Really, this again?

Here they go again: UT College Republicans president's tweets about PresidentObama raise another firestorm

Cassandra Wright is the second UT College Republicans president to postoffensive tweets about Obama in the past two months.
Graphic via Gawker.com
After the November shooting outside the White House, former UT CollegeRepublicans president Lauren Pierce tweeted that shooting Obama "may betempting."
Photo via VileTweets.com

Seriously, UT College Republicans... no more racist tweets.

In the wake of the organization's all-too-recent Twitter scandal, the University of Texas College Republicans are once again in the national press after president Cassandra Wright posted the offensive tweet that read, "My president is black, he snorts a lot of crack. Holla. #2012 #Obama."

Only a month ago, the group's last president, Lauren Pierce, made headlines following reports of gunshot fire near the White House on Nov. 11 with this gem: "Y'all as tempting as it may be, don't shoot Obama. We need him to go down in history as the WORST president we've EVER had! #2012."

Wright, who was then vice president of the organization, ran to Pierce's defense — only to cause more scandal.

"Insofar as she's a representative [of the College Republicans], maybe it shouldn't be said, but she's made a positive statement in a way," Wright told ABC News. "I don't really see anything wrong with it. It's just a personal comment, not representative of any group. Just freedom of speech, you know?"

At the start of December, the organization elected Wright to serve as president and all remained quiet for the College Republicans.

On Monday, however, Ben Sherman at the political blog Burnt Orange Report uncovered the "crack" tweet. Wright temporarily blocked her Twitter profile, but soon reopened the page and began retweeting the angry comments she was getting.

She tweeted a quote from Obama's Dreams of My Father on Tuesday: "'Pot had helped, and booze; maybe a little blow when you could afford it. Not smack, though...' -Barack Obama."

On Wednesday, Wright tweeted her voiced continued frustration: "Two days later and people still don't care that Obama really did use "blow" #imsurprised."

Reporter Ben Sherman revealed more tidbits from Wright on Wednesday, as the College Republican president defended herself on Facebook:

President Obama has openly admitted to cocaine use. Also, its (sic) a play on the song "My President is Black." Perhaps you should contact Young Jeezy as well for the negative statements found in his song."

Sherman also shared Wright's racial stereotypes on Facebook from earlier in the week: "What kind of messed up world is it when I'm studying hard in the library and the Asian guy next to me is watching America's Next Top Model episodes on his laptop??"

Meanwhile, Pierce herself has chimed in on the debate: "Woah woah woahhhh @CassieNWright is just as awful as me?!?! No one steals my thunder or my liberal trolls! #backoffgirlfriend"

University of Texas-Austin student dean Dr. Soncia Reagins-Lilly released a statement calling the Wright's Obama tweet "offensive and embarrassing."

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Thanks, Queen Bey

Pop icon Beyoncé donates $100,000 to University of Houston Law School

Photo by Erza Shaw Getty Images

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Pop megastar Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has donated $100,000 to the University of Houston Law Center Criminal Justice Clinic through her BeyGOOD Foundation. The gift will allow the clinic to hire fill-time faculty to head it, benefiting the students who study there.

“I am delighted that the BeyGOOD Foundation has made this very generous gift to the UH Law Center,” said Leonard Baynes, dean of the UH Law Center. “Not only will this funding help establish a full-time criminal justice clinic that provides pro bono legal services in our community, but it will also supercharge our already excellent criminal law and justice programming.”

The clinic is one of nine at UHLC. It helps students learn to navigate the criminal justice system, especially on behalf of clients that are underserved by skilled attorneys. People of color are affected disproportionately by a lack of good, ethical representation.

Beyoncé, the most decorated artist in Grammy history and easily the biggest musical star native to Houston, has a long history of advocating for criminal justice reform. She was a staunch supporter of the police reform following the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, asking law enforcement to “stop killing us” in a web post. In 2020, she penned an open letter to the Kentucky attorney general asking for justice in the death of Breonna Taylor.

Through her BeyGOOD Foundation, established in 2013, Beyoncé has focused mostly on expanding the prospects of Black-owned business and offering education opportunities to students. Forwarding the cause of legal representation in Texas while also helping out marginalized communities compliments her other philanthropic work.

“At UH Law, we envision a legal profession where ‘everyone has the opportunity to prosper,’ as BeyGOOD envisions, and we will achieve this vision by providing access to strong and effective legal representation in criminal proceedings,” Baynes said. “And together, through this gift, the BeyGOOD Foundation and UHLC will shepherd the next generation of criminal justice attorneys in the city of Houston, the state of Texas and the nation.”

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Here they go again: UT College Republicans president's tweets about PresidentObama raise another firestorm

Thanks, Queen Bey

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