We Must Be Protected Too: Why the Congressional Black Caucus Is Demanding an Investigation Into HBCU Threats After Charlie Kirk’s Killing

By Esther Claudette Gittens | Editorial credit: Ringo Chiu / Shutterstock.com

In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s killing on a university campus in Utah, a wave of threats was directed at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) across the United States. The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) has stepped forward, calling for a full investigation into these threats—some described as “terroristic,” “hoax calls,” or outright racist hate. This article examines what happened, what the CBC is pushing for, why this matter is urgent, what challenges lie ahead, and what it means for safety, politics, and racial justice.

What Happened: The Threats That Sparked the CBC Response

On September 11–12, 2025, multiple HBCUs from Virginia to Louisiana and Georgia were placed on lockdown after receiving violent and racially charged threats. Institutions such as Alabama State University, Virginia State University, Spelman College, Morehouse, Hampton, Southern University, Bethune-Cookman, Clark Atlanta, and others canceled classes or closed campus activities as a precaution. 

- Advertisement -

Although the FBI and law enforcement agencies later stated that they found no credible, immediate danger in many of the threats, the impact was still real: students, faculty, staff were scared; campuses felt violated; operations were disrupted. Many letters and messages included explicit racist language and cited recent events. Some notes referenced “coming for Black institutions,” while threatening imagery circulated online. 

The timing raised particular alarm. The threats came just after the killing of Charlie Kirk, a conservative political figure, during a campus speech at Utah Valley University. Though officials have not confirmed a direct causal link between that event and the threats against Black campuses, the proximity in time has heightened fears of coordinated or opportunistic hate-driven intimidation. 

What the Congressional Black Caucus Is Demanding

In response, the CBC has called for:

• A swift, comprehensive federal investigation into the threats. This includes the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI examining whether these are hate crimes, domestic terrorism, or coordinated actions. 
• Clarity from the FBI on whether these threats are credible, how they are being handled, whether similar patterns have been identified elsewhere, and who is responsible. 
• Enhanced protections for HBCUs: better threat detection, improved information sharing, support for campus security, and faster response protocols. The CBC emphasizes that HBCUs should not be second-class in safety and protection. 
• A public acknowledgment of the harm such threats cause—even when they are “hoaxes” or later deemed non-credible. The psychological, educational, and communal costs are significant. 

Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), chair of the CBC, framed the threats not only as attacks on institutions, but as “chilling reminders of relentless racism and extremism.” The caucus is demanding accountability and legal action against perpetrators of these threats. 

Why This Matters: More Than Just Campus Safety

The CBC and many civil rights leaders underscore that this issue is about more than temporary safety protocols or lockdowns. Several deeper implications make this moment especially urgent:

1. Historic Vulnerability and Symbolism
   HBCUs have existed as havens of education, empowerment, and resistance since a time when Black students had few other options. Threats aimed at them tap into long legacies of racial violence and intimidation. They are symbolic targets. 
2. Disruption of Learning, Mental Health, and Trust
   Even non-credible threats disrupt academic calendars, force cancellations or lockdowns, erode trust between students and administration, and inflict psychological harm. The fear alone can harm performance and well-being. 
3. Risk of Normalization of Hate and Intimidation
   When threats are frequent and prosecutions rare or slow, there’s risk that such acts become normalized as acceptable or inevitable. That undermines civil society and increases fear among marginalized communities. CBC wants visibility and consequences. 
4. Political and Legal Precedent
   How this is handled sends signals: about how seriously federal institutions treat hate crimes, whether protections are equal or unequal, and whether civil rights protections remain robust. It’s a benchmark moment for federal enforcement and policy.
5. Impact on Race Relations & Public Discourse
   Threats like these inflame partisan rhetoric, amplify fear, and can contribute to a cycle of polarization and violent extremism. The CBC sees this as intertwined with national conversations about political violence, free speech, extremist rhetoric, and race.

Challenges & What Investigation Will Face

While the demands are strong and morally clear to many, the path to fulfilling them is complicated.

