Edhat Staff
Photo: Santa Barbara City College
[Warning: The below article contains graphic language to describe a recent hate crime at SBCC]
By edhat staff
A horrendous hate crime on Santa Barbara City College’s (SBCC) campus is escalating racial tension causing fear among students and employees.
Interim Superintendent-President Dr. Helen Benjamin was alerted early on the morning of October 17 about racist graffiti found in the men’s restroom on the third floor of the Humanities Building. The graffiti read “Fuck [n-word], hang them all.”
Dr. Benjamin then sent a campus-wide email stating the language targeted the Black community and is “absolutely abhorrent,” “vile,” and “is not tolerated or welcome at SBCC.”
The graffiti was discovered by staff members, reported to security and immediately removed, according to the email. It was additionally reported to the Santa Barbara Police Department who is investigating the incident as a hate crime. The Anti-Defamation League and other community resources were also alerted, said Benjamin.
The email also stated a team of staff, faculty, and community representative came together to deploy culturally responsive resources for students and staff. “We are actively working to set up resources for our community to help process and talk about the impact of this incident. I recognize this event is not in isolation and will trigger responses from past experiences on our campus or of individuals’ experiences,” said Benjamin.
Some feel this type of hate is a response to the inaction of the SBCC administration and Board of Trustees who had been alerted to numerous instances of racism on campus almost a year ago.
“Many of us are in shock and disbelief, but Black faculty, students have been speaking on the harm they have experienced on this campus for some time now, it’s about time we listened. Much of the discussion across campus has been focused on finding the individual that wrote such harmful words but finding the individual does not excuse any of us from our part in allowing a climate of anti-blackness to flourish on this campus,” said a SBCC employee who asked to remain anonymous.
Local nonprofit Showing Up for Racial Justice Santa Barbara (SURJ SB) released a statement calling the hate crime explicitly violent and threatening which further “demonstrates the emboldening of racist ideology at Santa Barbara City College.” SURJ SB believes this has worsened due to the inaction of specific members of the SBCC Board of Trustees.
“Black students, faculty, staff, and their allies have been calling on the Board of Trustees since November of 2018 to make changes that will ensure equal access to a safe and non-threatening educational and workplace environment. Recent failures by specific members of the Board of Trustees to represent the interests and safety of all students include, but are not limited to: specific board members’ tolerance of the n-word in public comments at board meetings; the disapproval of and characterization of antiracism training as ‘too controversial’ by a specific board member; refusal by three members of the board to attend the campus antiracism training attended by the other four members; and most recently, specific board members voting against the Student Equity Plan because of its naming of institutional racism at SBCC, thereby jeopardizing state funding for the college,” the statement reads.
Local resources are making themselves more available to help those affected. SURJ SB is part of a national network of groups and individuals organizing and taking action for racial justice. SBCC’s Center for Equity & Social Justice aims to provide a safe and brave space for students of color, women, LGBT+, and other marginalized students on campus.
Anyone with information this hate crime is asked to contact SBCC Security, Santa Barbara Police, or submit a “Report a Concern” form.
Related Articles
- October 3, 2019: SBCC Employees Fear Detailed Survey Comments May Become Public
- January 31, 2019: Students Protest Racism at SBCC Board Meeting
The person who posted that graffiti wanted to throw the usual lot into an overheated drama and hand wringing. They succeeded. You can be sure that there’ll be more graffiti in the weeks to come until they get bored with it.
Good God Almighty, wash off or paint over the graffiti and go about your day. But, no, everyone has to wring their hands and clutch their pearls and collapse onto their fainting couches. Geez, Louise, does everything has to be turned into a national federal case?
Sounds like some fine people consider “tagging” a crime worthy of significant punishment, unless it’s directed at minorities.
“…does everything has [sic] to be turned into a national federal case?”
This poster, perhaps intentionally, has ignored the long-standing expression of fear and concern by those on the City College campus who have reason to believe they’ve been subject to racial intimidation and racial threats – intimidation and threats that have systematically been ignored or trivialized by college administrators.
It should go without saying that simply erasing or painting over the racial slurs without further stipulation or action would simply confirm existing opinion that college admins are, through insensitivity, cowardice or more curious motives, evading a serious issue.
William Smithers
I think you answered your own questions. It IS a big deal, and is receiving an appropriate response.
