“These incidents do not represent who we are as Spartans," the email stated. "Addressing and preventing these incidents is a community effort and commitment." 

Gore's email said the Spartan community has a responsibility to create an inclusive campus and sense of belonging through togetherness, compassion and healing. 

"All of us have a rightful space on this campus," Gore said. "Let’s all amplify and support the humanization and recognition of those who may have had fewer opportunities and chances to prosper, as together, we create a university grounded in connections, belonging, allyship, equity and justice." 

The statement also addressed the impact that hateful incidents have on people. It encouraged students experiencing depression, anger, reoccurring thoughts of an event, hyper-vigilance and other effects to reach out to MSU Counseling & Psychiatric Services.

Additionally, students can report incidents that they believe violate the university's Anti-Discrimination or Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct and Title IX Policies by visiting civilrights.msu.edu. 

However, the email did not provide any details on the incidents that it referenced, including who may have been targeted. The university told The State News it could not disclose further information due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, which is a law that regulates access to student educational records by public entities.

“Please be advised that under a federal law known as (FERPA), the University cannot disclose student information without their consent," Rugless said in a statement to The State News. "Providing specific details about the incidents would disclose information that is protected by FERPA." 

The email came six days after a statement released by MSU’s Black Students’ Alliance, or BSA, and MSU’s chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, described multiple “racial incidents” that have occurred since the start of fall semester. 

BSA President Ty’Rianna Leslie said in a text message to The State News that she knew "for certain" that the letter was "a direct statement in response to BSA’s statement."

Leslie said she thought the university was right to protect the privacy of students who were targeted, especially given that BSA did not include names of targeted individuals in their statement. However, Leslie said the letter was vague and avoided referencing the community that was targeted in the incidents. 

“(The university) could have said ‘the Black community,’ because we are the ones who released the statement, and we are the ones who have been reporting many instances that have been happening on campus regarding hate speech, so that would have been appreciated," Leslie said. 

BSA has corresponded with university administration in the past regarding the university’s response to instances of racial discrimination. 

On June 8, the BSA advisor saw a racist slur written on the sidewalk outside of the Student Services building. The organization promptly released a statement calling on the Board of Trustees to convene with BSA to “discuss ways to combat this unruly behavior so that we may be able to hold individuals accountable for committing such heinous acts.”

On Sept. 18, the BSA hosted a town hall meeting with Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of MSU Police Marlon Lynch in which the June 8 incident was discussed. Lynch told BSA members that an investigation into the incident was made, but no one was ever charged in connection with the incident. 

Following the incident, BSA called for security cameras to be installed at the Student Services Building.

Lynch said at the meeting that he hoped security cameras would be installed by the end of the month. 

Last week, MSUPD Spokesperson Dana Whyte told The State News that since February, “more than 130 new security cameras have been installed across campus, and there are approximately 180 in the queue to be installed.” 

Whyte said specifics about where the cameras are can not be disclosed due to “security concerns” and “bad actors potentially knowing where the cameras are located.” 

The BSA plans to conduct a walkout on Oct. 18 to show they "will not tolerate this indifference" and would like further action from the university, according to the organization's Instagram account. The walkout will commence at 2 p.m. and will include a march to the Rock where students will give speeches. 

“Moving forward, the BSA, NAACP, and our advocacy-based affiliates will continue to expose these instances that the institution wishes not to shed light on.”