All the hype about “Bennie Swag” and the stereotypical fashion sense Bennies apparently have has caused me to question why it is such a big deal. Why is it that an attack on our fashion expertise is a criminal offense but the daily attacks on our body image seem to go unnoticed? Like many of you, I have noticed for quite some time. What I still do not understand is how we got to this point.
I looked up “Bennie” on urbandictionary.com and the top definition made me want to throw up, which apparently I should be doing anyway to cut back on all of my “excess weight.” There was a recent attempt made to portray a positive image of a Bennie, but it of course is overshadowed by the negative definition. Where did the idea that all Bennies do is lust after food come from? Is it because of Gorecki’s array of food and ice cream machines? The same thing can be found at the Ref., minus the unflattering stereotype. Is it some sort of inside joke that morphed into an uncontrollable generalization? That cannot be it, because it is not a joke.
No matter how you try to write it off as a joke, the end result is not laughter. Perhaps it did start off in an innocent manner, but where do we draw the line? Try explaining this “joke” to a girl with an eating disorder, or to the parents of the Bennie you are dating, or to your mother who graduated from St. Ben’s years ago. If you cannot, maybe that is an indication of how unfunny it is.
Do not write it off as a genuine concern for our health; you are now calling us fat and stupid. A non-member of the CSB/SJU community would not leave this campus thinking that there was an obvious weight problem. It does not exist. They might notice the baggy clothing, but maybe that is a result of shattered self confidence.
On the surface, this may seem minimal, but it has a definite impact whether we choose to recognize it or not. This is a big deal because when we step outside the “pine curtain,” we enter a world in which ad companies have to issue apology statements and retract ads for altering female images so much that waistlines are smaller than faces. It is disheartening when this trail has found its way to our front doors.
I know that I will be ridiculed for going on a rant about how Bennies are beautiful, but maybe this reminder would not be necessary without all of the degrading comments. Before discrediting my opinion by claiming that I am offended only because I am insecure, let me assure you that I am not. Despite the common belief, I am not fat, and I am still very much a Bennie. It is due time that we challenge this stereotype instead of pretending it is nothing. Asking for respect should not need justification.