Spring Break
Three halls receive racist letters
Jenkins, Poorman warn students, condemn message; unclear why ND was targeted
Marcela Berrios
Issue date: 1/28/08 Section: News
After every resident of at least three Notre Dame dorms last week received racist letters, University officials have reached out to the student body to condemn the message and warn that more letters may arrive.
In an e-mail to the student body sent Friday, University President Father John Jenkins and Vice President for Student Affairs Father Mark Poorman dismissed the writer's claims as "blatant prejudice" and reiterated Notre Dame's stance on racism.
The writer of the one-page letters - who identified himself in the document as a man from North Dakota - sent an envelope to each room in at least two residence halls, addressing them simply to "Occupant," Jenkins and Poorman said.
The Observer has since learned that at least one more dorm received the letter. Though Zahm, Lewis and Knott Halls were the only confirmed recipients of the letter Sunday night, Jenkins, Poorman and the rectors of the targeted dorms said there is a possibility more of these letters may arrive in the next days.
The letter, Jenkins and Poorman said in their e-mail, "makes the false and abhorrent argument that blacks are intellectually inferior to whites."
In the letter, the writer claims that "on average, blacks are less intelligent than whites and the reason why is genetic."
He cites various books and magazine articles to support his argument that putting more resources into predominantly African-American schools will not result in "significant improvement" in these communities' levels of education. He further condemns the United States' decision to give aid to African countries.
In April 2007, the same man sent 354 letters to residents in seven different dorms in Ohio State University, reported the school's student newspaper, The Lantern. The paper chose not to disclose the writer's name, which -as in Notre Dame's case - was included at the end of the letter.
The Observer was not able to contact the man Sunday and is therefore not releasing his name either. It was not immediately clear why the man targeted Notre Dame, or how the dorms that received the letters were chosen.
In an e-mail to the student body sent Friday, University President Father John Jenkins and Vice President for Student Affairs Father Mark Poorman dismissed the writer's claims as "blatant prejudice" and reiterated Notre Dame's stance on racism.
The writer of the one-page letters - who identified himself in the document as a man from North Dakota - sent an envelope to each room in at least two residence halls, addressing them simply to "Occupant," Jenkins and Poorman said.
The Observer has since learned that at least one more dorm received the letter. Though Zahm, Lewis and Knott Halls were the only confirmed recipients of the letter Sunday night, Jenkins, Poorman and the rectors of the targeted dorms said there is a possibility more of these letters may arrive in the next days.
The letter, Jenkins and Poorman said in their e-mail, "makes the false and abhorrent argument that blacks are intellectually inferior to whites."
In the letter, the writer claims that "on average, blacks are less intelligent than whites and the reason why is genetic."
He cites various books and magazine articles to support his argument that putting more resources into predominantly African-American schools will not result in "significant improvement" in these communities' levels of education. He further condemns the United States' decision to give aid to African countries.
In April 2007, the same man sent 354 letters to residents in seven different dorms in Ohio State University, reported the school's student newspaper, The Lantern. The paper chose not to disclose the writer's name, which -as in Notre Dame's case - was included at the end of the letter.
The Observer was not able to contact the man Sunday and is therefore not releasing his name either. It was not immediately clear why the man targeted Notre Dame, or how the dorms that received the letters were chosen.