YPSILANTI, Mich. – Students and staff at Eastern Michigan University were angered Tuesday night after someone spray-painted racial slurs on the side of a campus building.
The graffiti went up overnight and was taken down by 11 a.m.
"I was outraged," one student said. "I immediately wanted answers."
The ones who didn't see the slurs in person saw the pictures on social media.
"Washing it off isn't enough," student Zach Badger said. "Actions definitely need to take place. I need to know I'm welcome on this campus."
After the shock of seeing the message died off, it was replaced by anger and fear.
"I don't feel safe," Armani Davis said. "I mean, who's to say whoever did this isn't planning something worse?"
The message was spray-painted in a low-lit, little traveled area, meaning cameras didn't directly capture it. But police are aggressively investigating every lead.
"We are researching and interviewing anyone who may have been in that area to find whoever is responsible, because quite honestly, this is a rarity on our campus," EMU police Chief Bob Heighes said.
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"The university strongly condemns this," said Calvin Phillips, EMU VP of students' affairs.
"(This is) where I'm supposed to be safe," Zhane Williams said. "Where I'm supposed to be learning. Where I'm supposed to be growing. But how do you learn when you don't feel welcome?"
Students planned a sit-out to protest the racial slurs. It's taking place at King Hall, where the graffiti was found.