A 'Poonster Apologizes for Parodies

To the Editors of The Crimson:

As a member of the Harvard Lampoon, I would like to apologize personally to the Harvard community and The Crimson for the content and method of distribution of the Monday and Tuesday parodies of The Crimson. While I was not involved in the writing, production or distribution of any of the parodies, I feel a certain guilt by association for their release.

As I understand it, although most of the Tuesday issue was intended just to shock people, many articles were also designed to startle Harvard out of its complacency about a few persistent social problems (homophobia, sexism and anti-Semitism).

However, it is clear that the Tuesday parody was not the proper forum or method with which to go about social criticism of that sort. The issue, as should have been expected, ended up working at cross-purposes with some of the very groups it was intended to assist (the Harvard-Radcliffe Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Students Association; the Radcliffe Union of Students and the Harvard-Radcliffe Hillel).

While I cannot speak for the entire Lampoon, it is my opinion that the rest of the staff would be quite interested in offering much more beneficial help to these groups in the future as a way of showing solidarity with their causes and rectifying any damage done by the Tuesday issue.

A further apology is also in order for the removal of the real Crimson on Monday and Tuesday. Regardless of the content of the parody, The Crimson should not have had its property damaged, and the Harvard community should not have been deprived of reading the real news for two days in a row.

Again, I hope The Crimson and the Harvard community accept my apologies about any damage or offense caused by the organization with which I am affiliated. The members of the Lampoon are already aware of my views, but it is my hope that, in the future, any efforts at social commentary in this community will be carried out in a more thoughtful and careful fashion. Tyler E. Chapman '90