Stupid? Absolutely.

But anti-Islamic? Not so fast, say authorities.

Western University’s campus police have cleared a student of any wrongdoing for leaving a pig’s head on a Muslim student’s dormitory bed.

It’s not the first gaffe with cultural overtones this year at Western, which was thrust under a harsh spotlight when some students traded on the Black Lives Matter movement last fall— using the slogan “Western Lives Matter” — after the school delayed its homecoming weekend to nix booze-fuelled troubles.

But the first-year student behind the porcine prank at Huron University College now faces “significant” disciplinary action for the prank, says the school’s principal.

“This was not intended with religious or malicious intent,” said principal Barry Craig, who wouldn’t elaborate on the punishment, citing privacy concerns.

Practising Muslims abstain from eating pork, because, among other reasons, pigs are considered unclean.

An upper-year student at the Hellmuth Hall residence returned to his residence room and found the pig’s head on his pillow, said school officials.

At first, after the student reported it to security, the incident sparked suspicion of Islamophobia.

Surveillance footage from the Western-affiliated school helped to identify the student who was responsible, said John Carson, director of Western’s campus police.

The student, whose name wasn’t released, told officials he was pulling a prank on his friend — the two had a history of playing jokes on each other — and didn’t realize it could be seen as culturally insensitive, said Carson.

“He had no idea that he was offending someone. To say he was extremely remorseful is an understatement,” said Carson, adding the Muslim student dropped his complaint after learning who was responsible.

After speaking with both students, campus police determined a criminal offence hadn’t been committed.

Craig said the Monday incident highlights the importance of cultural sensitivity on campus.

“It’s not the way that you would want to teach greater cultural sensitivity, but I think that’s the lesson that probably will be taken away from this from everybody around,” he said.

So where did the prankster get a roasted pig’s head? He grabbed it from a medieval feast event held on campus, Craig said.

“That was the other thing that mitigated against the severity of the penalty, it didn’t seem to be a premeditated act,” he said.

Under Huron’s residence disciplinary code, penalties range from fines to eviction. But If the incident is dealt with through the school’s student code of conduct, expulsion is possible.

Last fall, four young men wearing Western clothing were photographed posing in front of a makeshift banner that said “Western lives Matter” during an unofficial homecoming celebration in October.

The image, posted on the photo- and video-sharing mobile app Instagram, made national headlines, prompting the university to investigate. Though school officials originally condemned the behaviour, they later declared it didn’t violate university’s code of conduct.

The incident followed a string of potentially hate-motivated crimes against Muslims in London.

In May, a Western PhD student from Iran was beaten by two men outside the Covent Garden Market. The attackers allegedly called the student an Arab and told him to go back to his country while pummelling him. Two men were charged in what police at the time called a possible hate crime.

dcarruthers@postmedia.com

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