Dancing leads to sex.

At least that’s what some people have always said at ACU whenever dancing is mentioned.

But now that the Board of Trustees approved a revision to the dance policy last month that will allow social dancing in sponsored events, things are different. The Students’ Association and Campus Activities Board are planning a dance party in Hunter Welcome Center after spring break.

As the argument has always gone, dancing leads to lustful thoughts, which lead to lowering moral standards, which lead to sex. That’s how I’ve come to understand it, at least.

Now I was raised in Southern Baptist churches, not Churches of Christ. Baptists don’t necessarily encourage dancing, but we don’t outright outlaw it. So never in my life have I ever heard anyone making such a fuss about dancing.

Except myself. For essentially the opposite reason.

For me, dancing doesn’t lead to lust, moral decline and sex. Rather it leads to awkwardness, confusion and pain. I don’t have two left feet, I have no feet when it comes to dancing. A social dance is the recipe for making me look even more awkward than I already am, not the recipe for … you know.

I know I’m not the only one. I know there are others like me who want no part in dancing because it will just make us look dumb.

Even if I don’t really look that stupid, I feel like I do, which is just as bad. I feel out of my element, unsure if what I just did was just bad or really bad.

I get how if you’re really good at dancing, it can lead to the decline. But not everyone is like that and therefore this rule that banned all dancing was actually a comfort in disguise. Most non-dancers wouldn’t admit this, but the absence of dancing is actually a reassuring relief from fear of peer pressure to embarrass one’s self.

Let me clarify; I am not advocating premarital sex or complaining about limitations dancing or anti-dancing policies contain. I’m simply offering my perspective that a policy that restricts dancing does more than limit the sexual activity of those who are well-skilled on the dance floor; it takes pressure off those who worry that dancing will lead to embarrassment.

With regards to the recent revision itself, I think it’s good news. In fact, it was a really good news story and very well written. Here’s the link if you’re reading this online: http://www.acuoptimist.com/2012/02/student-life-loosens-dancing-restrictions. I know that the majority of the student body wanted this, so this is a good thing from a utilitarian point of view. Now I just have to work on my excuses for why I can’t make it to the dance.