“Compton Cookout” party seen as a bad idea by everyone except the organizers
Photo by Marc Balanky
It's times like this that this whole concept of "Challenge and Support" really has meaning.
UCSD has some major work ahead of them. A racially-themed party, followed by several racially-charged events in response to the (rightful) outrage of black students at UCSD has created a bit of a crisis, with many minority students declaring a "racial state of emergency."
I've been in the field for 5 years, but in the college setting for 12. This isn't the first time I've seen an offensively-themed party, and I'm positive it won't be the last. College students (people, in general) are notorious for making decisions without considering how they will impact anybody outside their immediate social circle.
What is really strange about this UCSD situation that is different than what I've seen in the past is that after the outrage of the first party, some students actually had the gall to stage a follow-up party with the same theme!
"We pretty much want people to just choose a culture and harmlessly poke fun at it," Mike Randazzo told NBC San Diego.
I could go off on a rant here about how the media makes this whole thing possible. Comedians like Dave Chapelle and Carlos Mencia poke fun at culture all the time, so it's ok for everyone else to do it, right? There's a fine line between social commentary and blatant ridicule of a culture.
“On Cinco de Mayo, we have parties making fun of Mexicans; on Veterans Day, we make fun of veterans (yes, the same veterans who uphold our rights to free speech); on St. Patrick's Day we make fun of the Irish. Everyone gets made fun of out of jest now, not hate,” the invitation read.
I love the "we make fun of everyone equally, so nobody should be offended" logic. Yes, you may be making fun of someone out of jest, but does that make what you say or do sting any less to someone who is proud of who they are? "We always do it" is not an excuse to continue to do it.
There won't be a quick fix to this event, nor should there be. Perhaps it takes a crisis such as this to finally make progress in educating our students. While the event in question may be taking place at UCSD, lessons from what led to the conflict and how it is being handled can be used at institutions everywhere. I'm sure this won't be the last we hear about UCSD, and, honestly, I hope it's not. I am looking forward to seeing how they respond, and how schools across the country respond, in turn.
Further reading:
UCSD Frat Denies Involvement In 'Ghetto-Themed' Party
'Compton Party Part Deux' Organizer Defends His Actions
Student Protest Video
New UCSD racial incident sparks rage, confrontation
Twitter search: UCSD (note: a lot of NSFW language here)