Sorority pulls offensive photo from Web site

[crazygirl]

Zeta Tau Alpha asked to remove racist Halloween photo

Victoria HealyStaff Writer
September 03, 2002

The Gamma Phi chapter of Zeta Tau Alpha removed from its Web site this past August a picture of one of its members standing with a man with his face painted black at a Halloween party at the request of the Student Ethnic Enrichment Center, the NAACP and the administration.
This came as a disappointment to the members of many black organizations after the January suspension of the Kappa Alpha fraternity for five years and eviction from their two-story Welch street house.

“I just couldn’t believe it, especially with the KA incident having just happened,” Cheylon Brown said, acting director for the Student Ethnic Center.

The picture was removed from the sorority Web site with in 24 hours of the request and an apology letter was issued to several campus organizations within three days.

All offended parties were pleased with the way the situation was handled by the sorority, but expressed disappointment that it occurred, Brown said.

Dennis Lanham, Dallas junior, president and founding member of the Social Culture of Arts and Talents, said he was not surprised by the event because of what he has seen as a member of the NAACP.

The letter described the photograph, it read: “The offensive photo that was posted on our Web site was not that of a Zeta Tau Alpha, nor was it taken at a Zeta Tau Alpha event. Zeta Tau Alpha would never allow any of our members to dress in such a way that would be insulting or offensive to any person or group of people.”

“I thought the letter was sincere,” Lanham said.

The picture included two people, male and female. The woman was dressed in a princess costume with a tiara on her head.

The man was dressed in a white T-shirt with overalls on and black make-up on his face down to his neck.