Valerie Housley Comm3480: Contextual Analysis

University of Oklahoma SAE chapter sings racist chant

Physical Context:

On Saturday, March 7, 2015 the University of Oklahoma chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon was traveling by bus to a party. This footage was secretly filmed as two of the students stood up and led their peers in a racist chant.

OU SAE Racist Chant from John Held on Vimeo.

The chant sung to the tune of the song “If You’re Happy and You Know it” is littered with the n-word and appears to condone the practice of lynching. Here are the lyrics of the chant:

There will never be a N***** in SAE

You can hand them from a tree, but he can never sign with me

There will never be a N***** in SAE

This event brings to light the importance of technology when we speak of physical context. In today’s world we do nothing in private. Anything you say or do can be scattered across the world in a matter of hours. We never know who might be filming us. In the case of this racist chant, the footage was anonymously sent to a black students’ pressure group at the university called Unheard. Unheard made sure this chant was heard around the world. They used all kinds of social media available to them including: YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Media attention was immediate and university and public reaction was swift.

When we speak of physical context I also think it is important to point out that the event took place in Oklahoma and on a bus. Oklahoma is not in the Deep South, but in the south none the less. The significance of the bus comes as we consider the role buses played in the civil rights movement. On December 1, 1955 Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white person. She was arrested and this was the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. In 1961 the Freedom Riders, which included both blacks and whites, rode a bus through the American South to attempt to integrate bus services. These two events played a large role in the fight for equality. The fact that SAE’s chant took place in the south on a bus triggers emotions as it connects our minds to the past.

Temporal Context

Temporal context or the timing of this event played a significant role on its impact. The racist chant was actually taking place as people were gathered in Selma celebrating the 50th Anniversary of “Bloody Sunday”. BloodySunday is the march for civil rights led by Martin Luther King from Selma to Montgomery Alabama where protesters were beaten, trampled and tear-gassed at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.

SAE frat boys where on a bus singing this racist chant as President Obama was delivering a speech on the bridge at Selma. Here is just a portion of what was being said:

First and foremost, we have to recognize that one day’s commemoration, no matter how special, is not enough. If Selma taught us anything, it’s that our work is never done – the American experiment in self-government gives work and purpose to each generation.

Selma teaches us, too, that action requires that we shed our cynicism. For when it comes to the pursuit of justice, we can afford neither complacency nor despair.

Just this week, I was asked whether I thought the Department of Justice’s Ferguson report shows that, with respect to race, little has changed in this country. I understand the question, for the report’s narrative was woefully familiar. It evoked the kind of abuse and disregard for citizens that spawned the Civil Rights Movement. But I rejected the notion that nothing’s changed. What happened in Ferguson may not be unique, but it’s no longer endemic, or sanctioned by law and custom; and before the Civil Rights Movement, it most surely was.

We do a disservice to the cause of justice by intimating that bias and discrimination are immutable, or that racial division is inherent to America. If you think nothing’s changed in the past fifty years, ask somebody who lived through the Selma or Chicago or L.A. of the Fifties. Ask the female CEO who once might have been assigned to the secretarial pool if nothing’s changed. Ask your gay friend if it’s easier to be out and proud in America now than it was thirty years ago. To deny this progress – our progress – would be to rob us of our own agency; our responsibility to do what we can to make America better.

Of course, a more common mistake is to suggest that racism is banished, that the work that drew men and women to Selma is complete, and that whatever racial tensions remain are a consequence of those seeking to play the “race card” for their own purposes. We don’t need the Ferguson report to know that’s not true. We just need to open our eyes, and ears, and hearts, to know that this nation’s racial history still casts its long shadow upon us. We know the march is not yet over, the race is not yet won, and that reaching that blessed destination where we are judged by the content of our character – requires admitting as much.”

I am sure these young men had no idea the impact that the coincidence of the president’s speech with their chant would have. They were simply out for a night of fun. The fact that these two events happened on the same day gave the media fuel for their love affair with pitting blacks against whites. On the tail end of the still hot ashes of Ferguson, social media was ablaze with post and comments.

