UNL Police investigating LGBTQA+ hate crime on campus

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Police Department is investigating a hate crime assault on campus.

In an email sent to students on Tuesday, the university said the assault happened around 2 a.m. Sunday outside of Jorgensen Hall.

Officials reported that a group of people was approached by an unknown man on a sidewalk.

He asked one of them if they were gay, then called the victim a homophobic slur and slammed them onto the ground, according to Lincoln Crime Stoppers.

The man was white with short brown hair, a black T-shirt, jeans and brown cowboy boots, the university noted.

One student, Alyssa Holsey, said she was surprised to hear about the attack.

“I thought that college campuses in general are pretty inclusive since a lot of them have specific offices for diversity and inclusion,” she said. “But I guess that doesn’t apply to the students that actually go here.

Grace Sandbulte, another student, said the news is worrying.

“It is concerning because I spend a lot of time here,” she said. “And personally, I don’t experience much danger, but it’s sad to know that other people are feeling that on the same campus that I’m on.”

UNL Police said the third-degree assault would be classified by state law and the federal Clery Act as “hate crime motivated by bias against the LGBTQA+ community.”

Chancellor Rodney Bennet addressed the university community after the safety alert.

“Our path to excellence requires that everyone be able to work and learn in an atmosphere of safety, respect and dignity,” Bennet said in a statement.