
UCLA Condemns Student’s Racist YouTube Video
Barbara | March 15, 2011
It’s one thing to have your college roommate mad at you. But for Alexandra Wallace, she’s got all of UCLA–and the rest of us–shaking our heads.
I like viral videos as much as the next person, but I prefer mine to feature giggling babies and talking dogs. But Wallace’s own contribution to YouTube–in which she rather calmly rants about “Asian people” on campus–is the kind of behavior that could warrant a “Jackass” spinoff of its own.
It used to be that when people got angry, they would write about their feelings in a diary, or maybe choose one close friend to bare their feelings. Wallace either couldn’t find a pen or a friend, so she uploaded her diatribe to YouTube. Could she have predicted that the video would go viral? No, because no one can predict that what sticks and what doesn’t with viewers, but what is important to remember is that you don’t post to YouTube in the hopes of remaining anonymous. Wallace–who happens to be a political science major–took the YouTube video down soon after the first round of backlash came around. But this kind of video is called “viral” for a reason–it has a way of getting around to everyone eventually. And boy, are we sick.
In a message to the UCLA community, Chancellor Gene Block condemns the video and states that Wallace is not representative of UCLA, a school that is proud of its campus diversity.
Good luck to Wallace in trying to live this one down, let alone run for office one day. And good luck to you if you still don’t understand the power and the reach of the Internet.
–Barbara Bellesi













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