A swastika and the homosexual slur “FAG” were discovered written in the snow between Botany Gardens and Chamberlin Hall early Tuesday morning.
Jackie Spaight — a UW-Madison student — found the symbols written in the snow around 9:15 a.m. when she was walking to class. Spaight said she removed the symbols from the snow so “nobody would have to see that.”
“It is disappointing,” she said. “Last year, a lot of students pointed out that students won’t accept [this behavior] here, so I’m kind of surprised that someone would still feel the need to do something like this.”
Spaight filed a hate and bias report to the university about the incident. Although she said she does not expect the culprit to be identified, Spaight added it is important the university know “this kind of hate exists in our community.”
UW-Madison spokesperson Meredith McGlone said the message written in the snow is “absolutely counter” to campus values of respect and inclusion. McGlone confirmed that the incident was reported through the bias report system.