Photos courtesy of the Daily Bruin.
On Tuesday night, October 6, members of the fraternity Sigma Phi Epsilon and the sorority Alpha Phi hosted a party that resulted in outrage within the UCLA community. The party, themed “Kanye Western,” seemed to stereotype the black community rather than resemble the artist. According to those who attended, students were dressed up in “black” clothing, with baggy clothes and soot on their faces. Both Greek organizations are currently under fire for mocking the African American community.
When members of the Afrikan Student Union caught notice of the party, they went to the Sigma Phi Epsilon house. One of the members, Kelsee Thomas, approached a fraternity member about an apology for the incident. Kelsee also asked if the fraternity could write a letter of apology, but he reportedly laughed in her face. Other members went inside the party and managed to successfully shut it down at 11 pm.
Following this incident, the Afrikan Student Union held a protest at 12pm on Thursday, October 8 at the Bruin Bear statue. Jerry Kang, the Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion stated that he was “heartbroken” about the entire situation. During the protest, he addressed the public about his concerns as well as both Sigma Phi Epsilon’s and Alpha Phi’s constitutional rights. “Put simply,” stated Kang, “just because you can do something does not mean you should.”
Students also marched into Murphy Hall because they wanted UCLA Chancellor Gene Block himself to address the issue. He released an email about his concern for the black community and expressed disappointment as well.
The Sigma Phi Epsilon national headquarters released a statement about the incident, which is currently under investigation. Within the UCLA community, Jerry Kang notified the students at the protest that both Sigma Phi Epsilon and Alpha Phi have been placed on interim suspension and are not allowed to participate in Greek activities. As of now, there has been no comment from the Alpha Phi chapter at UCLA nor from the sorority’s national headquarters.