NAACP Starts Discrimination Hotline For College Students

NAACP Starts Discrimination Hotline For College Students

A NAACP chapter in Missouri is starting a confidential telephone hotline for University of Missouri students to report threats after messages warning of violence against African American students appeared on social media according to HuffPo:

Mizzou students can report threats to 844-NAACP-HELP, the organization’s Jefferson City branch said Friday. The number is for students who may not feel comfortable reporting threats to law enforcement authorities, who have an “abysmal” record of prosecuting hate crimes, Nimrod Chapel, president of the Jefferson City NAACP, told HuffPost.

“If you look at the history of the Civil Rights Movement, when concessions are made for equality and respect for human dignity, there have always been individuals who feel as though their liberty is being stifled,” Chapel said in a statement.

The flurry of threats toward minority Mizzou students followed Monday’s resignation of university President Tim Wolfe, who had been the focus of student protests over the school’s handling of several racist incidents. Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin said the same day he would step down and transition into a new position.

Some of the threats were serious enough to prompt black students to leave the campus, in Columbia, and to force the cancelation of classes. Police on Wednesday arrested two male students, both white, in connection with the threats.

Chapel said callers to the hotline can phone anonymously. If a caller decides to involve law enforcement, the NAACP will ensure that the complaints are handled appropriately and vigorously investigated, he said.

Discuss.