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Bananas have again become a source of racial tension at American University. In the fall, black students protested over incidents in which they said one had a banana thrown at her and another found a rotten banana left outside her dormitory room. On Monday, officials discovered three bananas hanging from noose-like strings, with the letters "AKA" written on them, an apparent reference to Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest historically black sorority in the country. An AKA member recently became the head of American's student government.
Neil Kerwin, president of the university, issued a statement Monday that said in part, "The crude and racially insensitive act of bigotry reported this morning is under investigation by AU Campus Police with assistance from the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department and other AU offices and senior officials. We strongly condemn what happened [and] will do all that we can to find those responsible."
