A Mexican restaurant has now been banned from handing out free sombreros to students because the publicity stunt has been branded ‘racist’ by university officials.
Pedro’s Tex-Mex Cantina, a Norwich restaurant, gave the hats to University of East Anglia students at a freshers’ fair in the city in a bid to drum up business from the student population.
Officials at the students’ union, where the fair was held last week, took the sombreros from students and ordered the restaurant to stop giving them out because they thought it was offensive for non-Mexicans to wear them.
The union said it breached an advertising policy sent to stallholders, which said: ‘Discriminatory or stereotypical language or imagery aimed towards any group or individual based on characteristics will not be permitted as part of our advertising.’
The policy specifies 15 types of discrimination, some of which include colour, ethnic origin, and nationality.
The union said the sombreros were seen as racist and a form of ‘cultural appropriation’.
One first-year student told student newspaper The Tab: ‘It’s ridiculous – it’s a comedy hat, not some sort of sacred religious dress. Who is going to get offended? Speedy Gonzales?’
The restaurant is highly rated on review site TripAdvisor and dishes up a variety of traditional Tex-Mex dishes, including nachos, chilli and tacos.
Manager Matthew Ward was unavailable to comment this morning, but an unnamed worker at the restaurant said: ‘It’s ridiculous.’
However, the Union defended their stance on the large hat.
