Students call for action after U of T hands out ‘hell money’ for Lunar New Year

Last week, students at the University of Toronto were shocked to find joss paper or ‘hell money’ inside red envelopes distributed on campus during Lunar New Year celebrations.

The university has since issued an apology, stating the “incorrect bank notes were unintentionally placed into the red envelopes” as members of the University of Toronto Graduate House Team prepared to display to celebrate the Lunar New Year. By the time they caught the error, the university said, all of the envelopes had been taken.

“The University of Toronto deeply regrets this error,” reads a statement emailed to the Star from a U of T spokesperson.

But an open letter penned by multiple student groups and organizations says the apology, while warranted, is not enough.

“The act of giving (hell money) to living people draws disdainful sentiments and sends them the message of ‘you are dead to me’ or even worse, ‘l wish you were dead.’ It is not only insulting, but heavily unacceptable,” reads the open letter signed by 31 different student groups at the University of Toronto.

“(It) is not only offensive and an act of appropriation, but also traumatic for our Asian community who are celebrating the Lunar New Year.”

The Star reached out to the University of Toronto but did not receive a response in time for publishing.

Traditionally, bright red envelopes are filled with money and doled out as symbols of good luck and prosperity for the recipient in the coming year. On Feb. 1, instead of currency, some U of T students received red envelopes filled with joss paper, so-called death money meant to be burned in offering to deities and deceased ancestors in the afterlife. One of the images of the paper money shared with the Star clearly reads “HELL BANK NOTE” on the top.

The practice of burning joss paper dates as far back as the Song Dynasty in China and is traditionally practiced in Taoism and Buddhism. The burning of paper offerings to the dead is an expression of filial piety, to give one’s ancestors some of the luxuries that may have eluded them in the world they once lived in. Some people also burn joss paper in offering to deities in order to gain favour.

“Whether or not this action was a mistake, it is unacceptable that the Grad House residence team alongside the university did not consult with members of the community who celebrate this significant time of the year before approving such actions,” the letter from students reads.

There has been a significant increase in anti-Asian rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic, with attacks on Asian-Canadian seniors, violence against Asians, and vandalism of Asian-Canadian businesses.

Following the incident, U of T students also released on request calling for an end to anti-Asian racism on campus and an official apology to all students and an investigation into the incident, mental health support for students affected, and a detailed course of action to all students and staff to prevent any further incidents of cultural insensitivity.

The letter from campus groups also lists a number of actions students would like to see the university implement in order to prevent something like this from happening in the future.

This includes consulting with students who celebrate holidays like Lunar New Year prior to implementing Lunar New activities, providing annual and ongoing anti-oppression training for staff, and providing “culturally appropriate, anti-oppressive, anti-discriminatory support in residence and on campus for students who have been negatively impacted by this action.”

Students are also calling for transparency in the process, asking the university to publicly state its steps on preventing similar situations from occurring in the future and allow for the community to be a part of the discussion by providing feedback.

“Having failed to facilitate a safer space for marginalized students and racialized students as well as residents, both Grad House and, by extension, the university have perpetuated such impermissible sentiments during a time of happiness, celebration and reflection for a number of our student communities. on campus,” the letter reads.

U of T has a large population of Asian international students, with over 15,000 students from China alone, according to data posted to their website.

The statement sent to the Star last week from the university states they are “deeply committed to the principles of equity, diversity and inclusion,” and will “continue our important educational efforts to better understand our diverse communities.”

Students living in the Graduate House sent an email on Wednesday to representatives of the residence and other officials at the university and in the broader community to bring attention to the “hell money” students received in the envelopes and how it was offensive.

The university initially issued an apology to students on its WeChat page, a Chinese instant messaging and social media app, primarily followed by Chinese students.

The post, written in Chinese, said the university apologized for the error and immediately removed the red envelopes after learning about the incident. The post also went on to say the university would continue its effort to educate the school community, to learn and embrace the cultural diversity among them. and to deepen the sense of inclusivity and belonging across their three campuses.

A group of current and former U of T undergraduate and postgraduate students spoke to the Star about the incident. Many said the university’s decision to release an apology in Chinese on its WeChat page minimized the episode, and said it should have been posted on channels in English and on some of the school’s platforms with increased visibility.

If U of T’s apology was widely distributed and mentioned the importance of Lunar New Year and its customs, it could have been used as a teaching moment for other students and faculty at the university, said U of T student Lin Hou.

“If we don’t (talk about) that, then people will never know,” Hou said.

The Chinese Canadian National Council for Social Justice (CCNC-SJ) was also critical of the university’s initial handling of the situation, saying, “this incident must be understood in light of the significance of the Lunar New Year and its traditions, as well as the ever-present anti-Asian racism in Canadian society.”

Ryan Chan, a project lead with CCNC-SJ, noted the bills with the wording “Hell Bank Note” on them were hard to miss.

“It is despicable that large institutions try to capitalize on their so-called diversity and can’t be bothered to make the minimal effort to check their facts,” said Susan Eng, the vice-president of CCNC-SJ, in a statement to the Star.

Hou says students are educated about Christian holidays, such as Christmas, and are taught what is and what isn’t celebrated and respected.

It’s important for people to be educated on Chinese culture and traditions in the same way to avoid a situation like this in the future, she said.