Cookout Compton Gone Wrong At University California San Diego, a fraternity's intention to host a ghetto themed party named "Compton Cookout" was held to support black history month although it turned into an utter disaster. In "Racist Frat Boys Will Be Racist Frat Boys..." , Lisa Richardson explains how the members of Pi Kappa Alpha invited friends to partake in dress codes of stereotypical ghetto attire (Richardson 3). The event dress code enforced girls to wear Baby Phat, nappy hair, and gold teeth (Richardson 3). Not only was proper apparel necessary, but also the correct personality attributes of a low class African American individual (Richardson 3). According to Richardson, personality characteristics included girls to be excessively load, starting drama, limited vocabulary, smacking lips, and making angry faces (Richardson 3). Little did these ignorant students know, inviting guest over Facebook would turn this soire into an activist issue (Richardson 3). Richardson states, "The event started to reach civil rights groups, the Los Angeles Urban League, Craigslist, and even Essence Magazine, which posted an item on its website" (Richardson 3). The UCSD campus tried their best efforts to separate themselves from the controversy by affirming the university had no part in this event and highly refuse acts of discrimination (Richardson 3). According to "Beyond a "Compton Cookout", an editorial published in Los Angeles Times, "the university announced a plan to address the growing racial tensions. It includes making greater efforts to recruit minority faculty, forming a commission to address the campus climate, ensuring ongoing funding for the chancellor's diversity office, creating an African American Resource Center and establishing quarterly meetings between the administration and members of the Black Student Union" (Editorial 2). As for Compton High School, students were obviously upset over the issue but didn't let it ruin the spirits for all. Compton High School senior, Ernesto Villasenor says, "We weren't going to let them have the power to use our name. We weren't going to let it slide," who plans to attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York (Gordon 1). In result to the letter, UCSD planned to send 20 Compton High School students to the university's teen summer program (Gordon 1). Pi Kappa Alpha's decision to host such a degrading party was wrongful and fortunately the University cares enough to take care of this issue. Although the fraternity's judgments were wrong, they are entitled to freedom of speech and in no way were they physically harming the high school students. America's people today take measurable steps for equalization of all races, although some stand politically incorrect. Various thoughts can identify why these socially incompetent fraternity students stereotype the African American race, even though this stereotype is made up of senseless judgments by these drunken men who are racist. I personally disagree with the theme of this event and find it disruptive to Compton High School. After reading this article, I automatically assume these pretentious white boys were raised in a prejudiced viewing background with parents at fault, as an influence on their beliefs. A person would think these students, fortunate enough to attend UCSD a well respected school, would have been educated enough to know racial discrimination is inappropriate in today's society. Or maybe they only see African Americans as ghetto slobs because their school is only 2% of that race, and these white sheltered frat boys never grew up around diversity. My judgment may be just as much as an offense as these men view Compton. It's uplifting to know UCSD reacted quickly to this situation with a solution to benefit the students of Compton High. Even though students at Compton High may be judged for their level of intelligence, colleges in America are all different
to fulfill everyone's potential. For example Morehouse College is a historic black liberal arts school for men (Mission 5). Their mission statement says "The College seeks to develop men with disciplined minds, emphasizing the continuing search for truth as a liberating force" (Mission 5). The students have the right in America to work hard enough to attend any college of their preference and no university fraternity should tell them otherwise. I believe these boys were completely erroneous in this situation, but at the same time, the first amendment gives the right to freedom of speech, which is why America is different from other countries in the world. The fact of reality article John Leo wrote Free Inquiry? Not on Campus, faces questions as an American citizen, I'm starting to ask myself. Are we really entitled to free speech? Can