For weeks, rumors have circulated about nooses being found at Texas A&M University-Commerce. But campus leaders have said there is nothing to be alarmed about.
According to Jason Bone, University Police crime information officer, there were two incidents that caused the undue concern.
“The one at Berry we really think that wasn’t a noose that was hanging from the ceiling. It did have a little loop on the end – it wasn’t a noose; it was a loop,” he said.
Bone explained the hall had been having some electrical wiring done and the loop appeared to have been used to pull wires.
“It’s pretty common practice … when you’re running cabling. It’s easier to pull through, plus you can hang stuff from it,” he said. “I think an RA or night security person found it – who knows how many people pawed and handled the thing – before they turned it over to Valerie, the hall director, who in turn called us.”
Bone said another “noose” was in a picture sent to University Police. In the picture, three or four students are seen with the rope on the stage at the Performing Arts Center.
“Sgt. Kyle Lowe informed me that this ‘noose’ was found on the stage during preparation for a western play – the play going on now I think,” he said, referring to the University Playhouse production of “In the West.”
Bone said the hangman’s noose was a stage prop and was not intended to be offensive or threatening. The picture was sent to the UPD “third or fourth party” and was not sent directly to the campus police.
UPD learned of the picture at the PAC on Sept. 21 and the incident at Berry Hall on Sept. 25.
Rumors began to spread at the University within a few days of each occurrence.
Dorian Babino, president of the Texas A&M University-Commerce NAACP chapter, said members of her organization heard about a “noose” in one of the dorm halls.
“We didn’t have any proof that it was there,” she said. “Some of the NAACP members told me about it … somebody told one of the members that it was in Hubbell, but when we went there to check it out, it wasn’t there.”
She said members were concerned about possible negative reactions to the recent rally for the Jena 6. Babino also said that she had learned about the “noose” used in the play, but knew that it was only a prop. She said the campus NAACP did not want to overreact to the situation.
Bone said he was most concerned about no students coming forward to tell the police about either situation.
“My general thinking is that if it concerns you, it should concern us,” he said.