The State University of New York at Albany (UAlbany) said it would investigate “any allegations of conduct violations” after the school’s Asian student community called an off-campus coronavirus-themed party “racist.”
The local radio station said the video also showed a white sheet with a biohazard symbol and two faces—one with an X over each eye and the other with “what looks like straight lines for eyes.”
“Your party is not funny and completely insensitive,” read the statement published last week. “The real life affects (sic) of this virus has not only led to mass stereotyping of Asian people, but also hundreds of deaths around the world.”
The group also called on the university to “investigate this illegal student group,” seemingly referring to the Instagram account the video was originally posted on, and UAlbany students involved. The group also demanded that the school make the Instagram account delete the video and apologize in an Instagram post.
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“The Office of the President shall inform all UAlbany students to stop racism and disrespectful slogans in any situation,” the alliance demanded. “Especially coronavirus hate crime against Asian American students and scholars based on groundless suspicion of virus hosts.”
Meanwhile, The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), a free-speech advocacy organization, weighed in on the issue, saying the party’s theme is protected by the First Amendment, despite its distasteful nature.
As of Monday, there have been 53 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, in the United States.
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