Ludacris coming to Fairfield is good on many levels. But if you look between those cornrows, his position on women is less than stellar.
Now, I have no beef with Luda; I am, in fact, looking forward to his concert. But it forces me to compare a previous event with his arrival: The He Said controversy.
For most of this year, Mirror He Said columnist Dan Stanczyk has been under scrutiny from people on campus for, what some may call, chauvinistic remarks.
One reader’s online comments stated that she will not be reading The Mirror anymore until she gets an apology.
This reply was in reference to a comment that read, “When you look like Icebox from the Little Giants you won’t be getting any playing time off the field.”The same column also stated that women have a better chance at catching an STD than a football.
But do these same people get upset over what is written by big name celebrities like Ludacris?
In his song, “Hoe’s in my Room” one of his lyrics read: “Lookin’ for some women that can fondle my balls.”
Luda is going to have to look pretty hard for those women because, according to Stanczyk, a woman’s ball-handling skills leave something to be desired.
Luda’s views on women caught the attention of students at another Connecticut university.
In a Yale feminist blog, a blogger reacted to an April 24, 2006, concert by Ludacris at Yale.
Ludacris, as reported by the blogger, said at the concert, “Excuse me for my language, ladies, because some find it explicit, you know.”
Then he posed a question that even Stanczyk might shy away from: “How many women here have their pussies clean? Come on, girls.”
I am not saying Ludacris is a bad act because I like his music and love his role in the movie “Crash.” And I am not saying that he is a male-chauvinist, because why would I care about that; I am a guy.
However, Ludacris’s presence begs us to ask a question of simple curiosity: Where have all those He Said haters gone?
They put up their disapproval of Stanczyk, and that’s it. What about Ludacris?
Female voices spoke out in a column “We Said,” which appeared in the Nov. 1, 2007, issue of The Mirror, and expressed their disapproval of the word “bitch.”
I wonder what Ludacris would say, since one of his biggest hits is “Move, bitch, get out the way.”
Ludacris uses his lyrics for entertainment, and so does Stanczyk.
People need to come to the realization that academic freedom and the creative exchange of ideas works best at a university like this.
Some people have said they will not read The Mirror anymore because Stanczyk negatively misrepresents the newspaper and school.
With FUSA’s investment of $85,000 in Luda’s appearance as the February concert, Ludacris will represent and become a part of Fairfield’s image.
And here is some food for thought: both the FUSA concert committee and programming board are led by women.
While standing up may take a lot of effort and courage, giving up a fight when the “enemy” is coming to your house is just plain ludicrous.
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