Students 'In Pain' Over Trump Slogan On Campus

Outraged college students in the US state of Georgia have been accused of over-reacting after they held a demonstration when pro-Donald Trump graffiti appeared on campus.

Dozens of undergraduates protested outside Emory University's administration building on Monday, reportedly shouting: "Come speak to us, we are in pain!"

Holding signs that said "Stop Trump" and "Stop Hate", they told college president Jim Wagner they feared for their safety after the Republican White House hopeful's name was scrawled in chalk around campus.

One protester asked why the incident was not treated as seriously as when swastikas were spray-painted on a Jewish fraternity house in 2014, reports the college newspaper.

"It is our duty to fight for our freedom," said one student, Jonathan Peraza, according to the Emory Wheel.

"We have nothing to lose but our chains."

Paula Camila Alarcon, another Emory student, told the Daily Beast: "I legitimately feared for my life."

The college president wrote in a campus-wide email on Tuesday: "They (the students) voiced their genuine concern and pain in the face of this perceived intimidation."

He added: "It is important that we recognize, listen to, and honor the concerns of these students, as well as faculty and staff who may feel similarly."

It is not clear who made the chalkings, but university officials said they were a "violation of policy" against defacing campus property.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper rebuked the student protesters, writing: "Your 'unexpected' chalker is engaging in a political debate that will continue through the first Tuesday in November.

"It is an important and necessary debate. Deal with it."

Conservative students at Emory are now planning a counter-demonstration for next week, with one describing the president's email as "embarrassing".

Amelia Sims, chair of the College Republicans group, told the Washington Post. "It should not be that universities are just echo boxes, so people can't encounter opinions they disagree with."

With their emphasis on trigger warnings and safe spaces, US college students have been lampooned recently for supposedly being cosseted, entitled and immature.