By Lorri Wickenhauser November 9, 2024 at 4:45am
A University of Oregon staff member has been placed on leave after he published a post-election rant telling conservatives to “jump off of a f***ing bridge.”
Leonard Serrato, assistant director of fraternity and sorority life at the school, located in Eugene, Oregon, initially made the post on Instagram, but it was shared on other social media platforms, including Twitter and YouTube.
WARNING: The following videos contain vulgar language that may offend some viewers.
“I don’t care if we’ve been friends our entire lives,” he said in the video. “You can literally go f*** yourself if you voted for Donald Trump.
“If you are so sad about your groceries being expensive, get a better f***ing paying job. Do better in life. Get a f***ing education. Do something, ’cause you’re f***ing stupid, and I hope you go jump off of a f***ing bridge.”
Student news site The Daily Emerald was first to report on the video, according to local news outlets.
“Serrato later posted an Instagram Reel where he was discussing the results of the presidential election,” reported Ysabella Sosa, a journalism and Spanish major and the campus news associate editor.
She reported that in that reel, Serrato “addressed his students, including of ‘color’ and ‘LGBTQIA’ and said to ‘take care of yourself and know that you have my support.’”
“Following the post, Serrato made his Instagram account private,” Sosa reported.
But the video had already spread to other social media outlets, where conservatives re-posted it and tagged university officials, asking for an official response.
Assistant Director for Fraternity and Sorority Life at @uoregon tells Trump supporters to kiII themselves
Any comment @uoregon? pic.twitter.com/hwK0qhH9b1
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) November 7, 2024
KOIN-TV quoted University of Oregon spokesman Eric Howald as saying Serrato had been placed on administrative leave so the school could investigate the matter.
“The University of Oregon finds the statements made in the video abhorrent and not in alignment with our values or mission,” Howald said.
“We appreciate the conflict between his statements, his role in Student Life at the University, and our institutional values.”
“As a public university we take our duty seriously to provide an environment that welcomes diversity of thought and respect in alignment with our education mission,” he continued.
“While we investigate, we are providing support for concerned students and employees, including resources for mental and emotional health.”
Serrato has held his current position since 2022 and has worked in higher education for at least eight years, according to the Eugene Register-Guard.
Lorri Wickenhauser has worked at news organizations in California and Arizona. She joined The Western Journal in 2021.
Lorri Wickenhauser has worked at news organizations in California and Arizona. She joined The Western Journal in 2021.
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