Rep. Foushee Calls for Proactive Student Safety Measures at UNC-Chapel Hill Following Two Racial Incidents

WASHINGTON, DC (September 18, 2026) - Today, Congresswoman Valerie Foushee (NC-04) sent a letter to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chancellor Lee Roberts urging the University to proactively engage with students and strengthen efforts to ensure students of color feel safe on campus following two instances of racially motivated harassment on campus between August 29 and August 31, 2026.

On August 29, 2026, members of the UNC Taiwanese Student Association and other Taiwanese students were reportedly racially harassed by a group of white men knuckle-walking and making monkey gestures during a campus tour led by the student organization.

On August 31, 2026, a man reportedly entered a watch party hosted by several Black student organizations in Greenlaw Hall and made racially charged threats while brandishing an aerosol can and a lighter.

"Meetings in the immediate aftermath of a traumatic event such as this are a good start, but just that. With that in mind, I sincerely ask that you and the University be as proactive as possible with student engagement to ensure that students of color feel safe on campus moving forward," the Congresswoman wrote.

"Additionally, as my office has received significant outreach from UNC students about this incident, it would be very helpful for my office as we respond to this outreach to have some additional insight into the incident and the steps your Administration is taking to respond appropriately," Foushee continued.

"We all share the same beliefs and responsibility that UNC should be a place of learning without fear of violence and where respect for others is a core value," the Congresswoman concluded. "I look forward to hearing from you on this and appreciate your continued attention to this matter."

The letter includes the following questions for Charcellor Lee Roberts' Administration:

• Why did it take 17 minutes for UNC campus police to arrive at the scene on August 31st, and what might be done to ensure faster response times moving forward?

• When large events take place on campus, particularly ones that are unaffiliated with the University, are there protocols in place to ensure campus police maintain their usual staffing levels elsewhere on campus?

• What are the concrete steps your administration is taking to ensure that a better and more robust alert system will be in place to notify students of dangers on campus?

• How is your administration working to make sure students, particularly students of color, feel safe on campus?

• Are there any plans in place to empower and/or educate students so they know how to best maintain their own safety in the event of a threat of violence when UNC campus police are not yet present?

The full text of the letter can be found here.