Fliers linked to the white supremacist movement that declare "it's okay to be white" were posted on the William Paterson University campus last week, drawing a sharp rebuke from the school's president.

The posters, which recently appeared at college campuses around the country, have been traced to white supremacist groups and posts on internet forum 4chan, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

William Paterson University President Richard J. Helldobler said campus officials removed the fliers after they were discovered Thursday.

"Based on recent media reports, our preliminary understanding is that these fliers are part of a campaign to feed social unrest and promote white supremacy," Helldobler said in a statement.

"This is an abhorrent and cowardly act and does not reflect our values of diversity and inclusion. These moments do not define us, but it is how we respond that demonstrates our character and moral mindset. In that spirit, let us take time to treat each other with kindness during this turbulent time," Helldobler said.

It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the fliers or if they were connected to the same messages reported at other schools within the past several days.

The "it's okay to be white" message is linked to an online trolling effort to provoke responses that would supposedly hurt the credibility of the media and others, according to a report from the ADL.

"The idea was to create a flier that had an (ostensibly) inoffensive phrase on it that would nevertheless be treated as racist by people who viewed it, particularly liberals or members of the media," the ADL said in a November 2017 report. "Their subsequent 'overreactions' would in turn ostensibly make those people lose credibility in the eyes of others and seem like hypocrites."

‘It’s OK to be White’ flyers found around Sacramento community college. https://t.co/2XRWfu12DO pic.twitter.com/dzmFP3hsTb — KRON4 News (@kron4news) November 3, 2018

The phrase has been used by white supremacists dating back to 2005, according to the ADL. Abbreviated on Twitter with the hashtag #IOTBW, the message was also shared by a Ku Klux Klan group in one example cited by the ADL.

"Consequently, anybody who did come across 'it's okay to be white' fliers would be fully justified in thinking that a racist motive probably lurked behind them," the ADL's report said.

"It's okay to be white" posters also appeared at campuses in states, including Vermont, Colorado, Delaware and North Carolina, InsideHigherEd reported Monday.

At William Paterson, officials said students with safety concerns should call university police. It was not clear if the incident was being treated as a criminal matter. Schools generally have policies around posting fliers on campus.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.