The Alma Mater Society at Queen’s University planned a fundraising event where students would dress in sumo suits and compete. The event was intended to raise donations for a food bank, but was cancelled after several student complaints.

Political correctness is a tool to control inappropriate messages from offending certain groups. It’s often used to sideline sexist or racist messages from entering public discourse. But it’s possible for political correctness to go too far, censoring or sanitizing otherwise innocent messages. While society should be sensitive to all concerns, the AMS has overreacted by calling this event racist.

The sumo wrestling event, which required students to wear plastic fat suits and push each other in a fashion vaguely similar to actual sumo wrestling, was less about devaluing culture and more about awkwardly bashing into a fellow student wearing funny costumes. Sumo wrestling is certainly an art form and a sport. This event used none of its intricate rules and maneuvers, limiting its similarities to actual sumo wrestling to the basic rules and body size.

The AMS is likely not familiar with charges of racism, so the overreaction is somewhat understandable. However, considering some complaints were posted on Facebook, the group should have verified their legitimacy before making any decisions. Serious complaints should be made through the appropriate channels, like formal letters or face-to-face meetings with the appropriate personnel.

Society is almost at the point where people cannot even acknowledge differences between cultures without being accused of malicious intent. A few overzealous complainers will take every opportunity to protest anything vaguely controversial. While people should feel free to submit complaints, managers are responsible for ignoring or reacting to these complaints in an appropriate fashion. While a public outcry would warrant cancelling the event, the AMS did so after just a handful of complaints.

Sumo wrestling like this has existed in North America for years, so the timing of the cancellation may also be noteworthy. Queen’s was criticized as recently as two weeks ago when a student claimed in a report by the Canadian Federation of Students that “white privilege” permeates throughout the campus. The National Post also claimed Queen’s has a reputation of taking students from privileged neighbourhoods in Toronto and Ottawa, which may cause stronger racial tensions than what’s seen at other universities.

This level of scrutiny could have exaggerated AMS’ reaction, motivating a swift cancellation rather than a discussion. The reaction might ultimately be less about sumo wrestling as a racist activity and more about the university being perceived as racist.

In the end, there is a big difference between poking fun at oversized wrestlers and mocking an entire culture. While the sumo wrestling in question uses pieces of the actual sport, calling the event an exercise in oppression is an abuse of political correctness. Cancelling the event and denying the food bank from benefitting is ultimately a step too far.