A recent column published in the University of California, Davis student newspaper, argued that criticism of China’s communist government is “xenophobic.” The column was written in response to campus graffiti that stated the Chinese Communist Party is a “danger to society.”

A column published in the UC Davis student newspaper made the case that it is “xenophobic” to criticize China’s communist party. Students and faculty at the university expressed concern this week after they found a piece of graffiti on campus that argued that China’s communist government is a danger to society.

The graffiti message, which was accompanied by a drawing of a dead person wearing a face mask, angered UC Davis community members that have been sounding alarms about xenophobia in the wake of the Wuhan coronavirus crisis.

This graffiti is part of a rise in racist and xenophobic propaganda all over the world, taking place in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic thought to have originated in Wuhan, China. From the alleged assault of an Asian teenager on a Philadelphia subway to #ChineseDontComeToJapan trending on Japanese twitter ー these incidents seem to be increasing in frequency.

The column, which was penned by student Alex Weinstein, highlighted several efforts by university officials to curtail “hate speech.” In October, administrators condemned alleged hate speech that took place in the form of graffiti.

Chancellor Gary May has repeatedly condemned hate speech on campus, including last October, when racist graffiti was found on the Social Sciences building. He again condemned hate speech in the university’s campus directives for Spring Quarter, where he and co-signatories Provost Ralph Hexter, Academic Senate Chair Kristin Lagattuta and Vice Chancellor of Human Health Sciences David Lubarsky said, “Now more than ever, let us collectively confront and reject any and all manifestations of discrimination.”

Breitbart News has reported extensively on the impact that the Wuhan coronavirus has had on American colleges and universities. Universities such as Duke, Harvard, and Columbia have shut down in an attempt to prevent further spreading of the virus.

Stay tuned to Breitbart News for more updates on this story.