The words ‘WHITE POWER’ were written on a whiteboard in the laundry room of Emmanuel Blantyre accomodation, causing distress to the BAME student who discovered it.

Acting Senior Tutor, Dr Philip Howell, sent an email to college members after the incident. He said in the email, “I have previously deplored the abuse directed at Asian students in the streets of Cambridge, and, sadly in at least one College too, following the threat posed by the coronavirus outbreak. But this is much closer to home, and obviously even more disturbing.”

“This causes real fear and distress, and it is compounded by the thought that not everyone might take this seriously, or would seek to trivialise the concerns of BME students and others.”

He reminded students that “We have a duty to be vigilant against racism, and that means supporting those who report it and who seek to make the College a better place”, stressing that all students “have a responsibility to report hate speech and hate crime” to the College and University.

“I want to reiterate the College’s support for all those who suffer from such abuse, and for those who have the courage to report it.”

This incident follows the decision by ECSU to change the theme of a Bar Extension event at the college, the theme of which was ‘Gap bah: full moon party’. Its Facebook events page was deleted after Emmanuel students contacted ECSU over the nature of the theme.

In a statement, ECSU Committee said “Many of you in the college community contacted us yesterday regarding the next Bar Extension. Immediately after the announcement, it became clear to ECSU Committee that the chosen theme was racist. Certain phrases used in the description and culturally appropriative images used in the header photo were wholly inappropriate and offensive to multiple communities within college, promoting and perpetuating stereotypes of numerous cultures.”

The Committee “[was] concerned about the real risk that the would encourage appropriative and egregiously racist costumes”, and believed that “It is our responsibility to uphold these values and ensure that every student feels welcome and safe here.”

ECSU also apologised for the issue, saying “We are sorry we failed to moderate this before it was announced to the college community. We will work to ensure that nothing like this can happen again.”

The Acting Senior Tutor also issued a statement following the incident and said that “...I, along with the Masters and Tutors, found the theme of the proposed bar extension completely unacceptable. ECSU have done the right thing by insisting that this event not go ahead with this theme.”

“The proposal as advertised has caused a great deal of pain and anger, and whilst this can be traced to a lack of thought and a lack of sensitivity, it is entirely appropriate to talk about the wider problems raised. Racism, to speak plainly, is everyone’s problem, and everyone’s responsibility...it is our duty to make sure that everyone not only feels included, but to take their complaints seriously.”

In light of the incident, the College has agreed to a plan involving greater oversight of Emmanuel College bar and changes to how the bar is run.

The management team of Emmanuel bar replied to Varsity’s contact stating that “Senior bar managers have been introduced to provide a wider team to manage the bar”, with weekly meetings between this team, ECSU President, the bursar, and the Senior Tutor “to ensure closer cooperation and more communication between the group.”

The management team of Emmanuel College bar told Varsity that the theme was chosen with inspiration from Lola Lo’s Full Moon Project Takeover on 18th January.

In an email to the bar staff seen by Varsity, it is revealed that the Bar Extension event will still happen next Saturday as planned, but with a new theme “Out of this World”.

Emmanuel College and ECSU emphasised their earlier statements in response to Varsity’s inquiry.