Letter to Editor by Becca Barhorst

Saturday, I attended the UK, Tennessee game with as much school spirit as any other UK fan in Rupp Arena — except I was clad in yellow rather than in blue.

My shirt read “Beyond Coal” against a neon yellow background. To say that I, and the few friends who wore the same shirt, stood out in the student eRUPPtion zone is an understatement.

As an intern with the UK Beyond Coal campaign, a campaign within the Sierra Club to push college campuses around the nation to move beyond coal to using 100 percent  renewable energy, I was just as proud to wear my yellow than as if I were wearing Kentucky blue.

Having school spirit isn’t just about supporting our basketball team; it’s about supporting any initiative towards bettering our university as a whole.

The signs my friends and I brought to the game read, “Let’s Move UK Beyond Coal!” were not allowed in the arena because they were seen as a “political statement” and “would offend people on national TV.”

Hold on a second, you’re telling me I can’t show my spirit for alternative energy because it’s a political statement? Like the “Kentucky Coal Cats” isn’t? Or what about the “Wildcat Coal Lodge”? Is that omitted from being a political statement as well?

I’m just wondering how my passion and interest for bettering the health and well being of my school’s community could offend people?

I find it offensive that a school wanting to be a top 20 university by 2020 is hindering its potential by oppressing those of us who support alternative energy solutions, a move that would only benefit and progress the school toward such a high status. It leaves me questioning how truly school spirited UK is acting these days.

Becca Barhorst

political science freshman