Thread by @ashtonpittman

Before Meek's post, wealthy alum Blake Tartt took the photos and sent them to Norton, calling the women "African hookers" & The Square "the Congo."

Norton replied: “Blake, I've been really disappointed for a long time with the way this culture is going." (3)

I reviewed dozens of emails between Blake Tartt & Norton from 2018-2020. Tartt repeatedly made disparaging remarks about Black women.

Ed Meek's name came off the journalism building in late 2018.

And then Blake Tartt helped select a new chancellor. (4) mississippifreepress.org/4876/the-fabri…

Honestly, tweets alone can't convey the gravity of this story. So give it a read, and come back tomorrow for Parts II and III. mississippifreepress.org/4876/the-fabri…

Here's the thing—and you'll see more of this in parts II and III: This isn't about one or even two men's emails.

It's about systemic issues at a university where current students' desire for change often gets drowned out by wealthy alumni donors: mississippifreepress.org/4876/the-fabri…

In fall 2018, University of Mississippi officials scrambled as wealthy white alumni raged over efforts to address racism. Some alums pulled funds or vowed to ensure the chancellor's demise. His firing came within weeks.

The UM Emails: Part II is here: mississippifreepress.org/4950/the-ole-

UM fraternity members once dropped two naked white pledges off on a historically black campus with the words, "I Hate N*ggers" and "KKK" painted on their bodies.

“They had no idea there were racial connotations in it,” then-UM spokesman Ed Meek said. mississippifreepress.org/4950/the-ole-m…

Many of University of Mississippi's "traditions" only go back to the 50s, when UM reacted to the rising tide of civil rights with a Confederate-themed halftime show & the "world's largest Confederate flag."

Some wealthy alums want to turn back the clock: mississippifreepress.org/4950/the-ole-m…

UM donor Blake Tartt, while talking about Black students: "The Ole Muss Culture has been ruined. Just like my Houston it'll never be the same."

Dean Will Norton: “(T)he marketplace will bring about change...These folk will have to hit rock bottom..." mississippifreepress.org/4950/the-ole-m…