Obama praises college for swift punishment after racist chant

by Mark Hensch - 03/21/15 7:06 PM ET

President Obama praised the University of Oklahoma’s swift punishment of students recently videotaped uttering racist slogans in a new interview released Saturday.

Obama said that school President David Boren was fair and just in disciplining multiple students recorded singing an insensitive song March 7 that included references to lynching.

Boren expelled two students over the incident, and his school’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon (SAE) fraternity chapter was also suspended.

{mosads}“Frankly, 30 or 40 years ago, there might have been a different reaction and more tolerance for that kind of racist chant,” Obama told The Huffington Post’s Sam Stein on Friday.

“What was heartening was the quick response from President Boren, somebody who I know well and I know who has great integrity,” he added.

The president additionally argued that it was unfortunately still possible racism could impact other campuses besides Oklahoma’s.

“I don’t think this is the first time that somebody at a fraternity has done something stupid, racist, sexist,” Obama said. “In the age of the Internet, it’s going to attract attention. It won’t be the last.”

Uproar to the recording was fierce, with Oklahoma’s football team even skipping practice for a protest vigil. Obama on Friday praised the school’s students as exercising restraint overall despite the incendiary event.

“You know, the way we measure progress here is not, ‘Is there ever going to be another incident of racism in the country?’ ” he asked. “It’s, ‘How does the majority of our country respond?’ ”

“And on that front, there’s no doubt that the overwhelming number of students at the University of Oklahoma, and around the country, think that kind of behavior is deplorable and don’t accept it,” Obama concluded.

Oklahoma officials gave the school’s SAE members two days to vacate their fraternity house after their chapter’s suspension March 8.

The residence was locked by the university and lost its Greek letters March 10.