I’m writing this letter in response to Jerard Fagerberg’s piece (“A loving obituary for Craig’s, the shittiest bar I’ve ever been to,” Feedbag, Jan. 26) because, as a Loyola University student, I feel that the entirety of our undergraduate population does not define itself in relation to Craig’s, and this point of view has not been heard in the past couple of weeks.

As a university, specifically a Jesuit university engaged in issues of social justice, discernment, and our larger community, Loyola provides countless opportunities outside of the classroom for students to learn from and with each other. It brings speakers to campus that draw incredible crowds, such as our recent Martin Luther King Jr. Day convocation, which packed Reitz Arena. It provides opportunities for service in the Baltimore community, throughout the country, and beyond. Many of my friends are currently teaching full time in Baltimore schools, while others are interning on Capitol Hill, at law firms, for nonprofits, and with media organizations. Loyola students cannot, and will not, be lumped into one homogenous entity that frequents Craig’s and mourns its loss.

At the end of his piece, Fagerberg does recognize that Craig’s closure was probably a good thing, a small step in healing a tumultuous relationship with our neighbors on York Road. He writes that “York Road residents didn’t deserve the weekly parade of intoxicated teens barfing and fucking on their lawns,” but quickly disregards that fact as if the self-indulgent actions of drunk students were more important than the safety and concerns of members of the community in their own homes.

When did Loyola students decide we could claim the York Road corridor as our own? We can and should actively engage and partner with our neighbors, and the York Road Initiative, the York Road Student Association, and York Road Community Days sponsored by Loyola’s Center for Community Service and Justice do this in a respectful way that responds to the needs of the community.

I was a staff writer for The Greyhound during my first and second years as a Loyola student, and for my first cover story I interviewed a wide variety of Loyola students, faculty, and administration members about how they view their relationship to the greater Baltimore community. I received many diverse responses from people across campus. I’m not aiming to attack Fagerberg by writing this letter; he and I have had very different experiences of Loyola, it seems, and his piece is representative of a common viewpoint on campus, but it’s not the only one. I’m not passing judgment on one viewpoint over the other, but my point is this: We don’t all view our identity as Loyola students to be so closely intertwined with nights at Craig’s, and the reactions of some to this rather insignificant event is in no way representative of our entire student body.

Lindsey Rennie, 2015

This originally appeared on Baltimore City Paper‘s website in The Mail on 2/11/15.

(photo via)