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White Supremacists Targeting Academics of Color

Summary: Academics at universities across the country, including law professors at Indiana University, are finding themselves the target of white supremacy groups.

White supremacist groups are breaking out on campuses across the country, targeting law professors and other academics. Indiana University’s Maurer School of Law went to the FBI after fliers were found plastered around campus that were “clearly meant to intimidate, threaten, scare, and provoke anger.”

Incidents involving white supremacist groups have been recorded at around 30 universities so far. The fliers at Indiana University were located on the office doors of “faculty members of color or scholars of race and ethnicity.” A white supremacy group claimed responsibility on social media for the fliers on campus.

Law professor Charles Geyh posted on Facebook, “As a standard-issue, white, middle-aged male, I do not presume to know how it feels to arrive at your office and discover that you are the target of a hate group ‘siege’, with all the ghosts of burning crosses and lynchings that it conjures. I have taught at five different law schools, and this is the most collegial and supportive of the bunch. Shocked, angry, and resolute best describes the mood I have witnessed in hallway conversations.”

Indiana University’s Provost and Executive Vice President Lauren Robel released a statement on the incidence, saying, the school “rejects all forms of racism, bigotry and discrimination.” The university is working closely with the FBI to identify those responsible for distributing the fliers, asking for help from the public with any leads.

Do you think any white supremacy groups are extreme enough to act on their threats? Tell us in the comments below.

To learn about other racially motivated incidents at law schools, read these articles:

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Amanda Griffin: