A few menu items offered at a Loyola dining hall were intended to celebrate Black History Month.
Instead, they sparked outrage among the Loyola community.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the sign posted near the food said, “Black History Month: Try our African American cuisine popular in the African American Community.”
The food options were:
- fried chicken
- collard greens
- grape-flavored Kool-Aid
After students complained to staff and posted images online, the food was quickly removed.
Loyola senior, Armeen Sayani, said, “My friends were hurt to see their culture represented in such stereotypical way.”
Dine Loyola, a subsidiary owned by food service Aramark, released a statement on its Facebook page, Feb. 9, apologizing for the controversial display.
“One of our core values is integrity and respect always,” the statement read. “Aramark fully recognizes that the execution of the promotion was done in an insensitive way.”
Sayani felt that the apology was important, as it takes accountability for what happens and makes an effort to recognize the wrongdoing.
“I’m happy that they apologized, I just wish it didn’t happen in the first place.” Sayani said. “It would have been nice if they made a more personal apology by doing directly to organizations like BCC and ASA, but I guess this is a start.”
