Don't Ban Men from Gym

By Akeem Anderson
Black College Wire

Maybe it's the testerone talking, but it has always seemed to me that women of all nationalities, creeds and backgrounds have one thing in common -- an inherent superiority complex. The severity of the complex varies, but it is present.

It is the reason the women require men to be chivalrous while they sing declarations of self-sufficiency.

See Destiny Child's catalog which includes Bills, Bills, Bills and Independent Woman for details. Personally, I appreciate the duality of women, but I do mind that such a complex degrades the male race.

Akeem Anderson

That is why the new Royal Flush program, which prohibits males from entering the gym from 7-9 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays is well-royally ridiculous.

I support the womanly solidarity that the program encourages. Nutritional meals, counseling, and weight training classes are all valuable.

But to stop males from using the gym is unfair because the men don't counteract any of those activities.

I have heard the rumblings from women who insist that countless males gawk at them during their workout.

I wouldn't dare say that some men don't occasionally glance at females in the gym. But to insinuate that it is a large enough problem to mandate a "no boys" rule is even more preposterous.

As accusations fly about ogling males facilitating an uncomfortable fitness environment, did anyone think that guys come to the gym to actually work out? If the primary goal was to look at scantly clad women, they could simply take a seat on The Set. It is arrogant and vain to think that man will abandon his workout regimen simply to commit ocular assault on a woman who crosses his path.

Ladies, you look too, but your glances are discreet.

To say men are only there to see you in your workout clothes is parallel to the idea that women go to the gym looking to find a man. Both of those statements are equally insulting, and both hold no merit.

There is also administrative incentive to end "Ladies Night."

The recreation center is for everyone. To keep a group of people from using amenities on campus is a violation of their rights.

Royal Flush supporters say the institutional exclusion is valid because men frequented the gym the most. The difference is that none told women they couldn't come to work out.

Would it be acceptable for the recreation center to hold a "white night" when only the school's Caucasian students were allowed to work out?

The answer to that question should explain why the Royal Flush should go down the toilet.

Akeem Anderson is a junior at Florida A&M University. A version of this article appeared in the Famuan. Please e-mail [email protected] if you wish to comment.