Tufts University’s Greek Students Warned Their Costumes Could Be Investigated by Campus Cops

Student leaders in Tufts University’s Greek system wrote a letter warning members that they might be investigated by campus police if they choose to wear politically incorrect Halloween costumes.

“This year we want the Greek Community to help prevent inappropriate, offensive and appropriative costumes,” the letter states.

It goes on to advise students to avoid wearing costumes “that appropriate cultures and reproduce stereotypes on race, gender, sexuality, immigrant or socioeconomic status,” and claims that “outfits relating to tragedy, controversy, or acts of violence are also inappropriate.”  

Honestly, what the hell are students supposed to wear, then? We’ve all had different experiences, and anything in the world could potentially be related to a “tragedy” of some kind for at least one person who might see it. And nothing involving “acts of violence”? As Reason’s Robby Soave points out, this would seem to rule out even “traditional costumes like vampire/zombie/skeleton,” kind of like this one that I somehow wore when I was three years old without ruining a single person’s life.

But the guidelines — as insane as they are — aren’t even the most ridiculous part of the letter. No, the most insane part is the part describing the “consequences for wearing an offensive costume:”

Mary Pat McMahon, the Dean of Student Affairs, described the consequences as follows: “The range of response for students whose actions make others in our community feel threatened or unsafe, or who direct conduct towards others that is offensive or discriminatory, includes [Office of Equal Opportunity] and/or [Tufts University Police Department] investigation and then disciplinary sanctions from our office that could run a wide gamut depending on what is brought to our attention and the impact of these actions on others. Any complaints will result in full investigation by University officials and could result in serious disciplinary sanctions through Judicial Affairs.’”

Now, the College Fix reports that school spokesperson Patrick Collins sent the Fix an e-mail claiming that the school “does not have a ‘Halloween costume policy’” and that the letter was “proactively” “written by students, for students,” but that’s obviously BS. After all, that letter includes a statement from the Dean of Student Affairs warning students that they could be investigated by the police if they don’t wear the right costumes. It should seem pretty clear to anyone who is not a total idiot that the Greek leaders’ concern was probably (just probably!) in response to an administration with that kind of attitude, rather than just something done “proactively” for social-justice kicks and giggles.

Note: The letter also encouraged students to file a bias report if they saw a classmate wearing an offensive costume, which definitely sounds like something that frat kids would encourage each other to do without any pressure from the administration at all.