GETTYSBURG, Pa. — At least two students at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania have been suspended from the swim team after a report that one student had a racial slur etched into his body, authorities said.
Officials received “a deeply troubling report about a racial slur that was etched on a student using a plastic or ceramic tool,” officials at the 2,200-student private liberal arts school in Gettysburg said in a statement last week.
“This is a serious report, which is being actively evaluated through the student conduct process,” the university said. “At this time, the students involved are not participating in swim team activities.”
The school declined to release further details, citing that process and privacy laws.
It is believed to have occurred during an “informal social gathering at a campus residence” and was first reported by upperclassmen on the swim team, Gettysburg College President Robert Iuliano said.
Iuliano described feeling “deep anguish over what happened” and the impact on those who have long been underrepresented on campus, as well as the implications “for a community that continues its evolving efforts to create a truly inclusive environment.”
“Regardless of the relationship, and regardless of the motivation, there is no place on this campus for words or actions that demean, belittle or marginalize based on one's identity and history,” she said in a statement that also warned against speculation “based on bits of information that may or may not be accurate.”
City Police Chief Robert Glenny Jr. said he contacted the university after hearing news reports and was told the student who was allegedly attacked chose to handle the matter through the university's internal process, despite university officials encouraging the person to take the matter to police, WGAL-TV reported.
