The University of Iowa has been experiencing a rash of anti-minority sentiment, and members of the ISU community said they are shocked by the events.

On March 28, U of I College of Dentistry Dean David Johnson and several faculty members received an e-mail from the address [email protected] (using the spelling minoirtyrid). Ann Rhodes, UI vice president for University Relations, said the e-mail claimed to be from a group of “highly recognized citizens who want a change.”

The e-mail contained the message that was “one of disgust and hatred towards not only the black students but all minority students breathing the fresh air of Iowa City,” and threatened to send e-mail to other minority students if actions weren’t taken to remove them from the school within three days.

According to the e-mail, the goal of the group is to first rid the upper-level schools and graduate student population of minorities. The sender of the mail remains anonymous, but it credits a group that goes by four names: Minorityout, Minoritygetout, Minorityrid Committee and the Committee of Minority Flight, none of which are recognized hate groups.

U of I President Mary Sue Coleman sent out an e-mail to the entire campus promising students that action is being taken to find whoever sent the e-mail.

“Let me assure you that we take this affront to the minority members of our community extremely seriously,” she wrote in the mass e-mail. “We regard these acts as a threat to our entire community. We are using all the methods available to attempt to confront the person or persons responsible for these acts of cowardice and intimidation.”

About 1,000 U of I students “Walked the Walk” Tuesday as they rallied in support for minority students. Speakers at the U of I rally included Coleman, Iowa City Mayor Ernie Lehman and U of I students and faculty.

Jacqueline Comito, one of the rally’s organizers, said the issue needed to be addressed openly.

“Silence is not the way you should deal with these things,” said Comito, U of I graduate assistant in credit programs.

Steve Parrott, U of I’s director of University Relations, agreed that silence would not be the way to respond to the e-mail. “Joining in the rally was the easy part,” he said. “Now we must be sure that we’re not silent when things actually happen.”

The events at U of I have left some members of the ISU community disgusted and questioning the safety of Iowa State’s campus.

Brett Taege, president of the ISU Multicultural Awareness and Support System, said he didn’t think minorities feel unsafe in Ames.

“I’m a little stunned that someone would do that,” said Taege, freshman in mathematics, of the U of I incidents. “Some minorities here don’t feel like they get enough attention, but I don’t think they fear for their safety. But I think this can happen anywhere, unfortunately.”

Charles Wright, president of the ISU Multicultural Action Group, said the e-mail was an insulting form of communication. “Acting through e-mail is cowardly because it’s faceless,” said Wright, senior in child and family services.

Jay Berry, faculty adviser for the ISU Black Student Alliance, said racial tension at Iowa State has been low in the past few years.

“In the last year or so, it’s been relatively quiet, I think,” said Berry, adjunct assistant professor of English. “But you hope the campus comes together to denounce the hatred. Students should exercise their own voices and stand up for what is right.”

Kathleen MacKay, ISU dean of students, said the threats are a violation of civil rights.

“I believe in free speech. However, to send derogatory e-mail because of race or ethnicity is highly inappropriate,” she said. “You have to balance a person’s right to free speech with everyone’s right to a safe community.”

The March 28 e-mail was only the start of a rash of racist behavior. Two days after the original e-mail, eight minority dental school students received a second e-mail, which threatened violence.

On April 4, a minority dental student found a bowl of spaghetti and red food coloring outside his off-campus apartment door, along with a handwritten note alluding that the spaghetti represented “dead black man’s brains.”

A lab coat was ignited by a Bunsen burner in a dental laboratory April 6. No one was wearing the coat at the time, and there were no injuries. Later that day, a U of I student received an e-mail from Minorityrid claiming the fire was intentionally set by the group.

U of I’s Department of Public Safety has heightened security around the dental building, keeping only one door unlocked. Campus officers are tracing the e-mail, and the Iowa City Police Department is investigating the off-campus incident. No arrests have been made.