The Howard Insider Presents The Daily Dose--Causing Work Stoppages Everywhere

I got a call from my best friend yesterday, "Have you been reading The Hilltop online?" My answer was clearly, "hell to the naw," but I might have to rethink that stance. Howard Insider former columnist (she knows she needs to rejoin the team), Candyce Paylor Anderson, wrote a letter in response to the recent news report of a fight over at Georgetown, were some Howard students were allegedly put at fault.

Needless, to say, her letter was published and the backlash was almost immediate. This is an excerpt of what one misguided freshman had to say about her letter:

As a new, proud Howard student I was shocked to read an article in The Hilltop on Thursday Sept. 21, 2006 regarding the so-called "crashed Georgetown party" by a group of "Rowdy Negroes" from our school.

Apparently, the perspective was not in our favor, and the story has been completely misconstrued, so I am here to set the story straight regarding the party that myself, friends, and other HU students were in attendance.

First off, we were not uninvited guests, considering other students and myself have friends at Georgetown who let us know that it was okay to join in the open party on their campus. We were going last Saturday not to crash a party, but to be able to explore the other universities that are close to us in D.C.

Let me start off by saying, SLOW YOUR ROLL little girl! In your first sentence you admitted to being what we all like to call an over zealous freshman. Get some credits before you start throwing up your school at any given chance. Don't get me wrong, I hopped on the G2 to Georgetown enough times during my 4 years as a bison to know what it's like to be a stranger on that campus. And, we all need to enjoy some good ol' American drunken white people parties every now and then, but it's all about what's appropriate, what's safe, and what's smart.

When you are that far from home (and 15 minutes in a darkened city is a world away) and that much of a minority, it might be a good idea to lie low and just blend in with the regulars. As you said, you were GUESTS, and therefore you should have acted as such. That was not your party nor were you surrounded by simpathetic friends. There is a time and a place for everything and obviously, that party was not the place for rowdy expressions of "school spirit."

Nonetheless, if Howard students didn't start/instigate the fight that eventually broke up the party, than it is wrong and unacceptable for the media (Howard, Georgetown, or local) to blame those students and to imply that the University is at some way at fault for its "unruly" pupils. This point is what seems to have been lost in your rebutal, Ms. Quarels.

Candyce was not chastisizing you and your friends, but simply urging the Administration to deal with the problem swiftly and accurately--whether that problem was with its own students, students of Georgetown University, or the media covering the events.

However, in the mean time, crack open your books and study up, because Homecoming is just around the corner, and from the sounds of your "I like to party" self, you will be easily distracted from the normal routine of classes. But, Candyce and I both wish you a successful 4 years at the mecca. Enjoy yourself, but most importantly, LEARN SOMETHING!