On April 21 and April 22, the annual Thurtene Carnival will once again be held on the Washington University campus. This is the largest and oldest student-run carnival in the country and it is worth mentioning that all net proceeds from the event go to a local St. Louis charity. Creating such a positive impact means that the event deservingly attracts attention from the entire St. Louis community. But not all of this attention is positive and, in particular, the staging of this event has renewed questions about why Thurtene Honorary, the organizers of Thurtene Carnival, refuses to publicly disclose how much money it donates to charity. Such a practice is unacceptable. We are once again prompted to conclude that the reasoning behind this decision is flawed and that Thurtene Carnival is badly in need of reforms.
The primary reason behind why Thurtene Honorary refuses to disclose any financial information is because of a worry that any disclosure would cause the success of the carnival to be judged on the amount of money it raises. In a statement to WUTV in response to a documentary special entitled, “Thurtene: The Carnival and the Controversy,” Thurtene argued that, “the purpose of the carnival is to bring together Washington University student organizations and open our campus to the surrounding communities,” and that, “the fact that the net proceeds from the carnival are donated to a local charity strengthens this objective but is not the primary purpose of the Carnival.”
Also, in an interview with Student Life, junior Sydney Schneider, Thurtene public relations co-chair, commented that, “in the end, the charity is not the main purpose [of the carnival].”
We find all of these statements to be disingenuous at best. Official Thurtene Carnival participant registration packets from 2006 contain a specific note to student groups saying, “the primary purpose of Thurtene Carnival is to raise money for charity.” And numerous press releases in the Washington University Record emphasize that all net proceeds from the entire carnival will benefit a specific local charity.
Moreover, the charity aspect of Thurtene has produced substantial benefits for the carnival that cannot be explained away by any other means. In the WUTV documentary, a representative from Archway Amusements, the company that provides carnival rides for the event, states that it donates a percentage of its gross profits from the event to Thurtene Honorary. So far, so good. This is a standard practice that maximizes profit for the carnival ride company and minimizes costs for the carnival organizers and it applies to many carnivals across the country, charity or otherwise. But interestingly enough, the representative from Archway Amusements also admitted that they donate a larger percentage of their gross profits to Thurtene than they would normally be inclined to give. We can guarantee that this was not done because the carnival, “[brought] together Washington University student organizations and [opened up] our campus to the surrounding communities.” Instead, the Archway Amusements representative explained that reason for this unusual display of generosity is due to Thurtene’s focus on charity.
None of this would matter if Thurtene publicly donated all of its net proceeds from the carnival to charity. Unfortunately, Thurtene Honorary has sought to convolute the charitable aspects of the carnival and then refuse to publicly disclose the amount that it donates to charity. In a previous Student Life editorial, a Thurtene press representative said that Thurtene, “doesn’t want the success of the carnival to be judged based on a number” (“Disclosing Thurtene’s charity successes,” March 15, 2002). While this statement is five years old, Thurtene’s tune has not changed. Considering the large role that charity plays in the event, such excuses represent nothing less than either willful ignorance or rank hypocrisy. These excuses need to end and Thurtene Honorary must either publicly disclose any relevant financial information relating to its charitable donations or else stop referencing its charitable contributions in all Thurtene publications.
The WUTV documentary signaled another troubling revelation about the Thurtene Carnival. Thurtene Honorary stipulates to all student groups participating in the carnival that, “if [a student group] uses the name of a charity in any way when trying to sell [their] involvement in Thurtene Carnival, all proceeds from the fundraiser must be directly donated to the charity.” This is a laudable warning. Unfortunately, Thurtene misleads visitors into believing that every dollar that they spend at the carnival does in fact go to a charity of some sort. This doesn’t happen. The documentary noted that there were many student groups, including the Chinese Students Association, that use their carnival proceeds to fundraise for their private group activities in addition to donating to charity. If they are going to openly state that the money will be donated to charity, they are morally obligated to donate all of their proceeds to charity. Any other course of action is dishonest to the community and it reflects poorly on both the student group and the Thurtene Carnival.
One of the dominating elements of Thurtene is the competition between fraternities and sororities for the coveted Burmeister Cup. Currently, the winner of the award is chosen based on the quality of their play production and fa‡ade construction. We believe that charitable contributions should also be considered. Create a third category for the Burmeister Cup that measures how much money a fraternity and sorority raises and donates to charity. Members of the Greek community fight tooth and nail to win the Cup. Let them channel that competitive spirit into charitable fundraising. Imagine what could be accomplished if part of the intensity of Lot Week was channeled towards helping others. Last year, senior Satyam Khanna, the fundraising chair for Sigma Alpha Epsilon, told Student Life that. “the carnival would benefit the community more if we incorporate fundraising into it more. A lot of sororities and fraternities don’t donate at all, because it’s not required.” We agree with Khanna’s suggestion, and implore Thurtene Honorary to consider including charity in the Burmeister Cup.
Ultimately, the reasoning behind Thurtene Honorary’s decision to remain secretive regarding its financial donations to charity is something that flouts the community sentiment that charity plays an incredibly important role in the event. As such, the community deserves to know where the charitable donations go and how much money is being given. Anything less is unacceptable.