Because these two events took place simultaneously this chant drew much more attention than it might have otherwise. With the nation watching the punishment that these boys would receive was likely much more severe and long lasting than it would have been otherwise. The two boys that started the chant will be marked by this event for a lifetime. These severe consequences would have never happened before the days of social media and cell phones. Young foolish mistakes are made in public with a camera always at our fingertips and the power to send its images instantly into the universe. We are no longer shamed simply by our peers but by the world.

The chant leaders were identified and their pictures released through social media. Parker Rice and Levi Pettit and their families would have to flee their homes as people came in protest and assaulted them with threatening phone calls and through social media campaigns.

Psychological Context

I think the entire country was in a bit of a state of shock as this video hit social media. Meredith Cummings posted her feeling on her blog.

I was going to note that, while I was disappointed in some remarks made to me following my last post about Selma, ignorance will always be a factor and education is key. I was going to say that some of my white friends think there is no racism, and while we, the people, have work to do, the Selma anniversary was a sight to behold. A moving, fitting, long-time-coming tribute to the positive outcome of a horrific event. Selma became, in my mind, a noun more than the city and its ugly past. It became a noun wrapped in hope and love and warmth. It became SELMA.

Then, all of the dissipated as I watched a video posted on several social media sites. It actually made me catch my breath.

I felt like I had been hit in the gut. I couldn't help but think of Selma march organizer Congressman John Lewis describing just that to NPR – how State Troopers used their clubs to hit people because of their skin color on that bridge so many years ago.

I felt all of the good Selma feelings wash away, clean as a bloodless street.

Psychologically the video of this racist chant, threw our minds to the past and we began to fight a battle that we thought perhaps we had already won, the battle for all human being to be treated as equal.

There were obviously people who were angry and took to social media to attack and shame those who had participated, some attacking SAE as a whole for the actions of a few members. Malik Hurt felt empathy for those being attacked. Recognizing that because a few SAE members acted inappropriately does not mean that they all do.

Some times when you feel like crying you decide to try to laugh instead and find humor in the situation as did Megan Johnson when she posted this cartoon.

Many people felt it was their responsibility to take action as protests, town meetings, and more were organized. People came together to support one another.

Just this week this young black man felt it necessary to let the world know that although racism does still exist we cannot label all white men as racist. He took action to try to through a little water on the media’s fire of blacks vs. whites. This video was posted to You Tube.

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Cultural Context

Let us first discuss the culture of the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon. SAE is the only national fraternity founded in the antebellum South. Its founder was one of the first casualties of the civil war and 75 other members died before the wars end, most fighting for the confederate south. SAE spent three decades rebuilding and eventually made its way to northern colleges, though they had to fight for their presence among the well-established fraternities in the north. SAE is now the largest fraternity in the country.

SAE has a history of racist and discriminatory behavior over the years, for which it has disciplined its members. After investigating, Oklahoma University President David Boren revealed that the racist chant was learned at a national leadership cruise four years ago sponsored by the fraternity. The chant was shared at an informal “social gathering” outside of the organized event.

The fact the SAE was started in the south brings a different context to the fraternity itself. Many of the fraternity’s songs and traditions were started by people of another time when racism was seen as an acceptable part of life. We must understand that things are different in the south. I am not saying they should be I am just saying that they are, it’s a fact. I have been to south many times and it is almost like going back in time 50 years. Slavery is a part of their history. Many people in the south grew up with the belief that blacks were of less value than whites. This is something that was just part of life. They grew up with slaves in their homes and were taught by their parents and society that in public they were to keep themselves separate. Slaves were a white man’s property and were referred to with the n-word. In the south this was a natural part of life.

The civil rights movement did bring about change, but people in the south had a lot more changing to do than people in the north. The change is slowly coming, but the south still lags behind. Values and beliefs are some of the most difficult things to change. Our country is making many strides in trying to achieve this change, but the media works against us. They love to fuel the fires of racism because it brings forth such emotion and controversy among us.

