Between October of 2019 and February of 2020, a person presumed to be a white supremacist terrorized black students with racist and threatening graffiti on the campus of Salisbury University in Maryland.
An example of one of the graffiti messages found scrawled on the campus was this: “Sandy Hook comes to SU kill [racial slur].” Photos of that message and other racially offensive and sexually-charged graffiti were widely shared on social media after their discovery.
An Instagram post from the university’s NAACP chapter in November condemned the threatening graffiti as part of “supremacist” effort to terrorize members of their community.
“Such abhorrent acts do not reflect the core values of our community,” the university said in a statement. “As a University, SU remains resolute together and condemns any and all forms of hatred, racism, bigotry or supremacist ideology that seek to hurt, terrorize, bully or marginalize any members of our community.”
The incidents, meanwhile, gave white students an opportunity to share positive, racially healing messages on post-it notes in the affected areas.
In December, activists held a protest to demand “increased racial equity and justice on campus and the greater Salisbury community.” The protest was attended by hundreds of Salisbury students.
Classes were cancelled for a “day of healing” in February after threatening graffiti targeted black students with lynching. The school hosted healing events during the day of healing.
Salisbury University President Charles Wright issued a statement about the alleged racist attacks on black students, who reportedly make up about 16 percent of the school’s population.
“Tonight, our campus is under attack by a coward. Not one but multiple racist threats are being directed at Black and Brown members of OUR community,” he said. “An attack on some members of our campus community is an attack on all of us, and we all need to respond.”
No one at any point expressed concern that the graffiti terrorizing Salisbury students might be part of an elaborate hoax, as has been seen at countless other universities in recent years.
In fact, because they believed the incidents made clear that systemic racism is still a problem in America today, the university in February “implemented a number of long-term steps and diversity initiatives to address student concerns,” according to WBOC.
The culprit, 54-year-old Princess Anne, Md., man, was finally caught earlier this month.
Hate Hoax: Black Man Will Plead Guilty to Charges of Posting Racist Anti-Black Graffiti at Salisbury Campus https://t.co/lr7CMvqgYx via @gatewaypundit
— The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) June 9, 2020
On June 3, the Office for the State’s Attorney for Wicomico County charged Jerome Kevin Jackson with a single count of maliciously defacing property while exhibiting racial animosity. This type of crime is commonly referred to as a hate crime.
The charging decision was made after an investigation conducted
by the Salisbury University Police Department in cooperation with the Office of the State’s Attorney.Prosecutors said Jackson has elected to plead guilty and is scheduled to do so on Friday, June 12 in the District Court for Wicomico County.
“Prosecutors have not yet revealed a motive behind the crimes,” WBOC reports.