University of Washington As a Sanctuary University
Dr. Ana Mari Cauce, President
Dr. Mark Pagano, Chancellor, University of Washington, Tacoma
Dr. Bjong Wolf Yeigh, Chancellor, University of Washington, Bothell
Dear President Cauce and Chancellors Pagano and Yeigh:
We the undersigned represent 15,000 workers at the University of Washington and UW
Medicine. Since the U.S. Presidential election we have engaged in a number of membership
conversations, and learned in horror and dismay about the increase in hate-related attacks to
members of our campus community. Among the groups most likely to be targeted by a Trump
administration and those emboldened by his campaign promises are immigrants. In particular,
this includes undocumented students and Muslim students and staff working at UW with visas.
Recently President Cauce and Provost Baldasty issued a statement, following an open letter
signed by thousands of campus staff, students and faculty to create a sanctuary campus, that
the University is “committed to providing a safe, secure and welcoming environment that
protects the privacy and human rights of all members of our community.” We appreciate this
affirmative statement, as well as your declared support for undocumented and DACA
students. We also recognize the complexity of enacting widespread changes at this time of
political and economic uncertainty. Our members and others on the campus community are
facing an increasingly hostile and discriminatory environment, and so we are writing to request
that the University continue to take concrete steps to assist our members and others in our
campus community who are most likely to be subject to discrimination, particularly Black,
Muslim, LGBTQI+, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, and Native American communities, people without
papers, people with disabilities, immigrants, refugees, and women. Our shared goal is to
ensure that our work and learning spaces are supportive, inclusive, and respectful of all
peoples.
In particular, we reiterate the call to take steps that would make the University of Washington,
Seattle, Tacoma, and Bothell, as well as UW Medical Center, Harborview Medical Center and
other UW facilities, sanctuary campuses. In our view, on sanctuary campuses and worksites,
the administration, faculty, and staff establish services and a climate of welcome for students
and staff of color, Muslims, LGBTQI+ students and staff, women, Indigenous and Native
American peoples, immigrants, refugees, and undocumented people and know how to take
supportive action when members of our community are targeted. UW police, security, and

 managers of data do not cooperate with federal agents wishing to deport undocumented
students and staff.
Therefore we ask that you take the following steps to help us demonstrate the University’s
commitment to create such an environment on all three campuses and hospitals:
1. Ensure that the identities of undocumented and Muslim members of our community
continue to be protected. Refuse all voluntary information sharing with Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) across all
aspects of the University to the fullest extent possible under the law. Including the
creation of a data retention and destruction policy.
2. Continue to allow qualifying DACA and undocumented students to pay in-state resident
tuition. Publicize UW’s commitment to continued enrollment of DACA and
undocumented students.
3. Dedicate resources to support immigrant students and staff who are faced with urgent
legal, housing, health or school needs related to anti-immigrant policy changes or
targeting/detention by ICE/DHS. This includes but is not limited to counseling, legal
advice and support to DACA students, international scholars and staff on OPT or
student/work visas. Funding for these resources should not be borne by fees or
assessments on students or campus workers.
4. Refuse ICE physical access to land owned or controlled by the University and provide
training for all members of the campus community to know what to do or who to contact
if ICE comes to campus classrooms, labs, workspaces, or dorms. Training should also
include how to support undocumented and Muslim members of our community and their
families.
5. Prohibit UW Police from inquiring about, recording, or reporting an individual’s
immigration status or collaborating with ICE in any form. Ask UW Police to provide a
MOU articulating the above policies.
6. Prohibit housing discrimination based on immigration status or religion.
7. State publicly and often your continual support for, sponsorship of, and willingness to
take action to support international students, staff, and scholars, especially given US
President-Elect Trump’s plans to restrict visa access to people from “terror-prone”
regions.
In addition to the above, we of course expect that you continue to respect our collective
bargaining agreements and established protections for all workers, regardless of
citizenship. We anticipate sustained high standards around freedom from harassment and
discrimination, trans-inclusive health care, reproductive health coverage, and bathroom access.
On December 31, 2016 agreements protecting members of SEIU 925 and WFSE 1488 go into
effect providing protections from workplace harassment. Members of the UAW are already
covered by protections through their contract’s language on implicit bias and
microaggressions. We call upon you to extend similar protections to all UW employees by
December 31, 2016.
As a public institution committed to the social good and to developing critical, global citizens, we
look forward to your response to these requests, rooted in our commitment to the shared values
of inclusion, equity, and justice. Institutions of higher education have a unique responsibility to
speak out against repressions and acts of state violence discredited by our social and historical

 knowledge. As always we remain committed to working with you in these endeavors and
welcome your responses.

Respectfully,

Alex Jones, UW English Language Faculty,
President
AFT 6486

Terri Mast, National Secretary-Treasurer
Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific
(IBU/ILWU)
Marine Division of the ILWU

Karen Hart, President
SEIU Local 925

Tom Small, President, UW Chapter
SEIU Local 925

 

Diane Sosne, RN, MN, President
SEIU Local 1199NW

Paula Lukaszek, President
WFSE Local 1488

Jan Bussert, BSN, RN, President
WSNA

David Parsons, President
UAW Local 4121