Georgetown University is in the throes of an identity crisis. It is famous, but relatively poor. It is well-regarded, but slipping in rank. Solutions that address the root of the problem have ranged from fiscal cuts to a reorganization of the University’s entire mission. But for those of us who can’t wait that long, a more cosmetic treatment is available: Traditions Day, courtesy of your friends at the FRIENDS Initiative.
Traditions Day, held for the first time on Tuesday, is hard to pin down. Sometimes it was a history lesson, sometimes it was just an excuse to eat free pizza. Overall it just looked like a cry for help, a self-conscious fit of “Ivy Envy” by a university cast adrift from its moorings. Because if we really have “traditions,” if Georgetown is home to a set of thriving, time-honored institutions that remain relevant yet challenging to each successive generation of students, then we really don’t need a Traditions Day.
But hey, if we’re going to invent some holidays, thus giving the persons in charge free reign to invent some Hoya history, we should make sure they come up with some cool stuff. We at the Voice are partial to the “President’s Cup,” which is not a sailing race, but instead an academic competition featuring representatives from each school. This is the kind of thing that would actually be worth considering as a tradition, as opposed to “something we just do because we live here.”
The latter category would be applicable to most of the so-called traditions foisted upon us. If you picked up your Traditions Day cup, you would have learned that “Squirrels,” “Studying Abroad,” “Gaston,” “8:50s” and “Dances” are all traditions. Indeed. A stroll through Red Square, where you could have gotten the aforementioned free pizza (a fine activity, but hardly indicative of a vibrant past), would have taught you the following: Mike Sweetney was nominated to a preseason team. Robert Galucci is Dean of the School of Foreign Service. The Traditions Day Calendar costs $12. These traditions speak for themselves.
But there was one upside to Traditions Day: We followed up on FRIENDS’ suggestion and decided to cancel our Tuesday afternoon binge drinking session in favor of some more appropriate leisure activities, like “Jesuits.” And even we have to admit that those guys are pretty fun. But are they a tradition? No more so than the rest of us. If Traditions Day is going to have any relevance for students, the organizers need a message that runs deeper than “we have traditions.”
