Report: UCLA student who made 'Asians' video won't return

Alexandra Wallace, the UCLA political science student whose video mocking Asian students and their families became a huge social media sensation, says in a letter to the Daily Bruin that she won't be returning to classes after spring break. In the letter she apologizes again for the offending video:

In an attempt to produce a humorous YouTube video, I have offended the UCLA community and the entire Asian culture. I am truly sorry for the hurtful words I said and the pain it caused to anyone who watched the video. Especially in the wake of the ongoing disaster in Japan, I would do anything to take back my insensitive words. I could write apology letters all day and night, but I know they wouldn’t erase the video from your memory, nor would they act to reverse my inappropriate action.

I made a mistake. My mistake, however, has lead to the harassment of my family, the publishing of my personal information, death threats, and being ostracized from an entire community. Accordingly, for personal safety reasons, I have chosen to no longer attend classes at UCLA.

The Daily Bruin says the letter was released by a spokesman for the student's family. Earlier in the day, UCLA administrators said the university had no basis to discipline Wallace. In a sign of how widely the video has been scrutinized, the New York Times ran an editorial warning that UCLA "would do a great disservice to itself and the First Amendment if it goes ahead and disciplines her for the content of her words."

Copies of Wallace's video (her original has been taken down) have gone viral on the net, racking up hundreds of thousands of views and inspiring several popular spoofs. The incident has also spurred threats against Wallace. "Since the video went viral, Wallace has had her personal information, including her class schedule, widely dispersed. Comments on the video have been extreme, with some using sexist obscenities, while still others actually ask for her to be raped and killed," the Bruin reported earlier in the week.