This is in response to the letter entitled "Reconsidering the Victory March" (Oct. 30). We feel the aforementioned letter included some good points; but it was still slightly exclusive in its message.
Even small exclusions breed both sadness and Viewpoint articles. As The Observer's Viewpoint section has taught us, it should be everyone's goal, in every aspect of life, to never mildly offend anyone, ever. Therefore, we deem it necessary to alter an age-old tradition to achieve the maximum degree of political correctness.
Like Caity and her understandably concerned mother, we also sang a different version of our University's beloved fight song at the USC game. We were appalled when the people sitting around us sang a less inclusive tune. While the student body ended the song with the ignorant and insensitive phrase "while her loyal sons are marching onward to victory," we sang proudly "while Her loyal sons and daughters and hermaphrodites march onward to victory."
It is an injustice rivaling comic strips about fat chicks that males get to raise their hands on "sons," females get to raise their hands on "her," and hermaphrodites don't get a chance to raise their hands at all. We fully expect a response to point out the obvious weakness in our argument: Our version of the Fight Song technically allows hermaphrodites to raise their hands three times. God bless.
Steve Simeonidis
Claude LeRose
juniors
Keough Hall
Oct. 30
