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“What the students were actually appropriating was not so much native as it was tourist,” he said.

“As far as this particular image is concerned, I doubt that many Kanaka Maoli [native Hawaiian] voices would be raised in protest for a bunch of students in a very cold place who are trying to imagine being in a warmer place.’’

Nonetheless, the Arts and Sciences’ Student Union (ASSU) relented. Within 12 hours of receiving complaints, the posters were removed, said Dylan Pollon, an ASSU vice-president.

The event was rebranded “Tropical Night.” Some students expressed concern about the use of the word “tropical,” Mr. Pollon said, although ‘‘nothing specific was brought to my attention.”

“I can understand there is cultural sensitivities we may not have been aware of, but in my opinion, we changed the event very proactively on our own terms,” he added.

Even though the woman in the picture, seemingly caucasian, was wearing a western-style bikini, critics expressed concern about the sexualization of indigenous women and of the cultural significance of the pink lei dangling from her neck.

She was replaced by a palm tree.

“We removed the original image of the female surfing as it was seen to be sexualizing indigenous women, and we changed the image to one of a small island with palm trees and sun in the background,” said Mr. Pollon.

‘It’s basically an outsider selling an outsider culture to other outsiders without really reflecting on that process’

Many indigenous groups have grown more conscious of how their cultures are depicted and used by the mainstream; Mr. Gaudry said cultural appropriation has a real impact on how people perceive First Nations people, and also how indigenous people perceive themselves.