Student apologizes for UC San Diego noose incident, claims no racist intent

The UC San Diego student reportedly responsible for last week’s controversial noose episode issued a public, but anonymous, apology Monday and said she'd had no racist intent when she hung the rope from a bookcase in the campus' main library. The discovery of the noose set off angry protests at a school already tense from racially charged episodes and triggered a round of condemnations from UC leaders and even the governor.

In a letter published Monday on the front page of the campus' student newspaper, the Guardian, the student wrote that "this was not an act of racism" and contended that it was a "stupid mistake." She said it was the result of fooling around and had nothing to do with seeking to intimidate black students with a symbol of lynching.

"I know what I did was offensive -- regardless of my intentions -- I am just trying to say I’m sorry. As a minority student who sympathizes with the students that have been affected by the recent issues on campus, I am distraught to know that I have unintentionally added to their pain," wrote the student, who was suspended Friday and remains under investigation by campus police for a possible hate crime.

The letter is signed "by Anonymous UCSD Student" and offers no clues to her identity or ethnicity. A note at the end of the letter states that the newspaper had verified the author’s authenticity. Sari Thayer, the Guardian’s Web editor, said in a telephone interview that the woman had approached the paper and asked to publish the letter and that "a reliable source" had confirmed it.   

In the letter, the woman said she and friends had been playing with a rope, jumping with it, making a lasso and then a noose early last week. She then carried it to the library, where she was studying, and strung it over a desk there Tuesday and forgot about it. Its discovery Thursday night caused a firestorm on campus, where racial tensions were high after a Jan. 15 off-campus party mocked Black History Month and a derogatory term for blacks was used on a student television show.

When she realized the controversial noose was her responsibility, "I felt so ashamed and embarrassed, and the first thing I did was call the campus police and confess," she wrote. She said her motivation in publishing the letter was "to hopefully put a little bit of faith back into the UCSD campus by clarifying that it was not an act of racism."

A campus spokesperson said campus police are continuing to investigate the incident and are consulting about it with the San Diego County district attorney's office and the U.S. attorney's office.  The student remains suspended while the investigation continues, the spokesperson said.

-- Larry Gordon

Comments

[J.D.]

So who took the noose off the table and hung it on the light fixture?

[img]http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs179.snc3/20645_329772367546_673557546_4143245_4048180_n.jpg[/img]

[Gordon Kaplan]

How could it not be racist? What other symbolic meaning could it have?

gordon

[Dana Garcia]

Another "hate crime" hoax on campus committed by a minority. What a surprise.

Plus it is simply not believable that a student would hang a noose in the library with no intent to stir up trouble.

[Julio Childers]

Everybody associates a noose to Blacks but in California the practice of lynching was used towards California Mexicans who were mining in the riverbeds or defending themselves from the new White Sheriffs. They didn't call "Hang Town" for nothing in the Sierras and it sure was not Blacks who were being hung in Northern Mexico.

[scott]

if the intention presents evidence of an "act of hate by means of discrimination, bigotry, or prejudice," than, yes, "xeifrank."

"stupid" is the word that stands out most in your comment.

[X]

Wasn't there also a note attached to the noose threatening there would be more?

[not buying it]

this is just a tiny part of the story.

and i do not buy her story even for a second. The noose was meant to further prolong the tensions on the campus, in order for "disadvantaged minorities" to get what they want.

the story started with an off-campus party (yes, it was bad taste and not PC) and ended up with "disadvantaged minorities" starting chancellors office and handing her 6 PAGES of demands, which include FREE TUTORING and SAFE ZONES on campus where students of color could feel safe. Forgive me if i am wrong, but this sounds to me like they are asking for SEGREGATION!

[James]

I feel bad for the student, whose story sounds disturbingly plausible. Some may say, "Oh, this goes to show that those minorities are just being oversensitive. They're over-reacting, and if they would just calm down, none of this would have happened, and this poor, innocent, well-intentioned student wouldn't have to suffer." The fact is, though, that what created the racial tensions in the first place was NOT the sensitivities of the black students on campus, but rather the racist ghetto cookout party, the use of a racial slur on the TV show, and the general level of ignorance about race at UCSD. The crazy thing is, UCSD has one of the best Ethnic Studies departments in the country. Evidently, however, the university doesn't give them nearly enough of a voice on campus.

[Tom Halley]

Expel her and bar her for life from participating in the UC system -- no study and certainly no teaching.

[Alex]

I just assumed that it was a provocative statement about racism--that the campus or certain parts needed to be less racist and the noose was a reminder of what racism can lead to. But now, it was just a game and she forgot it was hanging in public property? What? Maybe I gave too much intelligence to an unintelligent person. Seriously, who plays with a noose than leaves it hanging so that it likes like a hanging noose during a time of racial incident?

[andrew nelson]

"--- As a minority student ----------- who sympathizes with the students that have been affected by the recent issues on campus, I am distraught to know that I have unintentionally added to their pain,"

Anyone else read that? This is a woman minority student who did this.

