A meal of fried chicken, watermelon and red soda water was the subject of controversy last week at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches.
The SFA chapter of the Young Conservatives of Texas issued a statement of protest last Thursday against the University's Multicultural Center because they felt the lunch menu at the center's planned Juneteenth picnic stereotyped African-Americans.
"We are against double standards," said Lori Fryman, events director of the Stephen F. Austin chapter of YCT. "If a predominantly white group had advertised the menu of fried chicken, watermelon and red soda water for the same occasion, people would have called them racist."
Eva Pack, assistant coordinator of the Stephen F. Austin Multicultural Center, said that the center was surprised by the claim.
"The whole thing is ridiculous," Pack said. "There were only two staff members putting the event together, and 200 people showed up. When we were planning the food, we just wanted a menu that would already be prepared and easy for us to put together."
Students are always looking for free food, Pack said, and the center wanted to serve something other than pizza, which is often served at student organization events.
"We had watermelon last year at the event, so students could grab a piece and cool off between classes," said Pack. "We felt it was something we all could enjoy."
The picnic was held on Friday, June 18, to celebrate Juneteenth, a holiday that honors the anniversary of the freeing of slaves in Texas. Students who attended listened to a reading of the Emancipation Proclamation, a performance of "The Black National Anthem" and poetry readings by other students while they enjoyed food from the controversial menu.
The UT chapter of YCT issued a statement Tuesday supporting their sister chapter.
"The stereotyping that the Multicultural Center at SFA is promoting at their Juneteenth celebration truly is a counter to the diversity initiatives they are supposedly committed to," UT YCT executive director Erin Randall said in a statement. "This proves that these centers perpetuate stereotypes rather than helping to distance them from the university community."
Despite the controversy, publicity stirred by the YCT statement drew people to the picnic, Pack said.
Three times as many people as last year attended, she added.
"We ran out of food," she said, "and no one was offended."
I also like beer, sausages, and potatoes and have Germanic blood so am I stereotyped there too? Quit being so sensitve and just ignore the ignorance! All groups have their issues but as long as we group ourselves than we will always be "grouped".
I am human, are you?