STAFF EDITORIAL: Time to show a little respect

The students who cut down two trees on Baltimore Ave. give Penn a bad name in the University City community. Early on the morning of April 20, two honey locust trees were chopped down on the 3900 block of Baltimore Avenue. It is clear now to all involved that Penn students were responsible for killing the young saplings. The trees were planted as part of a joint project between the community-run Baltimore in Bloom and University-led UC Green initiatives. The fractured stumps left behind serve as a reminder of how fragile the relationship is between Penn and the surrounding area. It is incumbent upon all students to give greater respect to the community that for four years we call home. Both students and administrators have worked diligently over the past several years to reverse decades of dislike and distrust on the part of local residents. Programs that make the streets safer and put Penn students in West Philadelphia schools have helped somewhat in this regard. But the actions of a few immature off-campus vandals remind us why Penn students have long had a bad name among the more permanent residents of the community. We expect that a large concentration of 18- to 21-year-olds will be louder and more disruptive than a normal population, but students need not be disrespectful. And the actions taken by a few students have done damage -- literally and metaphorically -- to the seeds that many people have put down in University City. In light of this recent crime, we should all be more respectful and considerate of those things -- people, houses and trees -- that will be here long after we have graduated.