A group of students who were banned by a university for sending misogynistic, racist and antisemitic messages have caused outraged by boasting “Lets do it all again.”
Eleven student were suspended by Warwick University in May last year after they made jokes about raping freshers and used racial slurs in Facebook messages.
Today (Thurs) it emerged that the four of those banned are to be allowed to return to their studies and rejoin the campus for the next academic year.
But it can also be revealed that some of the students have shown little remorse for their actions which they considered “no worse than any other lads or girls group chat”.
One of the undergraduates who previously stated “sometimes it’s fun to go wild and rape 100 girls” has now joked in a message “let’s do it all again.”
Another student who said “Love Hitler, hate n****s and Jews and Corbyn” in the original group chat, has now justified his comments and claimed they were “nothing”.
Writing in a new chat group called “Boys 2.0”, he said: “I just don’t believe for a second we are any worse than any other lads or girls group chat”.
He added: “Read some of my chats from home. This was literally nothing” as well as “Did it go too far tho – I disagree.”
A leaked report of a university investigation obtained by student news site ‘The Tab’ revealed some of those responsible had shown “little evidence of any real contrition”.
It found the second group was set up shortly after the first one was exposed and messages sent between them still contained “deeply misogynistic” content.
Some admitted to the university they only participated in posting offensive material as they felt it was the “only way to sustain friendships with the other students in the group”.
Some of the boys even argued in interviews with campus bosses they should not be being investigated because the things were said in a “private group” no one would see.
One of them said: “I don’t feel bad about it when people who shouldn’t have read about it have seen them, because it wasn’t for them to read.
“They shouldn’t have read the chat. Were they expecting compliments or something. If you open this chat when you’re not in it, you are asking to be offended.
“It’s letting people stick their noses in where it doesn’t belong.”
The investigation concluded the original messages had created “an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment”.
It was decided six boys would be brought before a major disciplinary committee, three would face a minor disciplinary process and two would be exonerated due to no evidence.
Two of the students who were originally banned from campus for ten years have had their punishments reduced to one year after appealing against the decision
The University of Warwick has been contacted for comment.
By Ed Chatterton