Shit Columbia says about Barnard

A fellow Barnard alumna sent me the Spectrum video, “Shit Columbians Say,” Columbia students’ take on the latest YouTube craze (“Shit Columbians say,” Jan. 29). For the most part, this video was one I definitely could have skipped, and from the number of hits, I’m sure many feel the same way. Though the video lacked anything funny enough to quote, there was one line that caught my attention. The line went, “My best friend went to Barnard—well, like, she goes to Barnard. We’re not really friends anymore.”

I, like many Barnard alumnae and current Barnard students, am used to “humorous” comments such as this one. I will admit, I have laughed at some of them and have even made a few of my own. Part of being human, after all, is saying funny things, and students on campus make sure to keep it light. For example, it is not uncommon for someone to have a computer problem and say, “I need a SEAS student.”

The difference between, say, a SEAS joke and a Barnard joke is that there is often a fine line between humor and offense in the latter. Underneath some of these so-called “jokes” is evidence of a serious problem on campus—Columbia undergraduates disrespecting Barnard students.

Now, I am by no means saying every Columbia undergraduate disrespects Barnard students. If polled, I’m sure it would be only a small percentage of Columbia students that do. Nor am I saying that this video is offensive. Like all the “Shit [blank] Say” genre of videos, it is intended for people to both identify with and laugh at their cohort. However, a video produced by Columbia students with a Barnard statement is an opportunity to start a dialogue about the problem.

Regardless of the amount of disrespect on campus, its mere presence is enough to suggest there is a problem. This is by no means a new problem. It is an ongoing, long-standing problem in which undergraduates cite school affiliation as grounds for who is smarter, who is better, who does or doesn’t deserve to be on campus. This type of thinking is just the tip of the iceberg. It gets far worse. I experienced this disrespect at Columbia University’s 2008 commencement, as my CC peers threw not just apple cores but full apples at myself and my Barnard class. Sure, it was in jest, but the gesture says a lot.

No one deserves to be a second-class citizen at Columbia. It does not matter what school you are in, or how low the acceptance rate is at that school. You are a member of the community and deserve to be treated with respect. Every undergraduate on campus, whether he or she goes to CC, Barnard, SEAS, or GS, enhances the undergraduate community. Each student, from the moment they step onto campus, makes Columbia better. Whether a student provides a different perspective in a seminar or is a member of a varsity team, the University benefits from his or her presence. The University needs to have a no-nonsense policy on academic bullying between schools. Respect at Columbia should be non-negotiable. It should be a given. It should not matter what school you are in. Yes, the administration cannot stop all mocking between schools, but there is a line and it continues to be crossed.

The University should look to Barnard’s unofficial motto, which is that each of its students is a “strong, beautiful Barnard woman.” If the rest of the campus adapted this motto just imagine what a strong, beautiful Columbia it would be.

The author graduated from Barnard in 2008. She is currently pursuing a master’s in forensic linguistics at Hofstra University.