A Georgia State University student-athlete who used a racial slur in a social media post withdrew from the school Monday after a petition calling for her expulsion circulated online.
Natalia Martinez, an 18-year-old freshman from Florida, posted the n-word on Finsta — another version of the Instagram app — on Friday.
The post partially read, “I PASSED N——-S!!” before being deleted, according to a screenshot obtained by the campus newspaper, The Signal.
The school’s Panthers soccer team later suspended Martinez.
“We do not tolerate the language the student used in her post. Pursuant to our student-athlete code of conduct, she has been suspended from the soccer team,” the team said in a statement Saturday.
By Monday, school officials announced Martinez withdrew from the university after becoming aware of the social media post.
Student India Bridgeforth began the petition that called for Ma rtinez’s expulsion from the campus. The petition garnered over 640 signatures in two days.
“We felt like that was kind of a slap in the face, especially considering how many students of color are here,” Bridgeforth told WSB-TV. “There’s so many students of color here why would you want to be here, if you feel that way about us?”
Martinez’s withdrawal comes after Harley Barber, a former University of Alabama student, was expelled from the school after also using the n-word in an Instagram video.
