Hate crimes and hoaxes: 10 campus stories debunked in 2017

Remember when a black cadet at the Air Force Academy said he found a racist message in his dorm? That prompted Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria to say, in a speech that went viral, “If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect, then get out.”

Turns out the episode was a hoax; the cadet had committed the hate crime all by himself.

OK, but what about the 2014 Rolling Stone article “A Rape on Campus”? That had its own problems: The piece included a discredited story about a rape at the University of Virginia involving the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. And the venerable magazine settled a $1.65 million defamation suit earlier this year as a result of the false claims.

Those are just two examples of a growing national trend, highlighted by The College Fix, in which hate crimes are falsely reported. Following President Trump’s election and inauguration, several universities have seen an increase in such reports.

One student at the University of Michigan faked an attack because of what she called a post-election “surge in hate crimes.” The UM student was fined $660 and is on a suspended 93-day jail sentence, pending probation adherence, for falsely reporting a hate crime. She admitted to having mental health issues when she pleaded guilty, but at the time, she told police she was targeted for wearing a solidarity pin.

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http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/12/27/hate-crimes-and-hoaxes-10-campus-stories-debunked-in-2017.html