Graffiti Sprayed on Clemson Building Named for Supremacist

Clemson University Police Investigating Tillman Hall Vandalism (WLOS/ABC13)

CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Clemson University Police are investigating after graffiti was spray-painted on Tillman Hall, a campus building named for a former South Carolina governor who was a white supremacist.

The university said in a release the vandalism was reported Thursday morning.

The words “Rename Tillman Hall” and “Stop Honoring Tillman” were spray-painted in black paint on the red brick building.

College spokeswoman Cathy Sams says the university knows there are strong opinions about Tillman but defacing the property is a crime and the school is treating it as such.

In recent years there have been calls to rename the building named after former South Carolina governor and U.S. senator Benjamin Tillman. He was a staunch white supremacist who led the effort to disenfranchise black voters in the state in the late 1800s.