by James Whitely - SGN Staff Writer

A group of about 50 people gathered at the University of Washington's Red Square on July 15 to formulate a response to a recent rash of racist and anti-Semitic graffiti on the UW campus.

'We're very distressed to hear about this incident,' said UW Provost Ana Mari Cauce, who attended the gathering. 'Obviously, we'd like to find out who did this.'

Racist slurs and Nazi swastikas were found throughout the Communications Building last week. An anti-Semitic remark was written on the door of a UW employee who has a Jewish-sounding last name. Swastikas were drawn in an elevator and on a wall, and racist slogans were left on a window, door, and bench.

According to Provost Cauce, the Communications Building sees more use from people outside the university community than most other campus facilities. Additionally, because the building houses the offices of The Daily, the UW's student newspaper, it's often open late at night.

The inflammatory graffiti was quickly removed, but the concern remains, especially because this was the second known graffiti attack this year involving racial and anti-Semitic slurs. UW Police Commander Steve Rittereiser said he had no evidence that the two incidents are linked.

The July 15 assembly, organized by student Cody Lestelle, brought out UW students, faculty, and administrators, along with members of the wider community. After discussing what the best course of action would be, the attendees decided to plan a visibility march and launch a student organization dedicated to standing up to incidents of this kind.

Before departing, Provost Cauce said that the UW Police Department had heightened security on campus and that the University is making efforts to enhance campus diversity. She acknowledged that minority groups are under-represented on UW's faculty.

The visibility march is expected to take place on campus in early August, before the end of summer quarter. For more information, visit www.smashwhitesupremacy.wordpress.com.

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