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Brent Ahlers, a security guard at St. Catherine University, shot himself in the arm last week. However, since he feared the university would fire him for bringing a gun to campus, he made up a add "story about a"? -sjshooter for the police to look for: a black man with a short afro.
More than 50 police officers swarmed the campus as part of a manhunt for the suspect, which included a four-hour lockdown of campus. Since admitting he fabricated the story, media across Minnesota -- and across the country, including The Washington Post -- have covered the story of the white security guard blaming a fictitious black man for a shooting.
Additionally, community leaders maybe: "Black leaders have..." -sjhave spoken out, saying that actual black men were put at risk by Ahler’s cover-up.
Community activist Robert McClain told local news site InfoForum that he has received three calls from black men who were stopped by police during the search for Ahler’s shooter.
“When they look for someone who they assume is an active shooter, they don't look in a nice way," McClain said. "They don't stop and ask questions in a nice way, so you victimize people who haven't done a thing."
The university has since terminated Ahlers, and Becky Roloff, the university president, said in a statement that the St. Catherine’s "strongly condemns racial discrimination, racial stereotyping, and racial profiling of any kind.”
“The statements attributed to the former employee concerning the race of an alleged suspect are deeply troubling and do not reflect our values."
