Authorities are looking into an incident in which a performance by a Navajo hip-hop group on the University of New Mexico campus was cut short in a confrontation with a non-Indian student.

Tribe 2 had permission to perform during the noon hour. But a student who was in a class was bothered by the concert and went outside to complain. What happened next is disputed.

A video of the incident obtained by KOAT-TV shows the student unplugging the equipment of the band. The tape shows him "shouting racial epithets" before storming off, the station said.

Some witnesses corroborated that version and said the student committed a hate crime. But in a letter to The Daily Lobo, another witness says the group egged on the student by saying he deserved a "reservation whooping" for complaining.

That led to comments the student made about reservations. Witnesses who heard those comments said they were racially insensitive. The student allegedly called others watching the concert "monkeys."

Maria Williams, assistant professor of Native American Studies, and Steven Loza, director of the Arts of the Americas Institute, filed a police report of the incident. Loza also apparently apologized to the teacher whose class may have been disturbed although this has not been reported.

University authorities are investigating. The district attorney in Albuquerque is considering charges.

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Get the Story:
Video Surfaces Of Racial Slurs At UNM Concert (KOAT News 4/13)
Navajo rap concert sparks racism allegations (The Native American Times 4/13)
Alleged hate crime stirs students (The Daily Lobo 4/13)
Letter:Fight against racism must continue (The Daily Lobo 4/13)
Letter:Rap group's comments fueled racial incident (The Daily Lobo 4/13)
Letter:Both sides claim free speech; both sides disturbing the peace (The Daily Lobo 4/13)