‘We don’t pay to be belittled we pay to be taught’: Professor goes on rant against African student for being late in front of entire class
A university student's video of a professor’s disturbing, and seemingly racist, interaction with his students sparked debate and controversy online.
In a viral TikTok that has amassed over 88,000 likes as of this afternoon, user Allie (@wafflehouseinc) caught the moment a college professor berated a Black student in front of all of his classmates.
@wafflehouseinc am i wrong for thinking this is absurd behavior??
♬ original sound - Allie
"My [professor] went in a rant n class today and said this to a student," text overlaid on the video read.
In the one minute and forty-eight second long clip, the teacher can be heard giving harsh feedback to multiple students in the class. He calls out one student for being late, another for grooming during class before targeting an international student.
"Joe, what about you?" the professor asked the student who appears to have difficulty understanding what the professor is saying. "What if I had criticism for you, what should I say?"
"I'm trying to understand, it's not quite easy," the student responded.
That's when the professor's line of questioning becomes increasing antagonistic and seemingly racist. He accused the student of being "dishonest" and "distracted" and then questioned his parents' nationalities.
"Where are your parents from, if you don't mind me asking?" the teacher asked the pupil he called Joe.
When the student answers that he is from Cameroon, the professors questions grow increasingly strange.
"Are there lots of poor people in the country?" the teacher asked. "Are you from the French or Spanish part?"
The student clarifies that he is from the French-speaking side of the country. In Cameroon, the official languages are English and French, which is spoken by about 70% and 30% of the population, respectively. Nonetheless, there are a number of national languages spoken by the over 240 tribes of the nation. Spanish and German are also spoken by a few people who live in cities. Somehow, the professor believed there was much to glean based on the language his international pupil spoke.
However, the lesson he intended to impart upon his class did not become apparent until the end of the video. When the student responded that there are poor people everywhere, that's when the teacher made it clear what he was getting it.
"Would you give them $500," the teacher asked.
"Why?" Joe asked.
"Why? because you're throwing $500 away from the class if you don't pass it," he retorted.
The Daily Dot reached out to Allie via TikTok comment for an update.
“Am I wrong for believing this is absurd behavior?” Allie questioned in the video’s caption.
Based on the comments section, it appeared not.
"I would send this video to student affairs to see how appropriate this is!" one commenter wrote.
"I thought I got to the part you were talking about and then it kept getting worse," another person said.
Many responded that the TikToker should report the professor to higher-ups.
"Please tell on this professor [because] absolutely yikes," a commenter responded. “I feel bad for all of you but definitely that student. That’s embarrassing and upsetting."
In a follow-up video, the TikToker explained that she did just that. Apparently, she forwarded the video to the "Chair, Dean, Office of Student Affairs and 'Title' 9."
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