Hundreds of students and staff at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have signed a petition urging the administration to take steps to ensure the safety of all students, staff, workers and their families.
The call comes after the divisive rhetoric in the presidential election in which President-elect Donald Trump called for the deportation of undocumented citizens and ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
According to the petition, the UCSD Administration is being asked to create a “sanctuary” for undocumented students, staff, contract workers and their families that would be affected by President-elect Trump’s policies.
Some of the requests outlined in the petition are as follows:
- Reaffirm the university's commitment to support and protect all students and workers, regardless of their citizenship status, religion, ethnicity, or national origin
- Reaffirm current admission and financial aid policies regarding undocumented students;
- Reaffirm UCSD's policy to not cooperate with federal ICE authorities regarding deportations or immigration raids
- Provide and expand legal services for undocumented students, staff, workers, and their families, following in the steps of UCLA, UC Irvine, and UC Berkeley who now fund full time, on-campus immigration attorneys
On Tuesday, Becky Petitt, Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion emailed all staff and students at UCSD, denouncing hate speech on campus and reaffirming the university’s commitment to equality.
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Petitt stated that the UCSD Police Department is investigating an incident where graffiti was found near a campus bus stop.
The statement in part read:
“To members of our campus community who may feel fear or uncertainty at this moment in time, I remind you: You belong here. You matter. Your dignity matters. And you are loved. At UC San Diego, we are unwavering in our commitment to create and maintain a welcoming and vibrant teaching and learning environment. On behalf of the UC San Diego Administration, I condemn, in the strongest terms, what appears to be attempts to create an atmosphere of intimidation and fear among members of our campus community. I reaffirm our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion and encourage our community of scholars to exemplify our academic mission of engaging difficult issues intellectually and remaining open to hearing and learning from differing perspectives.”
