University of Utah officials confirm they are investigating new claims of racist-motivated harassment among their students following several racist incidents, including the most recent bomb threat against the Black Cultural Center in Fort Douglas.

In a statement released by the University of Utah Police, a caller identifying himself as a Neo-Nazi informed the campus of a bomb planted at the center. 

"The University of Utah is not a haven for this kind of hateful and biased thinking and attacks, and university leaders have committed to completing a thorough review with actionable steps to be implemented during the spring semester," the statement read.

While the school was secured and unoccupied, officers immediately responded at 4:25 a.m. and searched the building using bomb-sniffing dogs. The police reported finding no explosive devices; the building at the time. Due to no immediate threat to life, the police chief determined that a "timely warning" through the campus alert system was unnecessary.

The university understands the plight Black students at the school must feel. 

"This is the third incident reported in as many weeks, and we understand that the community, especially our Black students, are feeling exhausted, targeted, and disconnected," the university stated. "but we must remain vigilant in striving to ensure that all our staff, students and faculty are able to find a place of safety and belonging as a part of our campus community."

Taylor Randall, President of the University of Utah, has issued a video statement regarding racial incidents.

"There are many in our community who feel these threats on a daily basis," Randall said. "That is not the kind of community we are trying to build here. It's not the kind of community we want to live in."

Randall expressed concern over the numerous racially motivated incidents at the school over the last few months. A Black student reported having excrement smeared on their dorm door, as well as the sighting of several men dressed as KKK members walking through the school's dorms in white hooded robes.

An earlier statement issued by the university noted that the incident in which the men dressed as KKK members appeared was the second such incident. 

In December, months after the incident occurred, a junior at the university posted about the incident on Instagram, questioning why officials hadn't been addressed the incident appropriately after months. 

"University of Utah students walked through residence halls in KKK uniforms & smeared poop on a Black student's door. Why hasn't anyone done anything?" she writes.

The school's Racist and Bias Incident Response Team caught wind of the post and issued a statement based on Housing & Residential Education (HRE) information. According to a recent statement, two separate incidents occurred a month apart, and both incidents are being reviewed and do not appear to be connected.

On Sep. 1, a student resident found a paper towel on their door handle with excrement. HRE could not determine who had left the disgusting paper towel on the door handle. The student was later relocated to a new residence.   

The Resident Assistant (RA) in the same residence hall reported on Oct. 2 that some students were overheard saying that there were people in "white KKK-like attire" attempting to recruit people. HRE reviewed the video footage surrounding the three-day incident period and spoke with the RA and desk staff — however, the men were not identified without corroborating information.

This threat against Black Cultural Center follows similar threats made this month simultaneously against several other universities. Just last week, nine HBCUs across the country were the target of bomb threats. — This week, California's only HBCU, Charles R. Drew University, launched an investigation after officials received a bomb threat via email from a neo-Nazi fascist. — Just days ahead of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.