Briefly: Students asked to avoid blackface

Saybrugians received an e-mail Friday asking them to avoid Halloween costumes that incorporate blackface makeup. The e-mail from Akina Younge ’11, Saybrook’s Community Issues Committee Chair, described the history of blackface — the use of makeup by a non-black performer in a black role — and its negative racial connotations. Last year, reports of white students dressed in blackface for Halloween incited controversy on campus. At press time, Saybrook was the only college to send such an e-mail.