A pro-Palestine demonstration at the University of Mississippi was overtaken by counter-protesters Thursday, culminating with a viral clip of white students mimicking monkey noises and gestures in the direction of a Black woman.
That gross clip was captured moments before police shut down the demonstration entirely and escorted the outnumbered pro-Palestine protesters from the scene.
In the video, an unnamed white man in a light blue shirt is seen contorting his face to mimic that of a monkey while he motioned his arms back and forth—racist tropes historically used to dehumanize Black Americans in the south. Another man, in a blue and yellow shirt, can be seen and heard making similar monkey-like noises.
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The racist mocking of the woman was praised by conservatives online, including Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), who posted the clip with the caption, “Ole Miss taking care of business.”
Other clips preceding the outright racist outburst by a pair of Ole Miss students showed the same group of counter-protesters chanting, “Lizzo, Lizzo,” and, “Fuck you, bitch,” at the woman.
The woman at the center of the encounter has not been identified. Clips showed her lightly antagonizing the counter-protesters, flicking them off and walking toward them while filming.
The men’s actions were condemned by progressives, including many who called out Collins for glorifying the disgusting gestures.
“This is a video showing anti-Blackness,” wrote the progressive lobbyist Nina Turner, responding to Collins on X. “This is a sitting Congressman applauding it.”
While initial counter-protesters on college campuses appeared to be staunchly pro-Israel last month, donning Israeli flags and calling for the return of hostages, pro-Palestine protests in the south have now been contested by conservative students who’ve sang The Star-Spangled Banner in unison and chanted, “We want Trump.”
There was a similar clash between protesters and counter-protesters on the campus of the University of North Carolina earlier this week. That’s when a group of fraternity members combined to take down a Palestine flag that’d been raised on campus and replaced it with the U.S. flag. A GoFundMe campaign to help the brothers host a massive party has since netted more than $500,000.
In a tongue-in-cheek fundraising mission, a GoFundMe author offered this take on what’s happening across the country.
“Commie losers across the country have invaded college campuses to make dumb demands of weak University Administrators,” the fundraiser begins. “But amidst the chaos, the screaming, the anti-semitism, the hatred of faith and flag, stood a platoon of American heroes. Armored in Vineyard Vines and Patagonia, fueled by Zyn and White Claws, these triumphant Brohemians protected Old Glory from the unwashed Marxist horde— laughing at their shrieks and wails and shielding the Stars & Stripes from Soviet missiles.”