Another aspect of cultural context that I would like to address is that of music. The SAE racist chant is sung to the tune of “If Your Happy and You Know It”. The power of music is quite an amazing thing. I have been researching this subject for a number of weeks now and I have caught myself walking around the house humming that tune numerous times every day. The fact that this chant was sung to this catchy tune makes it more powerful. Music has a way of keeping things in our memory. Sometimes even unconsciously, we recite the words over and over in our minds without even thinking about it.

Cultural Music also has played a big role in the response of the black community to the chant. They immediately returned to their roots and started singing those sole-full, powerful, gospel melodies from the civil rights movement. These songs propel us back in time to the civil rights movement and bring forth powerful emotions in both the black and white community.

Awesome voice “@OU_Unheard: #OUNPHCSPEAKS pic.twitter.com/0Z3mxbWSvN”
— Andrea Melvin (@adm_wxed) March 11, 201

Social Context

The social context includes the roles that we play and the rules that are involved. Social media has dramatically altered the role the public plays in reporting news. Things that once would have been handled behind closed doors are now handled with the world watching. This fact has in turn changed the rules that those in power must play by. You might say that social media has done away with the “good old boys club”. Those in power are much less likely to do something socially unacceptable when issuing punishment for wrong doing.

As I mentioned earlier anyone with a cell phone can decide to report wrong doing and call for change. In her blog Meredith Cummings writes, “One person on the bus with those students decided to be a mountain mover. With the touch of a button that person changed the course of the night, streaming on You Tube for all the world to see, the ugly truth that some Americans deny is happening.” The decision to release this video on the anniversary of Selma made America stop and maybe step back for just a minute.

Americans took to social media to post their disgust and dismay. With such an outcry the University and the Fraternity could not take their time to reply, immediate action was required or pay the consequences publicly. Both University of Oklahoma President David Boren and the Sigma Alpha Epsilon national headquarters posted an immediate response using this same social media. This behavior would not be tolerated and they would start investigating now.

Through social media the public held those in power accountable for making sure that appropriate punishment was imposed. The OU chapter of SAE was closed immediately by the Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s national headquarters and all of its members were suspended. By Tuesday March 10th the two students leading the chant had been identified as Levi Pettit and Parker Rice. Both boys were suspended and asked to leave campus.

Rapper WakaFlocka Flame was scheduled to perform at an SAE event on campus. In light of the racist chant video the show was cancelled the rapper not wanting to be associated with such behavior.

Many felt that merely shutting down the fraternity and expelling the boys was not enough. The public not only played the role of holding those in power accountable, but played the role of calling the American people to action. Protest, town hall meeting, and more were organized to call for this change. Organization of these events took place mostly through social media and the world was invited to participate as each event was accessible through technology.

Other Universities across the country organized to show support for diversity. The “Not on Our Campus” campaign was born. Some young entrepreneurs even decided to make a business opportunity out of the campaign, making T-shirts to sell to those supporting the cause.

As for the two young boys responsible for leading this racist chant, what is their role? It seems in the world of social media that the way to be forgiven is to apologize, that’s what works for politicians and celebrities. Levi Pettit andParker Rice played the role society demanded; they and their parents publicly apologized for a very reckless mistake. Levi Pettit even insisted on apologizing personally to Oklahoma state Senator Anastasia Pittman and other notable African-American figures. The question is will they be forgiven? It doesn't seem that the average American is grated the same room for mistakes as the public figures, just ask Monica Lewinski about that. These two young boys will be marked by this event for life. It will most likely impact their ability to get jobs, marry, or even go out in public. Is this really a fair punishment we the public impose on these young men for a youthful mistake?

These young men and their families had to leave their homes because of all the threatening calls as well as frightening talk on social media. We the public seem to view their actions as deplorable and unforgivable, but fail to see the wrong in our inexcusable response. Maybe it is time for us to start talking about how to use the power of social media in a more responsible way.