Vandalism Strikes Oregon Campus Gay Group

A four-foot swastika was found painted in the office belonging to the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Trans Queer Alliance at the University of Oregon in Eugene on Monday morning.

According to The Oregonian,the hate symbol was scrawled in black spray paint on the carpet of the office in the student union. Paint also covered a computer and monitor.

A custodian found the swastika around 1 a.m. when entering the office. The door was unlocked.

A police investigation is under way.

Alex Esparza, co-director of the alliance, speculated that the vandalism could be related to a recent campus discussion about the meaning of the swastika sponsored by the Pacifica Forum. According to The Oregonian, the outside group is classified as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, but the university said it allowed the group on campus as part of its free speech policy.