Black Students At UNC Say They Feared For Their Lives After Man Ambushed ‘Love Island USA’ Watch Party And Hurled Slurs

A University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill watch party turned frightening Monday night after a white man allegedly entered the event, hurled racial slurs at Black students and appeared to brandish an item that resembled a weapon.

What happened inside the watch party?

The Love Island Season 8 reunion watch party was hosted by several Black student organizations in Greenlaw Hall, including the Black Student Movement, African Student Association, Historically Black at UNC, Sis2Sis, the Black Pre-Law Student Association and the UNC chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers, according to WRAL and The Daily Tar Heel .

BSM President Makhi Nash said between 80 and 100 people attended the event, which was predominantly made up of Black first-year students. Meanwhile, an ASA board member said students initially believed the man was a professor who had stayed in the building late before the situation escalated.

First-year student Zion Jones said the man began yelling racial slurs before reaching toward his waist, prompting students to fear he had a weapon.

"He started yelling racial slurs," Jones told WRAL. "We went to the floor because he started reaching for his waist, so we thought he was pulling out a gun or something."

The suspect reportedly reached in his bag for an object resembling a weapon

Students later realized the object appeared to be an aerosol can and lighter. Samuel Scarborough, senior adviser for BSM, said that the device appeared to be something that could have been used to start a fire.

"Things got thrown around and that's when, after that initial commotion, he decided to reach into his bag and grab the item that resembled a gun," Scarborough said. "Which in the aftermath, appeared to be some type of makeshift flammable device, maybe where he was trying to spray some solution around the room and light it on fire."

Students eventually fled the building after hearing a loud bang. First-year student Quincy Robinson stated that the man remained outside after students escaped.

"Most of us ended up running out of Greenlaw, and then after that the man was just out there," Robinson said, according to WRAL.

Scarborough said students feared they would not survive the incident.

"I think it's safe to say that most, if not all, the students in the room felt like our lives were threatened. We did not feel like we were going to make it out of that room alive," he said, according to The Daily Tar Heel.

Students question campus security response

UNC Police detained the man 17 minutes after receiving the first 911 call. He was hospitalized after exhibiting signs of mental distress. Police said he will be charged with disorderly conduct, vandalism, damage to property and aggravated assault once he is medically cleared. The Orange County District Attorney will determine whether hate crime charges are appropriate, per WRAL.

Students are also questioning how the man entered the building. Robinson and Jones told WRAL that Greenlaw Hall was locked when they arrived.

"How did he get in? Who let him in? That's our main concern," Robinson said.

UNC said it did not issue an Alert Carolina notification because "there was no ongoing threat to campus safety." Black student organizations said they are working with university officials to address security concerns and prevent similar incidents at future events.

"At the heart of the Black Student Movement and the heart of being at Carolina, we're going to stand together and continue to foster spaces where Black students can be in community and not feel scared," Nash said, per The Daily Tar Heel. "He came in and he did what he did, but he will not win."

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