CALS-tural Appropriation? Engineering Student Wears Overalls

UPSON HALL—In a brazen display of ignorance and disrespect for different cultures, electrical engineering student Paula Roberson ‘24 wore overalls to class Thursday despite having no affiliation with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

“To so clearly copy the customs of another college, while making no acknowledgement of the deep personal and spiritual meanings of the clothing, is abhorrently ignorant,” remarked CALS student Jenna Liu ‘25. “You don’t see us CALS students walking around in tuxedos after coiffing our hair for four hours. Why? Because we know that these traditions are sacred to the Hotelies, even if they might seem pompous and conceited to the rest of us. The engineering students should treat us with the same respect.”

Sources indicated that while Roberson’s decision to wear overalls sparked initial unrest, tensions heightened when onlookers noticed her Carhartt beanie and Blundstone boots—clear and unequivocal apery of CALS culture. Some also suggested her earthy odor vaguely recalling cow manure could be another insensitive gesture, but this allegation remains debated due to the notoriously foul aromas of engineering students. Tensions truly came to a head, however, when Roberson wandered from the relative safety of the Engineering Quad to a hostile Trillium during peak lunch hour.

“Wearing our clothing is one thing, but to enter our house of worship—and at the hour of our holy communion, no less—is more than a step too far,” said Liu. “Showing no understanding of our ontology, Paula didn’t even glance at the quesadilla line before beelining it for the pasta station. The fucking pasta! The nerve of some people.”

At press time, the communal anger on the Ag Quad threatened to boil over into a full-blown riot after Roberson snuck “y’all” into a sentence without so much as a snicker or an eye-roll.

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