OPAL: This issue is being taken very serious.

Just when you thought this hilariously over-blown situation was about to resolve itself, the institutional activists (OPAL interns) snapped into action with an emergency meeting with campus power brokers Molly Bode, Sylvia Spears (of OPAL), and the Inter-Community Council. The outcome of this meeting was the drafting of a list of (non-binding) “punishments” for the author of the original satire:

– Tomorrow, the author and the members of GGMM will send out a campus-wide blitz apologizing to the Asian & Asian-American community, as well as Dartmouth as a whole, acknowledging not only the lack of oversight on GGMM’s part, but also the deeply offensive nature of the blitz’s contents.

-The author will be utilizing OPAL’s resources to address underlying and perhaps subconscious biases that led to the blitz being composed and sent out.

–Upper level members of the Administration will be meeting tomorrow morning to assess the situation. This issue is being taken very serious [sic]. More information to come after President Wright and administrators meet.

In the near future:
-Students will collaborate to organize a reception for President-Elect Kim. We hope to demonstrate to Dr. Kim that all of campus is very excited for his arrival.

–The author will compose a formal apology to President-Elect Kim.

More outrage (and an amusing apology from the culprit) after the jump.

Date: 04 Mar 2009 01:25:38 -0500
From: Pan Asian Council
Subject: Update on GGMM incident

Hello everyone,

Tonight the PAC interns and Elaine met with Sylvia Spears, Molly Bode, and representatives
from the Inter-Community Council, Diversity Peer Advisor interns, and a member of General
Good Morning Message (not the writer) to discuss the blitz that was sent out this morning.

As you now know, a blitz intended to be satirical and humorous was executed in poor
taste and offended many people in our community, as well as in the entire campus.
It has been made clear that no one on any level thinks what happened this morning
was in any way acceptable, GGMM writers included. All 7 writers of the GGMM realize
the gravity of the statements made in the blitz, regardless of intent, and are taking
internal measures towards a resolution. The blitz from this morning will no longer be circulated.

Immediate updates:
– Tomorrow, the author and the members of GGMM will send out a campus-wide blitz
apologizing to the Asian & Asian-American community, as well as Dartmouth as a
whole, acknowledging not only the lack of oversight on GGMM’s part, but also the
deeply offensive nature of the blitz’s contents.

-The author will be utilizing OPAL’s resources to address underlying and perhaps
subconscious biases that led to the blitz being composed and sent out.

-Upper level members of the Administration will be meeting tomorrow morning to
assess the situation. This issue is being taken very serious. More information
to come after President Wright and administrators meet.

In the near future:
-Students will collaborate to organize a reception for President-Elect Kim. We
hope to demonstrate to Dr. Kim that all of campus is very excited for his arrival.

–The author will compose a formal apology to President-Elect Kim.

Additionally, the PAC Interns will be working with Nora and Elaine to address
the impact of this blitz within our community. Please feel free to contact any of
the PAC interns, Elaine, Nora, or any other OPAL staff if you are upset and/or have
any concern. The Diversity Peer Advisors are also a great resource. They’re student
peers who are trained to talk about diversity issues like this. Blitz DPA if you’d
like to set up a meeting with a peer advisor.

Please pass this information on to your membership and let us know of any questions
or concerns.

Thank you for your concern and patience during this time. It’s been a long day
for many of us and all of us at PAC appreciate how students have risen to address
this situation.

Have a good night. We will keep you posted.

The PAC Interns
Aimee, Ava & Erin
Office of Pluralism and Leadership

And from AfriCaSo:

From: Catianne.S.K.Ngante@Dartmouth.EDU
Subject: Apologies & Clarification
Date: March 3, 2009 5:42:08 PM EST
To: Recipient list suppressed

Dear Community,

Hope you are all doing well. As president of the African Caribbean Society, I would like to clarify the previous blitz that was sent out moments ago through the AfriCa-So blitz account. The statements on the President-elect do NOT reflect the African Caribbean Society. A member of AfriCa-So, along with others, had come across a blitz from the individual who wrote the already mentioned statements on the President-elect. It seems the focus of the writer’s voice was misinterpreted, and Below is a direct appology, from the writer, who has kept himself anonymous.

Sincerely,
Catianne Ngante
President of AfriCa-So
Class of 2011

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From the desk of Lozar Theofilactidis:

Dear Dartmouth,

The comments I made in this morning’s message were inappropriate. They were crap. I wanted us to laugh at racism, but it didn’t work. I executed my satire poorly. It was insensitive. I’m sorry. I hope we can all learn from this and move on. Please accept my apology and excuse me while I beat myself with the silver spoons I was fed with all my life.

Sincerely,

White Male ‘0Priveleged

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