Will McDermott ‘22
Staff Editor
UVA Law is a place of tradition. These traditions are the foundation of our culture and bring us together. The annual Dandelion Parade began in 1984 and there is only one law school class who has not performed said rite of passage, the Class of 2023.
Dandelion is one of UVA Law’s cornerstone traditions. Every year, 1Ls gather at the Park with their sections and perform in ways that somehow resemble both interpretive dance and TikTok. The express purpose of the Dandelion Parade is to let loose with your section, make fools out of yourself, and bond with the group that you will spend most of your law school experience with. I know many 3Ls (and now probably 1Ls) would agree that the sections that got the most out of the experience are those that leaned into that purpose.
The current 2L class never experienced this bonding. It was enough of a shame that they missed their first year of Bar Review and those obligatory weekly 1L section pregames – but we cannot sit idly by as they glide through law school without dancing to nonsense in front of the entire school at the Park.
I have addressed this with several 2Ls and have received mixed responses, but something tells me that those who do not see the importance of performing this ritual are the ones who would not have leaned into the purpose of the ancient tradition. For instance, I heard: “I don’t want to do Dandelion because I only do what I want.” – Paige Kennett ’23.[1] Conversely, Daniella Roselló ’23 stated, “I simply cannot imagine how we could be the only UVA Law class to not dance at Dandelion.”
Until now, COVID was to blame for the Class of 2023 not being offered the opportunity to make Dandelion Parade performances. But with all of our nonexistent Law Weekly power, we charge the 2L class to decide for themselves whether they do Dandelion. 3Ls will indeed find a way to facilitate the event, and we would be glad to do so. At the end of the day, if a 2L GroupMe vote results in “No,” they will forever have to live with knowing they decided not to do the majestic dance, rather than having COVID as an excuse.
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wjm7ym@virginia.edu
[1] Let it be known that shortly after this utterance, the Dandelion gods sought revenge and a part of the PA system fell on Paige. But don’t worry, she’s mostly okay.