1071-9288.
Beating around the Bush
By Chris Hvizdak & Missy Meszaros / BEHREND BEACON
HOW THAT YoURE LEAVING I
SHOULD PROBABLY TBLL YOU.
Daniel J. Stasiewski, Editor in Chief
Amy Frizzell, Managing Editor
Courtney Kaplin, Advertising Manager
Alyssa Peconi, Public Relations Manager
Dr. Cathy Roan, Adviser
Student Life Editor
Lori DeFabio
Copy Editor
Lacy Buzard
Jenn Haight
Sarah Weber
Opinion Page Editor
Andy McNeil
News Editor
Brad Stewart
Sports Editors
Sam Cibula
Sara Kamber
Beacon Assistant
Carolyn M. Tellers
OPINION
In the diversity corner
Muslim women seek liberation
from Western misconceptions
By Fariha Andaleeb
editorial columnist
Common Western thought tends to lean
towards pity for Muslim women, espe
cially for those who wear hijab. Head
scarves and hijab, which were originally
intended to free women from male ob
jectification, is now viewed as a prison
which confines them to a primitive cul
ture, run by uneducated fundamentalists.
The true purpose and beauty of the veil
has been twisted by religious fanatics for
political and domestic control over
women, and by the Western media, which
judges the civility of a nation based on
whether or not their women wear halter
tops and mini skirts.
I recently spoke to several Muslims on
campus at Behrend, a few of whom wear
head scarves. No one imposes this on
them here, and they feel no more confined
or limited than any other student. I spoke
particularly in depth with Lutfa Al-
Busaidi, a transfer student from Penn
State at University Park. She wears a head
scarf by her own choice, and is by no
means suppressed by her religion or cul
ture. She is studying computer engineer
American Perversion Level:
Is our society oversexed? There was
recent discussion of national media out
lets and the appropriate level of sexual
expression on public television. Specifi
cally, “Monday Night Football,” the
Philadelphia Eagles versus the Dallas
Cowboys, the pregame skit presented
Eagles receiver, Terrell Owens, seduced
by a young blonde woman in a towel. The
skit ended with the woman losing her
towel but finding her way into T.O.’s
Also discussed in terms of inappropri
ate sex was Fox television, the broadcast
ers of “Married by America,” was fined
for more than one million dollars when
whipped-cream-covered strippers with
digital obscured nudity were showed dur
ing a time slot that many children are
known for viewing.
For most college viewers such behav
ior is considered accepted and is even
applauded, especially by males. You can
find more inappropriate situations than
you could count on both hands and feet —
just switch to MTV. Those concerned are
parents who allow their children to view
Monday night football assuming that no
females will be losing their towels and
jumping into a man’s arms. Is this a le
gitimate concern and complaint? Or has
this raunchiness become part of our
American culture?
Rosie needs to get a little stronger
I’ve been thinking a lot about what it
means to be a feminist lately. I’ve looked
at Rosie the Riveter posted next to my
James Dean calendar and thought about
how most people think that in order to be
a feminist, you cannot be feminine. Then
it occurred to me; that’s crap!
My dear Rosie is de-feminized. As a
symbol of female strength, she dresses
like a man, poses like a man and wears
her hair short like a man’s. Are we sup
posed to believe that in order for a woman
to be strong, she has to act like a man?
Some of the strongest women I know
are housewives and they are also some of
the most respected. Take my grandmother
for example; she raised two little boys,
while pregnant and without a driver’s li
cense, on a farm for 18 months while my
grandfather was overseas in WWII.
I’d like to see some of today’s femi
nists pull that off. Even Rosie had help
with her kids while she was working in
the factory. She even had people make
her supper to take home and reheat.
I think we need to redefine feminine
strength. We shouldn’t diminish such
ing, and plans to work in her native coun
try of Oman after graduation.
The status of women in Islamic coun
tries is often questioned as well. We tend
to think we are so much farther in our
progression towards gender equality, but
we forget women had minimal rights just
this past century, and couldn’t even vote
until 1920. From the establishment of
the United States in 1776 to this day in
2004, the United States has not had a fe
male president, or vice president for that
matter. Despite our enthusiasm about our
strong and ‘equal’ women (who still get
lower salaries than men for doing the
same job in several occupations), we are
still not ready as a society to accept them
in positions of national power.
