The University of Kentucky is investigating after a former student posted a racist photo on Snapchat saying 'N-----s should die'

• The University of Kentucky has launched an investigation after a photo of a woman believed to be a former student posted a Snapchat giving a thumbs up next to the caption "N-----s should die."
• A university spokesman told INSIDER that the woman named on social media attended classes in Fall 2018 but is no longer enrolled.
• Shyla Harton, a UK sophomore studying social work and psychology, posted the photo on Twitter and said she wants the school to take action to make people of color feel more safe on campus.
• Visit INSIDER's homepage for more great stories.

The University of Kentucky is investigating after a woman who is believed to be a former student posted a racist photo on Snapchat.

The image shows a white woman giving a thumbs up next to the caption "N-----s should die."

University spokesman Jay Blanton said the woman named on social media as the person in the photo attended classes in Fall 2018 but is no longer enrolled.

"We are investigating the post now. As for the image depicted, it is disgusting and completely incompatible with the values of this institution," Blanton said in a statement. "We aspire to be a community of belonging for everyone on our campus — regardless of who they are, what they believe, what they look like or where they are from. We have made important progress toward that end but work remains."

Shyla Harton, a UK sophomore studying social work and psychology, posted the photo on Twitter after another friend flagged it up on social media.

Harton's thread alleges that this isn't the first time the woman had been tied to a racial slur, and another student told Harton that the woman in the photo showed "no remorse" when confronted about it.

The sophomore, who is black, said she wants to feel safe on campus and hopes the university takes action.

"I want other Black students to come [to UK] and experience the love I have for it," Harton told INSIDER via Twitter. "I fight for this school and rep it highly. So it sucks that we have things like this that happen and I hope UK gets a handle on it and fast."

Read more:Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity suspends University of Georgia chapter after racist video goes viral

She said she filed a Bias Incident report with the school and is waiting to hear back.

"I don't want this school to be looked at as a bad school. Never would I want that. But I want to be heard, and I want action," Harton said.

The Black Students Advisory Council at UK shared screenshots of the Twitter thread in an Instagram story on its page for "See Black UK," a page dedicated to telling the stories of black students.

The organization contacted university officials about the photos, and were told to file a complaint with the Bias Incident team. 

INSIDER has contacted the woman's family for comment on the photo.

Meanwhile, the members of the Black Students Advisory Council have been holding an #OccupyUK peaceful protest on campus this week in hopes of addressing issues among low-income and minority students and diversifying the school's student population and administration.

In an email seen by the student publication Kentucky Kernel, UK President Eli Capilouto agreed on Tuesday to meet with students and address their concerns.

• Read more:
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• Elizabeth Warren called herself 'American Indian' on her 1986 bar registration card, heightening scrutiny of her race claims
• Jordan Peele says he doesn't see himself ever casting a white male lead: 'I've seen that movie'
• A gun-carrying man was caught on video shouting racial epithets at a group of young demonstrators after his girlfriend yelled at them to get off the road

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