Dear Editor,

I am writing you in response to “Overrated Runza disappoints,” an article by Jacqueline Lo that was published in the Feb. 22nd issue of The Creightonian. There were many things about this article that bothered me, but one part made me so upset that I felt the need to bring it to your attention. I will return to that point shortly.

At first glance, I was confused as to why someone would choose to critique Runza in a for a “Scene” article. Runza is a fast-food chain, and although it started as a place for serving ethnic German food, it has become pretty Americanized. Critiquing Runza is like going to McDonald’s, Culver’s, or Taco Bell and expecting the heavens to open up and drop the most delicious meal ever in front of you. It’s not going to happen. It’s greasy, convenient fast-food and everyone knows it. There’s no need to complain about Runza not having a delivery service or Runza “forcing their customers to drive into the cold weather to hang out with the sketchy fast-food crowd” because it’s fast food and that’s all it’s ever going to be.

The article went on to read, “As a West-coast resident, it is frustrating that Nebraska glorifies mediocre sandwiches and burgers like Runza’s. There is a whole world of foods to try and I have spent many of my weekends wanting to try something beyond the frozen section of Wal-Mart or Sodexo menu.” Reading this part made absolutely no sense. There are plenty of ethnic food places near Creighton’s campus, yet Ms. Lo chose to eat at Runza. That’s her own fault. Sure, Nebraskans love Runza — whether it’s because of the food or because it’s more of an identity/cultural thing is another issue. But Nebraskans also love ethnic food. Obviously Ms. Lo hasn’t tried too hard to find any of this ethnic food she’s been looking for and is passing judgment too quickly on Omaha’s food scene. She could have easily visited Katie’s Greek, Casablanca, Lalibela’s or Indian Oven, and that’s just the tip of the ethnic food iceberg. Omaha is a city rich in cultural diversity, and it doesn’t take much effort to find food choices that reflect this.

I was most upset with (and actually ashamed of) Ms. Lo’s labeling and stereotyping, something that shouldn’t be tolerated and definitely not represented in Creighton’s student newspaper. She starts off by judging the “sketchy fast-food crowd” and pointing out a “bearded man wearing a thug-like beanie.” What difference does it make that someone has a beard and is wearing a beanie? And what made this beanie a thug-like beanie? She continues to say, with a tone of sarcasm, “It was great to be in the company of a homeless guy interrogating me … if I’m going to take the time to leave campus for dinner, I would rather shell out extra money so as to not feel like I had to defend myself with a sandwich.” Let me repeat myself: she’s in a fast-food restaurant. What does she expect? She’s going to meet people from all walks of life. A restaurant can’t deny customers based on the way they dress, and if Ms. Lo really felt like she was in any sort of danger or if she was being harassed, she could have let the management know. Instead, she berates a restaurant based on its clientele and unfairly labels a whole group of people based on one visit.

I have a confession: I hate Runza — but I’m also not a Nebraskan so I don’t have a reason to feel a connection to it. My requests for Ms. Lo and future reporters are simple: stop perpetuating stereotypes and stop complaining without doing your research. The Creightonian is a representation of the Creighton student body, and it was a disappointment to see this piece of journalism as a reflection of the University. Free speech easily shows a person’s ignorance, and The Creightonian should hold itself to a higher standard.

Respectfully,

Michelle Skaff