OXFORD, Mississippi — Alaina Kunes, an 18-year-old freshman at the University of Mississippi, has voluntarily withdrawn from the university days after a viral doorbell video showed her making monkey gestures and noises outside an off-campus apartment shared by three Black freshmen. The university confirmed the withdrawal on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, four days after the 13-second clip was filmed in Oxford. The clip spread across TikTok, drawing more than 12 million views.

Kunes, from Elkhorn, Wisconsin, apologised the same day, saying she never intended the gestures toward a person of colour. The three students who live behind that door say the apology does not undo what they experienced — and they plan to stay at Ole Miss.

Key Points

• Alaina Kunes, 18, a freshman from Elkhorn, Wisconsin, voluntarily withdrew from Ole Miss on Tuesday, November 10, 2026.
• The 13-second Ring video, filmed just after 8:30 p.m. on Friday, November 6, shows Kunes and another woman beating their chests and howling like monkeys outside an apartment.
• Resident Jakiyra Metcalf posted the clip to TikTok on November 7; it has drawn more than 12 million views.
• Kunes apologised on November 10, saying she never intended the gestures toward a person of colour.
• The three residents — Metcalf, Kaiyden Caldwell and Victoria Johnson — spoke to CBS on November 11, saying they intend to stay at Ole Miss.

What Happened

The video is short and unmistakable. Recorded by a Ring doorbell camera just after 8:30 p.m. on Friday, November 6, 2026, the 13-second clip shows two young women walking past the front door of an off-campus apartment in Oxford, Mississippi. As they pass, both beat their chests and howl like monkeys, while a third woman walks by silently behind them. The apartment is shared by three Black freshmen: Jakiyra Metcalf, Kaiyden Caldwell and Victoria Johnson.

Metcalf was inside at the time and posted the footage to TikTok on Saturday, November 7. It passed 11.5 million views by Sunday, according to The Daily Mississippian, and reached nearly 13 million by midweek. Online users quickly began naming people they believed were in the video. Ole Miss confirmed one student had been wrongly identified and said no sorority members were involved. As of Monday, November 9, no discipline had been announced.

Background and Context

On Sunday, November 8, Shawnboda Mead, the vice chancellor for student affairs, sent a campus letter condemning what she called “racist gestures” and describing the conduct as racist, deeply troubling, hurtful and unacceptable. Two offices are investigating: the Office of Conflict Resolution and Student Conduct and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Regulatory Compliance.

Ole Miss has a long and painful history with race. The university was the site of the 1962 riots that followed the enrolment of James Meredith, its first Black student. That history is part of why a 13-second video from an Oxford apartment drew national attention so fast. A doorbell camera, a TikTok post and a weekend were all it took to end a student’s enrolment in four days.

Alaina Kunes Withdraws: What the Freshman Said

Kunes apologised on Tuesday, November 10, the same day her withdrawal was confirmed. “I would have never intentionally made those noises or gestures toward a person of color,” she said, adding that she had never met the residents and did not know their race. She also said she had done the same acts at four other doors that night. She did not explain why she chose those gestures.

The other two women in the video remain unidentified. One was seen making the same gestures as Kunes; the third walked past without joining in. The university has not said whether either of them is a student. A voluntary withdrawal is not the same as an expulsion: Kunes chose to leave rather than face a disciplinary process that could have ended the same way. Under FERPA, the university says it will not disclose names or disciplinary action in student cases.

Reactions and Quotes

The three residents spoke publicly for the first time on Wednesday, November 11, in an interview with CBS. They said one woman kept making gestures even as another apologised, and they made clear they have no plans to leave the university. Their message was simple: the incident was aimed at them, in their own home, and they intend to stay.

Vice Chancellor Mead called the conduct racist, deeply troubling, hurtful and unacceptable. The Black Student Union has pressed for a punishment matching the seriousness of race-based harassment. Online, reaction has been divided. The residents have asked, above all, to be heard — and to live and study without being targeted at their own front door.

Why It Matters

Monkey gestures and noises aimed at Black people are not a random insult. They draw on a racist trope with a long history in the United States, used for generations to dehumanise Black Americans. That is why the university, in its first public statement, did not hedge: it called the conduct racist.

The case also matters because of where it happened. A student’s home is supposed to be safe. Instead, the camera captured the moment that safety was violated, and the footage became the evidence that forced a response. Without it, the incident might never have been known beyond the three women inside.

What Happens Next

The university’s investigation remains open. The two offices looking into the incident will decide whether further action is needed against anyone else involved. No timeline has been given. The three residents are staying. For Kunes, the withdrawal closes a brief time at Ole Miss: she arrived as a freshman from Elkhorn, Wisconsin, this autumn, and four days after the video was filmed, she was gone.

Read our earlier report: Ole Miss Doorbell Video: University Investigates Racist Gestures at Black Students’ Home. For more US news, see US Homelessness Falls to 698,425 in Largest Drop in Over a Decade, HUD Says.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Alaina Kunes?
Alaina Kunes, 18, is a freshman at the University of Mississippi from Elkhorn, Wisconsin. She withdrew on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, after a viral video showed her making monkey gestures outside an apartment shared by three Black students.

What did the video show?
The 13-second Ring video, filmed just after 8:30 p.m. on Friday, November 6, 2026, shows Kunes and another woman beating their chests and howling like monkeys outside an apartment in Oxford. A third woman walks by silently.

Why did Kunes withdraw?
Kunes withdrew voluntarily from Ole Miss on November 10, the day she apologised, saying she never intended the gestures toward a person of colour and had never met the residents. The university has not said whether a disciplinary case was pending.

What has the university said?
Vice Chancellor Shawnboda Mead condemned the “racist gestures” on November 8, calling the conduct racist, deeply troubling, hurtful and unacceptable. Two offices are investigating. The university will not disclose names or discipline, citing FERPA.

Have the other two women been identified?
No. The other two women remain unidentified, and the university has not said whether either of them is a student. The investigation continues.