Lehigh University student assaulted in hate crime on campus, cops say

A Lehigh University student was assaulted over the weekend in what police are calling a hate crime on campus.

The Black student was walking with a group of friends and fellow Lehigh students on campus, when a group of four white people driving by yelled racist comments, university police said.

The people in the car are not affiliated with Lehigh and are not from the Bethlehem area, police said.

The Black student ran after the car before stopping and rejoining his group of friends. The group in the car then got out, followed the students and assaulted the Black student, according to police.

After an ongoing verbal exchange, some of the suspects followed the students into a campus residence hall, assaulting the Black student again, police said.

The victim, who has requested anonymity to their protect privacy, had no serious physical injuries, police said.

The suspects fled before the incident was reported to campus police, but the department said it has identified the people involved.

The victim and witnesses are cooperating with the investigation, and authorities are “evaluating criminal charges or a potential restorative justice resolution,” according to a statement sent by Lehigh University Chief of Police Jason Schiffer.

“These racist comments and hate crime are deeply disturbing and upsetting. They affect not just the students involved, but also other Black students and individuals in the Lehigh community. Hate speech and violence are not tolerated on Lehigh’s campus,” Schiffer wrote. “My heart goes out to the involved students and to all members of our community who are undoubtedly impacted by incidents of hate and discrimination. We will vigorously investigate these incidents and hold people accountable.”

University President Joseph J. Helble said he spoke with the victim, who was doing nothing more than walking down the street with friends.

“While I am deeply relieved that he was not physically harmed as a result of the assault, that does not mean that this was somehow insignificant. We must all work together to do the hard work to eradicate hate and violence. Calling this out when it happens is a first and necessary step, and I am committed to our doing so. This must stop,” Helble wrote in a message sent Thursday morning.

Helble said the hate crime on Lehigh’s campus comes amid other recent events, including a white homeowner shooting Ralph Yarl through a glass door when the Black teen mistakenly went to wrong house to pick up his siblings.

Andrew Lester has been charged with first-degree assault in the incident.

“I understand the anger and the fear that our Black students, faculty and staff experience, especially following reports of events such as these. I, too, am angry. I am committed to our campus being that place where every member of the Lehigh community studies, engages and lives in an environment free from violence and free from hate,” Helble said.