Video of sorority girls singing N-word in Kanye West song causes outrage
A group of sorority girls at the University of New Hampshire were under investigation after a video of them singing the N-word during a Kanye West song surfaced online.
The Facebook group All Eyes on UNH posted a video Thursday of Alpha Phi sorority sisters singing the racist epithet in the hit rap song “Gold Digger.” One of the girls had the video on her Instagram story, which is where the Facebook group acquired it.
“This is a showcase of ignorance and that the Panhellenic Council should do better in combating racism,” the post read. “The first step is addressing willful ignorance.”
“No disciplinary action has yet been taken by the university. The incident is under review,” UNH Director of Media Relations Erika Mantz said to WBIN-TV Wednesday. “We believe strongly in the right to free speech as recognized by the First Amendment, and we also believe in the right of every member of our community to feel safe and respected. We continue to work to improve our campus culture through education, awareness and action.”
Facebook users both denounced and defended the sorority girls in the comments
“If you know the lyrics so well, then you should know when the word is coming up and literally shut your mouth. Not a word for us (white people) to use under any circumstances. It’s ignorant and insensitive,” UNH student Sofia Ford commented under the video.
She continued, “Literally the N-word should never leave your mouth. If you are white and think this is okay, then you have some serious growing up to do. Buy a dictionary and look up the term, ‘institutionalized racism’, and then come and defend this behavior.”
“One of the easiest things to do in the whole wide world is to not say the N-word. So easy,” commented Facebook user James Byrne.
Self-described “UNH alumni” Eric Hadley weighed in, saying, “Maybe these girls are just being normal people singing along to a song. These girls aren’t racist and people up in arms over this are authoritarian pricks who hate free speech.”
“These girls were not intentionally trying to degrade people of color because of one word sung. They’re college girls having fun celebrating their new members of the sorority,” UNH student Gabby Razz wrote.
“Racism is so forced at UNH I’m 100% positive that people of color have used the n word in daily conversation which is worse than singing it in a famous song that’s been around for years.”
This is not the first time University of New Hampshire students have been accused of racism. A controversial photo of a UNH student in what other students said appeared to be blackface circulated online in May, reported WBIN-TV . Erich Buchwald, 21, said he was wearing a dark-gray clay mask in a photo posted by another person to the Instagram account “blackoutlamers” with the caption, “As a black woman, I was forced to become the very thing society deemed me to be; angry.” Buchwald said he did not know the photo was being taken and he did not agree to have it posted on Instagram
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My thought about this is basically, why not sing a different song?
It is tempting to say if Kanye West is a big enough idiot to put the word in his songs , then who cares?
But this sorority has a choice of songs to sing at an initiation, and they chose one that would be automatically controversial.
It's ridiculous to think that white people can't sing popular songs because they're white. If people want to jump on somebody, then jump on the dope who wrote the lyrics.
Wait, people are upset because some white people said a word that can be heard on HUNDREDS of rap and R&B albums on a rap album?
Somebody really needs to get over themselves. If you don't get pissed when a black person says it, then don't get pissed when a white person says it in the exact same context.