STUDENTS PROTEST REGGAEFEST ADS

What may have just been a witty advertisement for last Friday's ASUCI
Reggaefest is now a controversial topic among some students, as
awareness groups formed to prevent distribution of material which
could be considered offensive.

ASUCI's flier for Reggaefest depicted an anteater with red eyes and
dreadlocks who some say was possibly smoking marijuana. Some students
on campus found that the anteater depicted an African-American stereotype.

"We're not necessarily against how the anteater is brown, but just the
fact that it is brown, it's smoking a blunt and it has red eyes. If
someone sees this outside of school, they might think that UCI permits
smoking weed. We don't want that type of material to circulate," said
Brandon Walker, a first-year economics major and a member of the
protest group. "We understand the right of free speech, but there
should be some sort of stipulation to it. They keep claiming ignorance
all the time, but it can only go so far."

The protesting group, which consisted of students from the
Cross-Cultural Center and Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, or
MEChA, distributed fliers of their own during Reggaefest. The fliers
were to help students become aware of the stereotypes being circulated
around campus. Members of ASUCI, however, said that although the flier
may have offended some students, the overall message of Reggaefest is
not being addressed.

"No one cares about the good things that are going on. Everyone is
always looking for the murder, the crime, this and that. No one cares
about the philanthropy or the community service," said incoming ASUCI
President Sammi Shayaa.

Shayaa states there has been a heightened state of sensitivity
concerning distributed material.

The most recent flier dispute was with Sigma Pi's "Drinko for Cinco"
fliers for a Cinco De Mayo party, that resulted in a student forum and
sensitivity classes about the issue.

"I think it primarily has to do with the recent Sigma Pi issue, and
people are just on edge. They are looking to point things out," Shayaa
said.

While Shayaa states that there are many people who are already in
charge of checking fliers for content before distribution, Walker and
fellow protesters plan on forming a committee to work in conjunction
with the Student Services Center to help distinguish what material is
appropriate for distribution and what is not.

"There's no real committee, which is what we want to do, and that is
why we are passing out fliers," Walker said.

The first draft of the Reggaefest flier was dismissed by
administration.

According to Walker, the initial flier portrayed an anteater wearing a
turban with marijuana leaves coming out of his dreadlocks while smoke
was coming out of the "blunt" the anteater was smoking.

"We just want to say that smoking blunts and having dreadlocks is not
necessarily a part of the Rastafarian culture. It's about music, the
civil rights movement and the religious aspect behind it," Walker said.

Shayaa stated there was a similar controversy concerning last year's
flier, so he recognizes the affect this year's flier has on students.

"If offense was taken, and I can understand if there has been, I
apologize for it. But it's the 'Reggaefest,' it's not the
'Racistfest.' We're not out to hurt anybody, we're just here to have a
good time," Shayaa said. "Even if we offend someone, I'd like to say
that in the future we will take precautions, so maybe we can run it by
them. But really, it's a touchy issue."