SEATTLE - The student body president of Western Washington University says she has received death threats and no longer feels safe on the Bellingham campus.
During a news conference on Wednesday, Belina Seare said malicious comments about her on social media have threatened her sense of safety.
"These are threats that were being made against me as a black female student and are reflective of our campus climate and the continuous violence enacted on black and brown students and communities across the nation and the world," said Seare.
Seare said she brought her concerns to the university police and school officials and was told there was not much they could do. Seare says she feels she has to choose between her education and her safety.
"Up until this point, I've been refused appropriate security and, due to the negligent response of the campus police, I know my safety is not a priority," said Seare.
She joined other students and community activists to speak out about the way woman of color are treated at Western and other campuses around the region and the nation.
The press conference was held off-campus at the Whatcom Peace and Justice Center.
The school did not immediately respond to Seare's claims.
The University canceled classes on Tuesday in response to the threats. The posts mentioned almost every ethnic group, including blacks, Muslims, Jews and American Indians, blaming them for an effort on campus to debate changing the university's mascot, a Viking.
University president Bruce Shepard acknowledged earlier Wednesday that students of color reported feeling unsafe on campus. He said police determined there were no threats made to general campus safety, but they were taking the threats made to specific people seriously.
Shepard was asked if he was unaware of reported racial tensions on campus.
"University campuses reflect the society that we live in and I think we do a great disservice when we turn a blind eye to the racial tensions that exist in American society," said Shepard.
