We reported in May a racially charged incident where AKA members were taunted with bananas at American University in Washington, D.C.
The bananas were hung from nooses as if to represent African Americans hanging from trees.
The incident occurred shortly after the school's first African American student body president was appointed.
This week, a student at Philadelphia's Temple University found a banana on the handle of her dorm room door, NBC 10 Philadelphia reports.
The affected students say that it is neither a practical joke or coincidence.
I go to Temple University, my roommates come back from grocery shopping and see this (we're the only black girls on our floor) pic.twitter.com/sAerWc7oJd
— halcapone✨ (@sincerelyhalle) September 12, 2017
Halle Ray is one of the women living in the room the banana was placed in front of.
“I was mad, but I had to calm down,” Ray told The Temple News. “We just had to think things through, like what are we gonna do next?”
Madison Brown, a black woman who shares the room with Ray, said that although the women sharing the room are the only black women on the dorm's floor, she never felt any “racial tension” from her neighbors.
Brown believes that the banana was left by someone who is more ignorant than evil. “Like I said before, people have been genuinely nice on the floor. It could have been out of pure ignorance."
A few days later, a second banana was left on the door of another dorm room.
The students living in that room have not spoken out publicly. However, following that incident, Temple's student government issued a statement.
Statement regarding the incident that occurred in Morgan Hall on Monday, September 11th. pic.twitter.com/O4xCP5nmzm
— Temple Student Gov't (@TempleTSG) September 14, 2017
“As a student body we must condemn such hateful behavior and in the face of adversity, rise above and continue to educate and support each other," the statement read in part, "We encourage all students to speak up and out against racism, white supremacy and bigotry.”
For her part, Ray hopes to use this incident to encourage other minorities attending her school. “I just want people, minorities, to know, don’t be scared when stuff like this happens,” she said. “People who do stuff like this, you have to chill, like what are you doing? You’re jeopardizing your identity on campus. You’re going to get in trouble.”
Roughly 12 percent of Temple is black. Campus police and school officials are investigating both incidents.
