UCLA Police Investigate Alleged Hate Crime Against Asian Women
WESTWOOD (CBSLA.com) — UCLA police are investigating a potential hate crime on campus after a racially and sexually offensive message toward Asian women was discovered by students Tuesday.
Vandals reportedly typed "Asian women R ****** white-boy worshipping ******" on a piece of paper and placed it on a banner outside of the Vietnamese Student Union's office at Kerckhoff Hall.
The first inappropriate word in the note was a racial term often used in the '70s to describe Caucasian people.
The second word referenced a woman who sells her body.
Uyen Hoang, the vice president of the VSU, said the language hurt her as a Vietnamese woman.
"It's devastating because we at UCLA are a diverse, educated campus," she said. "To have these schoolyard remarks posted is just something that makes people feel unsafe."
UCLA officials declined an on camera interview with KCAL9's Serene Branson, but spokesman Steve Ritea released the following statement:
"We share the students' anger and sadness and condemn this incident. It is contrary to our values and our mission to establish and maintain a welcoming and respectful environment."
Ritea also said the occurrence is isolated and has nothing to do with other racially charged incidents reported on campus.
Last year, UCLA student Alexandra Wallace's infamous YouTube rant about Asian students at the library went viral.
