Racist slur on pedestrian bridge in Rochester prompts investigation

The sudden appearance of a racist slur on a pedestrian bridge near Century High School in Rochester has prompted a police investigation, city officials say. The slur, commonly used against Black people, was spelled out using plastic cups to plug holes in a fence on the bridge over East Circle Drive.

"As a city organization, we strongly condemn this action," city officials said in a statement on social media. "Racism, language that perpetuates hate and all prejudice contradicts the values the city holds."

Rochester police are investigating the incident. The NAACP Rochester Branch posted about the slur on social media and said "This #hatecrime will not stand in our community!"

Rochester Public Schools officials said in a statement that although the incident did not take place on school property, they "believe that it is the collective responsibility of the RPS community to be actively and intentionally anti-racist, both individually and collectively."

"We understand and share the hurt this has caused to people in our community, especially to our Black and brown students," officials said. "We want to reiterate that hate language, in any form, has no place within our RPS community."