Harley Barber claims she’s received threatening phone calls “came out of nowhere.” (Twitter)
The sorority sister who proclaimed she could say the n-word as much as she wanted has now been expelled from the University of Alabama. Harley Barber, 19, drew fierce criticism Tuesday when she posted two clips repeatedly dropping the n-word on an Instagram account. Today, she’s singing a different tune and apologizing for her rant.
“I feel horrible,” she told the New York Post Wednesday, Jan. 17. “I feel so, so bad and I am so sorry.”
The paper reported she had been packing her bags to move from Tuscaloosa, Ala. back to New Jersey. Barber’s expulsion followed her suspension from Alpha Phi, the sorority she bragged about being a part of in her offending videos.
“I did something really, really bad,” Barber told the publication. “I don’t know what to do and I feel horrible. I’m wrong and there’s just no excuse for what I did.”
What she did was proclaim that she loves acting “like I love Black people because I f—— hate n——” in one video. Then, she continued to repeat the n-word in another. Despite a person off camera telling her not to post the latter clip, it ended up on Instagram.
“I don’t care if it’s Martin Luther King Day. N—–, n—–, n—–,” she said. “I’m in the South now, b—- So everyone can f— off. I’m from New Jersey, so I can say ‘n——‘ as much as I want.”
In addition to the online backlash, Barber says she’s received threatening phone calls because of her tirade. She admitted, however, that she didn’t consider heeding her friend’s advice not to post the second clip.
“No, I’m an idiot,” she said. “There’s no excuse. I did something really bad.”
Since Barber’s response, the University of Alabama president Stuart R. Bell released a statement Wednesday expressing his “personal disgust and disappointment.”
“Like many of you, I find the videos highly offensive and deeply hurtful, not only to our students and our entire university community but to everyone who viewed them,” he said. “The actions of this student do not represent the larger student body or the values of our university, and she is no longer enrolled here.
“We hold our students to much higher standards, and we apologize to everyone who has seen the videos and been hurt by this hateful, ignorant and offensive behavior. This is not who we are; it is unacceptable and unwelcome here at UA. “
