Frustration over a pro-Donald Trump slogan painted on a University of Minnesota pedestrian bridge spilled over Thursday as student protesters disrupted a planned discussion on school climate.

The “campus conversation” event, planned weeks earlier, was to feature an hourlong question-and-answer session with U President Eric Kaler, another faculty member and student body president Abeer Syedah.

But several minutes in, some 200 protesters took over the event.

Carrying signs that read “I don’t feel safe here” and “Build love not walls,” they marched through the gymnasium for five minutes, chanting “Hey hey, ho ho, racism has got to go.” Related Articles Gophers cancel sports activities to free time to vote on Nov. 3

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U leaders relinquished the microphone and podium to listen as 13 protesters took turns airing concerns about the treatment of students of color at the university, where 78 percent of all domestic students are white.

Several complained about Kaler’s response to last week’s “Paint the Bridge” event, where the College Republicans student group wrote “Build the wall” on its panel on the enclosed Washington Avenue traffic and pedestrian bridge connecting the Minneapolis campus’s east and west banks.

The message angered other students, who then painted over it with the words “Stop white supremacy.”

In a letter to the community, Kaler criticized the response to the slogan.

“People in our community may disagree with the sentiment expressed. However, while the University values free speech, the subsequent vandalism of the panel is not the way to advance a conversation,” he wrote.

“The University of Minnesota supports a campus climate that welcomes all members of our community and our values of equity and diversity, but that also ensures the free flow of ideas, even those that are offensive to some.”

Trump, the Republican nominee for president, says he will build a wall at the U.S. border with Mexico and force the Mexican government to pay for it.

Protesters at the U event Thursday decried “Build the wall” as hate speech, which has made Hispanic students feel unsafe and unwanted on campus.

The speakers included students who had been arrested at previous protests — during a sit-in at Kaler’s office in February 2015 and a board of regents meeting in June where tuition rates were set.

No arrests were made Thursday.

Addressing the intended purpose of Thursday’s event, graduate student Rahsaan Mahadeo said the campus climate is great only for the privileged majority.

“The climate is beautiful. You can check the five-day, 10-day forecast, it’s sunny, blue skies every day,” he said.

But for students of color and other underrepresented groups, he said, the skies are dark.

Kaler remained on the stage during the protest and even applauded when one student complained that his letter addressed the vandalism without criticizing the College Republicans’ message. He also stuck around afterward to speak with protesters.

In brief remarks to close the event, Kaler said, “The best thing for hate speech is more speech. The best thing for free speech is more speech.”

Kaler also addressed the bridge controversy at the start of Thursday’s event, before the protest.

“We have work to do. The events of last weekend show us that we’re not where we need to be in terms of being an open and inclusive community,” he said.

STUDENTS HAVE BROUGHT CHANGE

In a letter prepared for the campus conversation, Syedah, the student body president, identified several student-led changes that have made the university more welcoming in recent years:

Transgender students and others can elect a preferred name for the university directory.

Four dormitories now offer gender-neutral housing options.

Students are expected to obtain consent from a partner before sexual activity.

Campus crime alerts no longer identify a suspect’s race unless the description is detailed enough to help catch the person.

And funding for mental health services has been increased.

BIAS COMPLAINTS

Kaler also appointed a bias response team in January to address specific concerns.

In response to a Pioneer Press records request, the U on Thursday released a summary of the team’s work on 25 separate incidents, as well as redacted copies of all the messages submitted to the team’s dedicated email address, endbias@umn.edu.

The complaints included the following: