What do you think when you see pastel-colored eggs hanging from the ceiling? What do you think when you see a picture of a wicker basket, overflowing with eggs, plastered to a window?

This morning I followed the pastel colors into the Memorial Unions West student office space. I came upon a small tree decorated with more eggs. A frog holding an egg. A sign announcing a workshop to decorate Easter eggs.

Let’s pause for a moment, and let me take you back to November, 1997. There was a 30-foot Christmas tree on our central campus. I found this tree and other public displays of the Christmas holiday offensive. Now, if you want to decorate your own office space or cubical that is fine with me. This is a state school that should not, in my opinion, be funding, endorsing, promoting or displaying one particular religion. I want to point out that if ISU were a private institution I would not be writing this letter right now. Sure Dr. Jischke said the Christmas tree was a holiday tree — who did he think he was kidding by naming the Christmas tree a holiday tree? My faith is not the dominant campus faith, and therefore I would never have a tree decorated with lights under my roof. Today I confronted a woman in the West Student Office Space and told her how I find the Easter decorations offensive. She explained to me, “This is a celebration of spring. This is the time of year when birds get together and make eggs. Do you see the word Easter anywhere?”

The idea that the pastel-colored eggs we see at this time of year have nothing to do with Easter but are instead a celebratory recognition of the reproductive habits of birds is ridiculous. Just as ridiculous as taking the tradition of the Christmas tree lighting and changing the name to “holiday tree” and claiming it is no longer really a Christmas tree just because we’re calling the same tree something different. This display, beyond the personal cubical, recognizes one and only one religion at Iowa State University. I expect more from a community that has implemented a diversity program. I expect more from an institution that claims its goal to be the nation’s best land grant university.

I challenge ISU to take down your suspended eggs, today. I challenge ISU to stop decorating for one religion’s holidays. I challenge ISU and the Memorial Union to remove Easter egg displays and other religious-oriented displays except from individual’s cubicles or private desks where it is clearly a personal and private expression that doesn’t give the appearance of an organizational or university endorsement of one religion. In my mind these decorations are yet another symbol of an exclusive atmosphere on this campus.

Jessica Hirsch

Graduate student

Creative writing