Oklahoma University president sees blackface incidents as "call to action"
The president of the University of Oklahoma says recent videos showing people in blackface serve as a "call to action" as the university continues to pursue greater diversity among students, staff and faculty.
President Jim Gallogly told the Tulsa World on Friday that separate incidents have hurt the university and he's formed a committee to review the student code of conduct. He said the incidents this month show racial insensitivity and that the university community "should have a low tolerance" for such acts.
Several videos were posted to social media Wednesday showing a man with black paint on his face around Norman.
The incident came less than a week after two students withdrew from OU and apologized after a video showed one of the women wearing blackface and using a racial slur. Gallogly had said the two women appeared taken aback by the backlash after the video appeared on Twitter last week.
"Those students will not return to campus. This type of behavior is not welcome here and is condemned in the strongest terms by me, and by our university," Gallogly had said at a news conference.
Since that video surfaced, the OU Black Student Association has called for a zero-tolerance policy on hate speech, more social and cultural classes, more multicultural faculty and staff, and additional financial assistance for African-Americans at the school in Norman, Oklahoma.