The Weekend Princeton Went to War (on Social Media)

This blog post is by Mary Hui and Spencer Parts.This past weekend, Princeton's Yik Yak was unusually abuzz with activity. Three themes in particular stood out: a petition against Big Sean, student percussion group Urban Congo, and the made-up Ivy Scandal.As one student put it on Twitter:

Wow thanks Princeton for choosing the weekend before my thesis is due to have all of these conversations I've wanted to have for so long....— Wendy (@wendyliy) April 6, 2015

On a campus where many a complaint has been made about overly superficial conversations - "Where are you from? What's your major? What classes are you taking?" - the discourse on Yik Yak, Facebook, and listservs provided insights, however raw and roughly sketched, on the topics such as racism and the campus culture surrounding sexual assault.Of course, Yik Yak's anonymity means that the conversation there may have been dominated by a small minority doing most of the posting and upvoting, and it may also cause students write in a way they wouldn't on other platforms.  But discussion of the topics that dominated Yik Yak also took place on Facebook and Twitter, and in dining halls and dorm rooms, where  identities aren't concealed.1. The anti-Big Sean petitionDuncan Hosie '16 and a few other students put out a petition Sunday afternoon suggesting that USG paying Big Sean to headline lawnparties promotes "rape culture and misogyny" due to the rapper's personal history and misogynist lyrics. The response to the petition on Yik Yak ranged from the more substantive, like the conversation depicted below, to the personal, with comments made about Hosie and others involved.There was extensive debate over Big Sean on social media as well - Hosie distributed the petition on Facebook, and lengthy (we're talking 70 comment) conversations took place over its merits there. Things got particularly heated on the Cap listserv, according to sources in the Club.2. Urban CongoA student group made up of swimmers, that performed at the eXpressions dance show Saturday night, came under fire for cultural appropriation, and word of the performance was spread on Yik Yak. The group, wearing loin cloths and calling itself Urban Congo, took the stage during an eXpressions filler to percussively bang on trash cans and wine bottles. The end of the performance transitioned seamlessly with the rest of the show, with the five members each carrying off an eXpresions dancer to begin the next number.Achille Tenkiang '17, voiced his displeasure on Facebook and Twitter, and posted videos of the performances after they were taken down by the performers. But before Tenkiang's critique reached a wide swath of the campus on Facebook or Twitter, the outrage showed up on YikYak, mixed in, as always with complaints about work and "overheards."Khallid Love '15, the president of the Black Men's Awareness Group on campus, used Twitter to comment on the incident. His tweets touched on the troubling and dangerous way in which "cultural appropriation and white impunity are simultaneously sanctioned," and lamented the fact that "attending institutions of higher learning doesn't imply cultural literacy (or sensitivity). In another tweet, Love wrote, "Honest conversations make for a better informed and functional citizenry."  The social media activity of the weekend started some of those conversations.3. IvyScandalAnd then there was IvyScandal, the rash of increasingly improbable accusations of wrongdoing against the eating club, often considered to be the most wealthy and exclusive at Princeton. Word of a "scandal" initially fed on itself, with posters trying to figure out what the "OP" (original poster) said, and attempting to determine the legitimacy of accusations dealt on the platform.The conversation quickly turned into an opportunity for jabs at the club, with YikYak settling into perhaps its most comfortable mode, as a place for jokes, especially ones that stem from underlying frustrations. The purported "scandals," which dominated the platform on Saturday night, made fun of the club's perceived exclusivity.The Press Club was unable to confirm any "scandal," nor determine the original source of the controversy (Yik Yak doesn't release that kind of information), but like in the case of Urban Congo, the platform allowed the commentary a huge audience.So what's next...All of these platforms (and especially Yik Yak) are somewhat insulated, so it's unclear whether these controversies will translate to real action. In the Prince today, Michael Hauss '16, the founder of Urban Congo said that the group "fully recognized the offensive nature of the performances" and was apologetic. They probably won't be performing again, and we'll keep an eye on their student group status.USG is looking into making the headliner selection process more transparent, according to the Prince, but Big Sean will almost certainly perform at Lawnparties. To take the stand that Hosie and others advocate would mean a loss of over $50k. Still, a movement to boycott the performance could be in the works.Another front opened up on Facebook Monday morning, with Julius Dixon '16 posting a status criticizing the Urban Congo and Big Sean controversies, calling them the work of "butthurt narcissists." The post may gather the forces of those who have criticized the movements as overly sensitive. It has over 400 likes, and started another fierce round of commenting. Dixon made similar comments on Whitman Wire, one of the places where Hosie originally publicized the petition, and intense debate took place there too.Posting on Yik Yak had cooled down though, by the end of the night, with caffeine and midterms commentary competing with references to the controversies.-MH & SPCorrection: Achille Tenkiang's class year is 2017, not 2015, as originally reported. We apologize for the error.