Some CNN.com readers commented that the picture was just plain old college fun. Reaction to the Chi Omega story, however, has not all been of dismay or outrage. The scandal led to the dismissal of legendary head coach Joe Paterno, who died only weeks later, and severe NCAA penalties against the school's storied football program. He was sentenced to a minimum of 30 years in prison. The incident comes in the wake of this year's conviction of former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky for sexually abusing 10 boys over a period of 15 years. They suggest a failure to empathize or even a failure to think. They convey either a lack of awareness about the human condition and human sensitivities or, worse yet, disdain for the thoughts, feelings, histories and experiences of others. "The simplest of those lessons is that costumes that include blackface, or that parody or imitate a person or groups of people, are always offensive to someone.
"Our university is a place of learning and discovery, and there certainly are lessons to be relearned, or even discovered for the first time, from these incidents," the letter said. "How any constituent groups or individuals in the university could behave with such insensitivity or unawareness is a question we must both ask and answer," they said in a letter Thursday. The university president, the president of the board of trustees and other officials expressed their own feelings of deep disappointment. Latino students on the Penn State campus demanded a direct apology from Chi Omega, which issued a statement of regret to the college newspaper. Some said it perpetrated stereotypes and were culturally insensitive. Outrage spread over the insensitive nature of the photo. Then they took a photo and posted it online. They held signs that said: "Will mow lawn for weed + beer." Another sign said: "I don't cut grass. They wore sombreros and ponchos and pasted fake mustaches on their faces. Members of the university's Chi Omega sorority chapter celebrated Halloween at a Mexican-themed party. (CNN) - Officials at Penn State published an open letter this week about an incident that has brought the university under scrutiny once more.
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