Former Kan. State University Student Apologizes for Blackface Photo

Paige Shoemaker went viral last week for all of the wrong reasons. The now-former Kansas State University student's Snapchat photo, which showed her and a friend in blackface, caught the ire of her fellow KSU students on social media. Shoemaker's photo was captioned with:ย ย โ€œFeels good to finally be a [nโ€”ga].โ€ Suggested Reading Trigger Warning…All of…

Paige Shoemaker went viral last week for all of the wrong reasons. The now-former Kansas State University student's Snapchat photo, which showed her and a friend in blackface, caught the ire of her fellow KSU students on social media. Shoemaker's photo was captioned with:ย ย โ€œFeels good to finally be a [nโ€”ga].โ€

Video will return here when scrolled back into view
AI Is the New Civil Rights Frontier: Loren Douglass on Wealth, Politics & Power
AI Is the New Civil Rights Frontier: Loren Douglass on Wealth, Politics & Power

After Shoemaker's photo went viral, KSU issued a statement saying that the school doesn't condone Shoemaker's actions and it will โ€œreinforce its value for diversity and inclusion while also communicating our principles of community for all students, faculty and staff.โ€

Shoemaker was subsequently expelled from the university, after which she issued an apology.

โ€œI am truly sorry that I have offended so many people,โ€ she wrote. โ€œI am the furthest thing from racist, I am an incredibly accepting person and would never do something to intentionally poke at a race.

โ€œI understand that me having black friends doesnโ€™t make it acceptable for me to use the word that I did. I have definitely learned to make sure I am more aware of my audience and to never use a derogatory term,โ€ she said.

Shoemaker initially stated that she didn't intend for the face mask she used to be perceived as "blackface." But, of course, the caption used tells a whole different story.

Straight From The Root

Sign up for our free daily newsletter.