Streaking

[Greendruid]

Yeah, when Michael started up this forum, I really didn't think I'd have the ... uh ... opportunity? to start a thread about streaking. However, being a professor has presented me with some unexpected situations from time to time, even at our tiny institution of about 3,500 students.

Today, in the middle of a lecture on medical anthropology, a student who is not in my class entered the lecture hall entirely naked except for a ball cap. He ran down those always awkwardly spaced steps of one of those familiar 100+ seat "bear-pit" lecture theatres to the front of the room but decided not to ascend the stage. I was lecturing from the side at this point because I tend to walk and talk so he breezed past me in full view of the Full Monty. It was definitely planned but poorly scripted. A friend of his was propped at the doorway taking video footage. He asked my students if this was a philosophy class. When no one responded, including myself his poor planning became evident. He really didn't seem to know where to go from there. After a seemingly drawn out 15s pause or so he exclaimed that he was looking for a political science class anyway and trotted himself back up the stairs and out the door. Regaining composure took a minute or so for myself and my students.

Most of them were laughing, chuckling and so forth. I was giggling as well. After all, it was St. Patrick's Day today and I recognised a likely distant kinship in the student's pasty white and freckled complexion. I chalked it all up to a gag or prank or perhaps a light social commentary. It really didn't unsettle me much at all and I suppose that said students may have chosen their target class carefully knowing that I'm a fairly laid back individual.

However, in talking this event over with several individuals during the rest of the afternoon, more than one person pointed out the possible problems that could have emerged with all this. The point was made that if individuals in the class were past victims of sexual abuse or rape that this event might have caused real harm. This really got me thinking. I take the extreme position in matters of the self that acts done to the self, including suicide, are ultimately the prerogative of the self and the state should have no jurisdiction over this. In many ways, this man's nudity was his alone. The problem lies in the fact that his nudity could be perceived as having been imposed on my students. In other words, they were there for a lecture and were looking at my slides, listening to me talk when this individual came between me and them. My concern is not the causing of offence - that happens daily and is not an issue to me. The concern I now have is in the harm that may have been caused. Especially considering that I'm male and the streaker was male, a female student who was a rape victim watching my giggling at this event would probably never point this out to me.

So, what do you guys think? I almost want a poll here but I don't seem to be able to create one. Should the event, which is illegal I will remind folks, be reported? Where do we draw the lines around harm? How vigorously should we or could we pursue such events? I'll likely report the event after the fact, just so that it goes reported in case more such events do crop up and create instances of harm. It's a real poser for me though and threatens my own sense of self, property and comfort with being a naked ape.

[Margot]

Yeah, when Michael started up this forum, I really didn't think I'd have the ... uh ... opportunity? to start a thread about streaking. However, being a professor has presented me with some unexpected situations from time to time, even at our tiny institution of about 3,500 students.

Today, in the middle of a lecture on medical anthropology, a student who is not in my class entered the lecture hall entirely naked except for a ball cap. He ran down those always awkwardly spaced steps of one of those familiar 100+ seat "bear-pit" lecture theatres to the front of the room but decided not to ascend the stage. I was lecturing from the side at this point because I tend to walk and talk so he breezed past me in full view of the Full Monty. It was definitely planned but poorly scripted. A friend of his was propped at the doorway taking video footage. He asked my students if this was a philosophy class. When no one responded, including myself his poor planning became evident. He really didn't seem to know where to go from there. After a seemingly drawn out 15s pause or so he exclaimed that he was looking for a political science class anyway and trotted himself back up the stairs and out the door. Regaining composure took a minute or so for myself and my students.

Most of them were laughing, chuckling and so forth. I was giggling as well. After all, it was St. Patrick's Day today and I recognised a likely distant kinship in the student's pasty white and freckled complexion. I chalked it all up to a gag or prank or perhaps a light social commentary. It really didn't unsettle me much at all and I suppose that said students may have chosen their target class carefully knowing that I'm a fairly laid back individual.

However, in talking this event over with several individuals during the rest of the afternoon, more than one person pointed out the possible problems that could have emerged with all this. The point was made that if individuals in the class were past victims of sexual abuse or rape that this event might have caused real harm. This really got me thinking. I take the extreme position in matters of the self that acts done to the self, including suicide, are ultimately the prerogative of the self and the state should have no jurisdiction over this. In many ways, this man's nudity was his alone. The problem lies in the fact that his nudity could be perceived as having been imposed on my students. In other words, they were there for a lecture and were looking at my slides, listening to me talk when this individual came between me and them. My concern is not the causing of offence - that happens daily and is not an issue to me. The concern I now have is in the harm that may have been caused. Especially considering that I'm male and the streaker was male, a female student who was a rape victim watching my giggling at this event would probably never point this out to me.

So, what do you guys think? I almost want a poll here but I don't seem to be able to create one. Should the event, which is illegal I will remind folks, be reported? Where do we draw the lines around harm? How vigorously should we or could we pursue such events? I'll likely report the event after the fact, just so that it goes reported in case more such events do crop up and create instances of harm. It's a real poser for me though and threatens my own sense of self, property and comfort with being a naked ape.


