Letters to the Editor

Lathrop deserved award

This is in response to a letter to the editor last week entitled "Serenading Dorm Skit Disgusts." Every year Lathrop gets really involved in Serenading and has a great time, yet gets so much negative attention following the event. This level of involvement is certainly not shared in all the other dorms, but for some reason our participation is viewed negatively.

In the letter, the point was made that Serenading is to be a day in which everybody feels they can participate, and the sexual content of Lathrop's song may have prohibited people from wanting to be a part of it.

Lathrop had more participation this year than ever before. It also brought about the participation of more sophomores and juniors than any other dorm.

Up at Ballantine, the entire hill behind Lathrop was lined with upperclassmen coming to encourage the freshmen with whom they live.

These Lathrop freshmen brought a level of enthusiasm and support that clearly stood out when the winners were decided. And whether or not every student on campus agrees that Lathrop should have won, and while I clearly am biased in thinking they did in fact deserve to win, the decision process was far more judicial than it has been in the past.

This year a group of people was asked to make the decision, comprised of students and administration. And the student originally from Lathrop who would've been in that group opted out of voting.

Apart from that, the content of Lathrop's song has been scrutinized. When a song says ‘fuck you seniors,’ much like that of Strong and other dorms, that sends a different sort of message for the day.
That to me seems much more non-inclusive, but for whatever reason is never brought into question. While one point of Serenading is to bring the freshmen closer to the seniors, it's also a way of uniting them within a dorm.

Oftentimes Serenading will be the only time throughout the year in which all the freshmen of a dorm will work together. That sense of community prevails all year in Lathrop. And it isn't because of an air hockey table.

Most importantly, the freshmen had a fucking blast. Even last year when Lathrop didn't win, everybody still had a blast. And from what I've noticed, the Lathrop freshmen don't feel degraded. I will, however, make sure to double-check with them as they play air hockey while wearing their "Serenading Champions" t-shirts.
—Christopher M. Galli, ‘06 Lathrop House President