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Students at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota cancelled a “Hump Day” party last week featuring a live camel following complaints that the event could be viewed as offensive to Middle Eastern cultures.

The campus’ Residence Hall Association nixed its own event after several students began organizing a protest on Facebook. The protest had received more than 100 RSVPs before it was deleted Wednesday, according to a Thursday report in Campus Reform.

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The episode has since triggered a social-media backlash against campus political correctness, with critics expressing incredulity over the idea that a camel is somehow culturally insensitive or racist.

“Hopefully this story will be the straw that broke the camel’s back for hypersensitivity on college campuses,” said Andrew Clark, digital press secretary at the National Republican Congressional Committee, on Twitter.

Residence Life Director Aaron Macke told TommieMedia, the school’s online publication, that the organization brought a reindeer to campus in December without incident.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/may/16/hump-day-party-camel-cancelled-minnesota-college-o/#ixzz31yYKG4en 
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The University of St. Thomas in Minnesota cancelled an end-of-the-year event featuring a camel and a “petting zoo type of atmosphere” after students said that bringing a camel to campus would be racist towards Middle Eastern cultures, reports Campus Reform.

The “Hump Day” celebration was organized by the school’s Residence Hall Association and was to feature a local owner’s live camel that is rented out for special events.

Apparently, students were not on board with the festivities. They created a Facebook group named “Protest Hump DAAAAAAY!” to which over 100 students responded as attendees. The group called into question the $500 spent to rent the camel as well as the racial insensitivity that the event would display to those from the Middle East. The page was deleted Wednesday.

The Residence Hall Association addressed the protest on its own Facebook page. “RHA’s goal in programming is to bring residents together in a fun and safe environment where all people can enjoy themselves,” wrote RHA president Lindsay Goodwin. “It appears however, this program is dividing people and would make for an uncomfortable and possibly unsafe environment for everyone attending or providing the program. As a result, RHA has decided to cancel the event.”

When asked about the incident, a university spokesperson said plainly, “St. Thomas is a Catholic university that welcomes students of all faiths and cultures.”

But, apparently, the university doesn’t welcome camels.

Read at: http://redalertpolitics.com/2014/05/16/college-labels-camel-racist-cancels-hump-day/

Performance of 'YMCA' at talent show by first-grade class cancelled for being racist

FARGO, N.D., May 14 (UPI) --A North Dakota elementary school will not be allowing the young men and women in a first-grade class to perform YMCA at a talent show because a parent dubbed the planned performance "racist."

Students at Bennett Elementary School in Fargo were supposed to sing the famous Village People song during a May talent show.

The kids were supposed to come up dressed up like members of the '70s group - a policeman, a cowboy, a biker, a construction worker and a Native American.

Parent Elaine Bolman found it offensive that her daughter or her classmates would be asked to dress up like a stereotypical Native American caricature.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2014/05/14/Performance-of-YMCA-at-talent-show-by-first-grade-class-cancelled-for-being-racist/6921400090141/#ixzz31wHlMkOB