An event at a British university has been forced to change its name from “Tribal Dance” to “The Temple of Dance” following accusations of cultural appropriation and racism.
After the original title of the dance event at Exeter University in south west England was announced, members of its Afro-Carribean Society complained that the name was offensive and should be changed. A member of the society, Elizabeth Burrel, claimed that using the word “tribe” is a euphemism for ‘black’.
The student told The Expose that the event was “for middle class white kids to dress up and ‘play’ ethnic, then go home and giggle. It is clear that ‘tribal’ here is used as a euphemism for ‘barbarian’, ‘African’, or ‘black’.”
“How can BME [black and minority ethnic] students feel comfortable in Exeter, when organisations put on events that alienate them?” she said.
Matt McDonald, an Exeter alumnus, told The Tab: “This is the third time in recent memory that a tribal-themed event in Exeter has been met with controversy and uproar. You’d have thought event planners at our embarrassingly white university would have realised by now – especially as people are so much more sensitive than they were when this first happened. It’s pretty ironic that at such a fine academic institution, these people are not learning.”
The organizers, Good Life Exeter, have since apologized, claiming the word “tribe” was meant to suggest a “sense of community” and wasn’t a reference to the indigenous tribes of the world.
The event description on social media has also been altered in response to the complaints, changing the word “tribal” to “disco”.
This is the third time such a theme was picked for an Exeter University event. In 2012, “Safer Sex Ball” was given the theme “Tribal” – causing Exeter Students for Social Justice to demand “an apology and mandatory ‘Privilege Awareness Training’ for the organising committee”.
Last year, another event for the students was also themed a “Tribal Night”. The event was cancelled.
