Folly at Tufts University: Cops could investigate questionable Halloween costumes, students could be expelled

October 26, 2016 • 1:45 pm

The College Halloween Costume Follies are spreading, and I can only imagine how ludicrous they will be next year. From The College Fix (you’re not going to read this in PuffHo), we hear about the costume policies of Tufts University in Medford, MA. That’s just outside Cambridge, MA, and the academic home of Daniel Dennett.

First, the Greek Life Council at Tufts (recall that the use of the word “Greek” in conjunction with fraternities and sororities was recently deemed a cultural appropriation) sent a letter to the heads of the university’s fraternities and sororities outlining the kinds of costumes that are verboten. You can see the full letter here, and this is an excerpt:

Greek Brothers and Sisters have worn costumes that appropriate cultures and reproduce stereotypes on race, gender, sexuality, immigrant or socioeconomic status. Outfits relating to tragedy, controversy, or acts of violence are also inappropriate. We need to set a precedent that people’s customs cannot and will not be our costumes. As you will agree, the values illustrated by such costumes do not align with the values of the Greek Community at Tufts. It is our mission to promote spaces that allow members of the Tufts community to have fun without feeling as though any part of their identity is being misrepresented or targeted. In order to accomplish this, we ask that you relay this message to your chapters. Please read this email to your chapter during your weekly meetings. When choosing a costume, be aware of the impact your costume might have on others, and be cognizant of any statements—including, but not limited to, cultural or violent messages—your outfit may make, intentional or not.

Tragedy, controversy, or acts of violence? No cowboys or Indians, no zombies or skeletons, no people with arrows through their heads? What are these people thinking?

The letter then adds a threat of reporting to the police, as per University policy. Note the last sentence, in which students are ENCOURAGED to report those wearing “inappropriate and offensive costumes.”

There are consequences for wearing an offensive costume. Mary Pat McMahon, the Dean of Student Affairs, described the consequences as follows: “The range of response for students whose actions make others in our community feel threatened or unsafe, or who direct conduct towards others that is offensive or discriminatory, includes OEO and/or TUPD investigation and then disciplinary sanctions from our office that could run a wide gamut depending on what is brought to our attention and the impact of these actions on others. Any complaints will result in full investigation by University officials and could result in serious disciplinary sanctions through Judicial Affairs.” We encourage all students that feel like they have encountered someone who is wearing an inappropriate and offensive costume to please file a report by filling out [this link].

Have a look at that link. It’s surely Big Brotherism in action! And while Tufts University disassociated itself from the letter, they then reassociated itself in a statement (my emphasis):

In a statement emailed Monday to The College Fix, campus spokesman Patrick Collins clarified that “Tufts University does not have a ‘Halloween costume policy.’”

“The letter was written by students, for students, to encourage a thoughtful and considerate celebration of Halloween within our diverse and inclusive community and to stress the importance of alcohol safety and sexual consent,” Collins said. “We commend the leaders of our Greek Life councils for proactively raising these important issues with their fellow participants in Greek Life and encouraging responsible behavior. As is the case at any time, students whose actions are discriminatory or threaten others can face a range of disciplinary sanctions. Depending on their seriousness, such actions, when called to our attention, can prompt investigations by the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs, the Office of Equal Opportunity or, in certain circumstances, the Tufts University Police Department.”

Stay tuned; Halloween isn’t here yet, so lots of students could face punishment.

81 thoughts on “Folly at Tufts University: Cops could investigate questionable Halloween costumes, students could be expelled”

  1. Everyone should just go naked, with a sign around their necks reading, “Damned if I could come up with a safe costume.”

      1. Yeah, I think it’d have to be naked-with-a-bag-over-my-head for me. We’d have to find white bags, though.

          1. Well, yeah. The joke (not original with me) is that that way no one will know who you are. 😉

    4. Hop, Skip, Go Naked. Or, that’s the way it goes, first your money then your clothes.

    7. Ha! The sign around my neck would be a trigger warning followed by contact information for the appropriate counseling services.

    8. Besides, wearing clothes is highly offensive to people who can’t afford any…

      cr

  3. As a pagan I’d like to remind you that Halloween is a cultural appropriation of the pagan Samhain. And Christmas is a cultural appropriation of Saturnalia.

    Need I go on?

    1. Syncretism – that is what this is about. Do these people think cultures sprang into being independent of each other? Languages can for by hybidisation, so can cultures.

  4. Unsurprisingly, we see the same at Syracuse University: http://dailyorange.com/2016/10/sexualized-halloween-costumes-can-reinforce-stereotypes/

    “Halloween: A time for tricks, treats and cultural appropriation,” writes Ivana Pino.

    S.U. hasn’t formally adopted a policy policing costumes, but Pino believes that there should be one in place.