Several Muslim countries on the other
hand, have had women leaders.
Pakistan’s former Prime Minister
Benazir Bhutto, for example, led Paki
stan for nine years. Bangladesh has been
run by women for years. Its current
Prime Minister is Khaleda Zia, who re
cently won the election from the woman
who led Bangladesh before her, Sheikh
Hassina. These are strong and powerful
Bradley Stewart
news editor
We are all aware that sex sells. Tele-
vision programming continues to push
the limits on sexual exposure in order to
outdo their competition and attract loyal
viewers. At your local grocery store,
while standing in line for check our pa
trons are surrounded by the smiles of
scantily clad women on magazine cov
ers—covers that advertise content that
include sex tips, how to please your man
or woman, sexual positions, sexual es
capades, sex stories. These covers illus
trate the extent to which many compa
nies rely on sex to sell their products. Are
America's children being exposed to an
oversexed culture? Is this what America
wants its children to accept as a normal
Lacy Buzard
copy editor
chores as cooking, cleaning and child
raising or the women who choose to
make that their life work. Just because
these housewives don’t have jobs, we
shouldn’t treat them like they are too stu
pid to work.
As a feminist, I want to go into a ca
reer and know that I am able to support
myself. I know that I am capable of do
ing whatever my sweet little heart de
sires. But if one day I start a family with
Friday, November 19, 2004
women. They are the leaders of men and
women, and they are also Muslim.
This is not to say that Muslim women
are free while western women are con
fined. The gulf between the two, how
ever, may not be as wide as one would
think. Muslim women have done great
things, and have had pivotal roles in
massive movements. Just as all Chris
tians should not be judged according to
events such as the Oklahoma City
Bombing, all Muslim women should not
be judged according to the subjugation
in countries such as Saudi Arabia. Their
situation is more political rather than
religious.
Walking through the streets of Malay
sia, a predominantly Muslim country, it
struck my attention to see hijab clad
women driving mopeds or walking to
work; scarf on head, brief case in hand.
They don’t wear head scarves because
they are oppressed. They wear them be
cause they are liberated from objectifi
cation, as the result of a culture than pro
motes modesty so that they can be
judged for their minds and not their ap
pearances.
part of our society?
Of course, there is a degree of respon
sibility that parents must claim. Corpo
rations air programs that are understood
to be sexually risky and are intended for
a mature audience. Programs such as
these are usually aired during later hours,
and parents who are concerned with in
appropriate television shows must be
aware and regulate their child’s view
ing.
In a time period where morally pure
role models are hard to find, who do we
blame? Do we blame the morally cor
rupt individuals? The broadcasting com
panies? Or do we blame ourselves and
the culture we have created? Is it our
acceptance or morally questionable ma
terial, our curiosity and fascination in the
vile actions of others that tainted our so-
ciety forever?
I guess the bigger question is, do we
care? Has youth been robbed of its ig
norance of sex too soon? It appears to
me that more young people are sexually
aware sooner than I was at their age. It
appears to me that more young people
are dressing and acting and modeling
what they see on television and in mov
ies. Why are we in such a hurry to hear
about and engage in sexual activity? Our
culture is quickly headed in a direction
from which there may be no return.
the man of my dreams, I may want to
stay home and take care of them.
This is where feminine power is truly
defined: A woman’s right to choose
what she wants and stand by that deci
sion. Butched-out feminists should not
belittle her for her decisions. As women,
we all have to work together or else we
will always be fighting against the glass
ceiling as a group that isn’t even able to
unite itself.
Men need to remember, too, that
women have a choice. We should not
be forced to stay at home or to join the
workforce. If we decide to join the
workforce, it isn’t fair to expect us to
take care of everything at home by our
selves.
What’s the moral of this story? In
short: feminism is equality. If two
people are putting out the same effort
and achieving the same comparable
amount, then one should not be better
than the other. Luciano de Crescenzo
said, “We are all angels with only one
wing; we can only fly while embracing
each other.”
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