Photo via Facebook

American University officials are investigating a racist incident in which bananas were found hanging from strings in the shape of nooses.

Photos of the hanging fruit surfaced on social media this morning, according to a memo from the university. The bananas, which were found at three places on campus, were marked with the letters AKA—the acronym for the predominately black sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha.

The incident took place after the first black woman, an AKA member, was sworn in as the student government president, according to a release from American University president Neil Kerwin, who called it a “crude and racially insensitive act of bigotry.”

This isn’t the first such incident at the university, though. Back in September, a black student said someone threw a rotten banana into her dorm room. And on the same day, and another black student said someone placed a rotten banana in front of her dorm room and drew obscene images on her chalk board.

“I regret this happened, apologize to everyone offended, and state emphatically that this incident does not reflect what American University truly is,” Kerwin said about today’s incident.

The college’s department of public safety is investigating and asking anyone with information to send a tip through its website or call 202-885-2527.

This post has been updated.