    She admires SUNY Geneseo’s position on costumes, quoting Dean Lenny Sancilio who says,

    “We wanted to give our students things to think about. It’s never been about ‘what to wear’ or ‘what not to wear,’ but think about these things before you decide, so you know where other people are coming from,” said Sancilio.

    Of course, he wouldn’t want people to get the impression that they’re policing costumes:

    “It’s never our intention to be the PC police,” said Sancilio. “But the ‘I didn’t know’ can no longer be the answer.”

    I don’t mind the focus on cultural sensitivity to a point, but the obsession with cultural appropriation (itself a product of a misguided and reactionary concept of “authenticity”) coupled with the patronizing belief that students are so fragile as to need administrative protection reeks of infantilization.

    1. “It’s never our intention to be the PC police,” said Sancilio. “But the ‘I didn’t know’ can no longer be the answer.”

      What bullflop. If you get the answer “I did know” and you proceed to punish the student, that is fully intending to be the PC police.

      1. The New Authoritarianism
        Crikey.com in 2012 said only 39% of Australians aged 18-29 years think democracy is the best political system
        A recent study said something like 18% of young americans under 18=29 think other systems are better than democracy.

    1. Indeed, and not just at Halloween.

      The Chinese word for jeans is niuziku which literally translates as cow-boy-trousers.

      So, student fascists, don’t wait for Halloween; whenever you see Chinese students wearing jeans, immediately report them for cultural appropriation with extra demerit points for sexism or ageism if the student is female or adult.

      1. Yes indeed. It seems to me that this cultural appropriation movement is, at its base, about selfishness. Playing the martyr and chastising others for adopting something from your culture is selfish. There are situations in which being selfish is understandable and appropriate, but generally speaking cultural appropriation isn’t one of them.

      2. what about people wearing “distressed” jeans, you know, the ones that come pre-faded, pre-ripped? Is this not “punching down”, and insulting impoverished people who cannot afford new, non-faded, non-ripped clothing? Any middle, or upperclass student wearing distressed jeans is clearing in violation of the socio-economic stereotype mentioned above.
        Off WITH THEIR HEADS!

  6. Outfits relating to tragedy, controversy, or acts of violence are also inappropriate

    Like Jerry, I am somewhat flabbergasted that they either don’t know or don’t care that the day is one where people think about the dead. And AFAIK that goes for Samhain as well as the Christian tradition, so it doesn’t matter which version you want to claim is the real one – under neither of them does it makes sense to disassociate death and otherworldliness from the celebration. And to bring up a third tradition, does this mean they’re going to forbid people from celebrating Dia de Muertos?

    1. I like (hate) the prohibition on controversy. Good knows, we need to keep controversy out of the classroom, now that we know all the answers.

    1. NOBODY expects the Spanish Inquisition! Our chief weapon is surprise… surprise and fear… fear and surprise… Our two weapons are fear and surprise… and ruthless efficiency… Our *three* weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency… and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope… Our *four*… no… *Amongst* our weapons… Amongst our weaponry… are such elements as fear, surprise… I’ll come in again.

      Sorry, I just couldn’t resist it.

    1. Well… Trumpism is inspired by a lot more serious stuff than this, rank bigotry comes tom mind. But this sort of thing certainly is taken advantage of by Trumpsters.

      1. “Well… Trumpism is inspired by a lot more serious stuff than this, rank bigotry comes tom mind. But this sort of thing certainly is taken advantage of by Trumpsters.”

        Exactly! More times than I can possibly count I’ve seen Trump supporters try to excuse what he said on the infamous tape as a case of “political correctness run amok”, and that’s true of every racist, sexist, bigoted, xenophobic thing he says.

  11. Though not dead myself, I do have many family members, friends, relations and pets who do have the misfortune to be, umm… deceased, and I feel that this entire festival is a gross misappropriation of their off-the-perch identities. I am sure that, had they been aware that – in choosing to kick the bucket, whether prematurely or in the fullness of time – they would die to see their rights so grossly infringed, they would have opted for some other course of action. I therefore feel that attendance at this celebration, if so it can be called, should be restricted to those who can authentically be defined as ex-people, and have the documentation to prove it. In the absence of such documentation, informal evidence of death, such as rot, maggot holes, ashiness, etc. may be accepted in lieu, subject to verification by the Grim Reaper.

      1. My uncle is a zombie and has somehow managed to communicate his umbrage at the offensive, possibly triggering appropriation of the illegitimately undead.

  12. Students should dress up as the scariest thing of all: university administrators with too much time on their hands and no sense of humor or proportion.

