Timeline: Hate crimes, incidents at or near Syracuse University
Corey Henry | Photo Editor
Students organized the #NotAgainSU sit-in after SU's delayed communication of racial slurs against black and Asian people in Day Hall.
Editor’s note: This article contains details about the usage of racial slurs.
At least 33 racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic incidents have been reported on and near the Syracuse University campus since Nov. 7. Here is a breakdown of what happened and where. All locations are approximate.
Syracuse University’s Department of Public Safety is investigating a post on a Greek life social media website that contained “bias comments” about Black people, Catholics and Hispanics, the department announced Friday.
March 10
A flyer hung on a Centennial Hall door at SUNY-ESF said that students inside were quarantined.
University Police are investigating the incident as an instance of bias targeting individuals based on race, Amberg said.
March 7
A flyer with information about preventing the spread of the coronavirus was vandalized with racist language targeting Chinese individuals.
The flyer, which was posted in Bird Library, advises against coming into contact with those who are sick. The word “Chinese” was written next to the advice.
Feb. 22
A screenshot containing racist comments about Black people was sent to a student’s cell phone. As of 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 22, DPS had no additional information.
Feb. 21
Homophobic graffiti was found in a restroom on the fourth floor of Day Hall, DPS said in a bias incident report. The incident was reported to DPS officer early on the morning of Feb. 21.
Feb. 8
A driver in a passing vehicle shouted a racial slur at two students on University Place, DPS said in a bias incident report. The incident occurred between Ernie Davis and DellPlain halls and did not involve a physical altercation.
Two instances of racist graffiti were found in SUNY-ESF’S Centennial Hall, the college announced. ESF identified and suspended the alleged perpetrator.
Racist graffiti directed toward Black people was found in a stairwell in Day Hall.
Racist graffiti targeting Black and Asian people was found on the back of a vending machine in Day Hall, DPS said in a bias incident report. It is unclear on which floor the vandalism occurred.
A group of individuals in a passing car reportedly harassed an Asian American student, according to a DPS bias incident report. The incident did not involve a physical altercation.
Another incident of anti-Semitic graffiti was found in Marshall Square Mall, according to a DPS bias incident report published Jan. 26. The graffiti was found in a men’s bathroom on the second floor of the mall. The department is actively investigating the incident.
Anti-Semitic graffiti depicting a swastika was found in Bird Library, according to a DPS bias incident report issued Jan. 22. The graffiti was found on a table in the lower level of the library. The department identified the perpetrator Jan. 23. DPS did not release the name of the perpetrator to comply with federal privacy laws.
Dec. 27, 9:45 a.m.
A bias-related incident allegedly occurring at 300 Mount Olympus Drive was reported to DPS, crime logs from the department show. The alleged incident occurred near Flint and Day halls. DPS is actively investigating the alleged incident and pursuing any leads, a university spokesperson told The D.O. on Jan. 4. DPS has not issued a bias incident report regarding the alleged incident as of Jan. 7.
García de Müeller said via Twitter that she received “another racist threatening email.” SPD is investigating the incidents and working to determine the email’s origin, Malinowski said Jan. 8 in an email to The D.O.
An SU student was physically assaulted and reportedly called a homophobic slur while outside DJ’s On The Hill, a bar on Marshall Street, DPS announced Dec. 16. The incident occurred Dec. 12 but was reported to DPS on Dec. 14. The student told SPD that he got in an argument with another man in the bar’s rear alley that escalated to a physical fight. SPD is investigating the incident for “potential bias motivation,” SPD spokesperson Sgt. Matthew Malinowski said in a Dec. 17 email to The D.O.
An individual yelled a racial slur at a Latino male and female while driving on Euclid Avenue, DPS announced Dec. 8. It is unclear exactly when the incident occurred. A bias-related incident occurring on 401 Euclid Ave. was reported Dec. 4 at about 10 p.m., DPS crime logs show.
DPS announced four bias-related incidents on campus. Racist graffiti targeting Black people was found on the fifth and sixth floor of Day Hall. A post-it note with anti-Native American language was found in Flint Hall, which is next to Day on Mount Olympus. Racist graffiti targeting Asian people was discovered in the Comstock Art Facility.
SU professor Genevieve García de Müeller received an anonymous email that contained hostile, anti-Semitic language and referenced the Holocaust. After receiving the email, Müeller called DPS, who directed her to the Syracuse Police Department because the incident occurred while she was off-campus.
Nov. 18, 9 p.m.
DPS reported racist graffiti against Black people was found on the fifth floor of Day Hall. In a campus-wide email, DPS said it was currently interviewing residents and that no other information is currently available.
A Black woman reported that a large group of individuals verbally harassed her, yelling the N-word as she walked by. The incident did not include a physical altercation.
Chancellor Kent Syverud said that members of the Alpha Chi Rho fraternity were suspended because they yelled the racial slur. SU suspended Alpha Chi Rho because its members and guests were involved. SU suspended all social activities at fraternities for the rest of the fall 2019 semester.
Nov. 16, 6:18 p.m.
DPS announced that it was investigating two recently-reported bias incidents in a campus-wide email.
Anti-Semitic graffiti depicting a swastika was found in Haven Hall. The graffiti was removed, and DPS has no suspects at the time, according to a DPS email sent around 6:20 p.m on Nov. 16.
A student also reported to DPS that another student was yelling a racial epithet that’s derogatory to African American people at Sadler Hall. The department is working to identify the person.
DPS reported that racist graffiti against Asian people was found in Haven Hall. At the time of the email DPS said there were no details available nor a suspect, and the department was investigating the email.
The D.O. reported early on the morning of Nov. 16 that a racial slur was yelled at freshman Minghao Ai, who is Chinese, as he left Day Hall around 11:50 p.m. on Nov. 15. Ai filed a bias report and called DPS at 12:15 a.m. on Nov. 16.
DPS Chief Bobby Maldonado said in a campus-wide email Nov. 16 at 3:49 p.m. that DPS did not have enough evidence at the time to say it was motivated by bias.
Racist graffiti targeting Asian people was found on the third floor of Day Hall, the Department of Public Safety announced in a Nov. 14 email.
The D.O. reported that a swastika was found in a snowbank across from the 505 on Walnut, a luxury apartment complex where students live. A student saw the symbol from his apartment.
Chief Diversity and Inclusion Office Keith Alford sent an email just before 6 p.m. on Nov. 14 regarding the incident. DPS notified the Syracuse Police Department of the incident, and SPD was leading the investigation, Alford said.
Around 3:45 a.m. Nov. 14 morning, the Department of Public Safety sent a campus-wide email regarding racist graffiti against Asian people in a bathroom in the Physics Building.
Between Nov. 7 and Nov. 8, racial slurs against Black and Asian people were reported on floors four and six of Day Hall.
Ceiling lights in bathrooms on Day Hall’s sixth floor were pulled out and put in a toilet. The N-word was written on part of the light, at least one mirror on the floor and on garbage cans. A slur against Asian people was written on a bulletin board on the fourth floor.
The D.O. counted the incidents reported in Day Hall between Nov. 7 and Nov. 8 as two separate events because the graffiti was on two floors. The incidents in Haven Hall were also counted as two separate incidents because the graffiti was found on different stairwells.
Published on November 16, 2019 at 8:50 pm
