WICHITA, Kan.— Kansas State University is stepping up police patrols and taking other safety measures following a spate of racial incidents that culminated this week when a Black man’s car parked near campus was scrawled with racist graffiti.
School officials are also reviewing the need for more cameras on its campus in Manhattan, a city about 50 miles (81 kilometers) west of Topeka, after racial slurs and threatening messages, including “Go Home” and “Date your own kind,” were scrawled in yellow washable paint on the car. The FBI is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.
Other recent incidents include white supremacist posters being found on campus in September and a noose found hanging from a campus tree in May.
“At the moment, minority students generally do not feel safe on campus,” Darrell Reese, president of the Black Student Union at the school, said Friday.
Top university administrators and city leaders met with the union and other students during an emergency meeting Wednesday. Dean of Students Pat Bosco held a national Facebook Live discussion the following day to address concerns. Bosco noted the school was getting ready to announce a major gift to create a Multicultural Student Center on campus, saying the center would be a welcoming and safe place for students and “a space that drives success.”
The university also plans to hire two new leadership positions tasked with diversity and multicultural student life issues.
“There is little question racial tension is increasing across our nation and on college campuses. We’ve seen this mirrored at Kansas State University,” school spokesman Jeff Morris said Friday. “The current climate has caused students, parents and families to question their safety.”
