Ball State University is known for David Letterman, Jim Davis and now the Ass-Slapper. I never thought I'd see the day when one man's butt smacks of women would cause an entire campus to rise up, laugh out or groan simultaneously.
I also never thought I would find myself writing a column about an incident such as this. Sadly, the current level of immaturity surrounding the situation is enough to make even the most stubborn people speak out.
The fact is simple: Someone rode up on a bicycle, and without consent, smacked three women's butts. No matter how you look at it, it is battery.
This wasn't a light tap or some flirtatious fondle, but a heavy-handed slap. It would have been one thing if it happened on the Dill Street Bar dance floor, an environment where this action still isn't accepted, but also isn't unexpected. Instead, this happened in broad daylight, in a place where no one would suspect something like this to happen.
Afterward, two of the women did exactly what has been drilled into each and every one of us since childhood: They reported the incident to the authorities. And the authorities did exactly what they were supposed to: They informed the community. And the community did exactly what it was supposed to: It poked fun at an battery and make buffoons of themselves. Oh wait, that doesn't sound right.
People have taken three sides on this issue. The first are the people who support the women who were assaulted and the response from the administration. The second are the people who decided to take the misfortune of others and turn it into a joke, and worse yet, a game. The last are the people who don't care either way, or are completely uninformed.
No side's arguments are without fault. Although I commend those who support the assaulted women and the administration's response, I believe that comparing this incident to more egregious forms of battery such as rape, is a stretch.
I also think saying anyone who is a member of a Facebook group making a joke of this incident is advocating domestic abuse and sexual violence is a bit of a stretch as well. It is certainly immature, but it is a far cry from beating women.
For those who make up the second group of people, while I can easily see how this incident can be seen as being funny, I wish they would have taken a moment to reflect on how their involvement in such groups could have larger implications.
Victims of battery, no matter how minor it may be, already face an emotional struggle in coping with the act of battery. If minor battery elicits such a bold response from students against those who report it, the existing culture discouraging people from reporting battery continues.
Secondly, the Facebook group members sent a horrible message about Ball State and hurt other people's image of us as individual students. I hate knowing that there is a real possibility of someone I meet in the future mentioning these incidents when they find out I'm from Ball State. Our award-winning education and facilities will be nothing compared to the massive Facebook group. That's just plain sad.
In most cases, the third and last group would be the large majority. However, there seem to be very few people who haven't taken a stance on this issue. It seems everyone has spent some amount of energy thinking about, speaking about or protesting this event. I wish all this energy would go to something semi-important, like, I don't know, university budget cuts or poverty.
In the end, this incident should have been forgotten about within a day or two. Instead, several Facebook pages with thousands of members each and lively conversations about "Ass-Slap Wednesday" have popped up. People are protesting on the street corners. Letters are being written to the editor.
And yes, I am aware that by writing a column, I too may be fanning the flames of this fire. But I sincerely hope that if there is one thing you take away from reading this, it's that battery shouldn't be trivialized, it shouldn't be used to accuse others of spreading violence, and it shouldn't take away from the more important issues in the world.
Let's all quit being immature and move on to bigger and better things.
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