SBO and AV are pretty typical, they minimize things they don’t think are important but want capital punishment for crimes they think are important, like homelessness. Definitely not their oxen being gored in this case.
Seems like a few here havent been to a public restroom in awhile. I like how f*ck is written and [n-word] is not. Take note of it, but in the end its graffiti, cover it as soon as you see it and the person will stop wasting time.
SBCC has had issues with ignorant racists disseminating Neo NAZl literature. Probably the same group painted it for effect.
I’m disappointed in some of the comments here but I’m absolutely appalled by the comments on Facebook. It’s shocking how many white people in this town feel its appropriate to publicly state “get over it” and other dismissive and outright racist sentiments to our non-white friends and neighbors who absolutely feel threatened and are scared to go to work/school. As a white person who lives in Santa Barbara, we need to be better. We need to react better, support our neighbors better, and listen to their experience because we can never know what it’s life. SBCC and its Board, do a better job to make your community members feel safe.
Sad that racism is still a thing, I feel sorry for all the ignorant fools in the world, ‘hang them all’ sounds like a threat to violence, not Ok in any context. Kids however say stupid things and often live to regret it, very little to unite people these days, even sadder.
Here I sit brokenhearted…….
Really disheartening to read some of these comments by posters who seem to think this type graffiti is not so bad, “just get over it” type of reaction. It is horrible and threatening and definitely racist, sad. As well as, “rude, crude, and socially unattractive.”
It has been said, “Don’t chase out the darkness, let in the light.” A person who is sick enough to write something like this won’t be changed because officials scold and berate and bring in groups to train “anti-racism” to the campus at large. Although isolated sickos like this person could use training of many kinds, most of the campus does not need to be trained out of being racist because they are NOT racist, and it is insulting to indicate that somehow all white students are capable of this, and need special training to understand people of other skin tones. Does the campus at large also need to take “anti-shoplifting training?” or “anti-kill-your-parents” training? ” It is inaccurate that there is a widespread “whites against blacks thing.” There are black , white and Asian people who are racist—but thankfully not very many. Certainly not in this town! How about we “bring in the light” and provide positive reinforcement for all the majority of students who have good attitudes, and find an effective way to identify and help the few who suffer mental illness, confusion and hate?
“A person who is sick enough to write something like this won’t be changed”
It isn’t for their benefit.
“it is insulting to indicate that somehow all white students are capable of this” No one has claimed this.
Would you care to also weigh in on the war against Christmas while you’re waving the victim flag?
“Horrendous” hate crime? Geez. What’s with the overkill? Paint on a wall by a creep.
“does everything has to be turned into a national federal case?” This is a local school and a local news outlet, so your comment is [typical of you].
So, some puerile idiot writes a nasty grafitti and everyone needs to mobilize? There is no way to identify the offender, so what good does it do anyone to organize an echo-chamber of people who already know it was bad and evil? I’m afraid all that might do is energize other public trolls to do more of this nonsense. As someone said ‘Don’t feed the Trolls.’
Hey SBCC Board of Trustees, what the h*** are you doing? Nothing it seems. Take this seriously. The lives of our residents are at risk here.
I am a SBCC employee and while I do NOT condone hate acts whether they are based in sexism (rape) or racism, I have to wonder why SBCC allowed two management employees to return to their jobs after several months of paid leave with no loss of pay or status. Obviously, it was to prevent lawsuits but it really stinks that they are so frantic to keep their face clean while the body (politic) stinks.
I’m sorry, but how many hours were spent and how many people where involved in “processing” some racist bathroom graffiti? It’s awful, but getting the ADL involved and setting up “resources” for people to discuss it seems overkill. Everyone knows it was wrong and the person who did it is sick, but why the need to make this such a massive response?
To Smithers: I really have seen no documentation that SBCC officials have ignored or trivialized official or tolerated bigotry within its purview. The allegation that some people have been “concern[ed]” about their own interpretation of bigotry or bias on campus is not, of itself, probative. I see a knee jerk reaction to each side of a fight that probably doesn’t exist. I am in favor of tolerance, that includes tolerating differing views and keeping perspective on the relative importance of an individual incident. I seriously doubt that any SBCC staff supports the sentiments of this graffiti. When you have evidence of a cabal of officials or even of students engaged in race baiting or more overt bigotry, please advise us again.
