Multiple Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) receive bomb threats

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – More than six Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) across multiple state received bomb threats on Monday and Tuesday, triggering shelter-in-place orders, lockdowns and class cancellations before the all clear was given, NPR reports.

At least 24 HBCUs have received such threats in the last few weeks; new threats coincided with the beginning of February, officially celebrated in the US as Black History month.

Schools that received threats included Albany State University (NY), Bethune-Cookman University (Fla.), Bowie State University (Md.), Delaware State University, Howard University (DC), Edward Waters University (Fla.) and Southern University and A&M College (La.).

Together with local police, the FBI is investigating the spate of threats as “racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism and hate crimes,” Fox News reported. On Wednesday, FBI counterterrorism division deputy assistant director James Tarasca said in a statement that the Bureau has identified five suspects it believes are involved in the crimes, and has been interviewing them. All of the threats are believed to be related, if not credible, the FBI said.

Confirming a bomb threat at his school on Tuesday, Edward Waters University A. Zachary Faison, Jr. wrote on Twitter: “The vicious and racially-motivated targeting of Florida’s first HBCU is extremely unsettling for our community,”

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