Mayoral candidates and city council members were quick to respond to racist graffiti found on the side of Columbia City Hall over Winter Break.

 

The graffiti, which was found by city officials early Dec. 30, featured the words “No n----r mayor die” in 18-inch red spray paint, according to The State newspaper.

 

Attorney Steve Benjamin and retired Army Col. Gary Myers, who are both black, are among five candidates running in the April 6 election. If either man is elected, he will become the first black mayor of Columbia.

 

In a statement released later that day, Benjamin said he was “disgusted” by the vandalism.

 

“This incident was clearly designed to frighten and intimidate but it has had the opposite result,” said Benjamin, a 1991 USC alum and former student body president. “This is exactly why we need a new leader who can unify all of us behind a new vision for Columbia, and I am now more than ever dedicated to that cause.”

 

Benjamin, who set a city council record by raising $102,475 in his first full fundraising quarter, said he hopes the graffiti doesn’t steer the political debate away from the issues.

 

“We’ve got to be focused on creating jobs,” Benjamin said. “Anything that draws away our attention from real priorities in the city is unfortunate.”

 

In a news conference held Dec. 30, 2009, current mayor Bob Coble called the vandalism an “unfortunate and isolated incident.”

 

“This is not what Columbia stands for,” Coble said. “We are a city of the new South, a diverse city that embraces everyone in our community. This incident is not reflective of our city.”

 

If the culprit is caught, the maximum penalty for vandalism would be 30 days in jail or a $500 fine, according to Coble.

 

This is not the first time racial tensions have flared in Columbia.

 

In June 2009, Republican activist Rusty DePass likened an escaped gorilla from the Riverbanks Zoo to one of Michelle Obama’s ancestors in a post on his Facebook page. The debate over whether to keep flying the Confederate flag, held by some to be a symbol of hate and racism, outside the State House also remains a hot-button political issue.

 

Todd Shaw, an associate professor of political science and African-American studies, said the graffiti is not a positive sign for race relations in South Carolina.

 

“There are those who want to stoke racial fears in order to take us backwards,” Shaw said. “I can understand why there’s some general concern in the public.”

 

Despite the fear caused by the graffiti, Shaw said he believes Columbia, a city in which over 45 percent of the registered voters are black, is ready for a black mayor.