UW-Madison removes controversial video on university internet service

MADISON (WKOW) -- UW-Madison says it has removed a controversial video posted on a university internet service that depicts police officers in pig masks and references the hanging of a black man and the beheading of those officers.

The video provided to WKOW by Sen. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) is an advertisement for a student-produced clothing line called Insert Apparel.

It was directed and produced by Eneale Pickett, the UW student behind Insert Apparel.

UW-Madison says the video was inappropriately uploaded to a shared folder service, which all students can access. The university says it disabled the link and is removing the video.

Nass is calling for an investigation from local police and the Department of Justice, saying in a statement: "This vile and racist anti-police video is clearly a direct threat to the brave men and women that serve behind the badge.  UW-Madison must immediately hold these students accountable and that should include an investigation by the local police and the Wisconsin Department of Justice."

UW spokesman John Lucas said in a statement: "UW-Madison strives to provide a welcoming and inclusive campus environment, while allowing everyone to share ideas and political views in exercise of their free speech rights. However, the university strongly condemns the glorification of violence such as that contained in the promotion of a student-produced clothing line. We support our police partners, reject violence and violent imagery as tactics to achieve political objectives.  All citizens have the rights to express political beliefs that others may find objectionable, or even counter to the values of the institution. The individual in this situation is engaging in a private business activity, unrelated to his status as a UW-Madison student. The clothing in question is not produced, nor endorsed by UW-Madison."

UW-Madison Police Department Spokesman Marc Lovicott says the agency does not agree with the message, but they appreciate and respect people's opinions and their right to free speech.

We reached out to Eneale Pickett, but he said he didn't want to talk about it.

27 News first introduced you to Pickett and his clothing line back in October of last year. He told us at the time he started Insert Apparel to shift conversations about race. Pickett said he used the harsh language on his shirts because they contain the hard reality of race relations in the U.S.

For more on this story: http://www.wkow.com/story/36416581/2017/09/20/uw-madison-removes-controversial-video-on-university-internet-service


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