Racism exists at the University of Michigan - that much was clear in a panel discussion last night that took on topics like cultural ignorance and whether people have a responsibility to defy racial stereotypes.

Marc Cooks, president of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, asked panelists what they thought about a "Ghettofied" theme party that he said took place at the University of Michigan where guests were invited to dress so they fit stereotypes of black people.

A similar party that took place at Clemson University made national headlines last year when a group of white students dressed in hip-hop attire. The party was held on Martin Luther King Day, and its theme was "Living the Dream."

Some crowd members said students who participate in these parties know what they are doing is wrong, while others said they are ignorant.

Members of the panel then asked themselves whether they contributed to the degrading stereotypes perpetuated about their culture.

When asked why he continues to listen to hip-hop music that is misogynistic and degrading, Myron Bishop - a School of Music, Theatre and Dance student - said he didn't know.

"I still struggle with that question everyday," said Bishop, who is black.

Steven Dye, an Ann Arbor police officer who is black, said he sometimes listens to NWA, a 1990s hip-hop group that recorded some songs mocking the police.

"I don't take the music personally," he said.

Panelists said blacks still face discrimination at the University.

Randal Seriguchi, president of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, said he's been to primarily black parties that were broken up by as many as eight police officers but seen rowdier parties at primarily white fraternities broken up by two police officers.

"For the most part, when I'm called, the number of people we send out is done in response to how many people are at a given party," Dye said.

Business junior Gabrielle Sims, a member of the panel, said the black community needs to improve its outreach to include other cultural groups in its activities.

"When I think about the advertisements we do for our events, they seem to target other black people," she said.

She also said that University organizations like the Office of Academic and Multicultural Initiatives seem to cater more to black and Latino students than to other minority groups.

Seriguchi said all minority students should work harder to unify campus.

"I'm not really sure how we ended up separating minority into 'underrepresented' and 'overrepresented,' " he said. "We're all still minorities."

The event was hosted by the University chapters of Phi Beta Sigma and Delta Sigma Theta fraternity as part of the Pan-Hellenic Council's "Race and Reality" series. Other events in the series include a discussion about the definition of race at 6 p.m. today in South Quad's Ambatana Lounge and a presentation about racial controversy in Jena, La. at 6 p.m. Wednesday in room 1210 of the Chemistry Building.