On behalf of UE unions representing tens of thousands of graduate workers across the country working at both public and private colleges and universities, we express our deep concern and indignation at the federal government’s ongoing attempt to dismantle this country’s higher education infrastructure. These attacks undermine our institutions’ teaching and research missions and threaten the safety and well-being of our members.
These attacks have come in the form of:
- A crackdown on academic freedom, freedom of speech, and freedom of assembly.
- Surveillance, detainment, and deportation of non-citizen workers.
- The elimination of institutional support and spaces for vulnerable workers, such as people of color and transgender workers.
If universities continue to acquiesce to the federal government’s demands, these efforts could irreparably harm and hollow out higher education for years to come. We call on universities to stand up to these attacks and protect the rights of their workers by taking all necessary steps not to comply with the federal government’s illegal, unconstitutional, and outrageous demands.
Here are our key demands:
Mutual Academic Defense Compact
We urge the Presidents of colleges and universities across the country to formally propose and help establish a Mutual Academic Defense Compact (MADC) among all institutions of higher education. All participating institutions would commit meaningful support to MADC by providing immediate and strategic support to any member institution under direct political or legal infringement. Institutions united under MADC would avoid capitulation to unconstitutional federal demands and mitigate funding cuts by filing collective lawsuits, selling bonds, and opening endowments.
Under the MADC, participating institutions will make available, at the request of any institution under direct political attack, any material, financial, legal, and public communications support required to coordinate a unified and vigorous response to resist any and all political attacks from the federal government on academic freedom, university workers, and campus communities. In addition, under MADC, participating institutions will support the preservation and advancement of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs, research, and funding.
International Worker Support
We urge all universities to establish an International Worker Support Fund to be used for legal aid, fellowships for non-citizen workers who may be unable to re-enter the United States, and all other necessary forms of support for non-citizen workers.
We urge universities not to comply with ICE or other federal agencies initiating unconstitutional requests, such as sharing names and documentation statuses of students and workers or allowing ICE or other federal agents to enter campuses and university buildings.
In the case that a non-citizen worker is detained without due process, threatened with or experiences having their visa, green card, or DACA status revoked without due process, we urge each college or university to take the following steps:
- Commit in writing to maintain non-citizen worker’s student enrollment and stipend, regardless of visa status.
- Provide good faith effort, support, and targeted resources for the non-citizen worker’s completion of their degree.
- Offer legal counsel.
- Advise non-citizen workers and students of the current risk posed by customs and immigration officials at border crossings.
Our undersigned locals are determined to use all available avenues to defend higher education and academic freedom and to ensure the protection of our non-citizen and other vulnerable workers in the context of ongoing attacks from the federal government. We expect that our colleges and universities will do their part to provide reasonable assistance in this regard.
Sincerely,
UE Local 300 — Cornell Graduate Students United Interim Grievance Committee
UE Local 1043 — Stanford Graduate Workers Union Executive Board
UE Local 1103 — Graduate Students United at the University of Chicago Executive Board
UE Local 1105 — University of Minnesota Graduate Labor Union Executive Board
UE Local 1122 — Northwestern University Graduate Workers Executive Board
UE Local 1466 — United Graduate Workers of the University of New Mexico Executive Board
UE Local 1498 — Graduate Workers United at New Mexico State University Executive Board
UE Local 150 — The Workers Union at North Carolina State University Executive Board
UE Local 197 — Teachers and Researchers United at Johns Hopkins University Elected Custodians
UE Local 256 — Massachusetts Institute of Technology Graduate Student Union Executive Board
UE Local 261 — Graduate Organized Laborers of Dartmouth Executive Board
UE Local 896 — Campaign to Organize Graduate Students at the University of Iowa Executive Board