<p>[Did</a> I CU @ the Homecoming game? | Spectrum](<a href=“http://spectrum.columbiaspectator.com/opinion/did-i-cu-the-homecoming-game]Did”>http://spectrum.columbiaspectator.com/opinion/did-i-cu-the-homecoming-game)</p>
<p>That really is quite sad. It’s not the first time I’ve heard it, and what makes it all the more sad is that the same qualities that make Barnard stand out from the rest of colleges are the same things that complicate it’s connections and interactions with it’s students and with Columbia. I feel like it can sometimes be a double-edged sword.</p>
<p>I think that article reflects the mindset of the writer more than anything else. It’s clear that her presence was welcome when she finally got around to attending a male varsity football game in her 4th year of college? So why was she reluctant to cheer for Columbia? If she attended a game in her first year, maybe she would have seen then that she was welcome and embraced, and then wouldn’t feel like such an outsider 4 years down the line.</p>
<p>It seems she hasn’t attended any other sporting events. Apparently, despite being a Barnard student and a former high school athlete, she hasn’t seen fit to attend any women’s sporting events. If she had, then she would have seen Barnard women playing alongside of CC women on whatever team (basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball, track & field, fencing, etc.). OK, women’s sports have never quite seemed to catch on as spectator sports to the same extent as male sports… but whose fault is that? I mean… what prevented the author from attending and supporting women’s sports events over the past 4 years? (Somewhere along the line she might have discovered that the official name of the Ivy League participant is “Columbia-Barnard Athletic Consortium”).</p>
<p>She might have also noticed that there were probably Barnard women among the cheerleaders at the game she attended, as well as as in the marching band she described as “enthusiastic.” </p>
<p>No one told her that she couldn’t sing the fight song. She’s writing about her own feelings and reservations, not the external reality. </p>
<p>(Note: My d. did not attend CU sporting events, as far as I know. My d. did join/participate in CU student organizations, holding specific positions or offices in at least two. I just think that if someone willfully avoids participating in something for years, that person needs to look inside herself for the reason she feels somehow out of place. If the writer had cited an incident at the game that made her feel uncomfortable, then things would be different – but she seems to be describing an environment of acceptance and at the same time trying to rationalize her internalized feelings of alienation.)</p>
<p>I’m a first year at Barnard, and last weekend’s homecoming was my first college football game ever. I’m not much of a football person, even though I’m from Texas. I had a blast. The feeling that I “didn’t belong” never even occurred to me. I hadn’t heard the school fight song before, but after a chant session or two, my roommates and I started chanting along, even though we only knew some of the worlds. More than anything, we just felt very American. I agree that its only the opinion of one student. So far, I’ve never felt uncomfortable here at Barnard. I was a bit worried, after reading all the Barnard v Columbia stuff online, but that really doesn’t exist here. If you tell people you go to Barnard, it really isn’t a big deal. Most people think its pretty cool. I love it here, football and all.</p>