Stand (up), Columbia

A lot of people at Columbia spend a lot of time complaining about how no one at Columbia has any school spirit.

Complaining has its place. But bemoaning Columbia’s dearth of school spirit does nothing. Only through action can we achieve the collective spirit we desire.

This weekend, as you are hopefully now aware, was Homecoming. This annual event is organized around a football game (which, unfortunately, Columbia did not win), but it’s much more than a sporting event. Rather, it’s an opportunity for all of us to come together, enjoy an afternoon, and bask in a bit of shameless school spirit.

In spite of the frowns of Columbia’s ever-present nattering nabobs of negativism, Homecoming this year was a joyous occasion. For seniors, there was free beer (if a rather long line), and for all, there were plenty of opportunities for merriment and bonding.

So, even though we lost, Homecoming was a victory for Columbia. The game had an attendance of more than 10,000—an impressive figure during midterm season. It was refreshing to see, for once, a sea of light blue up at Baker Field and all across campus on Saturday.

But we can do even better. The University made a tremendous effort to support this year’s Homecoming. It even got the MTA to delay service changes on the 1 so we could make it uptown by train.

Let’s use this year as a starting point for a new era in Columbia’s tradition of school spirit. If you didn’t go to Homecoming this year, you can make amends. Next year, drag yourself out of your dorm room, or Butler, or (God forbid) the Law Library, put on some Columbia gear, and get on the bus to Baker. And even if you did go, remember that Homecoming is not the only sporting event of the year.

Go to a basketball game or a volleyball game at Dodge. Or support the soccer or tennis teams up at Baker—they’re pretty good.

Learn the lyrics to “Roar, Lion, Roar” and our Alma Mater. People tried to sing these at Homecoming, but it was quite apparent that few of us knew the words. We want spirit, and what is more spirited than a good old-fashioned fight song?

To put it another way, on Saturday, one of our fellow students lion-suited up and boisterously bounced around Baker to enliven the masses. If Roar-ee can find it within himself to crowd surf, we can make it out to a few more sporting events each year.

One hundred and ten years ago this week, the New York Times ran a preview of a football game between Yale and Columbia. In the article, Columbia Manager Shoemaker estimated “an attendance of 15,000 or more” for the game.

Today, Columbia is a lot bigger and a lot better than it was in 1900. If this University could turn out 15,000 once, it can turn out that many—or more—again.

So join with us, and “Roar, Lion, Roar/And wake the echoes of the Hudson Valley...”