Ole Miss Racist Video Fallout Grows As Fundraiser Opposes Apology

Alaina Kunes has left Ole Miss after the racist doorbell video outside Black students’ apartment sparked outrage, while a fundraiser for another woman identified in the incident is pushing in the opposite direction: no apology.

A spokesperson for Kunes’ lawyer told the New York Post that the 18-year-old voluntarily withdrew and was not suspended or asked to leave. The spokesperson did not disclose when she withdrew or why.

Victoria Johnson’s mother told CBS Mornings: “I hate to hear that, but I feel like everybody needs to be accountable.”

The development follows the doorbell footage previously reported by AllHipHop, which showed monkey noises and gestures outside an apartment shared by Black Ole Miss students. The November 6 incident prompted a university investigation.

Kunes apologized in a November 10 statement released by her law firm, Gardiner Koch Weisberg & Wrona.

“To the women I offended and to the Ole Miss community, I sincerely apologize,” she said.

She maintained she had not known the residents’ race before the incident, acknowledged that her conduct caused harm and pledged to cooperate with the university’s investigation.

Meanwhile, a GiveSendGo campaign titled “Stand with Lauren” identifies Lauren Mayfield as another woman in the footage. Its creator, Tom Hennessey, says donations are intended to help with lost income and opportunities. His campaign description defends her conduct and discourages an apology.

“I reserve the right to cancel this fundraiser if Lauren disavows our support and bends the knee,” Hennessey wrote.

That condition is the organizer’s statement, not a statement from Mayfield. The campaign page does not establish that she has accepted its money or endorsed his message.

The university’s response has centered on the students targeted and its disciplinary process. In a November 8 campus message, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Shawnboda Mead condemned the conduct and said staff had contacted the affected students to offer support.

Mead said the Office of Conflict Resolution and Student Conduct and Equal Opportunity and Regulatory Compliance were investigating. Federal privacy protections limit what the university can disclose about individual disciplinary matters.

The university also warned that one student had been incorrectly identified online and said no members of its sorority community were involved.