Should Aarhus University have a zero-tolerance harassment policy like the one the University of Copenhagen introduced this summer? There’s been considerable debate about this in the wake of a story published in Omnibuslast week. But despite several requests, the rector has declined to be interviewed. Instead, he agreed to answer some of our questions by mail.   

READ MORE: AU removed photos of students in Obama costumes

Rector Brian Bech Nielsen’s stance on a costume ban is clear: 

“We haven’t had a costume ban at AU and we don’t have any plans to introduce one. The management has great faith in the ability of students to handle these costumes.”

What kinds of considerations should students be aware of in general before coming to campus in a costume – for example, do you think that they should make an effort to find out whether there are people somewhere in the world who might find their costume offensive?  

“The same considerations apply everywhere in the public sphere. Freedom under responsibility applies here. Aarhus University doesn’t want to lay down rules for what the students can and can’t do in connection with costumes. As far as I’m aware, the students don’t want those kinds of rules either,” the rector writes.

Removed to avert a witch hunt

Photos of a students dressed up as Barack Obama have been removed from AU’s social media accounts. AU’s head of press affairs Anders Correll explained why last week:  

“The photo wasn’t contextualized, and so there were some reactions on social media. The people who sent me the photos drew my attention to what was happening, and so I supported their decision to take down the photo. In part because you couldn’t decode what was in the photo, and in part because it was offensive to some people. And in that connection, of course we also take into consideration that we have some students who might get attacked by a serious media witch hunt.”

And special consultant Ole Frank Nielsen, a member of AU’s social media editorial team, has also explained the background for the decision to remove the photo of the student dressed up like Obama:

“Well, if you’re coming from the outside, you might well think that Aarhus University is the kind of place where you represent different races in that way. Which is wrong, of course. It gives the wrong picture of student life here. It wasn’t censorship. That’s something we are constantly evaluating.”

Why are American Indians ok?

On social media, several students have since questioned why it’s ok to show photos of, for example, American Indians on AU’s Instagram feed, but not photos of a student dressed up like Obama. 

Rector Bech Nielsen writes:

“This case is not about wearing costumes. It’s about the fact that we removed a photo of a student in a costume which was taken by one of our own photographers. The photo wasn’t contextualized – it was difficult to decode – and we got some reactions on that account. Our assessment was that it could develop into a media witch hunt against the student, so we took down the photo. And I’ve been informed that the student subsequently stated agreement that the photo should be removed. The photos of the students dressed like Indians were contextualized and explained.” 

The rector adds:

“Again – we have no plans to introduce guidelines for costumes. I have no knowledge of any complaints about costumes in connection with introduction week. In general, my position is that cases such as this should be addressed through dialogue, and preferably as locally as possible.”

An AU code of conduct may be on the way

This summer, the senior management team appointed a committee to assess the need for a university-wide code of conduct for employees and students. 

What will a university-wide code of conduct for employees and students contain?

“A committee has been appointed that’s taking a look at whether there’s a need for clearer guidelines for appropriate behavior. I’m not going to speculate about what concrete proposals the committee’s discussions might result in. However, I can promise that there will be no ban on costumes.” 

When will it be announced that we’ll be getting a code of conduct at AU? And in that connection: How will it be communicated to employees and students? 

“It’s still too early to answer that. If changes are made, naturally they’ll be announced to both employees and students through the usually channels,” writes Rector Bech Nielsen.