An investigation was opened at American University after several Black students reported being the victims of racist hate crimes. One female student, whose identity has not been released, recently alleged that a banana was thrown at her through her dorm window on September 8.

According to other students of color, there have been a series of racially motivated incidents that have occurred on campus as of late.

In the same dorm, another Black female student reported that she found a rotten banana placed outside of her door. These attacks have made the Black students feel unwelcome and uncomfortable in a space where they should feel safe.

The Black Student Alliance has asked the administration to suspend every student that was involved in the hate crimes.

Other students of the Washington, D.C., school have affirmed that racial incidents such as this have been happening on campus for quite some time.

“In the real world, this would be a hate crime and an assault,” said Ma’at Sargeant, an AU sophomore and president of the Black Student Alliance. “This kind of thing has been happening at AU for years. Last year, people wrote the n-word on black students’ doors and put up Trump stickers on the doors of Hispanic students. This is not just a one-time thing.”

Although the school has released a statement that addressed this incident as well as past altercations, many students feel as though the school is not acting aggressive enough to make the students of color feel safe.

Posters that condemned the actions of administration with the hashtag #TheRealAU were posted around the campus but were quickly removed. Protests are expected to occur throughout the week.