BOSTON (WHDH) - Boston College has launched an investigation into an incident in which racist lyrics were allegedly sung inside a multicultural residence hall on campus, school officials said.
The lyrics were reportedly sung in a corridor on one of the school’s Multicultural Learning Experience floors at Xavier Hall, Michael Lochhead, Boston College’s executive vice president and acting vice president for student affairs, said in a letter to students.
Students from the MLE floors and students of color across campus have reported experiencing “bias-motivated incidents” that were not conveyed to administrators, Lochhead noted.
Video taken from inside Xavier Hall on Feb. 1 and shared with the Instagram account, “Black at Boston College,” showed garbage barrels tossed around a hallway and trash scattered on the ground.
The Black at Boston College page primarily shares examples of racism at the school, according to an individual who helps run the site.
He spoke to 7NEWS on the condition of anonymity and said, “There are a lot of Black students who want to make a change but they are afraid of retaliation….Whether it be financial, whether it be some sort of sanction, some sort of punishment. It’s a very real thing that we feel.”
Video taken just days after the mess that was recorded on Feb. 1 captured the singing incident in question.
“There was a separate incident were they were like signing racist lyrics to a song,” said Mason Andre, a student at the college. “These incidents are horrible and very upsetting for somebody like me.”
In January, two students on the women’s MLE floor were said to be found responsible for multiple violations of school policies, including vandalism.
“I recognize that the University has more work to do so that all BC students feel welcomed and valued,” Lochhead said.
Any student who has experienced bias-motivated behavior or other conduct violations is urged to contact the Office of Student Conduct at 617-552-3470 or the Boston College Police Department at 617-552-4440.
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