With the arrival of close-to-record-high temperatures on Tuesday, Locust Walk looked more like the Atlantic City boardwalk, as girls debuted their summer wardrobes of cleavage-baring halters, butt cheek-baring shorts, and back-baring summer dresses. Two weeks after Spring Break, scarlet sunburns had finally settled into nice golden-brown tans, and girls were anxious to get rid of the leggings under their miniskirts altogether. I blushed for the sixty-plus professors who found themselves lecturing to groups of underdressed underclassmen. And I blushed for our lovely nymphettes.

But most of all, I pitied our poor undergraduate men. For the sheltered ones, their modest Orthodox Jew or Protestant Christian eyes simply didn’t know where to look. And the remaining majority of virile college boys simply ogled.

There are a lot of smart women at Penn who pride themselves in their strength and independence. I ask you, ladies, is this empowerment?

In his latest piece, Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Alfred Lubrano laments what he calls “rampant slut culture,” citing not only degrading women’s fashions but also women’s dating habits, claiming that college women are “aping” men when they engage in “soul-free sex” in lieu of “real relationships.”

Self-proclaimed “old-fashioned feminist” Roberta L. Hacker, in her Letter to the Editor responded in support of Lubrano, saying, “I wonder why others are not more vocal about the phenomenon, as it is not just a concern for ‘American Christians’.”

Lubrano and Hacker both conclude by saying that women must “regain the controls.” They insist on a battle of the sexes. But, here’s the problem: as long as they highlight the power struggle between men and women, they can only hope to prolong these gender wars. Lubrano and Hacker’s statements are counterproductive.

Rather, the focus should be on what womanhood means. Today, American women have more freedom than ever before to embrace their feminine beauty and sexuality. And they should. But it must be done in such a way as to complement, not eclipse, the feminine assets that go beyond biology.

During the interview portion of the Miss USA 2007 competition last Friday, Miss California was asked the loaded question, “Should a woman ever use her beauty to get ahead?”

My answer? Sure! (Realistically speaking, it’s almost inevitable.) But, “getting ahead” should never come at the cost of a woman’s dignity and integrity. After all, beauty comes in many different skirt lengths.

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