Several Bruin Republicans parodied affirmative action by selling
Oreos, Twinkies and crackers for race-based prices on Bruin Walk on
Wednesday, but they never meant it to end in chaos.
The “Affirmative Action Bake Sale, Reloaded,” was a
follow-up to a February sale put on by the same students, this time
with emphasis on offensive stereotypes applied to minorities who
oppose affirmative action.
Although the sale was obscured by a cement mixer for much of the
morning, by early afternoon the table was surrounded by students
““ some of them approving, many of them angry.
The debate grew heated as Bruin Walk filled at lunchtime, and
ended abruptly as an angry student grabbed boxes of Oreos and
crackers, spilled them on the ground, and tore down the banner
cursing what he called “white privilege.”
“The debate turned into a debacle,” said David
Witzling, a third-year political science student who was at the
sale.
The event was meant to be a parody that would incite discussion,
but it was not meant to be offensive, said Jonathan Cayton, one of
the Bruin Republicans who organized the sale.
But many people were offended.
Nashaua Neao, a third-year political science and African
American studies student, found the affirmative action bake sale
“blatantly offensive and ignorant” and said the
comparison of people to Oreos and Twinkies perpetuates racism.
“I just think it’s sad to know that they think of us
as people who got in here just for our race,” said Ana
Fernandez, a third-year political science student.
“We got the same grades and the same SAT scores, and they
think that because I’m Latina I got an easier break,”
Fernandez said.
However, some students appreciated the Bruin Republicans’
attempt to catalyze debate.
“Regardless of whether you agree or disagree, these
individuals should be applauded for debating these issues,”
said Paul Marian, a first-year history and political science
student.
And some found it amusing.
“Frankly, I think it’s cute,” said Chris
Bailey, a fourth-year political science student.
“The minute you can laugh at all these labels, it’s
all good,” Bailey said.
Until most of the sale’s organizers withdrew after the
angry student’s outburst, they thought it was going well.
“We had people who supported affirmative action and people
who opposed it come up and engage us, but it was ruined by a
person’s choice to resort to vandalism to prove his
point,” Cayton said.
Cayton also said the Twinkies and Oreos were sold to expose the
social stigmas that are often attached to minorities who oppose
affirmative action. He said some minorities might not bring up the
issue for fear of being labeled as a Twinkie, or an Oreo, both
derogatory names for a non-white person who acts in a manner
traditionally associated with whites.
The sale’s organizers were furious at its violent
interruption.
“It’s unacceptable and ridiculous that people would
almost get into a physical confrontation rather than an
intellectual debate,” said Jon English, a first-year
political science student.
Many students also found the outburst inappropriate. Organizers
were angry with the crowd for not condemning the man’s
violent behavior, but many saw it as the inevitable outcome of what
they saw as the sale’s inflammatory nature.
Neao saw the disruption of the sale as the natural effect of
taking an offensive approach to a social issue.
“It just proves that you shouldn’t have heated
debates with offensive signs. … The minute you start doing
ignorant things, something like this happens,” he said.
Many other students felt that the debate was important, but that
the affirmative action bake sale was an inappropriate way to
approach it.
“We want to (debate) this in a formal setting where we can
be diplomatic about it,” said Kristie Hernandez, a third-year
comparative literature student.