Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Students At NYU Tandon Called Racial Slurs 'Because Trump Is President Now'
By
Gaby Del Valle
Published Nov 10, 2016
Modified Nov 10, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Gaby Del Valle
Published Nov 10, 2016
Modified Nov 10, 2016
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Donald Trump has been President-elect for just over a day, and his most ardent supporters are already feeling emboldened by the idea of living under the rule of a man who was endorsed by the Klu Klux Klan. And it's not limited to the heartland.
Yesterday at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, a group of high school students were called racial slurs someone who justified his language because of President-elect Trump, according to a teacher who spoke with Gothamist. The students—one black, one Latina, one Muslim—were participating in an advanced placement program at the school.
Ilyana Contreras, an English teacher at the Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women, says the three girls were in an elevator with a group of NYU Tandon students "who were using the N-word multiple times over the course of the elevator ride." When one of the girls asked them to stop, one young man allegedly told her that he can say whatever he wants because "Donald Trump is president now" and continued to use the slur, this time directed at her and the other girls.
The students reported the incident to their high school guidance counselor. NYU Tandon spokesperson Kathleen Hamilton told Gothamist that the incident was reported to public safety but was unable to confirm whether the student in question referred to Trump. The girls were unable to identify the student, who was described as being "brown-skinned" and wearing a red shirt.
That same day, Muslim students at NYU Tandon found the door to their on-campus prayer room vandalized by Trump supporters. "We awoke in November 9th to a chilling wakeup call," NYU's Muslim Students Association posted on Facebook regarding the incident. "And as we open our eyes and start to move and organize in the face of these new realities, we ask for new support."
In the wake of Trump's victory, reports of racialized harassment have drastically increased—most troublingly, at schools across the country, students are being harassed and discriminated against by their peers. Writer and civil rights activist Shaun King has been cataloging reports of post-election racist incidents across America, reportedly receiving dozens of emails per hour, including one about a group of middle school students who built a "wall" with their bodies to block Latino students from accessing their lockers and getting to class.
Elsewhere in NYC, a group of students from the St. Francis Preparatory School in Fresh Meadows reportedly told people of color on an MTA bus that they should be sitting in the back. "Aren't you supposed to be sitting in the back of the bus now? Trump is president," they allegedly said.
Patrick McLaughlin, the school's principal, issued a statement on Facebook condemning the students' actions. "All matters of disrespect will not be tolerated and going forward our deans will take immediate action," he wrote.
Unfortunately, these are just a handful of incidents that have occurred in the roughly 36 hours since Trump made his victory speech. Donald Trump hasn't even been sworn in yet, but his supporters are already doing a lot of damage.
NYU's Muslim Students Association is having a demonstration at the Kimmel Center for University Life tonight at 6:30 p.m. Beginning at 7 p.m., the Brooklyn Museum is having a collective session for mourning and organization hosted by the Yellowjackets Collective and By Us For Us.
Tagged
donald trump
NYU
nyu tandon school of engineering
racial slurs
racism
Gaby Del Valle
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .