Despite the outrage over last weekend’s “Racist Olympics,” no one has fully analyzed the culpability of all those involved in this incident. It is clear that the Ski Team made poor decisions that were offensive to a variety of groups.
The Ski Team has acknowledged its mistakes and is working to prevent similar incidents. They appeared the only guilty party until yesterday’s edition of The Daily Northwestern provided additional information on negotiations that preceded the scandal.
We believe that the methods used by Kellyn Lewis and others were, at best, morally reprehensible and, at worst, criminal. The requirement that the Ski Team submit an account with photos or risk university sanction, public shaming and other unspecified punishments constitutes blackmail.
While we understand that students have the ability to submit troubling incidents to the University, the actions taken by Lewis are disturbing. The actions at the “Racist Olympics” were insensitive, however they were not illegal and they were private. The threat of public exposure, as well as unspecified additional punishment, was excessive.
Additionally, it appears that Lewis lied to the Ski Team while blackmailing them. When the Ski Team turned over their censored pictures, they were released online instead of only being provided to administrative officials per their understanding with Lewis. According to The Daily, Lewis said, “I regret that I wasn’t clear, but I don’t regret that I put them up there.” From this, it seems evident that Lewis intended from the beginning to post the pictures online.
Furthermore, we take issue with the response to this event. The behavior of Lewis undermines any moral high ground his supporters possessed due to the unethical nature of this investigation.
Additionally, the focus on campus issues distracts from broader problems of race and diversity, beyond the actions of drunk college students. These issues include ongoing discrimination in restaurants, as reported in the May issue of the Journal of Black Studies, and the assault of Matthew Owens by 20 blacks in Mobile, Ala.
Over our years at Northwestern, we have seen the student body confront and exaggerate isolated racial issues and turn them into campus wide crusades. Everyone involved in this incident should be ashamed of their behavior. And, as a university, we need to move beyond superficial outrage.
Chris De Notto
Weinberg ’12
