NEED TO KNOW
- The University of Mississippi is investigating after two white students were caught making racist noises and gestures outside an apartment owned by black students.
- Jakiyra Metcalf, who shares the apartment with two other students, shared video footage of three white women walking past the apartment, two of whom were making monkey-like noises and gestures.
- In a letter to students, Vice-Chancellor for Student Affairs Shawnboda Mead confirmed an investigation was underway and said support had been offered to affected students.
The University of Mississippi is investigating after two white students were filmed making racist noises and gestures outside an apartment owned by black students.
On Friday, November 6, Ole Miss student Jakiyra Metcalf shared video footage on TikTok of three white women walking past the apartment. In the 13-second clip, two of the women looked at the camera and made monkey-like noises and gestures.
Metcalf added in a comment that she and her roommates discovered the women were neighbors upstairs.
The video went viral, with Metcalf’s original post alone garnering over 11 million views and nearly a million likes.
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Tasha Bolton, who said her daughter lived in the apartment with Jakiyra and their other roommate, shared the same doorbell camera footage on Facebook.
“The video has been shared with the university administration and we want answers. Specifically, what steps will be taken to combat this behavior and ensure accountability?” Bolton wrote.
“This is absolutely disgusting and unacceptable. College is supposed to be a place where young adults can learn, grow and feel safe,” she added.
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Ole Miss Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Shawnboda Mead confirmed that the university was investigating the incident in a letter to students two days after Metcalf’s initial message.
“Over the weekend, a video circulated on social media showing students at the University of Mississippi engaging in racist gestures toward other students,” she wrote. “The behavior depicted in this video is deeply disturbing, hurtful and unacceptable. We condemn this behavior because it does not reflect the values of our university or the type of community we strive to be every day.”
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Mead said the Office of Conflict Resolution and Student Conduct and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Regulatory Compliance are investigating the incident, adding that college staff have been supportive of the students involved.
She also urged people to be careful when discussing the incident on social media as students’ names circulate, and said no members of the college’s sororities participated.
Alpha Phi sorority confirmed in a statement posted on Instagram that the women in the video had “never been affiliated with our organization,” and said social media users had “mistaken them for members with similar names.”
“While student privacy laws limit what we can share about individual students, including any potential disciplinary action, please know that this matter is taken seriously,” Mead added.
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Demetrick M. Stringer Jr., executive president of the university’s Black Student Union, wrote in a statement on Instagram about the sounds and gestures: “Comparisons like this carry a long and painful history, and directing them at a student where she lives has left her, and many of our members, feeling unwelcome and unsafe.”
He asked that students found responsible “receive disciplinary action consistent with the M Book (a document outlining the university’s values and standards) and proportionate to the very serious nature of the race-based harassment.”
PEOPLE reached out to the University of Mississippi for further comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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