LETTER: NU's cheering inappropriate

n I attended Boston University as an undergraduate student and loved to attend hockey games when I had the time. Now I am a Ph.D. student at BU and rarely have time to even remember to buy tickets. So I was very excited that my roommate got us all tickets to the Northeastern University vs. BU game that took place on Feb. 28 to celebrate one of my roommate's birthdays.

Our fun was spoiled quickly, however, when at the start of the second period, a Northeastern student (or someone wearing Northeastern gear and sitting in the student section next to the band) with a bullhorn called out, "If you were a BU student, how would you prefer to die: Fire or train?"

This really caught me off guard, and I was quite disgusted by it. I mean, this is a hockey game, and I know that a certain amount of 'negative cheering' takes place - I took part in telling the goalie he sucks and that he's a sieve and asking where the other team's Beanpot is in my younger years -- but this other chant did not fall into any category of cheering that is acceptable at an institute of higher learning.

Two students of the BU community died less than one week ago, and that comment was a blatant insult to those students, their families and their memory.

And to make this experience even worse, later in the game, the band started playing a song and a bunch of hooded NU students chased someone in a BU jersey and mimicked beating him with baseball bats . . . another tactless negative insult . . . or perhaps NU students don't read or remember that three members of the BU hockey team and one girl's lacrosse player were recently beaten unconscious by hooded assailants in Allston. Or perhaps they knew exactly what they were emulating.

On both counts, I am repulsed and I feel that someone should contact the fan community at NU to remind them of where the line is as far as putting down the other team versus disrespecting human beings that don't go to your school.

Melissa Batson