St. Olaf College Protest: 5 Things You Should Know

NORTHFIELD, MN — Students at St. Olaf College are protesting racism and what they believe is a lackluster response from school administrators following a report that a minority student at the school was targeted by a racist letter. Here's what you need to know:

1. Racist note found on car

The targeted student, Samantha Wells, told Northfield News that she found a racist note on her car's windshield Saturday. The incident went public after another student posted the racist note on Twitter (warning: the note includes vulgar language).

2. Previous racist acts reported

This is the seventh reported hate speech incident on St. Olaf’s campus during the 2016-17 academic year, according to student newspaper Manitou Messenger.

3. St. Olaf condemns "hateful and threatening messages"

St. Olaf issued a press release following protests that occurred after the note was reported:

The repeated violations of our values by people who have sent hateful and threatening messages to members of our community are simply unacceptable.

We are doing everything we can to catch the people involved in perpetrating these hate-filled acts. An active investigation is under way, and there are several leads that we are following up on using every tool we have at our disposal. We have also notified the Northfield Police Department and have a protocol in place to ensure their full cooperation.

Someone, somewhere knows who is perpetrating these acts of racism. We are asking for the St. Olaf community’s assistance in identifying the individuals involved. If you are aware of any information that could assist in identifying anyone responsible for perpetrating these or other offenses, please immediately contact the St. Olaf 24-hour Public Safety dispatch at 507-786-3666. Be sure to maintain an accurate record of the timeframe for when events may have occurred, any photographs or other records, and information about any individuals you observed in the vicinity.

We appreciate the members of our campus community who are advocating for meaningful action in response. We are supporting their efforts and, most importantly, listening to their insight and concerns.

4. Students blame the college's administration

The students protesting are critical of St. Olaf administration's response to the slew of reported hate speech incidents. Students told Northfield News that racist messages have appeared in various public places on campus this year.

“It’s been something that’s been going on all year,” Wells told Northfield News. “We’ve done so much digging and this stuff has happened for decades. There’s one thing that happens and it stops and then it happens again and then it kind of stops. I think the big message is we shouldn’t let this happen again. The administration needs to do something that stops it indefinitely.”

5. A student sit-in has been taking place since Saturday.

Hundreds of students come out Saturday night to protest the response from the administration. Some students plan to occupy the building until the administration improves, from their perspective.

The school scheduled a town hall for Tuesday in the chapel at 3:05 p.m.

Have you been a victim to or have witnessed a hate crime? Tell your story here.

Here is the St. Olaf student body ethnic composition, according to the college's website

• American Indian or Alaskan Native: 4 (.1 percent)
• Asian, Non-Hispanic: 190 (6 percent)
• Black or African American, Non-Hispanic: 61 (2 percent)
• Hispanic: 157 (5 percent)
• Multiracial, Non-Hispanic: 108 (4 percent)
• Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 1
• Nonresident International: 234 (8 percent)
• Race/Ethnicity Unknown: 25 (1 percent)
• White, Non-Hispanic: 2,266 (74 percent)

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