A group of black students on the second floor of the Ayers College of Commerce and Industry spent Wednesday night meeting with residential life administrators after finding racial slurs scrawled on their doors Tuesday.
The word “nigger” was written in black permanent marker above the doorknobs of three rooms in one hallway, said residents of the floor. Also, the entrance leading to the floor’s stairwell contained the phrase “I hate niggers” and included a drawing of a face colored black, the students said. The doors of two female black students on the other side of the floor also were vandalized: One door had the word “bitch” written on it, and the other contained the word “slut.”
The students noticed the racial epithets Tuesday night after returning from class and dinner. On Wednesday, they met with administrators and reported the incident to University Police.
“The chances of finding the person is slim, but we aren’t just going to let this sit on the table,” said Carnell Jarrell II, a McCormick sophomore who lives in one of the vandalized rooms. “We were all shocked and want to take action.”
The slurs have since been removed from the students’ doors, although smudges still remain. An e-mail will be sent out to the residential college’s listserv today informing all residents of the incident. At CCI’s Sunday meeting, members of the residential college will have a chance to speak about the incident.
Tracy Dumas, the residential college’s assistant master, said she hopes the meeting will reinforce CCI’s positive environment. The building is known as one of the most diverse on campus and tries to attract a multitude of different students each year, she said.
“The bottom line we have to communicate is that this is not acceptable,” Dumas said. “We will not sweep this under the rug. We care about having an environment where all students feel comfortable.”
William Banis, Northwestern’s vice president of student affairs, said administrators and University Police will conduct a thorough investigation and interview each student who lives on the floor. Banis denounced the episode, calling it “uncivil behavior of the worst kind.”
“We have zero tolerance for racial intolerance at Northwestern,” Banis said. “We are a community that embraces and celebrates diversity in all of its forms. (This behavior) does nothing to strengthen ties between people and strengthen our sense of community on campus.”
The students said they were pleased with the administration’s response. Associated Student Government passed a resolution Wednesday calling for students to “oppose all hate speech” and make NU “a safe home for people of all races, sexes, orientations and religions.”
“The university won’t be judged by what transpired, it will be judged on its reaction to the events,” said ASG President Rachel Lopez.
The group of students on the second floor said they will work to inform the student body of the racial tension. Jarrell said he plans to live in CCI again next year.
“This is where I’ve lived for two years,” he said. “No one’s going to push me out.”
But Shelton Goodwin, a McCormick sophomore who lives in the same hallway but whose doors was not vandalized, said he won’t forget the incident easily.
“It was so out of the blue,” Goodwin said. “As soon as you feel comfortable, stuff that happened decades ago comes out of nowhere. I don’t feel physically threatened, but I may see some things differently around here.”
