University of Mississippi Video of Monkey Gestures Prompts Investigation
Two white University of Mississippi students were captured making monkey gestures in a Ring video that prompted a university investigation. The footage comes from a Ring security camera mounted at an apartment door. The Guardian reported that freshman Jakiyra Metcalf uploaded the clip to TikTok on Saturday.
The TikTok video shows one woman thumping her chest and babbling like a monkey. A second woman then jumps into view and mimics the monkey noises. The video has received nearly 13 million views.
Metcalf's mother, Tasha Bolton, said her daughter lives with two Black roommates. Bolton also said the women seen in the Ring video are Metcalf's upstairs neighbors.
One of the women, Alaina Kunes, is 18. She issued an apology statement, released by a Chicago law firm. In it, Kunes said her behavior was not related to race and that she would never intentionally make those noises or gestures toward a person of color. She said she had apologized to the women in the video and asked for forgiveness.
Shawnboda Mead, the university's vice-chancellor for student affairs, condemned the video in a statement on Sunday. The university has reached out to the affected students to offer support and hear their concerns.
The campus has seen earlier incidents involving racially charged conduct. In 2014, fraternity members hung a noose around a statue commemorating the university's first Black student. In 2024, at a pro-Palestine demonstration on campus, white male counter-protesters directed monkey noises at a Black female protester, according to The Guardian.
