Panty raid

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A panty raid is a social prank in which a group of male college students intrude in a female college student housing to steal their "panties" (undergarments) from drawers as trophies. The notion of a panty raid dates back at least to the mid-1940s, though the term dates to February, 1949. This kind of prank faded away at the end of the 1960s.

[edit] History

The first fully documented incident occurred on March 21, 1952, when a large group of male University of Michigan students raided a female dormitory. This led to a widespread increase of panty raids across the nation.[1] Penn State's first panty raid involved more than 2,000 males marching on the women's dorms on April 8, 1952, cheered on by the women, who opened doors and windows as fast as the matrons could lock them, and tossed lingerie.[2] By the end of the 1952 spring term the "epidemic" had spread to 52 campuses, despite stern warnings, the use of tear gas by police, arrests, and expulsions.

Generally, the girls welcomed the raiders, and in some cases themselves raided the campuses of men's colleges such as Georgetown University. At the University of Washington, though, panty raiders broke windows at sorority houses, and coeds at Christian College and Stephens College fought to repel raiders from the University of Missouri using mops and Coke bottles as weapons.

It was the first college craze in the post-World War II era, following on the 1930's crazes of Goldfish swallowing or seeing how many could fit in a phone booth. [3] Raiding continued, perhaps diminished a bit in following years, such as the raid by Princeton University men on Westminster Choir College in the spring of 1953. [4] The University of Nebraska was credited with the first panty raid of 1955, when hundreds of men raided the women's dorms to grab panties, resulting in 7 suspensions and multiple injuries. [5] The University of California, Berkeley had a 3,000 man panty raid in May 1956, which resulted in $10,000 damage.[6] At the University of Michigan panty raids were associated with fall football pep rallies in addition to being a spring ritual in the 1950's and early 1960's. [7][8] The spring ritual continued in the 1960's. Three students were expelled from the University of Mississippi for panty raids in 1961. [9]

As the 1960's turned to the 1970's, the prevalence of coed dorms, less inhibited attitudes toward sex on campus, and the anti-war movement led to a fading away of panty raids as a spring ritual.[citation needed] In 1969, then-Governor of California Ronald Reagan decried permissive attitudes toward protesters on the Berkeley campus during the People's Park riots, saying "How much farther do we have to go to realize this is not just another panty raid?"[10]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Winling, LaDale. Student Housing, City Politics, and the University of Michigan, 2007.
  2. ^ [1] Bezilla, Michael, "Penn State: an illustrated history." Pennsylvania State University Press(1986) ISBN-10: 0271003928 ISBN-13: 978-0271003924 (retrieved Aug. 3, 2007)
  3. ^ "Epidemic.", Time (magazine), June 2, 1952. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "The newest and noisiest college craze — the pantie raid — reached the epidemic stage. Night after night from coast to coast last week college boys leaped and howled like Comanches under the windows of squealing coeds; by week's end, despite arrests, expulsions, editorial blasts, and the best efforts of police riot squads — a few of whom even used tear gas — pantie raiders had made night hideous at 52 different colleges and universities." 
  4. ^ "The Rites of Spring.", Time (magazine), May 11, 1953. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. ""We want girls!" some of the boys yowled, "we want sex!" "We want panties!" screamed the rest. Not quite in the spirit of things, the girls threw shower curtains and pillows from the windows." 
  5. ^ "Report Card.", Time (magazine), April 25, 1955. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "At the University of Nebraska, hundreds of spring-feverish men students poured out of their rooms one day last week, rushed into a coed dormitory and sorority houses. There they snatched up as many flimsy garments as they could, paraded about the campus in this year's first manifestation of that modern collegiate custom, the panty raid. Net result: seven students suspended." 
  6. ^ Sann, Paul, "Fads, Follies, and Delusions of the American People." Crown Publishers, 1967. page 294.
  7. ^ [2] "This Week in Daily History." Michigan Daily 11/6/02. Described efforts by officials to prevent panty raid following pep rally of November 8, 1956. (retrieved Aug. 3, 2007)
  8. ^ [3] "On campus." Michigan Daily Oct. 13, 2005. Describes panty raid of Oct. 13, 1961, following football rally. (retrieved Aug. 3, 2007)
  9. ^ "Life on the Campus.", Time (magazine), Friday, November 9, 1962. Retrieved on 2007-09-25. "But last week life at Ole Miss began turning really rough again. The university's white students had cause to think they could get away with violence. After all, eight students arrested during the bloody September riots were merely placed on campus probation (last year three students were expelled from Ole Miss for participating in a panty raid). University officials were mild and mellifluous in their rare admonitions against more student violence." 
  10. ^ Don Mitchell (2003). "From Free Speech to People's Park", The Right to the City: Social Justice and the Fight for Public Space. Guilford Press. 

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