Black art student with glue gun mistakenly thought to be dangerous, caused 4-hour lockdown at university

"Sir, put down the glue gun!"

As ridiculous as that may sound, Colgate University in upstate New York was placed on lockdown last night after someone spotted a a man carrying a gun. A glue gun, that is. The man was a black student working on an art project.

"There is a dangerous situation in the Coop. Everyone is advised to leave the building," the university tweeted. And, "There is an armed person at the Coop. Find a safe space and remain indoors. If you are off-campus, stay away." The Coop is a dining hall on campus.

Then rumors spread. Suddenly there were two gunmen, and one had committed suicide. This was false.

According to Huffington Post:

During the lockdown, students in campus dorms were advised to keep their lights off to avoid attracting attention, a student told The Huffpost. The college finally lifted the shelter-in-place order shortly before midnight.

"After thorough investigation, and with the assistance of the person in question, law enforcement identified the individual as a student who was using a glue gun for an art project, confirmed the misunderstanding, and released the campus from lockdown," said a Colgate statement.

Some students expressed concerns on social media about the reaction to the student with the hot glue gun, and worried about what could have happened to him because of his race, particularly as rumors mounted.

Image: Luke Surl