I'm thinking that it would be the prerogative of any personally offended student to report it.

The kid made an awesome retarded decision, and put his own bare ass on the line. It is up to each individual in a lecture hall to respond in his or her individual way. I don't think, though, that trading sure-fire legal consequences for a hypothetical wronging is your moral duty.

I would be more concerned with whatever legal obligation you may have. Are you contractually expected to report it? Not to sound like a self-serving prick or anything, but trading sure-fire legal consequences for sure-fire legal consequences sounds like a far more pressing hypothetical.

[Donkey]

I think the problem stems from our society's unfortunate attitude toward nudity.

[Michael]

I just created a simple poll. If Greendruid wants a more nuanced poll, please pm me. :)

(one has to create a poll when one creates the thread - there is a separate window for that - after you post, you can't add a poll or edit it - only I can do that)

[Americano]

I voted yes from a sense of intended distraction from the purpose of the lecture room. Keep it outdoors.

[Michael]

Yeah, when Michael started up this forum, I really didn't think I'd have the ... uh ... opportunity? to start a thread about streaking. However, being a professor has presented me with some unexpected situations from time to time, even at our tiny institution of about 3,500 students.
That's only double the size of my high school! :lol:

So, what do you guys think? I almost want a poll here but I don't seem to be able to create one. Should the event, which is illegal I will remind folks, be reported? Where do we draw the lines around harm? How vigorously should we or could we pursue such events? I'll likely report the event after the fact, just so that it goes reported in case more such events do crop up and create instances of harm. It's a real poser for me though and threatens my own sense of self, property and comfort with being a naked ape.

Based on the information given, I'd have to say that it is my considered opinion that nothing needs to be reported at all.

I have several reasons for holding this view:

1. There is no evidence that any actual harm has been done, nor any evidence that any actual harm might have been done. As far as the description of the event goes, it looks a lot like some silly, but harmless, student prank.

2. I think we have to be careful NOT to over-react with political correctness in this situation. Indeed, it is over-reacting to issues like this that has given academia a well-deserved reputation for 'political correctness run amuk'.

3. The fact of the matter is, you don't know that some past victim of sexual assault might be in the lecture hall and you don't know if that past victim-status would be traumatized by the presence of a naked person (however fleeting and non-threatening the 'streaker' might be). How does one know that the presence of a youthful streaker would be 'traumatic' for some sexual assault victim? Indeed, maybe some member of the lecture has been previously beaten up by a black man, does that mean that you need a rule that no black males ought to be allowed to enter the lecture hall in order to prevent potential trauma/fear in that previous assault victim? Where does one draw the line?

4. In situations without an identifiable victim, it is absurd to invent a hypothetical victim in order to turn the situation into one that is worthy of disciplinary action. Either the action is worthy of discipline or it is not - on its own merits. Hypothetical victims shouldn't be invoked to resolve this question. If there are real or actual victims, that's a different story, but without an actual victim, I consider it absurd to invent a hypothetical one.

5. Nudity does not equal sex. To treat the 'streaker' incident as a potential source of trauma for some hypothetical sexual assault victim essentially validates the concept that 'nudity equals sex'.

[Michael]

I voted yes from a sense of intended distraction from the purpose of the lecture room. Keep it outdoors.
Yes, this is a valid point.

However, the nature of this particular 'disturbance/distraction' is such that one is quite unlikely to see it repeated if it is not penalized immediately.

I agree that those who disrupt the class may be subject to school discipline as that is necessary to maintain the proper environment for learning. But the purpose of such discipline is to prevent its reoccurance, not necessarily to exact retributional punishment upon the disturber.

In this particular case, the likelihood of a repetition is quite low, and thus, discipline would only be used as a moral 'stick' to beat the offender with for the sake of some retributional satisfaction. I can't agree with that at all as it is quitely likely to cause more long-term harm than good.

[Americano]

Yes, this is a valid point.

However, the nature of this particular 'disturbance/distraction' is such that one is quite unlikely to see it repeated if it is not penalized immediately.

I agree that those who disrupt the class may be subject to school discipline as that is necessary to maintain the proper environment for learning. But the purpose of such discipline is to prevent its reoccurance, not necessarily to exact retributional punishment upon the disturber.

In this particular case, the likelihood of a repetition is quite low, and thus, discipline would only be used as a moral 'stick' to beat the offender with for the sake of some retributional satisfaction. I can't agree with that at all as it is quitely likely to cause more long-term harm than good.

I'd establish what is and what isn't allowable in a university lecture hall. If administration feels the topic was a random occurrence, let it ride. But, let it be known that should it happen again unfavorable consequences are in store for the disturber.

I would not want to be personally lecturing and have attention seekers disrupt my delivery. That's just fucking rude.

[Zarquon]

Report him, for deterrence's sake or just out of undermining classroom decorum.