Many have noticed that last night, Zephyrus removed Sophie Cannon’s article, “Is Theater Too Exclusive?” from our website. Some are taking this as a sign that the thespians “won,” and that the writer backed down. This assumption is entirely incorrect. The decision to remove the article was made independently of the writer. We would like to make it clear that everyone on staff stands behind Sophie’s article and her right to state her opinion, though we may not all agree with it. It wasn’t removed because of all the controversy it was generating, it was removed because of the incredibly hateful and rude comments that were being posted. Her article had inadvertently become a platform for people to trash the Edina theater program and many individuals.

Zephyrus appreciates and even encourages spirited debate, but the comments got way out of hand. People were posting nasty remarks directed at thespians, at the theater directors, and at each other, many of which involved swearing. Zephyrus absolutely does not condone this sort of disrespect, and attempted to remove the offensive comments. Unfortunately, this became impossible as one would be posted immediately after another was removed.

We believe that everyone has the right to post their opinion, as long as it is done in a fair and respectful way, and are currently working on a way to re-post the article.