College student confronts teen wearing MAGA hat: 'It is a symbol of white supremacy'
The police were summoned to Missouri Western State University when a black woman asked a white teen to remove his “Make America Great Again” hat.
On Friday, university student Dossou Nidaye bumped heads with a campus police officer, upset that a visiting high school boy wore a MAGA hat, as reported by the campus newspaper, The Griffon News.
A video of Dossou’s conversation with the officer was published by KMBC 9 News. “It is a symbol of white supremacy. I don’t want to see that,” she said. “I wake up every day and I see my people getting killed — take that s*** off,” she said. “Let’s all start wearing turbans and go to class and see how long it takes for them to come and attack us.”
According to The Griffon News, the student from North Platte High School in Dearborn wore the MAGA hat to decorate a venue at Missouri Western, the location of his Saturday prom. Dossou saw the teen in the Blum Student Union and asked why he was wearing it. The boy apologized and took off the hat, but stood his ground when an older man got involved.
Nidaye and her friend Andrea Gordon made a Facebook video to address the details. “A kid walked in with his hat…and I looked around and it was mostly African-Americans at the time,” said Nidaye. “And we all felt uncomfortable…So I went up to him, peacefully, and I said, ‘Hey, why are you wearing that hat? Why do you think it’s OK to wear it on this campus?'”
According to Nidaye, the man told her, ‘Shut up,’ then told the teen, ‘Don’t listen to her. Put it back on.’ The boy allegedly said, “Shut the f*** up,” and “Leave me alone, I’m 17. I’m just here for prom.”
Missouri Western State University The Griffon News #Repost #THEFULLSTORY
Posted by Andrea Gordon on Friday, March 29, 2019
When reached by Yahoo Lifestyle, Nidaye turned down an immediate interview, saying, “It’s a sensitive topic for me to talk about and we are trying to use the situation as an opportunity to engage in discussions that are detrimental if we want to have a positive multicultural environment for all.”
According to The Kansas City Star, included 50 students and administrators group together for a protest on Monday
“It’s not that we are anti-white people…we don’t care about your political views…but at the end of the day, we’re still going to stand up for what we believe in,” said Gordon in her Facebook video. “Because MAGA is a statement to continue to push forward the same segregated thoughts and ways that this country has been stuck on for years.”
A university spokesperson sent Yahoo Lifestyle a message from President Robert Vartabedian:
“We have approached this as a learning experience for our campus. Members of my administrative team and I have met and talked with our campus community in group settings, individually, and by phone, email and social media, and will continue to do so. Throughout these conversations, we have continued to emphasize: Missouri Western State University cherishes the freedom of expression guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution, and we have an obligation to protect that freedom for our students, employees and visitors. We also must take care to exercise that freedom of expression in a way that reflects respect for others, especially on a college campus that values a diversity of thoughts and experiences. I believe our students, faculty and staff have engaged in discussions about these issues with a seriousness of purpose and a sincere commitment to understand one another. We will continue to do so.”
North Platte High School, the North Platte R-1 School District, and the Missouri Western State University Police Department didn’t reply to Yahoo Lifestyle’s request for comment.
According to The Kansas City Star, the school will hold a free speech discussion on Tuesday.
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