An anti-racism poster in the SU toilets was torn down and scrunched up

A Students' Union anti-racism campaign poster has been torn down and vandalised.

It was found in the men's toilets in the SU by one of the Sabbatical Officers.

Part of the poster, which said "However subtle or small they seem, call out racist microaggressions" was torn down.

The poster was part of the Union's #WordsHurt campaign, part of the 'Black is Gold' campaign, aimed at combating racism and increasing awareness of black history and achievement.

Commenting on the incident, Welfare and Equality officer Sara Elkhawad wrote on her official Facebook page: "It’s interesting that people feel so angered by a phrase, that will not affect their lived experience but the experiences of black men, that they vandalise it.

"For me it shows that we haven’t been open enough about racial microaggressions and the types of racism that are present on our campus. I urge you to keep on calling out racism and make sure black voices aren’t torn down, like this poster was. Black visibility and black voices matter."

She told The Newcastle Tab: "I have aimed to be as raw, blatant and honest as possible in this campaign as racism is prevalent on our campus and needs to be spoken about and tackled… In fact, the vandalism that has occurred has been important in promoting conversations amongst our students.

"Hopefully future campaigns representing marginalised groups can continue to be striking and unapologetically honest, like Black Is Gold has been, to address the prejudices our students face."

If you have been affected by issues raised in this article, please see the following websites:

Newcastle University Student Health and Wellbeing Service

Students' Union Report and Support