Grand Valley State University officials have confirmed that an African-American student, who claimed to be a victim of racist messages, made-up the incident.
"The person believed to be responsible for the drawing and language written on the dry erase board is a Grand Valley student and the owner of the message board," Grand Valley police department chief Renee Freeman said in a statement.
In February, the black student complained about racist messages (anti-black messages), slurs, obscenities and drawings (a person being hanged) scribbled on a whiteboard on his dorm room door at Copeland Living Center on the Allendale, Michigan campus.
When the incident was reported, the campus community condemned the act and believed it was racially stimulated. Bart Merkle, the dean of students of GVSU said that the incident was "a very hateful and intimidating act" and it was unacceptable at the university.
"(Harassment), it's like rape or incest or any other hateful, power crime that gets very minimally reported," said GVSU provost Gayle Davis. "We can get things out of the climate study and know there's a problem, but it's very hard to pinpoint who's doing it and who's being victimized by it," The Daily Caller reported.
Freeman said that the fictitious incident had a damaging impact on the school. He also added that Merkle will take appropriate action against the student for the violation. The school will not be disclosing the name and gender of the person.
William Jacobson of Legal Insurrection said that these hoaxes are normally planned to primarily cause chaos on campus, Examiner reports.
The Grand Valley Police Department is now collaborating with other departments to increase understanding and importance of a diverse campus body among students through educational means.
Student groups and GVSU faculty have also scheduled several teach-in sessions on topics including racial issues and social justices- 'Micro-aggressions: It all adds up,' 'Putting the Pieces of Autism Together,' 'Constructing Gender on Campus' and 'The Invisible Privilege of Being Able-Bodied.'
The 'Micro-aggressions: It all adds up', slated to be held March 26, will cover topics like White Supremacy, Patriarchy, Homophobia/Transphobia, Ableism, Christian Supremacy and Classism.
