Top lawmakers call for information on bomb threats at HBCUs

A group of lawmakers has called on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to provide information on what they called the “disturbing trend of bomb threats” against historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). 

In a Tuesday letter to the DOJ, Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and ranking member Richard Burr (R-N.C.) as well as House Education and Labor Committee Chairman Bobby Scott (D-Va.) and ranking member Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) requested a briefing to discuss the department’s ongoing investigation efforts.

“For the last month, at least 17 of the nation’s 100 HBCUs have been forced to repeatedly lock down their campuses and shelter in place until law enforcement can investigate and assure the safety of students, staff, and the surrounding local communities,” the lawmakers wrote. 

The letter added that these acts of intimidation, which the lawmakers said threaten both the safety and education of students enrolled at HBCUs, are of “grave concern and we must work to protect these remarkable institutions and their students.” 

The lawmakers asked the DOJ to provide a briefing to interested congressional offices to discuss the efforts it is taking to coordinate federal and local law enforcement efforts in the investigation of these threats, which the lawmakers characterized as “ongoing.”

The lawmakers also asked for information on “the direct support” the DOJ is providing to HBCUs to keep their campuses and communities open and safe.

The letter comes after HBCUs across the U.S. received bomb threats on Monday and Tuesday, leading to campus lockdowns and police investigations. The FBI said it is investigating the threats against the colleges on Tuesday.

At least 12 HBCUs received threats on Tuesday and at least six on Monday.

The FBI on Wednesday said in a statement to The Hill that the investigation is of the highest priority and involves “more than 20 FBI field offices across the country,” adding that the threats are being investigated as “Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremism and hate crimes.”