.
http://thedmonline.com/greek-life-retreat-ends-abruptly-bias-concerns/
Sometimes, people are just too easily offended.
It sounds like the unintended symbolism of the banana peel touched on deeper racial divisions at Ole Miss. From the article it appears the discussions that followed the discovery were contentious and resulted in anger and hurt on all sides. While I admit there might have been an overreaction to what was really just a piece of biodegradable garbage placed in the tree by an innocent student when he couldn’t find a trash can and who immediately owned up to it, there is a larger history to the banana-peel-in-a-tree symbolism.
Students who feel secured valued are less likely to find threat in incidents like this. The fact that it became a larger issue tells me there was some preexisting discord, at least under the surface.
To put it in context, bananas have been purposefully used as a racist symbol,
and there has been lynching symbolism at Ole Miss the last few years:
A student who was there describes her reaction:
I don’t think I have ever thought “You know, I don’t see a trash can around, so maybe I’ll just stick this banana peel in that tree over there!”
Interesting.
…
If the guy did this to intimidate, it seems odd he would out himself for it, even under the pretenses presented.
Very strange story…
Here’s another similar story.
My husband gave blood at work yesterday in a large group of men. The technician said to my husband “you need to hydrate more because your blood is thick like maple syrup.”
A couple of his coworkers started calling him Aunt Jemima - he is white.
The co-workers got a chat.
Perhaps especially so in the sororities and fraternities (the event in question where the “banana peel in the tree” incident occurred was relating to sororities and fraternities).
A quick look at the chapter web sites of some Mississippi sororities indicates that the sororities there appear to be highly racially segregated. The fraternities do not seem to be significantly less segregated, though their web sites tend to have fewer and lower quality photos than the sororities’ web sites.
The nickname “Ole Miss” itself is controversial. According to https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/08/04/u-mississippi-tries-new-approach-its-history-race-and-faces-criticism , it was “a name slaves would use for the woman married to the plantation owner” in antebellum times.
This reminds me of the saying…how do you know when you’re cheating (a liar, trying to con someone, etc. fill in the blank)?..when someone tells you you are. Regardless of whether you or I think it’s racially motivated, if someone thinks it is, then it is. Of course if you (or I) aren’t the target of the racism you (or I) might not find it offensive. As a Jewish woman I find myself hearing/seeing anti-Semitism that others who aren’t Jewish might not see/hear as such. In general, my feeling is that all of us need to be more aware and sensitive to all stereotypes, and where/how those came to light. And I don’t think it’s that we’ve become “too PC” (no one here has said that BTW) what I think is that we have become a world of many people who are simply sick and tired of the underlying and overt negative stereotypes.
It took some work to get that peel up in the tree like that, so far above the ground, just saying.
So what does one do about bananas (or watermelons) for that matter? Maybe you just like them. I hate bananas, but my firm provides a gorgeous fresh fruit bowl on every floor and bananas are a hot commodity (God knows why). Should they be eliminated in case someone puts a peel in an unapproved place that might offend someone else?
I can see why watermelons are fraught, but I wonder why a banana.
Between this thread, and the “we only kill black people” thread I find myself thoroughly depressed. Maybe it’s time to lay off the internet…
I disagree.
Am I missing something? Was the cabin in question only a cabin for black students?
If they assigned cabins based in NPHC, IFC, PHC affiliation, then the result would as racially segregated as the sororities and fraternities at Mississippi are. (NPHC = historically black sororities and fraternities, IFC = historically white fraternities, PHC = historically white sororities)
I just think that the article showed an example - the bananas and nooses - of real racist, threatening behavior. But people litter, throw their refuse everywhere. So I think it’s a real stretch to assume that someone who had eaten the entire banana wasn’t just tossing his garbage with that peel.
I can certainly see how he might have lightheartedly stuck it there while passing by, with no idea of causing offense. (I, for one, would not link bananas to racist symbols, although now that it is pointed out to me I get the implication: monkeys.) I can also see how the black students would wonder whether it was intended as an insult and be upset, given the earlier incident in the not too distant past.
It sounds like the real problem arose in the discussion that followed. Surely, they should have been able to talk it out and come to a mutual understanding.
However, there may be so much racial baggage in the highly racially segregated Mississippi sororities and fraternities that it does not take much to start a conflict, and it would take extremely skilled diplomacy to make any progress toward mutual understanding.
If there’s a history of people in your office leaving banana peels on conference tables, conference room chairs, hanging over cubicle walls, or laying on the floor then I think you have a bigger issue than worrying about people being offended by racist symbols. Exactly what sort of “unapproved place” other than a trash can would be acceptable in an office?