Two 18-year-old men have been arrested and held in custody following a video going viral on Wednesday evening showing a “heinous act” of racial abuse in Sandby Halls.
Rufaro Chisango posted the video on Wednesday evening, showing students on the other side of the door chanting directly at her, allegedly at Sandby Halls (warning: contains distressing content):
yoo I’m fuming, the way people in the same uni halls as me are chanting “we hate the blacks” outside my bedroom door. Words cannot describe how sad this makes me feel, in this 2018 people think this is still acceptable pic.twitter.com/XUiYqNIWQT
— Ruu (@rufarochisango_) March 7, 2018
She said the incident took place on Monday night, and she reported it to the accommodation reception who said it would be dealt with Tuesday morning.
They took in her details and said they would inform her, however by Wednesday evening she had not heard anything.
Herself, family and friends have written statements to the university, and she has received mass support both nationally and internationally.
I am utterly disgusted by this. I hope @TrentUni expels the students involved and the police arrest them for hate crimes. Despicable human beings. @rufarochisango_ sorry to had to experience this! @iJesseWilliams @ShaunKing https://t.co/cutyepnBUZ
— Michelle (@ananyah) March 7, 2018
Please contact the Police and your Member of Parliament and cc me in. All my love and solidarity.
— David Lammy (@DavidLammy) March 7, 2018
i’m so sorry. this is disgusting. sending love and solidarity from california ??
— Kehau Lyons (@kehaulyons) March 8, 2018
Nottingham Trent University said: “We are shocked and appalled to see the video of racist chanting posted yesterday evening.
“This kind of vile behaviour will not be tolerated at NTU, and those suspected perpetrators have been suspended immediately pending a full investigation.”
They are also working with UPP to understand why they did not react within a sufficient time frame.
The Student Union said: “We are extremely shocked and disturbed by this disgusting display of behaviour directed at one of our members earlier this week.
“This is absolutely unacceptable and we are in close contact with the university and accommodation provider to clarify the details of exactly what has happened and how this is being dealt with.
“The safety of the student is our number one priority and we have offered support to them through our Information & Advice Service.”
They also urged any other students affected by the incident to contact the Information & Advice Service.
Nottingham Trent’s Afro-Caribbean Society told us: “In regards to the incident, this was a heinous act of abuse towards one of our society members – Rufaro.
“In the society that we live in today, this should not be happening – there is no justification, this is simply unacceptable.
“We hope that Rufaro will have sufficient reparation for this by the relevant authorities.”
Please contact the Union or NTU Support Services if you wish to seek support following this incident.
By Eve Smallman