UND probing photo with racist caption posted on Snapchat

University of North Dakota
The University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, N.D., June 22, 2013.
Jimmy Emerson | Creative Commons via Flickr

The University of North Dakota has launched an investigation after a photo with a racist caption was posted on social media.

The photo, captured on the popular mobile app Snapchat, shows three white students and the caption "Locked that black b---- out."

University spokesman Peter Johnson confirmed to the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the individuals involved are students.

University police and the school's Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities are investigating after the police department received a harassment complaint Tuesday.

UND president Mark Kennedy Kennedy in a statement posted on Instagram described the caption as an "abhorrent message." He says he is "shocked" that anyone could consider the incident "a joke."

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