Last week, I discussed the inappropriate language used by Rush Limbaugh to describe Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown University law student who advocated before Congress for contraceptive coverage in insurance plans.
Limbaugh has been under heavy criticism for his remarks in which he called Fluke a “slut” and a “prostitute.” He also said Fluke should upload videos of herself having sex so others could watch.
Conservatives have tried to defend Limbaugh, saying the First Amendment protects his vulgar speech. For better or worse, that is true. Limbaugh has every right to say what he wants, at least according to free speech laws. However, that doesn’t mean he should.
Another case of government-protected free speech has presented itself in the form of Hayley Wade, a University of Calgary student who won a student government position after placing posters above men’s urinals that read “Great d-ck bro!”
Wade was running for vice president of student life and won the vote by 50 percent.
“The poster speaks to students in a language they know and understand and find funny,” Wade told the university newspaper The Gauntlet. “Part of my platform is all about student engagement on this campus, and effective communication with students.”
While Wade certainly has every right to base her campaign on a somewhat inappropriate obscenity while boosting the narcissistic male ego, that doesn’t mean she should.
Now don’t get me wrong. I am no prude and I am known for dropping the occasional curse word. In fact, I don’t find the word “d-ck” offensive at all.
What’s disagreeable is that people like Limbaugh and Wade believe their right to say something is synonymous with what they should say.
While Wade has an unmistakable good sense of humor (Limbaugh on the other hand is just a complete jerk), her position as vice president should not be based on the ability to make a few laughs.
Instead, Wade should have based her campaign on issues that matter to students: financial aid, student life or whatever the issues may be — those should have been her selling points.
University of Calgary student Sarah Hanlon makes a good argument.
“The posters are aimed specifically for people with d-cks and I don’t have a d-ck,” she said. “(The posters) are saying that in order for a female to gain power she has to compliment men and not only a man but a man’s genitalia.”
What kind of world do we live in where women have to make cheap jokes and portray themselves as a "bro" to get noticed? Shouldn’t women be recognized for their intellect and persona, not as ego boosters?
In a society that still does not value women enough, it’s especially important for men like Limbaugh to refrain from using demeaning and belittling language and for women like Wade to advertise her true value, not her “bro” side.
Was Wade clever? Yes. Did she use a brilliant campaign move? Perhaps.
Should she have? Debatable.
Reach the columnist at eeeaton@asu.edu
Click here to subscribe to the daily State Press newsletter.
