Dear Editor,
Let's think about our selection of an artist for Spring Fling for a moment.
I know people have been promoting the idea of a female artist for Spring Fling, but I think it is motivated by the wrong reasons. We shouldn't be trying to get a female artist. I understand that people want to see some ladies performing, and I'm fine with that! What I'm getting at is that we should be trying to get a good artist, regardless of who they are. I think it is insulting to any artist to be selected to perform based on something as stupid as their gender.
Let's not cheapen music or awesome female artists by making gender the only criterion for our choice. Remember, don't make the mistake of equating underrepresentation with merit. Let's get someone who can rock out, and forget about their downstairs mix?up. I'm not saying, "Don't book a woman." I am saying that our choice for a Spring Fling artist should be based on merit and our collective desire for an awesome springtime concert that we can all enjoy. In my personal fantasy, we would get Janis Joplin, Sharon Jones and Nina Simone to come perform in a trio. Since that's not really an option, I would put forward Anais Mitchell or Grace Potter and the Nocturnals as some great contemporary performers that we could probably get.
Sincerely, Theron Lay?Sleeper
