Senseless, irrational, uncouth, disrespectful and appalling are just a few of the words that cannot begin to describe the numerous race parties thrown by Ohio University students this past weekend. The newsfeed on Facebook revealed that some students took the long weekend as an opportunity to have parties and dress up as gangstas
skanks and broskies celebrating the 40-year anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s April 1968 death with forty ounces of beer and fried chicken. Hooray for MLK! G? really?
Where are we as a country, a generation and a school when students are that grossly inappropriate? Has education missed some students completely? I can only assume that students who live off-campus are at least juniors. That means that the people who host these parties are nearly out of college and still lack good judgment. Scary thought. Corporate America should be wary of the graduates who held these parties in the name of harmless fun. That's right. Some hosts claimed the parties were severely misconstrued and, in actuality, just for fun and not intended to insult anyone.
However, good intentions are hardly an excuse for what is obviously insensitivity and ridicule (or plain racism, depending on the interpreter). I don't see how the host of a race party could possibly imagine it to be anything other than offensive. The all-white invitees were asked to dress up as stereotypical black people. The intention is pretty clear. The impact has yet to be determined. Regardless, it sounds like a page ripped out of a 1940s history book, not a 2008 Facebook page.
Personally, I do not profess to be a gangsta, and I am certainly not a skank, but the purpose of the parties is to portray black people as a whole in a negative light during a weekend to commemorate one of the most famous African-Americans of all time. As a black person, no matter what weekend it is, I think this is absolutely shameful. Furthermore, if the hosts of one certain party were ignorant of the impact (how it would be received by the black community), they would not have promptly cancelled the party once their little festival was made public and questioned.
Again, I have to ask: Where are we? These outrageous parties are hardly exclusive to Ohio University. The Athens Messenger recently reported that these types of parties go on at Clemson University in Greenville, S.C, the University of Connecticut, the University of Texas at Austin, John Hopkins University and Tarleton State University in Texas.
Still, people young and old shrug their shoulders and claim that as a country we have to move on and forget about the past. I'm all about progress. However, when the past is roaring like a train to the present, it must be confronted. Parties like this will not be tolerated. They won't be brushed aside as students just having fun or their hosts and attendees given the benefit of the doubt. These parties are not a joke.
What is the mind-set of students who know better? I will not insult the intelligence of a host or attendee by claiming that he or she had the best intention and didn't foresee a conflict. No, I will determine that everyone involved knew exactly what he or she was doing and who would be offended. They knew. They didn't care. OU's latest race parties were boldly advertised on Facebook for the entire country to see.
If OU's goal is diversity, if most students are striving to unite, if change is really what most Americans desire, then why are race parties like these going on and forcing people to drink the bitter water of the past? Maybe this past weekend will serve as an opportunity for students of all races to come together and determine not to let the ignorance of a few damage the bridges built by the many who have stepped out of their comfort zone while enrolled at this university.
There is a lesson here to be learned about intentions and being able to think through actions and the possible impact those actions will have on others. Malicious intent is rarely cited in the majority of offensive actions. Most of the time, the perpetrators didn't mean to offend anyone. However, not meaning to offend is more of a reason to educate ourselves and think through our words and actions to ensure that our good intentions don't result in a negative impact. We can't always please everyone; some are easily offended and sometimes mistakes are made. However, I do believe there needs to be a continued, concerted and deliberate effort to unify because, clearly, carelessness and ignorance only tear apart. But maybe it's just me.
Alissa Griffith is a junior journalism major. Send her an e-mail at ag180505@ohiou.edu.
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