This is an update of a blog posted in 2014.

I thought since this blog would come up around February 14, I would find some nice Valentine’s Day article in the student newspapers. Did not expect it to be such a problem! Such a difference when I looked through the student newspapers of Mercy College of Detroit and the University of Detroit. The predominately female Mercy College paper always seemed to have a Valentine’s related item, but not true for the UD student newspaper. For example in 1975, Mercy had this nice big editorial type cartoon for its Valentine’s Day issue.

The same year the February 14th issue of Varsity News had at best, a couple of advertisements for diamond rings.

Not a single mention about it being Valentine’s Day. Such an obvious gender difference is hard to miss and it was not an isolated incident for just that year.

Times have changed-at least the Feb.5, 2014 Varsity News has an article that has combined Valentine’s Day with Black History month. There is an item about a program being presented on Valentine’s Day by Roy Finkenbine, director of the Black Abolitionist Archives, on love stories of slaves.

You can check it out the older issues of both student newspapers on the Special Collections page.

#Valentine's Day

Pat Higo, Archives and Special Collections Librarian

Updated: February 12, 2023