Individualized Incidents
The events described below were perpetrated by individuals, who were not necessarily supported by or affiliated with campus groups. Although carried out by individuals, similar incidents occurred decades apart, making these seemingly separate incidents part of a broader pattern.
Asian Students Wake Up to "Chink" and "Bastard" on Their Doors
In January of 1996, two Asian American students living in Little Hall discovered racial slurs scrawled on their doors. Police arrested one perpetrator — a Dartmouth '98 — who was later charged with disorderly conduct. Jeffrey Link '98 confessed to writing "chink" and "bastard" on the Little Hall door of Asian American students Michael Yoo '98 and Jon Jun '98. Jun and Yoo would end up relocating dorm rooms. The incident occurred on January 15th, which was also Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
In a second incident that same week, two other Asian students found the racial slur "chink" on their doors after it had been washed off the night before. Link '98 was not considered to be a suspect in this second case.
The Dean of the College at the time, Lee Pelton, implied that the racist graffiti was a form of free speech. According to The Dartmouth, "Although Dean of the College Lee Pelton would not comment on whether the student will receive discipline from the College, he said that free speech is always protected." In response to the incident, Jennifer Chon wrote an article for The D titled "Injustice Anywhere Is Threat Everywhere." She writes, "I understand not everyone comes to Dartmouth with the same diverse background as I, yet I do not think I am unreasonable in requesting that other students show this respect to me, as I would to them, by expressing themselves with maturity."
"When it's been happening to you all your life, and when you come to college, especially Dartmouth College, you don't expect that to happen to you."
- Michael Yoo '98 in The D, on discovering the racial slurs on his door.
Asian Students Are Verbally Harassed in FOCO
In January 2013, two Asian students were walking in ‘53 Commons dining hall (colloquially known as Foco) when a white student “walked by them, made eye contact and verbally harassed them by speaking gibberish that was perceived to be mock Chinese,” according to Dartmouth’s director of media relations. The two students went to OPAL (the Office of Pluralism and Leadership) for support, and they were encouraged to report the incident to SNS (Safety and Security). It was the second reported racist incident of that week.
In response to the incident, SNS launched an investigation to identify the perpetrator. The college also organized a program for students to discuss the impact of bigotry and ignorance on campus.
That week, a few students shared their thoughts with The D. "It is certainly not freak incidents," one student in the class of ‘12 said. "Over my time at Dartmouth there have been regular occurrences, but these are the most regular occurrences I have seen. It's certainly not getting better, so we need to fix it." Another student from the class of ‘14 said, "Students need to flood as many outlets as they can to say that these things are not isolated and to demand more forums and collective action.” Students clearly desired a stronger response from the administration and their fellow students, and they were also aware that these incidents were not unique.
Hiding Behind a Screen: Anonymous Posts
Dartmouth College students have long used anonymous posting sites and apps to communicate with each other, mainly sharing relatively lighthearted and mundane content. However, anonymous posting platforms have also historically been used to express racist and xenophobic sentiment without repercussions. Here are just two anonymous posts that promote anti-Asian sentiments.
Racial Slurs Across West House & School House
In September and October of 2018, multiple racial slur incidents were reported across student dorms. In September, two students noticed the word “chink” written on the door of a Chinese student’s dorm on the fourth floor of McLane Hall. That same morning, similar incidents also occurred in West House. Less than four weeks later in October, three more racist incidents were reported in School House dorms (specifically in Hitchcock Hall, Mid Mass, and North Mass). In response to the racist incidents, emails were sent out by House directors to their respective House communities. West House held what was called a “community gathering” shortly after, which only two students attended. School House held a community gathering on October 16th, which only eight students attended. Despite the incredibly low turnout to these events, these one-time activities were supposedly enough to address a serious situation.
According to The D, Isabelle Chung ‘19 found racist vandalism on her door in Hitchcock Hall, which included the name of another Asian student next to a heart and was most likely written in permanent marker. She reported the graffiti to her UGA, who in turn spoke with SNS. But when Chung asked UGA for a follow up convo about the incident, the UGA spoke to the School House assistant director who immediately directed her to the “community gathering.” Chung said she was disappointed by her UGA's response. According to The D, the officer handling Chung’s case “admitted to having previously confused Chung’s case with another case the department was handling.” This specific incident reveals the slow response and indifference by the college despite the grave nature of the situation. Four days after the vandalism incident, Chung was still waiting for someone to help her remove the writing from her door.
Not Just On-Campus: Attack Against Asian Grad Students In Town
On September 17th, an older white man was directing racist comments towards three graduate students at the Thayer School of Engineering — all Indian students — outside their residence on Main Street. The three approached Abubakar Khan, a biochemistry Ph.D. candidate and someone they knew, and told him about the situation. The four of them simply went to identify the man.
According to The D, the four walked by and the man returned to racist comments. He would say "Gandhi" to Khan, and also threw his food and newspaper at the students. That is when Khan took out his phone to start recording. The man rushed towards him, apparently in an attempt to grab the phone, according to Khan. The man then placed Khan in a chokehold with one of Khan's arms behind his own back. Satyam Gawali, one of the three graduate students, contemplated getting involved, and then stepped in to get the man off Khan because he was not letting go. The man then went on to throw a nearby beer can at Khan, which hit a traffic light pole instead. Khan quickly told his friend to call 911, and a group of undergraduate students came to help and drive off the attacker. The suspect has targeted other students of color before. At least two other students, one Indian student and one student from Nepal, have endured racist or aggressive verbal harassment from the same man within the past six months.
On September 27th, a town hall meeting was held for the graduate and professional schools. The town hall centered on racially-charged violence, the consequences of the attack on the South Asian community, and campus safety. The panel included the Safety and Security (SNS) director Keiselim Montás, the Diversity and Inclusion vice president Shontay Delalue, psychiatrist Da-Shih Hu from the counseling department, and the dean of the Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies Jon Kull. According to the D, Khan and others felt that many questions asked to the panelists were left unanswered in the town hall. In addition, the graduate students were notified of the event only a day before, which rendered the event “useless” for some as a result. Postdocs were given only a three hour notice to attend, and undergraduate students were not notified of the event at all.
We can think about what factors contribute to Asian students and other students of color to be unsafe while attending Dartmouth, and what action can be taken by the institution to help them be safer and more welcomed. Khan says to The D: "I hope the College does something because it’s not just me. Maybe I’m the first person who was physically assaulted, but [these incidents] have happened before as well, and why hasn’t action been taken?"
In response to the anti-Asian attack, the Dartmouth Asian American Studies Collective (DAASC) organized a teach-in on November 4th. The teach-in centered South Asian history in the US, a brief history of anti-Asian hate at Dartmouth, as well as open discussion on its repercussions.