TO THE EDITOR:
The "Pit breakup," real or staged, holds important implications for the values and atmosphere at Carolina.
Though there is a place for humor on campus, the nature of this event minimizes the reality of the abuse inherent in the incident and models destructive ways of dealing with relationships.
Harassment is a malicious act of threatening someone for personal reasons. Emotional abuse is serious mistreatment of another person's feelings. This incident reflects harassment and abuse. So how could intelligent people take part in such an event?
Groupthink occurs when the pressure to conform within a group interferes with decision making. Devastating events have occurred due to mob mentality, and it is important to step back and look at how this incident occurred in our community.
UNC should be a place where people feel safe. It is all of our responsibilities to make it so.
College is a time when people explore relationships. In that process people make mistakes. However, emotional pain is not an acceptable excuse for abuse and harassment. Rather, the skills of emotion management, communication and tolerance are necessary in order to develop mature relationships.
Examining how this incident occurred - staged or real - will hopefully give us the tools we need to make Carolina the exceptional campus it has the potential to be.
Amy Schmitz-Sciborski
Meredith Mayer
Counseling & Wellness Services
