April Fool’s Day can be a lot of fun, especially if you’re a good sport when you end up as the butt of the joke. However, depending on the prank, it can just as easily turn sour or even cruel. As one North Carolina college student discovered, her school thought it would be really funny to make a joke of ICE raids.
TikTok user Shoppurplepear (Mary) shared the disturbing satire post in a video, wherein the article stated President Trump would be sending ICE agents to UNC. It was posted by the school’s own student-led newspaper, the Daily Tar Heel. “Do you think joking about ICE raids on April Fool’s Day is funny?” Mary asks in her TikTok video.
Of course, that was a rhetorical question. Mary didn’t find it funny. She goes on to shame the newspaper for making such an egregious joke, especially considering numerous people are being hurt by ICE. Not only does she wholeheartedly condemn that, but finds it incredibly distasteful. In the caption of her TikTok video, she wrote “disappointed is an understatement.”
To make matters worse, Mary states that the problem runs much deeper. Just as recently as Nov. 2025, ICE was on campus at UNC, which Chair of the Faculty Beth Moracco released a statement for. “I know people who stayed home and missed class because they were terrified,” says Mary, adding that it only spreads terror and confusion. If you get an email like that in your school inbox, your first thought isn’t ‘satire.’
The problem is that April Fool’s Day is meant to be fun and harmless. It shouldn’t go beyond lighthearted jokes, like telling a friend their shoe is untied or that they forgot to put on pants. Students from all walks of life attend UNC, including many with ties to the immigration system, which makes the impact of certain pranks more serious.
People on TikTok Reacted With Outrage and Disappointment
Mary wasn’t the only student upset with UNC for making such a tone-deaf April Fool’s joke. Several students from UNC weighed in, expressing their distaste for the school.
One commenter, claiming to also be attending UNC, said the email made them “nauseous.” Another TikTok user, Ophelia, stated, “As a UNC alum, I’m sick.” Another commenter stated the article is actually a “major con” in their decision to pick between UNC and another college.
One person on TikTok claiming to be an “old person community member” stated they were very “worried.” They added they’d be spreading the word on Facebook due to several members of their local community being “UNC professors.”
“Bruh, my journalism degree is gonna get discredited,” wrote TIkTok user Americangirlofficial.
The Daily Tar Heel released a statement, admitting their mistake and are “working to rebuild the trust we have lost today.”
