In early November of 1994, word spread rapidly through campus that undergraduate dormitory residents in Senior House and East Campus, the only dorms on the east side of campus, might be moved to Ashdown, a graduate dormitory on the west side of campus (Ashdown residents would be either moved east, or would be forced to find local apartment space). The residents of all three dormitories quickly protested the proposal. (For more information and student reactions, read the Nov. 1, Nov. 4, and Nov. 8 issues of The Tech.)
Senior House (which houses all classes of students, not just seniors) is a 6-story tall building nearly a century old; it is built around a courtyard in which stands an old, majestic tree that supports a well-used tire swing. On special occasions, the residents hang from the building a large, black, roughly 20-foot by 30-foot banner that has become the Senior House trademark. The banner depicts a red, white, and blue skull whose teeth are formed to read "Only life can kill you." Below the skull are the words "Sport Death."
The morning of November 16th, in a show of support for the residents of Senior House, Sport Death banners appeared at five dormitories on the west side of campus (Bexley, Ashdown, McCormick, New, and Next). The banners ranged in size from 5 feet by 5 feet, to about 10 feet by 10 feet, and some read "Solidarity" instead of "Sport Death." At the same time, tire swings also appeared on various trees in west campus.
Historically, Senior House and East Campus have been somewhat at odds with the west side of campus, mostly due to differences in personality, but students from both sides seem to agree that Senior House, East Campus, and Ashdown residents should be able to help the administration seek alternatives to the proposed relocations.