Offensive graffiti was found written on a stall in the men’s bathroom in the Warner College of Natural Resources March 6. The graffiti read, “We must preserve European culture and values … ‘diversity’ is not the answer.”

The Colorado State University Police Department was contacted after the report because the writing was considered graffiti. The University worked with Facilities Management to remove the graffiti, which was done the morning after the report.

Rob Novak, director of communications at the Warner College, made a statement denouncing the graffiti.

“The Warner College is an inclusive space for everyone,” Novak said. “We completely disagree and denounce what the graffiti said, and Warner College thinks that diversity is important and essential.”

Novak said that this was only the second time he had encountered such a situation in his four years working for the Warner College.

CSU also released a statement following the report and the graffiti’s removal.

“Like virtually all campuses across the nation, CSU is a target for this type of activity because it is a public space that supports free speech and expression,” the University wrote. “When we are made aware of incidents of hate, including graffiti with speech such as this, we remove it as soon as possible.”

The University also wrote about First Amendment rights in their statement.

“In the last two years the university has launched a series of programs about the First Amendment and its function on a college campus; we’ve asserted our principles of community and our conviction that hate and violent intimidation have no place at CSU; and we’ve worked intensively to support students and populations that may feel targeted,” the University wrote.

Alex Scott, the student who initially reported the graffiti, said that he doesn’t see incidents like this one too often, but he does see such graffiti and messages on campus more than he’d like to. He also said that it’s important to report such incidents.

“It’s important to get it taken down and to keep a record of the bad things that happen on campus so that people are aware and can push against it,” Scott said.

He also said that he thought the incident was handled well so far, and that the administration seemed particularly sensitive to cases of white supremacy.

In their statement, CSU also encouraged anyone else who finds graffiti such as the one found in the Warner College to immediately report it to their bias reporting website. They said that if students send reports, they will be able to respond “quickly and appropriately.”

Ceci Taylor can be reached at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @cecelia_twt.