UPDATED: Nov. 14, 2019 at 4:03 p.m.

Editor’s note: This article details the usage of racial slurs. 

Graffiti using racist language against Asian people was reported in Syracuse University’s Physics Building around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday night, the Department of Public Safety said in a campus-wide email.

DPS is currently investigating the graffiti as a bias incident, but there are no suspects at this time, the department said. The email, sent at 3:20 a.m., did not specify the wording of the graffiti in the Physics Building.

A reporter from The Daily Orange confirmed there is graffiti in a Physics Building bathroom that targets Asian people. The writing has been mostly removed. The bathroom is across from the entrance to Stolkin Auditorium.

The announcement comes after racist graffiti against black and Asian people was written in Day Hall on the night of Nov. 6.

SU students have held a sit-in at the Barnes Center at The Arch since 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday. Dozens of students have expressed concerns about SU’s response to the Day Hall graffiti. The university did not make a public statement until after Renegade Magazine and The Daily Orange publicized the racial slurs.

“We stand in solidarity with the students who were affected as a result of that incident,” said Kai Wright, an SU student, at the protest Thursday, speaking of the language in the Physics Building.

A racial slur against Asian people was written on the fourth floor of Day Hall. Details of the slur are unclear, but SU officials have confirmed some of the graffiti targeted Asian people.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo condemned the racist language found in the Physics Building in a Thursday statement. The state police’s Hate Crime Task Force and state Division of Human Rights will continue to help local authorities investigate the incidents at SU, he said.

This post was updated with additional reporting. 

Published on November 14, 2019 at 3:42 am

Contact Casey: [email protected] | @caseydarnell_