According to Cole, Nini at one point said, "What's the matter, no comprende English?"

Boycott

The student body rallied behind Cole, first with a petition sponsored by Will Rehling '86-'95 and later with an Undergraduate Council resolution calling for a boycott of the newsstand.

Rehling, a friend of Cole's from Dudley House, circulated a petition pledging signers to a boycott of the store and to the statement, "We Believe Richard Cole."

"There's no question in my mind that for Rich to be this upset, it had to be extremely egregious behavior," Rehling said last week.

Several friends of Cole called The Crimson, defending their friend's character and integrity.

"Rich is an unfailingly generous and polite person who aims to please everyone around him," said Jane C. Gray '95. "I cannot imagine him offending anyone."

Cole's colleagues on the Undergraduate Council pledged their support for him as well.

The council voted 39 to 19, with six abstentions, to pass a resolution that supported Cole. The measure also called on the Harvard community to boycott Nini's Corner "until Mr. Nini issues an apology to Mr. Cole and agrees not to discriminate."

Apology

The boycott had been in effect for only two days when Nini backed down and issued a public apology to Cole for his actions.

Nini retracted his earlier statements about the incident during a morning meeting at the Cambridge Human Rights Commission.

"[Nini] sincerely apologized to me and the entire Harvard community," Cole said.

Nini defended his record with minorities in an interview this Tuesday.

"Ninety percent of my customers are minorities," Nini said. "I wouldn't be here for 34 years if I had treated them badly."