Some of these comments makes me wonder if the person who did it is related to some of our finer readers who are commenting.
This sounds like something that was “put up” by an “activist” to stir it up… I have never seen or heard a disparaging comment or remark about race or sexual orientation ANYWHERE in SB-
So it’s true: Some people are ludicrously naive.
So Job, you fail to mention who IS being targeted for this anti-racism training. Could you please enlighten us as to which large group of people in our midst need special training in order to do right? I choose to believe that most people are good and want to do right.
For straight white men, they wouldn’t recognize these types of things. As a non-white, non-straight woman, I encounter these types of things every day in Santa Barbara.
10:36am – You’re missing the point. Plenty minority students and faculty have complained to admin and the Board about discrimination in all kinds of forms. This is just another example of it on campus that these people have experienced many many times. If admin painted over it and didn’t acknowledge it, that would further add to the complaints that they lack transparency, do not address these issues, and play them down essentially making it seem like minorities on campus are “overreacting.” SBCC President did the right thing by addressing it, but now it’s on them to actually make changes so students and employees feel safe and heard.
Ha, Coastwatch if that is true you must be deaf and blind. Change your username to Tommy.
Always clean up graffiti rapidly with stealth, and never let the graffiti-er get any satisfaction for their defacement. It’s quite possible that they are pumping their fist in victory with every visceral response here On Edhat because they like to create shock value. They are like pyros with paint. Who cares what they said, just get stripper and a rag. If you were offended, don’t give them the satisfaction of your reaction because that’s exactly what they want. I didn’t look at any images of the graffiti so I don’t which group was offending who.
@Shasta – I see what you’re saying, but doing that ignores the underlying issue that racism is going unchecked at SBCC and is creating an unsafe environment for students and staff. Turning a blind eye will not solve anything.
anyone else see a correlation between this story and the hiring of the new SBCC superintendent?
I don’t think anyone is suggesting that such behavior is OK; it’s the overreacting in ways that won’t solve anything and give publicity to the sadsack who did it, appropriately in a toilet, exactly where that kind of excrement belongs.
Part of it is a “walk a mile in their shoes” issue. If those who never had to handle discrimination or behavior based on their appearance, gender, choice of clothing can’t what it feels like or how pervasive it may be making it easy to under- or over- react. Neither dismissing bad behavior out-of-hand nor trumpeting banner headlines out of minor incidents does anyone favors: the latter is equivalent to crying wolf.
Coastwatch, I was thinking on similar lines. There have been several occurrences where racially motivated graffiti or some other act was done, but it was done by an individual belonging to the targeted group. In other words, the perpetrator staged the action. Until we have facts and data, we should not rule that out. This is not to discount the ugliness of what happened, but it becomes even more ugly if it is found to be a fraud.
How about naming the publicly-elected trustees so we, the voters, will know whom to vote for in the next elections? This writing on a bathroom wall, probably by one person, probably but not necessarily a student (it’s an open campus) is not good but should not be used as an indictment of the campus community as a whole.
MP805 — No connection in the least.
this graffiti is typical of america’s racist genocidal traditions
While possible, no one should assume that this is an SBCC student or employee. The SBCC bathrooms are used as often by the homeless (typically mentally ill) as they are by students, especially in the humanities building and admin buildings which are the most easily accessible from the street and the park. I see it every day, primarily in the late afternoon when fewer students and staff are present.
The other shoe falls as the post below lists other groups which are often targets of bias, prejudice and hate crimes. Cleverly masked with an apparent soft sell that we should not jump to conclusions that SBCC students are responsible for the graffitti, the anonymous alphanumerically-identified keyboard warrior throws shade on the unhoused, who are very unlikely to be able to carry around spray paint considering that they literally have their hands full with the need to drag their meager supplies in a backpack. It is implausible that, along with bedroll and toothbrush, anyone who lacks housing is going to add a bulky can of paint to their burden. What is clear, however, is that the trolls are live and well in Santa Barbara online, and waste no opportunity to amp up the hateful rhetoric and throw suspicion on the innocent. Shameful.
