SPLC: At Least 300 Hate Crimes Reported Since Election

More than 300 hate crimes have been reported since the presidential election last week, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Most cases of harassment and intimidation occurred in schools and on university campuses, with many cases involving direct references to Donald Trump, the watchdog group told NBC News on Monday. The SPLC published its report on post-election incidents last Friday, but since that time, it said complaints have continued to come in. Among the incidents it documented and those verified by NBC News, many were targeted against Muslims and blacks. Over the weekend, a Muslim student at the University of Michigan told police a white male had demanded she take off her hijab or he would “set her on fire with a lighter,” according to the SPLC report. Elsewhere, a high school in Jacksonville, Florida, saw “Colored” and “Whites Only” signs placed above drinking fountains. And this past weekend, a church in Maryland offering a Spanish-language service was vandalized with a sign reading, “Trump nation, whites only.” Similar incidents have been reported in cities throughout the nation, the report warns. The watchdog said it would continue to monitor such incidents using social media, news reports, and direct submissions to the SPLC website.