Check out these pictures from the University of Virginia’s “Spring Fling,” an annual weekend devoted to recruiting minority students that features “fashion shows,” etc., that would be regarded as indecent across “red” America and probably in some of “blue” America as well.
The lead edit in today’s Cavalier Daily, embarrasingly poorly edited and ungrammatical, was devoted to a ringing endorsement of “The Merits of Spring Fling” against growing charges that it leades to self-segregation of minority students.
The effects of minority recruitment programs are overwhelmingly beneficial, with the University able to boast a diverse student body, if only statistic-wise….
[….]
… Those who criticize Spring Fling and similar programs as reinforcing self-segregation would be better off to supporting multicultural initiatives, instead of using valuable and beneficial programs like Spring Fling as scapegoats.
“Spring Fling” is pandering as a high, or low, art form. On the other hand, it’s too bad no one thought to pander to Southern Jews with such “fashion shows” when I was deciding about college.
Hi John,
Sorry, but this argument — diversity leads to people dressing in skimpy outfits — seems way out of line to me.
First, they’re college kids. White kids, black kids, hispanic kids, they all dress in skimpy outfits in college.
Second, there seems to be a double standard applied: When liberals wear skimpy clothing, it’s evidence of bad morals; when conservatives wear skimpy clothing, it’s a sign of healthy youth. See, e.g., Instapundit’s recent approving link(s) to 17-year-old Aimee Deep in sexy lingerie. What gives?
I posted about it on blog. However, my blog hosted at the axis of evil, so it will probably be 5 hours until it shows up, and then the permalink won’t work.
Jefferson wept.
“Jefferson wept” and then he had sex with Sally Hemings…
Kaimi – I think your point is well taken, but I do think this UVa “Spring Fling” is a bit different from the run of the mill “kids will be kids” that you suggest. It is the keynote event of an official university affair/weekend specifically aimed at recruiting minority students, in this case with transparent flaunting of sex. What individual students wear, or don’t, is their own business. This strikes me as altogether different.
Again, I see your argument, but it does not convince me.
Contrary to your assertion, the part of the show you criticize was about fashion, not sex. Open the pages of any New York Times fashion section (I forget which day it runs on, Mondays I believe, usually at the end of the Metro section) and you will see outfits similar to those on the site linked. (one difference being that they are typically worn, in the NYT section, by undernourished euro-models).
There may be an underlying problem, if one believes that fashion is too sexed-up. But the fact is that if they had chosen to hold a “fashion show” without clothing that is considered fashionable, it would have been an obvious fake.
As for the revealingness of the clothing at issue, I didn’t find it egregious. At least the three bottom pictures are no more revealing than one sees every day at campus-sponsored sports events. Are you be opposed to those as well, since volleyball players wear shorts and swimmers wear speedos? Isn’t wearing revealing clothing as necessary for a fashion show, given the current state of fashion, as wearing speedos is for a swimmer?
IF you have to lure students to your colege by the promise of half dressed sex partners–well, you get what you attract. Funny, MIT and CalTech don’t have to do this kind of stunt. What it really says to black kids is that they don’t have to worry about classes,or scholarship at UVa.
Well, Kaimi, everyone to his own taste, but if those pictures don’t strike you as appealing to students with a flagrant display of sex, all I can say is that you’ve been in New York too long! And it does trouble me that this is an event organized by minority students at UVa to appeal to prospective UVa students, with official support. What troubles me is that the UVa minority community — including the minority dean who represents it — thinks this is the way to appeal to minority students.
I would be more convinced that it was a legitimate fashion show if at least one of the men pictured wasn’t bare chested. I mean, come on! To tell me the fashion show wasn’t overtly sexual is to insult my intelligence…
I would be more convinced that it was a legitimate fashion show if at least one of the men pictured wasn’t bare chested. I mean, come on! To tell me the fashion show wasn’t overtly sexual is to insult my intelligence…
I would be more convinced that it was a legitimate fashion show if at least one of the men pictured wasn’t bare chested. I mean, come on! To tell me the fashion show wasn’t overtly sexual is to insult my intelligence…
i think it all makes sense,
it’s bascially how it’s going to be. We can try and change it but it won’t matter, it will just give people more things to rebel.
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We attended a Latino/Hispanic 2004 “Fall Blast” at UVA and it was excellent. It was completely academic; nothing silly or controversial… Kudos to UVa for making efforts to open its doors to the under-represented Latino community.
My daughter, who is African-American, is considering UVA’s Engineering School. Does Spring Fling offer academic information in addition to entertainment? Are the prospective students given info that will help them maintain their own identity as young individuals seeking an outstanding education, rather than as a “group” member?