Vandals spray paint 'Nigg*r' on sign of nation's first black college, Lincoln University

Founded in 1854, Lincoln University is the oldest Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in the nation. With Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and Ghanaian President Kwame Nkrumah among its most prestigious graduates, Lincoln University is a proud and special place.

That's why, 161 years after its founding, it's so outrageously despicable that a racial slur was just spray-painted on the entrance sign to the campus.

Acting President Dr. Valerie Harrison released a statement on the incident:

"This incident is a sober reminder that our forebearers persevered in the face of hatred and intimidation, yet achieved and maintained standards for excellence which Lincoln University has become known," acting president Valerie I. Harrison told the university community.

"Let's not allow the cowardly acts of others distract us from our commitment to maintaining this legacy or cause us to act in a manner that is inconsistent with our greatness," Harrison said.

She asked public safety officers to make every effort to find whoever is responsible.

While it may be that social media simply makes us all more aware of incidents of racism, 2015 has been full of them, ranging from a "white power" sign and racial slurs used by Texas high school students to a Mississippi judge indicted for assaulting a disabled man and calling him a nigger. It appears that racists feel emboldened to act on their worst impulses.