The president of Lipscomb University has been forced to apologize to African-American students publicly—after the centerpieces at a dinner party, he hosted triggered them.
Randy Lowry, the president of the Tennessee college, invited some African-American student leaders to his home for a home-cooked meal.
Unfortunately, the centerpieces at the table were made from stalks of cotton—and at least one of his guests took offense, given the connection between cotton and slavery.
The student posted a picture of the “offensive” centerpieces on Instagram, writing:
“As we arrived at the president’s home and proceeded to go in we saw cotton as the centerpieces,” the student explained. “We were very offended… My friend asked why there was cotton on the table as the centerpiece. [Lowry’s] response was that he didn’t know, he saw it before we did, he kind of thought it was ‘fallish,’ THEN he said, ‘IT ISNT INHERENTLY BAD IF WE’RE ALL WEARING IT.’” [sic]
The student was also, apparently, offended by the food that Lowry served:
“The meals that were provided resembled many ‘black meals’ they had mac n cheese, collard greens, corn bread, etc.,” added the student, and remarked that there was “no seats to sit in and it felt very uncomfortable.”
Lowry apologized that students interpreted his dinner party as racist. In a statement on the university’s Facebook page, Lowry wrote:
“The content of the centerpieces was offensive, and I could have handled the situation with more sensitivity,” he said. “I sincerely apologize for the discomfort, anger or disappointment we caused and solicit your forgiveness.”
AAN Staff
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