‘Empire’ Star Taraji P. Henson Accuses Police at USC of Racially Profiling Son: Moving Marcel to a HBCU

Empire star Taraji P. Henson says that she is done with her son's college and moving him to an HBCU. According to KTLA, Henson has decided to pull her son from USC after he was racially profiled while touring the campus. Henson's son, Marcel, 20, was on the campus of the University of Southern California, taking a tour when he was stopped more than once for having his hands in his pockets.

"My child has been racially profiled," the actress said this week. "He was in Glendale, California and did exactly everything the cops told him to do, including letting them illegally search his car. It was bogus because they didn't give him the ticket for what he was pulled over for."

She continued, talking about another incident that happened at USC.

“He’s at USC, the school that I was going to transfer him to, when police stopped him for having his hands in his pockets,” Henson told Uptown Magazine the February/March issue. "So guess where he’s going? Howard University. I’m not paying $50,000 so I can’t sleep at night wondering, ‘is this the night my son is getting racially profiled on campus?’”

Henson graduated from HBCU (Historically Black College and Universities). The Maryland native started off at North Carolina A&T State University where she pursued Electrical Engineering. Henson then transferred to Howard University, and graduate  from the private university in Washington D.C.

According to USC’s executive director, they were “deeply disturbed” at Henson's story and want such incidents to be reported from now on.

“I would like to look into this matter further and better understand who was involved and what took place,” John Thomas, executive director and chief of USC Department of Public Safety, stated. “As someone who personally experienced racial profiling as a teenager, I have a stake in learning more about this incident and doing all I can to reach a just resolution.”

Thomas added, “Any allegation of bias or unequal treatment by university officers would trigger an investigation that I would supervise along with the university’s Office of Equity and Diversity. It is my expectation and that of the university that our department uphold the highest standards of constitutional policing, affording equal rights and respect to all persons."