CONOR SHEA
Features Editor
When first hearing a name like “Girls 4 God” what exactly do you imagine a group with such a title does during their meetings? Reading passages from scripture, confessing of sins, or insistence on further religious involvement? Not necessarily it would seem, for as it can be in so many aspects of life, expectations are far from the reality.
This past Tuesday, Oct. 15 Girls 4 God (G4G) held their second “Guy Panel,” a meeting devoted entirely to opening an AMA (ask me anything) style dialogue between Saint Rose men and women. G4G, while not an official club at The College of Saint Rose, prides itself on being a close community and resource for any sort of support regardless of spiritual or religious association. The community was founded in 2011 by Tinamarie Stolz, and since then has grown popular on campus through their online presence at g4gyourebeautiful.blogspot.com.
The panel was comprised of four male Saint Rose students (although nine were contacted to participate), selected based upon their ability to give candid answers to some difficult and potentially embarrassing questions. The topics discussed ran the gamut from preference of body type in women, to asking what their most memorable experience in college had been so far? All answers were prefaced with the reminder that answers given from those on the panel should only be taken as an individual opinion, not as a statement representative of the entire male gender.
Surprisingly the topics of religion, faith, and spirituality were hardly addressed. When they were, it was typically done so indirectly through the answers of those participating in the panel (thus without being prompted). The panel seemed to have the effect of encouraging transparency between men and women, and in the process many misconceptions and areas of confusion for both sexes were surfaced.
“We consider ourselves spiritual, not Christian or Roman Catholic. Most importantly we try to encourage girls to love themselves and each other” said a head member of the leadership team Ashley Sweet on the topic of group diversity and activity.
While some of the questions were undoubtedly serious in nature, others were more lighthearted. Take for example one anonymous attendee who really wanted to know whether the guys “Prefer, Megan Fox or Scarlett Johansson” (this received an almost unanimous response favoring Johansson).
After the questions aimed at the representatives on the panel were exhausted, the men were allowed a period of reflection to draft and write down any questions of their own. For the most part these seemed to be the mirror image of some of those asked by the girls. For instance, “What annoys you most about guys?” was one of the first questions asked. One response that seemed to be endorsed by all the girls was when a man “Immediately thinks he’s ‘friendzoned’”
“It was very unique,” said Saint Rose Junior Cameron Miller, a member of the panel. “While some topics touched upon aspects of religion, the questions largely focused on general topics that I think many girls must wonder. I think it was a very productive panel, and everyone got a lot out of it.”
For those interested in the next guy panel there are plans for one to be held some time next semester. For those students interested in attending regular meetings, they are held on Tuesdays at 7:30 P.M. in the basement of the Hubbard Interfaith Sanctuary. These sessions tend to run about an hour to an hour and a half, and attendance fluctuates around 20-25 members.
