Video allegedly shows frat members chanting racial slurs
NORMAN, Okla. -- A social media video has surfaced that allegedly shows members of a fraternity at Oklahoma University chanting racial slurs and singing about lynching.
CBS News affiliate KWTV reports the 10-second video clip first surfaced sometime early Sunday afternoon and immediately went viral. The footage appears to be shot by a passenger on a bus with several members of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
The group apparently sang the offensive song as the video was taken on Saturday aboard a chartered bus.
University President David Boren first responded to the video on his Twitter account:
If the video is indeed of OU students, this behavior will not be tolerated and is contrary to all of our values. We are investigating. - DBo
— David Boren (@President_Boren) March 9, 2015
The fraternity itself acted quickly by announcing it has shutting down the chapter at Oklahoma University in a statement.
"We apologize for the unacceptable and racist behavior of the individuals in the video, and we are disgusted that any member would act in such a way," the statement reads. "Furthermore, we are embarrassed by this video and offer our empathy not only to anyone outside the organization who is offended but also to our brothers who come from a wide range of backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities."
Sigma Alpha Epsilon said Sunday night that an investigation had validated the contents of a video showing multiple people chanting a racial slur against blacks and indicating that blacks would never be admitted to the fraternity. The chant also references lynching.
The video was first posted online by a black student group at OU. It wasn't immediately clear how it was obtained.
Students at the University of Oklahoma have planned a protest for Monday evening.