Secrets will never be the same again

By Roger Lee

We live in a “secret-obsessed” society full of reality television and advanced technology. We love hearing other people’s secrets because they make us feel better about ourselves. With the “Dirty Little Secret” campaign at Ursinus, people will have the opportunity to read secrets and tell their own.

“Voice your opinions, stand up and be heard!” smiled Resident Director Jared Rodrigues. In an interview, Rodrigues spoke about the program sponsored by Residence Life. The project promotes free speech while serving as a creative outlet for students. “We wanted to do something outside the box,” said Rodrigues.

But just how outside the box is this project? Junior Specner Jones said, "I think the whole idea behind "Secrets" is clever because we learn a lot about each other through the secrets." A sophomore added, "I would take one or two of the secrets seriously, but the rest of them seem like jokes."

If these are supposed to be jokes, not everyone will be laughing! Some students may be disturbed by the more controversial secrets. When asked how they felt about the postcards, some students were turned off while others embraced them. Some even feared that the author of the cards may be discovered. In any case, everything gets posted.

This unique form of secret telling first became popularized in 2005 by the website http://postsecret.com/. The site encourages people to post their secrets online for the world to see. The site became so successful that creator Frank Warren wrote a book with over 300 pages of secrets. Warren wrote “I hope people continue to bravely share their secrets on the site and viewers continue to share their understanding and compassion.”

When Residence Life caught wind of PostSecret, they decided to bring the phenomenon to Ursinus. They began the project this past January by creating postcards, drop boxes, a Facebook page and advertisements.

“We post everything!” said Rodrigues as he reflected on his favorite aspect of “ Dirty Little Secret.” He enjoyed posting all the light-hearted postcards along with the most serious ones.

No matter how serious the secret, each postcard had its own creative identity. The artistic skill level and thought that went into the postcards really took Rodrigues by surprise. He also acknowledged the emotion associated with the postcards. “When you see other people’s secrets and see that others can understand and get it, it’s a cool emotional experience.”

With so many postcards, there is a chance that someone on campus can learn and grow from a secret they have seen. Thanks to an overwhelming response of about 300 secrets within the two week posting period, “Dirty Little Secret” seems to have struck a chord on campus.“Even I have secrets up there!” laughed Rodrigues.

Although the secrets campaign ended February 8, Ursinus is currently looking for a place to keep the secrets. With such artistic postcards, a possible mural or design project could be in the works. The sky is the limit for these postcards and the Ursinus chapter of “Dirty Little Secrets.”



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MORE LINKS
Check out Emily McCloskey's blog for more info on the history of PostSecret.
Read Mark Iacolucci's view on Ursinus' own "Dirty Little Secret" campaign.

*WATCH THIS YOUTUBE CLIP OF POST SECRET SUBMISSIONS!*