I ever say what I politically am or will I be ridiculed for my beliefs? Being a Catholic conservative in college can be stressful at times due to the fact most citizens in California are liberal Obama supporters hoping for change. When most people ask what side I lean towards, I respond with right. The automatic assumptions that I'm against gay marriage, against abortion, and that I must worship Sarah Palin are referred about me. Fact is all of those assumptions are false, but the person asking automatically judges that stereotype when hearing the political term conservative. I'm someone who can tolerate other people's beliefs in an adult manner and I expect the same from others. When reading Leos article about how students and even certain faculty are encouraging the destruction of conservative news press, I was brutally furious (Leo 4). The conservatives should be equal to express as strongly as liberals are entitled to in colleges. According to Leo, "In a commencement speech, former Cornell president Hunter Rawlings III praised students who seized and burned copies of the conservative Cornell Review in retaliation for printing a gross parody of Ebonics" (Leo 4). Not only was encouraging newspaper destruction a problem, but also students shutting down speeches by two members of the Minutemen, an anti illegal immigration group(Leo 4). These are students at different universities, with some groups shouting and others setting off fire alarms to disrupt speeches (Leo 4). To me, situations as these ones in particular, make me feel liberals are hypocrites by encouraging free speech and being accepting of one another, when fact is the liberals are just as stubborn and close-minded as the stereotypical conservatives. The liberals are so close minded, they won't allow affiliates to express opinions and beliefs, when truth is freedom of speech is a given right. Not only politics, but also religion is something college students take to an extreme. A previous example with an arrogant acquaintance of mine, who attends University California Santa Barbara, one evening intruded in a conversation I was having, asked what the topic was about. I informed him I was telling another friend about how I believe God facilitates me through my everyday obstacles and how grateful I am to have Jesus with me everywhere I go. At that one moment, I was asked one question. What do you believe? This is a four word question which can either go well or terribly wrong. Proud of my religion, I stated I'm Catholic, believe the Virgin Mary is real, and I confess my sins on a daily basis. In the 10 second response to his question, he looked me in the eyes and said "I can no longer talk to you about this" and completely ignored me from there on. All I did was as answered his question and in result I was left with a tearful reaction. Come to find out, that acquaintance of mine is one of the leaders of the UCSB atheist club. Although I'm put down for something so strong as my religion, it doesn't matter because we live in a place of freedom of speech and he has the right to say how he feels as I do. I feel the same about this particular situation as I do towards the Compton cookout; people have a right to freedom of speech, even if everyone might not see eye to eye. The fraternity party took mockery
to an extreme, but in no way were they hurting the race physically. According to UCLA student activist, Ronnie Santo mentioned in Free Inquiry? Not on Campus, "Opinions are protected under the First Amendment, but when negative opinions come out of a person's mouth, or pen to intentionally hurt others, that's when their opinions should no longer be protected" (Leo 4). As long as I live, I hope America stays a place of freedom to speak.
Bibliography
1.
Gordon, Larry. "After 'Compton Cookout' scandal, UCSD forges a more positive association with the city." Los Angeles Times (2010): n. pag. Web. 20 Jun 2010. <http://articles.latimes.com/2010/may/03/local/la-me-compton-20100503 2. Editorial, . "Beyond a 'Compton Cookout'." Los Angeles Times (2010): n. pag. Web. 20 Jun 2010. <http://articles.latimes.com/2010/mar/01/opinion/la-ed-ucsd2-2010mar02>. 3. Richardson, Lisa. "Racist frat boys will be racist frat boys ... on Facebook." Los Angeles Times (2010): n. pag. Web. 20 Jun 2010. <http://opinion.latimes.com/opinionla/2010/02/i-feel-alittle-sorry-for-the-uc-san-diego-frat-boys-who-last-weekend-thought-it-would-be-funny-tothrow-a-little-bash-they-d.html>. 4. Leo, John. "Free Inquiry? Not on Campus." Presence of Others. (2007): Print. 5. Mission, Statements. "The University of Minnesota;Morehouse College;Berea College;THe Evergreen State College; California State University Monterey Bay; and Thomas Aquinas College Mission Statements." Presence of Others. Print.