Dear President Stanley,

The Trump administration has made clear with its racist and unconstitutional Immigration Ban, that refugees, immigrants, and people of color are now under attack. As the thrice attempted deportation of GSO President Vahideh Rasekhi demonstrates, SBU community members are not immune to this attack. Now is the time for plain speech and decisive action.

What will the SBU administration do in the face of these dangers? Will you offer a pointed and complete repudiation of this organized bigotry at tomorrow's campus March for Unity? We do not need ambiguous statements in support of diversity. It is not enough to protect students only "in line with federal and state law" if the federal government continues to legalize discrimination. Will you or will you not openly condemn the immigration ban?

Further, what new concrete steps will you, as President of Stony Brook University, take to ensure that all immigrants are protected on this campus from the dangers of our current administration? Will you declare SBU a sanctuary campus? Will you devote additional university resources to the assistance and protection of refugees and the undocumented? Will you practice deliberate noncompliance with federal immigration enforcement?

These questions are pressing, and your answers should not evade the issue or the specifics of your concrete actions against it. Please reply with your full and detailed response in a manner that is consistent with the urgency of the situation. The time for making responses that appeal to state or corporate sponsors is over. We must act on behalf of the most vulnerable members of our community, and we must act now.

Signed,

The Team at Project Free Knowledge

Austin Sposato, Anna Sitzmann, Matt Clemons, Adam Blair, Andrew Dobbyn, and Jenny Strandberg

www.projectfreeknowledge.com