UK Edition
Warwick university investigates racist slurs scrawled on student's bananas
A student has spoken out after she said it "took a Twitter escalation" for Warwick to investigate claims of racism.
Faramade Ifaturoti, a biomedical science student at the university, posted a picture of the racist incident on Twitter – according to her tweet, a flatmate had scrawled 'monkey' and 'n***a on the skin of her bananas.
She wrote: “Just entered the kitchen and look at what one of my flatmates has [allegedly] done. I am extremely disgusted.”
Her tweet sparked a trend in the UK - #WeStandWithFara was a top trending topic on Tuesday night.
It was also retweeted over 2,000 times.
Responding to the incident, an official statement from Warwick Student Union reads: “The Sabbatical Officer team has just been made aware of the appalling images currently being circulated online which depict an instance of racism in a campus accommodation block.
“Warwick SU has a zero-tolerance policy on racist behaviour.
“We unequivocally condemn this shocking and disgusting act, which should clearly have no place in either our University or society at large.
“We have reached out to the student affected by this episode and have contacted the University to offer further support.
“Should a formal complaint be raised regarding a specific individual’s conduct, the SU will of course treat it as a matter for urgent disciplinary action.”
Ms Ifaturoti has slammed their response, saying "I'm highly disappointed it took a Twitter escalation in order for you to respond".
Ms Ifaturoti also complained about racism in a separate message back in February when she wrote: “Racism is very real. Especially in this Warwick I can’t lie.”
A friend of Ms Ifaturoti, 19-year-old Warwick law and sociology student, Jere Agbaje, described the incident to the Independent.
She said the student had her shopping delivered to her Warwick student accommodation on Monday night at around 10pm.
Ms Agbaje said: “She unpacked and stored her shopping, whilst four of her flatmates were in the kitchen. Today, when she came into the kitchen, to her horror, those shocking racial slurs and dehumanising remarks were branded on her bananas.
“I have been in contact with Fara, and she is incredibly shaken and shocked. She is currently being comforted by her friends and family. This is been an incredibly distressing ordeal for her.”