In response to the luau theme party scheduled by Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity and Delta Delta Delta sorority last week, students and faculty members interviewed by The Dartmouth widely agreed the luau theme is not offensive.
Some felt, however, that depending on how it is executed, a luau theme could be construed as inappropriate.
The Dartmouth interviewed more than 20 students, both affiliated and unaffiliated, faculty members and administrators .
An overwhelming majority of them expressed the view that those who were offended by the planned party could have expressed their opinions more effectively by directly contacting the Greek houses responsible rather than sending a mass BlitzMail message to the community.
Omar Rashid '00, who sent the message attacking the Greek houses for the theme party, did not respond to phone and BlitzMail interview requests by The Dartmouth. Aaron Akamu '01, the unofficial spokesperson for native Hawaiians during the incident, also refused requests for interviews.
The Hawaiian luau theme was "not at all offensive," according to Andrew Pease '01. Pease said he believes the party should not have been canceled, and added he thought the reaction by the offended parties was "ridiculous."
"I would have liked to see them go to the sponsoring houses first," he said in regard to the blitz sent to the community by Rashid . "It seems like they have a chip on their shoulder."
Pease said he does not necessarily think the co-sponsoring Greek houses should have immediately sent out an apology over BlitzMail. This apology might have positive effects, however, in opening up a campus discussion that might show the majority of students believes the offended group's reaction was "ridiculous," he said.
As the College does not regulate theme selections for parties, Dean of the College James Larimore said students sponsoring parties must make their own judgments regarding what might be considered offensive. It is the responsibility of the students to listen carefully to the concerns raised by students who are offended, he said.
In response to Rashid's blitz, Larimore said students may express their opinion in any way they choose. "It's well within their rights to do that," he said. "Whether it was the most effective way is an open question."
Larimore praised the cooperation and the quick response from the Greek leaders, calling the decision to meet face to face with Hawaiian leaders a "gutsy step."
"I think it was the right thing to do," he said, emphasizing that the steps taken by the Greek leaders and the CFSC provide an instructive lesson to the campus and reflect the leaders' ability.
Lisa Yoon '01 also said she does not regard the luau theme to be offensive and believes not many people were offended by the party. Rashid's reaction was too strong and not the most effective way to protest, she said. "They just wanted to be heard," she said.
Margaret Grace '01 said she thinks the luau theme might be construed as offensive, depending on how it was approached.
Grace said she thinks Rashid should have approached the responsible houses first, rather than sending an accusatory blitz to the campus.
"It seemed a little silly," she said. "It's a really extreme thing to do."
Grace said she thought it was very responsible of the two houses to send out an apology to the campus in response to Rashid's attack.
Andrew Witkin '00 also said he thinks Alpha Chi and Tri-Delt's apology was the correct response. While he said he did not consider the luau theme offensive, he said he thinks canceling the party was right when students became offended.
Witkin said he thinks Rashid and the other offended students could have expressed his accusations differently.
"They should have done it in a more quiet way," he said.
Karen Walp '01, who said she does not find the luau theme offensive, also said contacting the Greek houses sponsoring the party would have been a more appropriate way to respond.
"It's almost a form of rudeness," she said, referring to Rashid's blitz, "I think it's really bizarre that it was a Latino group that was offended."
Government Professor Lynn Vavreck said she thinks a Hawaiian theme for a party is not offensive in general. "It depends on how it's presented," she said, adding that people frequently have luau parties, and luaus are a tourist attraction in Hawaii.
In regard to the blitz sent by Rashid, Vavreck said that although Rashid and other offended students had the right to express their opinion in a blitz to the community, it would have been more polite to blitz the responsible houses.
"They might have chosen more effective strategies," she said. "When we think of protest media, we don't think of e-mail."
Vavreck said this incident could have an effect on the Initiative since it might be taken as evidence that something is wrong with the social situation at the College. "It's certainly more grist for the mill," she said.
English Professor Peter Saccio also said he thinks it would have been more effective for Rashid to contact the Greek houses sponsoring the party rather than sending the blitz. The group's first step should have been asking what they wished to achieve, he said.
"It's not simply an exercise of the emotions," Saccio said. "This is an intellectual community, we ought to be able to communicate."
