Meanwhile at UCLA, Sig Ep and Alpha Phi do Kanye & Kardashians

[LAblondeGPhi]

So, as a white woman, I feel a little uncomfortable in these situations taking the position I'm about to take. I hate seeing discussions of race break down into white people taking one side and blacks taking the other, and it seems to happen more often than not.

But - I do want to recognize the limitations of my own perspective, so I'm coming at this with genuine curiosity and open-mindedness. Here we go:

I think there is a genuine difference between making fun of an individual and making fun of a group of people based on stereotypes. I also think there's a difference between making fun of an individual for what they've actually done, versus making fun of someone by placing a stereotype on them. Based on what I've read here and elsewhere, it sounds like many of the costumes were making fun of an individual (or family), based on their own and actual behavior.

-The gold diggers: Removing the question of blackface, this costume looks to be a pun on the actual name of the Kanye West song. Halloween shops have been selling these kinds of "gold digger" costumers for years. If anything, I would often associate the stereotype of gold digger with a young pretty woman and an old white dude. I have a hard time seeing something offensive here. Did I miss that?

-The big butts: Okay, this one is a little more provocative, but it seems like it's a direct dig at the Kardashians much more than anything else. Those girls are obsessed with their backsides, and I swear, have perfected some kind of fitness regime to enhance them. Assuming that this is the case, is the action still culturally insensitive, or just mean-spirited toward the Kardashians?

-Chains, clothing, etc: Here's where I get iffy. The theme was based on Kanye West. If you go to an event dressed up in an outfit that he's actually worn, or something as similar as you can muster, is that offensive? At what point does the outfit cross the line?

I'm sure there were other costume variations at the party, so I'm sure that there were plenty more offensive than those listed here. But the thing is, I've seen plenty of "Tennis Pros/Golf Pros/CEOs and Something Hos" parties, or "White Trash whatever", or even "Famous Couples", and all of those are going to make fun of some group.

So is the real issue that the theme was "Kanye Western" and not "Taylor Swifty"?