Today, another hate crime was reported on a University of California campus. Several swastikas were discovered on the walls of a student housing building on the campus of UC Berkeley. This is the third time an incident of this type has been reported on this campus since last October.

Last last week, a transgender male student was found stabbed in a restroom on the campus of the California State University at Long Beach. While police are still investigating this incident to determine if it was in fact a hate crime, students on the campus and members of the transgender community are understandably scared.

What is most disturbing is that these recent events follow a series of hate crimes reported on campuses throughout the state. During Black History Month, a noose was found hanging in the library at UC San Diego. Swastikas were scratched into the walls in a student housing facility at UC Davis.

According to the 2008 FBI Hate Crime Report, educational institutions continue to be the third most common location where hate crimes are reported. Of all the places in our "land of the free and equal" where the free exchange of ideas and identities should occur safely, it should be our school campuses. It's tragic to think, that the place where young people should feel the most safe, that hate continues to strike fear those who are different.