Thursday afternoon hundreds of students swarmed the Memorial Student Center flag room for a flash rave to commemorate the MSC before it closes for renovations in August and give students a small escape from the stresses of the final weeks of school. Somewhere among the crowd surfing, jumping on furniture and beach ball tossing, the student body lost site of what the MSC is. It is a memorial, a place of honor for Aggies who have died in American wars past and present, and Thursday’s events are a far cry from the dignity and respect that a memorial deserves.
The given reason for the rave of saying good-bye to the MSC may have been noble one, but it was poorly executed when the symbolism of the Memorial Student Center is taken into account. This is a building dedicated to Aggies who have given their lives in defense of the United States of America. It is a building of honor, of respect, the very ground around it is hallowed and revered. Medals of honor are on display; names of fallen Aggies hang bronzed in the entryway. Every fiber of this building is deserving of the very best behavior from anyone who walks its halls. Treating a memorial such as this one like a cheap nightclub is at the least ignorant, and at the most, disgraceful.
If graduating seniors and younger Aggies want to say a proper good-bye to the MSC before they leave Texas A&M, they should take the time to walk its halls, explore its treasures, and learn its lore. This is a memorial deserving of an intimate farewell before it undergoes its renovations, not a going away party. When the MSC grass is pulled up for the duration of the renovation process, will these same students trample the lawn to say “good-bye” to that as well? I hope not.
The MSC is a building where signs respectfully request that hats be removed. Why anyone would assume raves are acceptable when hats are not is beyond me.
Participants of the event said that not only was the rave held to say good-bye to the MSC, but it was also held so students could forget about finals and class for moment and have some fun. Luckily, Aggies have a place for that kind of forgetful bliss, it’s called Northgate, and there students can rave with a hat on to their heart’s content.
Speaking of respite for students tired of preparing for finals, did the participants in the rave give a thought to their peers who use the flag room as a place of study? Aggies should be considerate of each other. If a spontaneous party is necessary to vent some of that pent-up end-of-year stress, celebrate outside in Rudder Plaza where nobody’s study space will be disturbed.
I have worked beneath the MSC in the offices of The Battalion for two years now, and it is a building I will greatly miss. There have been hundreds of meals with friends at 12th man and Hullabaloo, dozens of trips to the bookstore to pick out souvenirs for the family. I have witnessed Fox News reporting from the flag room, student organizations on display in open house and fish camps wandering the halls as they prepare to welcome the incoming waves of freshmen. From my desk in this office, I hear musicians practicing everything from vocals to violin to baritone through the thin walls downstairs. And if I’m lucky, the faint notes of an Aggie playing on the MSC piano can be heard flowing from the flag room upstairs.
In two weeks I will walk the stage and leave this great University I have called home for five years. But before that day for farewell arrives, I will walk the hallways of this beloved building one more time to reflect on what I am leaving behind, knowing it will never be quite the same again.