An investigation by the police will be held on Howard University’s campus after violent threats were made by students.
Howard University President Wayne A.I. Frederick wrote in an announcement to the campus community that “a number of life-threatening and dangerous messages have been posted on social media by Howard University students, sent via email and group chats, threatening the safety of the Howard University community.”
Howard spokeswoman Alonda Thomas declined to provide more information about the nature of the threats or to name the law enforcement agencies involved, but a protest group reportedly denied that students advocated for violence. They instead were making efforts to raise awareness about “the unjust revocation of scholarships.”
Students expressed frustration about loss of scholarships, but the university’s officials reportedly said there is no financial aid crisis on campus, claiming that only people who lost scholarships were those whose grades weren’t good enough to warrant an extension of merit-based awards.
“While we fully empathize with students who may have financial challenges meeting established deadlines, threats against our campus community will not be tolerated under any circumstance,” Frederick wrote. “That is not Howard.”
Compiled by Olivia Boyd, WI Intern