The recent revelation that Lunar New Year Festival was allocated $5,500 by Student Union for a fireworks display has enraged many students. Criticisms leveled against LNYF and Student Union were that the spending was wasteful, that SU privileges cultural groups over all others and that $5,500 was an obscene amount of money to be spent on an event. At best, this is pointless, inaccurate bickering. At worst, the complaints are borderline racist. SU gives its money based on who puts on the best events, not because it prefers cultural groups.

The most important issue to address is that Student Union privileges cultural groups over other student groups. This is patently false, as a quick examination of Student Union Treasury allocations reveals. LNYF was only given $2,950 for the fall semester, the African Students Association, $1,672, the Korean International Student Society, $1,350, Jewish Student Union was awarded $7,550 , the Muslim Students Association, $6,057, and the Korean Students Association, $5,054. Although as one critic pointed out, many of these numbers are far higher than other groups will see for years, other groups receive far more.

Desire to promote diversity on campus may be a factor here (although if it is, is that so offensive?), but the greater reason is that Student Union provides larger sums for groups that, through events, invite the participation of the greater student body. EnCouncil, for example, was allocated $13,825 for the fall semester, the vast majority of which went not to insular, engineer-specific events but rather to Vertigo: a massive, University-defining party. Lunar New Year Festival filled Edison Theatre. And if groups do spend a lot of their money on themselves, we must keep in mind that they serve a significant section of the Wash. U. community; there are roughly as many Asians as there are engineers. By contrast, how many people participate in or are affected by the Outing Club ($876) or the Belegarth Medieval Combat Society ($416)?

To criticize Lunar New Year Festival’s spending suggests something more than a disagreement with how the money was spent. If such were the case, nearly every group on campus could be lambasted. Some groups receive funding from multiple sources, others spend thousands of dollars on food. Others are allocated thousands of dollars to make money which does not go to covering expenses. I do not take issue with groups that do this, but to focus specifically on Lunar New Year Festival, particularly when attacks are given phrases like “It’s a show by Asians for Asians,” one wonders about the objectivity of its detractors.

Ultimately, though, $5,500 is a paltry amount. Student Union’s total revenues for this year came to $2,484,907.43, and even that is a pittance compared to Wash. U.’s endowment. To take issue with the allocation of .22 percent of SU’s budget is ridiculous. It is more fair to use the financing of Lunar New Year Festival to point out a greater misuse of Treasury funds, but even that alleged misuse—that Student Union favors cultural groups—is imagined. Student Union gives money to student groups based on how many students will be affected by them. EnCouncil and Architecture School Council received $13,825—mainly for Vertigo—and $29,295— mainly for Bauhaus—respectively. Lunar New Year Festival received significantly less for an event that was, proportionately smaller. To attack LNYF or Student Union is unreasonable, and perhaps indicates deeper issues with the presence of cultural groups, rather than any preferences by Student Union.