    1. I was just trying to visualise what such a costume would look like and the best I could think of was this:

      vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/uncyclopedia/images/2/2e/Head_up_your_ass.jpg

      cr

  13. Again in terms of language, wearing an offensive costume would not be “discriminatory,” or “threatening” in the sense of presenting an imminent danger to anyone. This is purely an attempt to dress up censorship in the guise of public safety.

    1. No, costumes aren’t threatening. Reporting costumes to police – people who carry guns – is.

      These are the same people telling us cops are trigger-happy thugs and they want to send them after teenagers wearing sombreros.

      If cops started questioning them about actual crimes students would be the first to go running to mommy and daddy’s law firm crying police harassment.

  14. Just go dressed as a serial killer, since serial killers look exactly like you and I.

    As a European of Celtic ancestry I find non-Celts dictating what is or isn’t ‘cultural appropriation’ during a festival that is none of their business utterly absurd.

    It’s a bloody carnival. It’s supposed to be transgesssive. If you want a festival that celebrates diversity, invent a new one, don’t hijack one thousands of years old.

    1. Ah! The myth of the Celt! A perfect example of the modern imposing a standard on the past. No one really knows what a Celt was. Certainly not a ‘race’. We are all mongrels, linguistically, biologically, culturally. Which is why this stuff is so absurd. If we wore sheets as ‘togas’ & said we were Romans, would that be cultural appropriation?

      I take your point 😉

  15. I am certain this thought is way out of line in today’s world but….Isn’t dressing up on Halloween suppose to be a kids thing, at least under 16? Trick or Treat and all that. So if the college level snowflakes are so offended, do away with this need to dress up. Try the crazy idea of being adults.

  16. Wow! An actual P.C. Bro. Should I be the one to say this: hey Leslie! You better shut your mouth… see I don’t think it works out of context as much as I think it does.

    1. That clever joke is about a woman, and you are not a woman, therefor you are appropriating comedy that only a woman ought to be allowed to do. And as we all know, women are prevented from doing comedy because of men like you. Now I fear I am forced to take to tw*tter to rage against your sexism. Have you no shame?! #SJW #VirtueSignaling

        1. An interesting read. Thanks for sharing. Not sure how I missed that. All jokes aside, the biology of humor is interesting, and as touched on in the piece, men do strive to be funny, and women do appear to prefer a man who can make them laugh, so how is it that sexual selection picked humor out of the possible traits that would deem one potential mate worthier than another? And is it across all cultures equally? Why do I find British and Jewish comics/comedic actors so enthralling (especially compared to American comedians)? Many of my favorite comics are women and also British, but as in the essay, they tend to be lesbians, and a bit um, “big” (Sarah Pascoe being an exception). Of course, the essay was written in 2007, but today we’d not be allowed, nay, even dare ask such questions. Perhaps some day we can get back the precious freedom to wonder why without fear of social justice reprisals.

          1. I actually disagree with Hitch on this one; women can be every bit as funny as men, funnier even.

            If there’s been a through characteristic to the women I’ve been involved with, it’s been a solid sense of humor. Hell, a couple of ’em were a lot funnier than I am. With them, I was happy to provide the set-ups, to play Rowan to their Martin, Hardy to their Laurel, Abbott to their Costello. Playing the straight man is an art unto itself.

          2. I don’t agree with the notion that women aren’t funny, I hope that wasn’t what was thought, nor do I agree with the comment that Hitch made about not needing a study to reveal how women react to humor. But I doubt anyone could do a study like that now without getting attacked for sexism. However, considering the complaints by many, like Samantha Bee’s comment about only being asked to host a show after it was offered to every other man in New York in PCC(E)’s post yesterday, or the complaints in the UK about the gender imbalance on comedy panel shows, these studies and more need to happen. I’m very interested in the biology behind humor, as well as the culture. Is it really sexism that prevents women from being more prevalent in comedy? Is there another reason? What are the actual numbers of male to female comedians, and why? And again, what are the evolutionary benefits to humor as a signal to potential mates, potential allies, enemies, and the like. Perhaps many of these studies have already taken place, I’ve no idea, but culture being what it is, they may need to be updated. Certainly there have always been female comedians, (Moms Mabley, Joan Rivers) but they appear more common now than in the past. That may have indeed been sexism, and openly so without shame.

            and just a note, the great Sandi Toksvig has officially taken over hosting QI for the equally great Stephen Fry. She’s probably the only one I can imagine to be worthy of the chair and it’s some consolation to her stepping down as host of BBC Radio 4’s Friday Night Comedy. (and yes, just like that Hitch essay noted about female comedians, she’s also a lesbian. go figure.)

          3. Thank you Ken!

            You can only imagine how many of us fucking hate that article.

            She said, humorlessly.

          5. 😀

            IIRC, George once said something to the effect that the smartest thing he ever did was learn to be Gracie’s straight man.

