The year 2013 saw the Oberlin College racism hoax (which I commented on, here). Ugly, hateful racial comments appeared on the Oberlin campus, done by…two left-wing “progressive” students. Later, there was another hoax at Vassar College.
To keep up the tradition (I guess), we have the Grand Valley SU racism hoax of 2014. PuffHo commenters duly condemned America when it first came up but, in the words of the GVSU campus police, “The person believed to be responsible for the [hateful] drawing and language written on the dry erase board is a Grand Valley student and the owner of the message board.”
Lesson: When dealing with dramatic reports of hate crimes, wait for either (1) multiple, eyewitness reports of the deed as it was being done, or (2) a police report. Especially if it’s a college campus.
From the comments: Hate crime “hoaxes” are numerous and Jman linked two lists that people have compiled, here and here.