Some partners and artists of a concert organized by a controversial university fraternity on the school grounds are backing out following the recollections of the issues it was involved with.
Maroon FM and pop-alternative rock band Over October issued statements informing the public that they are no longer involved in the “Social U: Polaris — A Balik UP Concert.”
It is a concert that will be held on December 21 at the University of the Philippines-Diliman Sunken Grounds, after the annual UP Lantern Parade.
The event will also feature OPM talents such as December Avenue, Zack Tabudlo, Juan Karlos Labajo, Zild, Tanya Markova, Dionela, Daniel Paringit, ONE CLICK STRAIGHT, C H N D T R, Morobeats, Tiffany Lhei, Unit 406 and Elise Huang.
It is organized by the Upsilon Sigma Phi and record label UMUSIC Philippines.
Part of the proceeds of the ticket sales will go to sponsoring the dormitory rent of some underprivileged UP students for one whole semester.
On Tuesday, Maroon FM, the FM radio organization of UP Diliman, said it had terminated its partnership with the Social U: Polaris team “effectively immediately.”
“In light of the recent events involving Maroon FM’s partnership with the Polaris team for content releases to promote the event, liking and sharing publicity materials, and selling the tickets for profit, we would like to express our sincerest apologies and reiterate our duty to stand against blatant injustices,” it said.
The org acknowledged that accepting the partnership “was a lapse in judgment” of its executive committee, saying it initially went with it “from the belief that it would create more opportunities for the organization.”
“We now realize that we should have been more deliberate in choosing organizations we hold partnerships with that aligns with our values and principles, and not just the interest of a select few,” Maroon FM said.
“We would like to sincerely apologize for the shortsightedness of this decision, and for the lack of better judgment in agreeing to proceed with such a partnership,” it added.
The org said that it does not support “acts of fraternity-related violence, misogyny, discrimination, and grave misconduct in the UP community.”
It added that it stands with the victim-survivors of the “heinous acts” and hopes “they may attain the justice that they so deserve.”
Over October also backed out of the concert’s lineup.
“Due to personal reasons, we will not be playing in Social U: Polaris tomorrow. We are incredibly sorry to those who planned on watching us. Bawi kami sa inyo next year!” it said on its social media pages.
UP LAKAN Diliman, meanwhile, said it is not a publicity partner of the concert.
This was after its organizers reportedly released a publication material that included the org’s name.
“Nais ipabatid at bigyang-diin ng UP LAKAN Diliman na walang kasalukuyang partnership ang aming samahan sa Upsilon Sigma Phi at sa nasabing concert, maliban na lamang sa nakaraang awareness campaigns noong Nobyembre,” the org said in a statement.
“Bilang paglilinaw, ang sagisag ng UP LAKAN na makikita sa pubmat ng Social U: Polaris — A Balik-UP Concert ay hindi nagmula sa UP LAKAN Diliman,” it added.
The org also said that it condemns any form or type of violence and any other violation of human rights.
“Kailanman ay makaaasa kayong kaisa ang samahan sa paninindigan laban sa kahit na anong bihis ng karahasan, diskriminasyon, at iba pang pagtaliwas sa dangal at husay na dapat nating tinataglay bilang mga Iskolar ng Bayan,” it added.
‘Search LonsiLeaks’
Prior to this, some Filipinos brought up the controversies associated with Upsilon Sigma Phi following the event’s promotion.
“Dami kong college peers that didn’t know about the #LonsiLeaks at eto na nga, hhhh ganto [siya] kalala,” content creator Aliana Villarosa, popularly known as Yanihatesu, tweeted on December 18.
dami kong college peers that didn’t know about the #LonsiLeaks at eto na nga hhhh ganto sya kalala https://t.co/FseTmaGNUW
— yani (@yanihatesu) December 17, 2022
“Partnering with a frat notorious for #LonsiLeaks and its long history of [FRV] cases and impunity… I think there’s a need to explain #AbolishFrats,” another Twitter user said, who previously condemned Maroon FM’s association before. “FRV” refers to fraternity-related violence.
“‘Wag kayo pupunta sa concert ng Upsilon, ang sahol nila and [‘di] naman na-address issue afaik (as far as I know). If you want more context, just search LonsiLeaks…” commented a different Pinoy.
“Lonsi Leaks” or “#LonsiLeaks” refers to the leaked group chat of some of the fraternity’s alleged members in 2018 which contained messages indicating sexism, misogyny, racism and slurs against the poor, the LGBTQ+ community and Muslims.
The chats also reportedly contained messages about killing Lumads, the largest group of indigenous people (IP) in the country.
It additionally contained far-right political ideals, with some members expressing support for Martial Law and the Marcos regime headed by late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
READ: Upsilon Sigma Phi members denounce views of alleged frat brothers in #LonsiLeaks
A frat member had resigned following the incident, saying he was disillusioned.
ALSO READ: Upsilon Sigma Phi member resigns from fraternity a day after #LonsiLeaks
Other groups similarly condemned the fraternity for some of its members’ alleged views.
RELATED: What concerned groups are saying about Upsilon Sigma Phi’s #LonsiLeaks
Upsilon previously said the incident was a “concerted effort to besmirch” its reputation and added that it “strongly condemn[s]” the discriminatory acts in the reported messages.
The fraternity at that time said it had conducted an initial investigation and was coordinating with the UP’s Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs.
Recently, its name got embroiled in hazing allegations after the Philippine Collegian reported that a Twitter account (now suspended) had shared photos and a video of UP students covered in blood.
“One image showed a student kneeling in front of several Upsilon mementos and a paddle with the fraternity’s logo,” the report said last July.
“In a series of Tweets, the Twitter account @UPSILONLEAKS shared graphic images of the alleged hazing incidents. At least three individuals could be identified in the said Tweets, while another video showed at least four more beaten students,” it added.
The UP Diliman-University Student Council has urged campus officials to seek an investigation into the claims.
