In Summary
The school is looking into two racist incidents at the school’s dormitory, one involving the Ku Klux Klan and the other about excrement left on a door.The University of Utah is looking into a claim that a group of men entered a dorm dressed like the KKK in October, according to The Salt Lake Tribune.
The school is also investigating a report that someone smeared excrement on a Black student’s dorm room in the same building back in September.
A school official said campus police and housing staff are reviewing the incidents after the first investigation came up inconclusive, the Associated Press reported.
The Black student who found the excrement on their door was immediately moved to another dorm. Cameras at the door did not show the suspect who smeared the substance on the person’s door.
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In the October incident, a resident adviser said they overheard students talk about men dressing up in Ku Klux Klan robes trying to recruit students, per AP.
A spokesperson for the school said it’s unclear if the incidents are being investigated as possible hate crimes.
In a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune, the school said:
“Acts like this, perpetrated within residence halls—which should be spaces of sanctuary and safety—strike fear and frustration in our students and community members when they are already feeling vulnerable. This is the third incident reported in as many weeks, and we understand that the community, especially our Black students, are feeling exhausted, targeted and disconnected but we must remain vigilant in striving to ensure that all our staff, students and faculty are able to find a place of safety and belonging as a part of our campus community.”