Photo courtesy of Christopher McGinty, shared on the Facebook group Cache Valley 411
LOGAN – Graffiti containing swastikas and racial slogans was discovered in the parking lot at Logan High School on Wednesday morning. The words “Black Lives Matter” had been previously painted into the space of one parking stall, only to have the word “Black” covered over in black paint. Below, the word “White” was scrawled in chalk. Other white supremacist slogans and imagery were also painted or written in chalk.
According to a joint statement released by Logan High School and the Logan City School District, the incident in the school’s west parking lot was documented, reported to local law enforcement, and promptly removed by maintenance staff.
The messages referred to white supremacist slogans, the hashtag 1488 which is code for “Heil Hitler”, a lightning bolt which is commonly used in racist gangs and the name of far-right, white nationalist political commentator Nick Fuentes. The graffiti also included the year 1776 along with hashtags “No White Guilt”, “We Are Everywhere” and “America First.”
“As clearly and explicitly as possible, the Logan City School District and Logan High School condemn both the use of racist language and imagery in any context, and the harmful ideologies that promote their use,” the joint statement added. “We are saddened by this act of vandalism, and reiterate to our students, staff, and community our commitment to promoting a safe and equitable learning environment for all students.”
The school and district also reiterated support for recent statements made by the Utah State Board of Education on matters like this:
- Racism in the past and the present is destructive to individuals and society as a whole
- Individuals have a fundamental responsibility to treat others with respect and civility, regardless of their race or ethnicity
- Utah schools should be a place where all students feel safe and are given equitable opportunities to succeed. Utah law provides that “every student in the public schools should have the opportunity to learn in an environment which is safe, conducive to the learning process, and free from unnecessary disruption
In the short time that pictures of the incident were posted on social media and quickly became viral, the district said it has already received a significant amount of outreach from the community seeking ways to demonstrate support for students who may be negatively affected by the vandalism.
“With our community’s support we will continue our efforts to provide a positive environment for all students in our schools so that each of them feels valued and safe. We will also continue to support our students and staff in their efforts to promote equity and inclusion, both in our schools and across our community as a whole.”
Anyone with information regarding the vandalism is encouraged to contact Logan City Police.