Davidson College: Students accused of racist social media posts no longer attend school

DAVIDSON, N.C. — Two Davidson College students accused of making racist social media posts no longer attend the school.

Earlier this month, posts promoting anti-Semitism triggered concerns at Davidson College, especially happening only days after a deadly shooting at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.

[IMAGES: Thousands gather for vigil to honor Pittsburgh synagogue victims]

The student's tweets expressed support for Hitler and other racist views.

Because of privacy laws, school officials cannot say whether the students dropped out or were expelled from the school.

“This is not good,” senior Wilson Pava said. “This is not something we want to see on campus.”

Pava said it only took a couple hours before he heard about the hate speech circulating on social media.

“I’ve been at Davidson for four years and all I’ve seen is love,” Pava said.

That changed when a student said tweets surfaced from what appears to be another student's Twitter account earlier this month that expressed support of Hitler and other racist and anti-Semitic views.

Many campus groups stepped in to be a comfort and a resource.

“I think the community, as a whole, has always been committed to being there for one another so that’s not really a plan, that’s just who we are,” campus Rabbi Michael Shields said.

Administrators at Davidson College assured students they were safe and there was no threat on campus.

[Cam Newton pays tribute to Pittsburgh synagogue massacre victims]

“Words really matter and that’s best exemplified by the words of support and lov,” Shields said.

Campus police are involved as this investigation continues.

Davidson College statement to Channel 9:

“Our community is understandably upset over social media postings that gained attention last evening. I want you to know that our campus is safe. There are no threats to campus, and our staff (is) addressing this situation. We have no greater priority than the safety and well-being of our community.

 “Clearly racism, bigotry and anti-Semitism are antithetical to everything Davidson stands for and to the community we strive to be. Since we became aware of this, we (campus police, all of our student life and RLO staff, our communications staff, and many others) have been working on it. We will update you as we can. For now, please know that we are a strong community and stand firm behind our values of dignity toward all.”

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