Brandeis student resigns leadership post after controversial Twitter comments

   A Brandeis student has resigned from a leadership position following controversial comments she made on Twitter after the death of two New York Police Department officers, according to a statement on the university’s website.

    Junior Khadijah Lynch offered her resignation as an undergraduate department representative for the African and Afro-American Studies Department (AAAS), which department chairman Chad Williams says he has accepted.

    ”The comments of Ms. Lynch, made through her own personal Twitter account, do not reflect the views of AAAS as a department,” Williams said in the statement. “AAAS, unequivocally, does not promote nor condone a disregard for the loss of human life. The deaths of officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu are a tragedy and should be treated with proper respect. We express our most sincere condolences to their family and loved ones.”

    Undergraduate department representatives (UDRs) perform a variety of functions, such as promoting department events, organizing social gatherings, advertising classes and informally advising interested students about the major and minor, according to the university.

    “Ms. Lynch served admirably in her capacity as a UDR and responsibly represented AAAS,” Williams said. “She never disrespected a fellow student nor publicly promoted ideas that ran counter to the beliefs of the department.”

    Lynch’s Twitter comments elicited a large response on social media. Her Twitter account had been taken down as of Sunday night.

    "While it may be easy and convenient at this emotionally charged moment to condemn Ms. Lynch, we must also strive to understand why she would make these comments," Williams said. "This means openly and honestly recognizing the very real pain and frustration that many young people of color struggle with in trying to navigate their place in a society that all too often delegitimizes their existence.

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