73
DAVIS, Calif. >> Students at the University of California, Davis, have cancelled plans for a drinking party dubbed Cinco de Drinko, after protesters called it racially insensitive.
The party was to be held Saturday ahead of Monday’s Cinco de May holiday that celebrates Mexican heritage. Some students who had organized the party worked at the on-campus Coffee House where Friday’s protest took place.
The Sacramento Bee reported that about 100 students enacted a sit-in at the Coffee House, wearing red shirts and chanting slogans. They called for a boycott of the student-run cafe and cafeteria, successfully scuttling plans for the off-campus party.
They were prompted by a Facebook page created to promote the party. It showed a picture of four male students wearing sombreros while trying to hop a chain-link fence as two female students stand nearby smiling and wearing Border Patrol uniforms, the newspaper said.
“What kind of message are you trying to send?” student Edwin Roque said, calling the party theme offensive.
But Jonathan Beatty also attended the protest wearing a sombrero. He said the theme was not racist, comparing it to St. Patrick’s Day festivities.
“People were being overly sensitive,” Beatty said.
UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi told the newspaper she believed that adding a mandatory diversity course could prevent future controversies like this one.
Adela de la Torre, vice chancellor of student affairs, said an investigation was ongoing and the university’s administration is considering internal sanctions for the students behind the party.
