Ole Miss freshman students confront white classmates after racist monkey gestures captured on video
Two Black freshmen at the University of Mississippi said they confronted three white students who made monkey noises outside their apartment; one apologised and later left the university, while the other continued the gestures.
Two Black first-year students at the University of Mississippi reported confronting three white classmates after a video showed the latter making monkey noises and gestures outside the students' apartment on Nov. 6. Jakiyra Metcalf and her roommate Victoria Johnson told CBS Morning News that they felt devastated by the incident and ran to speak with the women immediately. According to Metcalf, one of the women, Alaina Kunes, apologized and later withdrew from the university, while the second woman continued the gestures, which Metcalf described as “a slap in the face.”
Kunes, an 18-year-old from Wisconsin, issued a statement through an attorney acknowledging that her actions were “insensitive, inappropriate, and deeply harmful,” and expressed regret, saying she had never intended to target a person of color. She also said she left the university after her family received death threats.
University of Mississippi Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Shawnboda Mead said the incident is “deeply troubling, hurtful, and unacceptable” and is under active investigation, adding that such behavior does not reflect the university’s values or the community it seeks to foster.