UK Edition
Student charged after wearing gorilla mask to Black Lives Matter protest
A white student at East Tennessee State University has been charged with civil rights intimidation after attending a Black Lives Matter demonstration wearing a gorilla mask, and carrying bananas tied with a noose.
Freshman Tristan Rettke was escorted away from scene by university safety officers, and later charged by the Johnson City Police Department, WCYB reported
The university has suspended Rettke, and issued a statement saying his actions "go against the values of our university where people come first and all are treated with dignity and respect."
University President Brian Noland said: "I was offended, but I was also saddened. The nation is not only raw, but it's healing.
"We are exceptionally proud of the students who were peacefully participating in the event and the manner in which they exercised restraint, thoughtfulness and strength in the face of inappropriate and offensive behaviour."
Jaelyn Grimes, a student at the demonstration, told Johnson City Press that Rettke failed to rile the protesters: “Of course, it's hard to stay calm because they're doing it because they know they can get under your skin.
“You've just got to have thicker skin and be the bigger person and just show that ignorance is not going to override your ability to be calm. Because being calm is a lot more difficult than reacting the way they want us to react, which is in a violent stereotypical black way. But we're not all like that.”
According to local reports Rettke told officers he went to the event "in attempt to provoke the protestors."