• Credibility vs Hoax: Many of the threats are being called “hoaxes,” meaning that the FBI believes they are not immediately credible. That makes proving expectation of harm or identifying responsible individuals harder. But being labeled a hoax doesn’t negate harm. Investigators will need to balance priority and proof. 
• Resource Allocation: Large-scale investigations, especially those involving online threats, manifestos, anonymous messages or encrypted platforms, require technical resources, manpower, digital forensics, cooperation from universities. There may be delays.
• Legal Thresholds & Jurisdiction: Not every threat satisfies legal standards for hate crime or domestic terrorism. Some may be non-credible or unable to be traced. Jurisdiction may be fragmented: federal, state, local law enforcement, campus police all have roles. Balancing civil liberties rights (speech, due process) with safety and hate crime definitions is delicate.
• Public Communication & Maintaining Trust: Universities and government agencies must manage how they communicate to avoid panic, misinformation, or complacency. Delays in notifications or lack of clarity exacerbate harm. Some HBCU leaders have already criticized delayed alerts. 
• Possible Backlash or Minimization: Some entities or individuals may dismiss threats as sensationalism or “political theater.” That risks underestimating danger or undermining trust. The CBC is pushing against silence and minimization.

What an Effective Investigation Should Look Like

For the CBC’s demands to result in meaningful change, the following components seem essential:

1. Transparency: Regular updates to affected campuses and the public about what is known, what’s being investigated, what is still unknown.
2. Coordination Among Law Enforcement: DOJ, FBI, campus police, and state/local law enforcement must share leads, digital evidence, threat intelligence, and behavioral indicators of extremist or hate networks.
3. Identification and Accountability: Where possible, those responsible must be identified, prosecuted or held civilly liable. Messages that threaten violence or incite hatred should not be dismissed without follow-through.
4. Support for Affected Institutions: Funding for campus security, mental health services, resilience and crisis response training for students and staff.
5. Policy Review: Examination of past threat response protocols, notification procedures, campus lockdown policies, and assessment of whether HBCUs have the same level of readiness and support as predominantly White institutions.
6. Proactive Prevention: Monitoring radical rhetoric online, extremism forums, threat reporting systems; training for staff on recognizing threat indicators; and ensuring rapid response channels.

Broader Implications & What It Might Mean Going Forward

• Strengthened Hate Crime Legislation: The wave of threats might catalyze renewed demand for stronger federal hate crime legislation, better threat tracking, or broader definitions of extremist violence.
• Campus Security Infrastructure Funding: HBCUs often operate under tighter financial constraints. Repeated threat incidents may push for increased federal or philanthropic support to upgrade safety systems.
• Political Mobilization: This issue can become another flashpoint in the broader debates over political violence, race, free speech, and extremism. CBC is likely to use these threats to raise awareness and pressure legislators.
• Cultural & Emotional Aftershocks: Even after investigations close without arrests, the fear, trauma, and sense of vulnerability remain. How institutions and public leaders respond (with empathy, urgency, and accountability) will affect long-term trust in government and campus safety.

Conclusion

The Congressional Black Caucus’ call for a federal investigation into threats made against HBCUs following Charlie Kirk’s killing is not merely a political gesture—it is a plea for protection, accountability, and justice. The threats, while later deemed not credible in many cases, inflicted real harm: fear, disruption, distrust, emotional damage. They follow a pattern that exposes the vulnerabilities of Black educational institutions in a polarized, often violently antagonistic social climate.

An effective investigation—transparent, rigorous, and backed by both legal accountability and policy support—is needed not just for today’s safety, but for the message it sends: that targeting institutions because of race or symbolic standing will not be tolerated. The CBC is demanding this, and it reflects a growing national need to reckon with how politically charged violence, threats, and hate intersect with education, race, and democracy.

As this investigation unfolds, what matters most is not only the technical findings, but how quickly and forcefully authorities respond to protect those threatened, how accountable perpetrators are held, and whether policy changes follow to prevent this kind of escalation in the future.

  #BlackColleges, #CampusSafety, #CampusThreats, #CBC, #CivilRights, #CommunityProtection, #CongressionalBlackCaucus, #DOJ, #DomesticTerrorism, #EducationJustice, #EndRacism, #EqualityInEducation, #FBIInvestigation, #HateCrimes, #HBCUs, #ProtectHBCUs, #RacialEquity, #RacialJustice, #StopTheHate, #StudentSafety