That's not part of the formula for racism.

[MyDogTasha]

Is it really a crime (against the law) to "tie a noose"? It my be offensive, it may be stupid and it may not be PC, but surely it cannot be against the law to have "tied a noose".

For "tie a noose" substitute any of the following:

"wear white robes and a hood around campus"
"paint yourself in blackface"
"use swastikas for decorative purposes" (after all, they are Eastern religious symbols)

It's not against the law to use the N-word, either, is it? Can't I invoke the First Amendment?

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

[John]

What a completely believeable explanation.

[Dan]

It is totally messed up to hang a noose up - you are either offending afro-americans or you can pretend you were going to kill yourself (a more clever defense) - both are totally inappropriate. I'm white- but if I was black- I'd wanna hang this girl- if was a friend or family member of someone suicidal, I'd be mad too. The truth is, it was racist and a complete insult to blacks, their parents, their grandparents, and so on- she should be expelled.

Signed,

White and Proud

[Harry Bailey]

I have rarely, if ever, heard a more ridiculous excuse. They happened to be jumping rope, happened to fasten the rope into a noose and she happened to forget it in the library?

Not since the dog ate my homework -- honest, he did! - have I heard a bigger crock.

She and her friends obviously thought it was "funny".

Funny.

[lee]

If some Mexican joker hung a confederate flag or drew some racist graffti in my door knob only to provoke outrage for personal humor, it's not a hate crime. It's just some idiot trying to have some fun at the expense of others. Not much different trolls who post "I hate black people" in a African American forum just to instigate flame wars.

Those of you who want this act to be criminalized, be careful of what you wish for. Someone just as well argue that burning the American flag can be interpreted as an intent to "terrorize". If the noose is empty, then the first amendment still mostly applies.

[gjdagis]

How sad . . . they got insulted by it. Too bad; GROW UP. There are plenty of things that insult all sorts of different people and they learn to live with it. This PC garbage is out of hand and it will someday backfire and there will be REAL trouble !

[Ed-words]

How did she get the moose into the library?

[people have to relax]

She is an idiot, we all agree. However, she had the guts to come up and confess; at least she's not a douchebaggery flamer. Instead of staying under to avoid penalty, she sincerely(i hope) apologized and believes in what little faith we have in UCSD. really, i could care less about this situation everyone's over reacting to.
go watch the guy explain about compton cookout on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGfFSZ2kcRg

[Keena]

@la rider

Let's be clear, African Americans aren't the only ones using the race card. Sure there's Al Sharpton but he's just one person. I mean you do realize that the reason he's even still in the news is thanks to his Fox News counterparts who play the race card more than any African American I know. Have you ever heard of some of the crap that comes out of Bill O'Reilly's mouth. Trust me, Blacks don't own playing the race card. If it were not for Fox News Sharpton wouldn't still be around. That's why you'll rarely see either of them anywhere other than Fox News, because they are playing to a particular audience, you might like it. I haven't heard from Jesse Jackson in years, not sure why you mentioned him.

As far as the other comments about Blacks wanting it easier, I have no clue what you mean. So exactly how are these students protesting to make it easier? If anything, they're making it more difficult for themselves.

The noose is a powerful symbol. It's right up there with the burning cross. I'm not sure why you don't know this, but they used to lynch African Americans and that's what it symbolizes. To me, it's a big deal and it's still being used today by White Supremists and the KKK. It may not be a big deal to you as a non black, but it's extremely offensive. After all, when you do things like this it's like celebrating those murders. That's why things like this should never be taken lightly.

Finally, that "apology" was bs. I'm supposed to believe that a college student is sitting around playing jump rope, created a noose, then forgot about it. It's insulting.

[me]

Intent to terrorize? All of the students that charged the Chancellor's office and continue to terrorize the people that work there need to be arrested as they are there to intimidate, not to make any great strikes in "race relations."

[Joe Blow]

Every time there is an attempt to fan the flames after the fact, it is oftentimes a minority that has done so. It's quite pathetic that a minority would do something like this precisely because overt racism is rare these days. In fact, most overt racism occurs by minorities!! To middle class minorities racism is just a social game to be used if possible for advantage. It is unfortunate for the poor of these groups. It kind of goes to show that all this is really a manifestation of classism which is in some way a glimmer of hope in showing that racism in and of itself isn't a true absolute evil in our persona and so can be defeated.

[John Smith]

Now how about an apology to the white students whom you slandered en masse?

Pssst, if you haven't learned yet, noose = hoax every time.

[Kevin]

"Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar."

[ed]

Its illegal to hang a noose with intent to terrorize in CA. The Louisiana guys were charged and plead guilty to some charge of hanging a noose on the back of their truck after the Jena 6 incident.

This girl said she is a fellow minority. She's probably Asian or Hispanic. It would be stupid if she was black though. It wouldn't make sense that she would do something like this unless she was high on crack cocaine.