Blackface Photo: Xavier University

By Shauna Golden

See our full article about the 11 blackface selfies and videos posted this fall.

On Oct. 24, a Snapchat photo of a Xavier University student in blackface surfaced, accompanied by the caption “who needs white when black lives matter.” The student who posted the picture on her Snapchat account did not answer when asked for a comment.

In a statement released by the school on Oct. 25, Mike Graham, president of the university, stated that “racist actions are unacceptable on [Xavier University’s] campus, and [the school] has mechanisms to respond in a responsible and thoughtful manner.” He also told students that the situation was “being addressed on campus through a variety of channels.” However, there has been no information released regarding the status or punishment of the women involved in the Snapchat photo.

When reached for comment, Kelly Leon, the Director for Strategic Communications at Xavier University, sent another statement released by Mike Graham to the university community. This follow-up statement was released on Oct. 28. He states that he tells the incoming freshmen class every year that “at Xavier, if you harass people in any way, race, gender, sexual orientation we will take it very, very seriously.” He also wrote that he wanted to “highlight a few upcoming things that might help [the Xavier University community] move forward.” The list included a cross-cultural retreat, a meeting with the Black Student Association, and a “Courageous Conversations” event, to name a few.

Simone Fluker, a sophomore communications student at the university, said in an email interview that she believes the cause of the numerous cases of blackface incidents across the nation is ignorance. She said that “it all starts at home and how [a person] [is] raised and educated. That’s the core thing we have to start with.”

Father Graham has not released a statement to the university regarding the punishment of the individual in the photo.

Moving forward from the incident, Fluker believes that “racism is something that needs to be taught in places of higher learning. Maybe it’s a course required for undergrads. Just something to teach people and prepare them for life and learn about people.”