UT-Knoxville Student On Video Saying Vile, Violent Racist Slurs Claims “Catfish”

In a video circulating online, UT-Knoxville Student Garrison Pike is seen saying vile, violent, ugly racial slurs, using the “N” Word repeatedly and threatening to “rape” black people who he says are “nothing”.

His name is Garrison Pike and he’s a student at the university of Tennessee studying engineering. We will be emailing and calling the President of this university as well as the engineering department. Does anyone know his current place of employment?! pic.twitter.com/4ys0QJeb2g

— The Attention You Deserve (@smilewegotcha) June 7, 2020

UT Knoxville acknowledged the video yesterday in a tweet and said they are looking into it.

The university is aware of a violent and disturbing racist video by a student. We have notified police and student conduct for immediate review. We condemn hate, racism, and violence and will support our black students and make campus safe for them.

— UT Knoxville (@UTKnoxville) June 7, 2020

Many UT students are outraged and say they’re afraid to be at school with Pike around, calling for his expulsion.

His name is Garrison Pike and he made a video saying he is intending to rape black women on campus.

This is insane. And criminal.

I also reviewed your student conduct handbook. There is no support or a safe environment without removing him from campus. https://t.co/Qi5E8QFRQ8 pic.twitter.com/i7h9YdneHx

— Brooke (@BrookeWeisbrod) June 8, 2020

@UTKnoxville as a female student of UTK as well as a student that cares about the black community on campus, and I fear for my friends. Y’all better do something about this.

– His name Garrison Pike
– Current undergrad in Civil Engineering https://t.co/Z4MjcYWjls

— Courtney Deatherage (@Courtney_Death) June 7, 2020

Friends of Pike’s have contacted the Holler to give what they say is “context”, sharing text messages in which Pike attempts to explain that he was drunk and essentially catfished by an African-American person he was exchanging messages with on a dating site who “said they were into slavemaster shit”.

PIKE’S TEXT TO A FRIEND READS:

“So when I broke up with my ex I was really depressed and I was talking to this person on a dating site who said they were African-American and we talked for about a week and a half and they said they were into slave master shit and sent me a text of what to say to them and I waited a few days before I said it because I was drunk and just wanted to make someone happy and it turns out they were a catfish but they told me they wouldn’t share the video with anyone and now it’s blown up and I’m getting death threats and was suspended Ik what I said was shitty but it’s not me. Now i have the cops driving by my house every hour and my address in on twitter.

To be clear, the video is EXTREMELY nasty and disturbing, and no amount of context excuses ever saying ANYTHING like this, let alone recording yourself doing it and sending it to a stranger.

We will let y’all decide what you believe here.

Some on twitter have posted what they claim to be an exchange with an ex of Pike’s who says HE is the one with the slavemaster fetish, but we have been unable to confirm.

We’re told Pike is receiving death threats, has been suspended, and it seems likely his enrollment at UT is in jeopardy.

We’ve communicated with students who went to Ravenwood High School in Williamson County with Pike, who was class of 2018. They seemed surprised but not altogether shocked.

For those of you who think racism doesn’t exist anymore. This is Garrison Pike. He went to my school – we were actually friends. Im mortified at this sadistic inhumaine behavior. This is why you protest. This is why you you march. #BlackLivesMattters it ends with our generation. https://t.co/9QIs6JWOij

— cami norman (@Cammii_norman) June 7, 2020

One said this kind of racism was not the norm in their experience, but another told us that on cultural heritage day the student body president brought a confederate flag to school, which many minority students were upset by, and felt black students in Williamson County are appreciated only for their athletic ability.

Not long, ago Williamson County parents were up in arms about the school system trying to introduce some racial sensitivity and “white privilege” training for teachers into the program.

It’s also worth pointing out that Williamson County still has a confederate flag on their county seal, which many residents would like to see changed (including Holler founder Justin Kanew)

It stands to reason that as long as things like that are allowed to exist, we should expect more incidents of this nature.

We will update the story surrounding Pike as it develops.