SCU Confessions Is Not That Scandalous
By Feliz Moreno
The controversial page SCU Confessions that has sprouted up on Facebook has been the talk of the campus lately. When I first heard about it I was a little wary, as I am with all online pages that seem to serve as a space for Internet bashing or bullying. But the direction the page has taken is actually really interesting. It highlights many problems on campus as well as the overall nature of the community.
The page is a running list of confessions from Santa Clara students about all aspects of student life - from roommate situations to academics to relationships.
The confessions range from helpful hints (the best ways to acquire free food) to the strange (pretending you're a slug).
As reminiscent of a high school burn book as it might seem when specific names or groups get mentioned in negative light, some of the confessions are really insightful. My particular favorites are the ones about how scary Bucky the Bronco is (something I'm sure a good portion of the population has felt at one point or another,) about nerdy guys who get girls and of course, about secret crushes.
Some confessions I agree with, and some I don't. In the end, I appreciate most of them and the fact that people took the time to share what they thought was important with our Santa Clara community.
The best part of the page is getting some insight as to how diverse our student body really is - we have the people who do drugs, the people who suffer from unrequited love, the academics who just want to sleep well on Wednesday nights, the bad roommates and, of course, we have the trolls who like to post ridiculous things just to get a rise out of people. It is like a beautiful mosh pit of Santa Clara personalities that hate and love each other and just want to have their opinions heard.
While a lot of the confessions are just funny or interesting, some of them raise issues that are pertinent to overall campus life. There are several that complain about the drinking culture on campus and comment on the dependency of the student body on alcohol and other drugs to socialize. There are a few that touch on the racial segregation on campus, and others that denounce Greek life. SCU Confessions has the opportunity to be the platform where students can be heard.
I hope that some of the issues raised will be discussed in other places on campus. The confessions page could serve as a jumping-off point for students to start talking about the things that usually are ignored and kept quiet. If anything, at least it creates a collective awareness among the student body who might not be aware of how diverse our campus really is.
Really, whoever started the page had a great idea on their hands. He or she realized that our campus does not always provide a space where such things can be said and talked about. The confessions page is kind of like an online, Santa Clara PostSecret community or a community comment wall. It is fun, serious, interesting and humanizing all at once, and it is the best entertainment I have had in a while.