Yes, it is bad to write this sort of thing, a sniveling behavior. But, Yes, it is harmful to overreact to such oddities. Nothing in this bathroom graffiti can be attributed to officials or SBCC policy. We all need to develop a bit more reflection and distance and evaluate “threats” in context. Using this incident seems to me to be manipulative of one agenda, unfortunately. And, by the way, the idea that certain words or phrases are only to be used by “authorized persons” is a direct threat to American freedom. As ugly as Trump’s “lynching” analogy was, it is not a per se racist comment, for example.
Yes and no. Clarence Thomas referred to his contentious legal problem as a “lynching”, didn’t he. But there are those who would argue that Thomas has internalized racism and is as much a white-supremacist as an KKK member, so I suppose his use of the term does not really offset how snivelly it was for trump to use the term, associated with ugly mob violence and murder, with regard to a lawful proceeding under public law.
Sad to see people here propagating neo-NAZl talking points.
You really are missing a lot about race in America. Unfortunatley your post reads like an alt-right talking point. There’s lots of reading out there which might help you see through the trees. “Invisible Man” by Ralph Ellison is a good start.
3:03 p.m. Please document that SBCC has had a role in the distribution of the offensive materials you describe. Your sloppy language is typical of the thinking that leads us into such conflicts. In fact it is individual, non-official, actors that tag bathrooms secretly.
I for one think this is the action of someone who isn’t even part of SBCC at all. As a student there I have never seen or heard any racist talk around the campus. Some idiot is getting the rise they wanted, that is a fact. Sometimes the graffiti should be removed and never discussed unless it keeps happening. I truly believe, with an open campus, any outsiders could easily have written the vile crap. Especially in a bathroom. We have many young kids and homeless people hanging around in the late afternoons. Maybe Security should be keeping a closer eye out on these people that are hanging around and using the bathroom frequently.
And what evidence do you have to support your allegation that “young kids and homeless people” are responsible? Why not target anyone who looks like they might don a MAGA hat? Or…. see what a slippery slope that creates? Or are you too blinded by your own prejudice?
Sure, it could easily have been done by student or staff. Human beings a perverse by nature. However, as a rational human being (and practicing non-troll btw), I have to take my firsthand experience into account in addition to what I read in emails from admin or on edhat for that matter. A critical thinker would ask “How do we know it’s a student?” The reason it’s important to ask this is because school policy is created on incidents such as these.
There have, in fact, been quite a few incidents of property destruction committed by people other than SBCC students and staff. I HAVE to combine those facts with what I see every day. What I see are bathrooms that are heavily used by non-students.
Wow! No one said they were responsible in the first place! I was stating a FACT that others not involved with the school are often seen on campus and especially in the bathrooms. I have seen it almost daily for 3 years. My guess, by your silly post, is that you do not even step foot on Campus. So stay in your lane. You are the only one being prejudice and judgmental! Is that because you where a “MAGA” hat? I bet I give more to the Homeless and than you ever will!
I swear to God I think there are people on EdHat whose only entertainment is to come and downvote good comments. Hateful people who downvote others saying worthwhile things. ANY kind of racism is wrong and should be dealt with swiftly and forcibly. NO tolerance for racism here.
This should have been cleaned up and forgotten about. All of this attention gives power to whomever wrote this disgusting slur, and instills fear in people. The action the school has taken since broadcasting this is extreme and unnecessary. Does anyone actually believe there are lives in danger at SBCC? Seriously? We have a racist lunatic running our country. This has divided us and caused extremists on both sides to emerge. Let’s calm down and look at this rationally. Horrible bathroom graffiti does not warrant this response.
How comfortable unconscious SB racists are, declaring the recent racist hate message in a SBCC men’s room variously ONE-OFF, FAKE, HANDLE-AND-FORGET, PERPETRATED BY PROVOCATEUR, etc etc etc…but if you are one the CONSCIOUS racists, hear this–it don’t fly anymore. The job of a community is to LISTEN to victims and OPPOSE victimization. Sorry it has to be declared still to this day!
Please name those three Board Members so they can be voted out.
So true. I doubt they’d have the same attitude if that grafitti was aimed at their own child’s race or ethnicity, or gender, or if students in general were threatened that way, or with the use of another form of death – like “eff students, they should all be shot” I seriously doubt anyone would recommend ignoring it.
You should get out more. I know a bunch of latinos and they each have their stories about how they are treated here in town.
If you don’t think that the lynching comment was racist per se, you are not qualified to comment on this topic.