Three 19-year-old white college students have been expelled from Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and the fraternity’s chapter has been suspended from campus, after they reportedly hung a noose and a Confederate-like flag over the University of Mississippi’s statue of James Meredith.
National organization Sigma Phi Epsilon expelled the three freshman from the organization before suspending the university’s Alpha Chapter. They later turned the identities of the three men over to the University Police Department (UPD).
A school contractor overhead two young men screaming racial slurs before discovering that a noose and the former Georgia state flag displaying a small Confederate flag adorned the statue. Civil rights icon Meredith entered the all-white male school in 1962 amid resistance from Mississippi’s governor to graduate with a degree in political science.
Meredith, who still lives in Mississippi, has responded to the incident. The 80 year old told the Los Angeles Times, “That just clearly shows that we’re not training our children like the Bible says. They don’t know right and wrong, good and bad and how to apply it to life.”
All three men have sought legal counsel and are suspended from campus. The students initially agreed to cooperate, but their attorneys informed the school they would only release statements if criminal charges are filed. The university’s chief of police Calvin Sellers said the three students’ names were prominent in their investigation, which also involves the FBI. The school says other than the three students, no suspects have been identified. A camera that monitors the statue has not been working since 2008. A $25,000 reward offered by the school’s alumni association has lead to an influx of tips.
Ole Miss has fended off rumors of racial activity in recent years. A student protest against the re-election of President Barack Obama turned disorderly when students chanted racial slurs. There were two arrests. However, this past week, students on the campus protested around the statue to show their disapproval of the students’ actions. Their signs read: “This is Our university! It’s our time for action!” It was meant to remind the country and university that there’s still work to do since segregation was banned.
“You have systemic racism in our country. We have it in this state, and we have it in this university—much less so than in years past, but there’s systemic racism everywhere in the world. I wish that it weren’t so,” said University of Mississippi Chancellor Daniel Jones to CNN.