            (Not that he was any slouch himself, of course!)

  18. I’ve been to parties where the theme was bad taste…All of us would have been arrested. Even where there wasn’t a theme, there were some seriously dodgy costumes. As someone pointed out above, Halloween is cultural appropriation of Samhain as such if you are not been covered in blood by a black coach to sound of a banshee wailing you’re doing it wrong.

    1. I worked with a guy who dressed up in the full KKK robe and hood bit for a halloween party…He was black, by the way. Imagine the horror his costume would unleash at any university today! Is he racist? Is he a self-hating black man? Is he appropriating another culture? Is he punching up? Is he being ironic?

      hmmm, could be, or he could have just been thoroughly enjoying himself being a complete smart ass having a laugh at our stereotypes and confusing the sh*t out of people for fun and amusement. The police wouldn’t know whether to arrest him for offending middle class white kids’ sensibilities, or shoot him for being black!

  19. Would you get in trouble if you dressed up in a police uniform as the PC police? Maybe just if it was a sexy PC police officer?

  20. Is a university police department authorized to investigate anything that is not technically against state or Federal law??

    1. Yes exactly .. Obama, who I normally admire, passed some stupid law about expression that might offend minorities on campuses but I thought that just applied to the university itself generally providing an environment not offensive to minorities (general and all as that is) – so what kind of action can these police take and on what authority?

      At any rate I hope that legislation gets retracted/sensibly amended by the new federal administration.

  21. Lol, from the “report an incident” link:

    “Description/Narrative: Please provide a detailed description of the incident using specific, concise, objective language.”

    “Objective”? How is that even possible? Claiming objectivity doesn’t make you objective.

  22. When they say ‘Greek brothers and sisters’ they don’t really mean Greek, do they? Like, real Greeks?

    It all seems a bit juvenile to me. Te ‘Greek’ thing, I mean, not to mention the PC-Halloween BS.

    cr

  23. I would love to see someone dressed as a sexy Native American girl, and when she was ‘arrested’ by the thought police, she could reveal that she is, in fact, a Native American. I feel that ANYONE wearing any garb will be subject to harassment before their true identity is revealed.
    Same for people who are only 1/16 African American, and perhaps light skinned – they would be roughed up if dressed as, say, a ‘gansta’, before anyone thought to determine their ancestry.
    Of course, since we are are related through evolution, I claim the right to dress as any one of my cousins.
    Or if God did it, then we are all in his image, so I’m covered again.
    ps: Looking at the Lionel Shriver ‘cultural appropriation’ debacle that happened here in Australia, the solution is to have all books/stories published anonymously. If you KNOW that a white man wrote an Asian man’s part, you may get uppity a priori. If you don’t know up front, you may decide that this is such a great insight into another culture that it just MUST have been written by a native – only to find out it was written by a…really good writer.
    (We had the Helen Dimedenko affair, where a writer was the youngest to win the Miles Franklin literary award, for a novel about a Ukrainian family participating in the holocaust. She claimed Ukrainian heritage. The book was lauded. When it was subsequently found that she was NOT Ukrainian, suddenly the book was no good and false etc. The impact was dependent on the author, not the content and style?!?! Anyway, you get the gist.

  24. Anyone else notice that the incident reporting is not actually to Tufts per se? That they’ve outsourced their student *behaviour* records, and that’s *specifically* what this Maxient does:

    “Maxient is the software of choice for managing behavior records at colleges and universities across North America.
    Our centralized reporting and recordkeeping helps institutions connect the dots and prevent students from falling through the cracks.”

    That’s very interesting. Cause or effect?

    I sometimes forget to ask “qui bono?” but somehow remembered this time.

  25. Years ago I went on a ‘diversity and equality’ course (run by my employer_ and one of the things said was that it didn’t matter what your intent was, it was how your speech or actions were perceived.

    Which in some ways is fair enough. One person’s innocent office banter can be offensive to others so care is needed. On the other hand this leave everyone open to someone with a grudge, or off their meds (I have an example!), or just differently saned, to play the victim card.

    Where are the checks and balances?

    1. I should mention that the offence would be that I was making fun of atheists. At least I think that’s the reaction I’d get from my coworkers, which I guess is okay.

    2. I think just having a bag from the food store with a baby doll in it would be a great costume.

      Very offensive. I’d report myself immediately to the Dean of Students.

      1. That’s actually brilliant because you can turn it around — you aren’t specifying which group eats babies….maybe you just have a misguided notion that parents carry babies in grocery bags….so the complainer would have to to extrapolate as to which group you are mocking, thereby exposing their own prejudices. The perfect honey trap!

  27. So . . . my cannibal gynecologist costume was offensive?!? I apologize if anyone was offended.

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