Hundreds of Yale University students marched in protest this week as tensions boiled over in response to what they called the racial insensitivity of the school’s administration. The students’ frustration has been building for some time in response to a series of issues, but it was most recently sparked by a clash over potentially sensitive Halloween costumes.

Here’s what you need to know:

Why do students care about Halloween costumes?

Costumes became an issue at Yale after a group of administrators from various committees and offices sent a guidance letter to students urging them to avoid insensitive costumes including those that feature blackface, turbans and mock Native American headdresses. The email was framed as a call for Yale students to be “safe and thoughtful” on Halloween.

Controversy began when lecturer Erika Christakis sent an email to the students she oversees in her capacity as associate master at one of Yale’s residential colleges objecting to the call for sensitivity. “Is there no room anymore for a child or young person to be a little bit obnoxious … a little bit inappropriate or provocative or, yes, offensive?” she wrote.

Why are some students upset about Christakis’ letter?

The email angered many students who say that as a college master, Christakis should be chiefly concerned with the wellbeing of her students, not promoting academic free speech that is potentially offensive.

Many students signed an open letter to Christakis that reads, in, part, “We are not asking to be coddled… [We] simply ask that our existences not be invalidated on campus. This is us asking for basic respect of our cultures and our livelihoods.”

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