As most University of Minnesota students and faculty are well aware, a recent issue of the Minnesota Daily carried a Sex-U-Mah insert. I wanted to take a moment to consider the implications of this piece.

We know well that published media carries great weight in shaping public thought and opinion. So my question is: What type of culture is the Daily promulgating by publishing Sex-U-Mah?  It is reinforcing the hyper-sexualization of our university culture. 

My issue here isn’t that people are having sex. My issue is with the way that the Daily is not just shaping frames of thought, but also modes of action. When a Sex-U-Mah quiz asked the question, “Are you getting laid tonight?” it was objectifying sex. It becomes a self-focused object. So in men’s minds, what do women become? Women become playmates, and when a guy has finished, the buzzer goes off, and the game is done. Good game, until next time.

How do you feel about that, women? My guess is that it doesn’t feel so great waiting and waiting for his call, only so you can give him what he wants — your body — instead of being known and genuinely cared for. Hear this: Women are not meant to be an object. And thanks to the hyper-sexualization of our university culture, we men are too busy admiring our dicks to admire women as human beings.

Could the objectification of sex be contributing to the culture of rape that is infesting this university?

Please stop fueling the objectification of sex on campus.