Back when we were in school I remember thinking about the differences between the Barnard and Columbia girls. From our perspective, we were more interesting, had cooler outfits, and obviously were doing more for the progress of women everywhere. From their perspective, we were slutty lesbians who couldn’t get into Columbia. I don’t think any of us really thought these things were true, except, well, when they were.
Perceptions of the “Barnard woman” seem to have changed up there in Morningside Heights. According to an April 2011 post on the Spectator’s blog, “the eye” (side note: creepiest blog name ever), “Barnard, Inc.” now manufactures “Athena Goddess Econ majors” prepared to “sparkle only in the corporate world.” The college is aiming to produce an army of “‘bright women’ who become successful businesswomen, who run things and who make love to their Blackberry devices and who wear business-casual when they don’t really have to and who, most importantly, invent and manufacture products that they then sell to Barnard at discount prices.”
I’m sorry but is it possible to read this stuff without cracking up? Barnard businesswomen don’t carry blackberries! Give me a break! They have better phones than that. And we all know that business casual is a made-up dress code that only applies to men (and women who don’t know better than to wear khakis)! Has this writer ever even been on Barnard’s campus?
As far as Barnard’s entire purpose being to make women who just want to sell each other discount underwear, I suppose we’re caught. Remember that part of Anna’s speech when she was like “go sell underwear! do it fearlessly!” It was a really touching moment. I cried.
Barnard Class of 2005 Blog 