Subject: bias related incident at HMC
Sent: Monday, April 13, 2009 2:55 PM
From: Guy Gerbick
During the early morning of Sunday, April 12, 2009, someone chalked a drawing and words on the wall of the loading area between Hoch-Shanahan Dining Commons and West Dorm, facing the main Quad walkway. There was a drawing of a penis and the words "DEMI?" (?) and "MUDD SUCKS D!" A photo of it is at http://www.hmc.edu/graphics/DoS/bias41309.jpg.The chalking was cleaned off this morning.
These graffiti have some parallels with the vandalism that recently occurred at Scripps and Pitzer, but are also different. Still, the imagery and words are offensive and can be considered bias motivated.
If you would like to talk about the impact of this event, or the other graffiti that have been hitting Pitzer and Scripps, you may speak with me, Bev Chen (our emotional health counselor), Gary Kelly or Angelica Ibarra (in the Office of Institutional Diversity), or other members of the DOS or proctor staff. Additionally, 5/7C resources, including the Monsour Counseling Center, are also available for support.
We have leads on who may have written this graffiti, which we are following up. If you have information about the people who may have done it, please let me know.
Guy
Subject: bias related incident at Pitzer
Sent: Friday, April 10, 2009 4:09 PM
From: Jim Marchant
Dear Pitzer Students:
I recently learned that among the graffiti that was discovered in Mead Hall this past weekend (see below) was an image of a penis followed by the phrase ?tation.? Apparently this was drawn lightly in crayon on the exterior of Lx tower in Mead.
This is extremely sexist, and as such, is considered a bias-related incident. These actions are offensive and antithetical to our values as an educational community. There is no place for this type of insensitivity, intolerance, and ignorance on our campus.
We can only hope this act was perpetrated by someone not affiliated with Pitzer or the Claremont Colleges. Regardless, these types of biased and inappropriate incidents impact not only those students who live in the residence halls, but our entire college community. Please see the Pitzer Community Values listed below.
If you have any information about this or other bias-related incidents, please contact Campus Safety, the Dean of Students, Dean of Faculty, Director of Human Resources or another campus resource (such as hall director, RA, faculty advisor, mentor, etc.).
In addition, students who are upset and concerned about these types of incidents should consider taking the following actions: talk with a professional, write a letter or article in a student publication, organize or attend educational programming addressing these issues and encourage their peers to do the same.
Sincerely,
Jim Marchant
Dean of Students
Subject: Bias Related Incident at Scripps
Sent: Tuesday, April 7, 2009 8:31 AM
From: Guy Gerbick
On Friday afternoon, a Scripps staff member was driving along the Scripps service road and found a mirror with a homophobic slur, "UR All Gay Fags" written across it in chalk. A student also saw "UR all Fags" written along the brick wall on Platt near the Frankel Routt Residence Hall parking lot.
This kind of conduct constitutes a bias incident and anyone with information about the perpetrator(s) of the incident should contact a Dean of Students staff member or Campus Safety.
This incident has an impact on all members of our community, not just the specific communities targeted by the perpetrator(s) of this incident. This action violates our Principles of Community and Scripps' desire to make our community a welcoming and safe place for all of its members and such actions will not be tolerated.
Anyone in need of support or wishing to discuss this incident is welcome and encouraged to contact the resource which best meets their needs. Resources include;
- Dean of Students (909) 621-8277
- Residence Life staff (909) 621-8277 or (909) 607-4307 or (909) 607-8869
- SCORE staff (909) 607-8869
- MCAPS (Monsour) staff (909) 621-8202
- Chaplains office (909) 621-8685
- OBSA staff (909) 621-8248
- CLSA staff (909) 621-8044
- Scripps Diversity Coordinating Committee co-chairs (Amy Marcus-Newhall, Marla Love)
Anytime a community member becomes aware of a racist, sexist, heterosexist bias incident on our campus, a potential bias incident or hate crime, or any other type of crime they are urged to take appropriate action to combat the incident, These actions might include
+ calling Campus Safety (ext.7200)
+ photographing the incident
+ identifying the perpetrator
+ intervening in the moment, if it is safe to do so
+ writing a letter or article for one of the student news publications, sponsoring, attending or participating in educations programming and encouraging your peers to do the same.
In accordance with the Communication Protocol for Bias Related Incidents for the Claremont Colleges a binder of incidents is kept in the Dean of Students Office, located in Balch Hall room 122, SARLO, 2nd floor Malott Commons or at SCORE, located across from Routt/Frankel Residence Hall. Persons wishing to review this binder may do so during regular office hours, Monday through Friday 8 AM to 5 PM.
Marla Love
Assistant Dean of Students
Scripps Communities of Resources and Empowerment
Scripps College
909.607.0743
mlove@scrippscollege.edu
Subject: Bias-Related act in Harwood
Sent: Thursday, February 19, 2009 4:45 PM
From: Daren Mooko <DRM04747@pomona.edu>
Dear Pomona College community,
During the evening of Monday, February 16th, equipment commonly used by our Housekeeping staff was defaced in a way that amounted to a biased-related act. A yellow, "Caution Wet Floor, Cuidado Piso Mojado" sign in Harwood Hall was altered in such a way that resulted in a racial slur.
The racial slur targeted the Latino/Latina community. Any racial slur directed at/ //any/ community has no place at Pomona College and this applies to all members of our community: staff, faculty and students. . However, the fact that our Housekeeping staff is predominantly Latino/a makes this act even more intolerable. Our Housekeepers are an important part of our community and work hard and tirelessly to contribute to our campus. They deserve nothing less than our respect and appreciation. This bias-related act has violated the trust that is implicit in a community like ours that demands dignity, respect and civility.
The Incident Response Team discussed this matter and decided not to re-print the slur in large part to avoid giving the offensive "author(s)" of the slur a larger audience. The defaced placard was problematic enough and we did not want to widen the audience. The slur that was used, like all others, has a historical context that cannot be ignored. Its roots as a derogatory slur for Mexican immigrants to the United States go back to early in the 20th century. However, the term gained notoriety in the 1950s when the US government, involving the border patrol, military, and local police, drove thousands of Mexicans immigrants from the US in mass operations, which included the use of fear tactics, force, and the illegal deportation of Mexican-American citizens.
Pomona College just recently ended a second run of the landmark play,/ //"Zoot Suit"/ in which similar themes of injustice toward Mexican Americans were played out on stage. Faithful to the tradition of a liberal arts education, the College community was able to learn about past racial injustice and societal dynamics through the arts. Playwright Luis Valdez chronicled the racism and the scapegoating many Mexican Americans suffered during the time when the racial slur used in Harwood gained notoriety. It seems those lessons were lost on the person(s) responsible for the bias-related act.
Students, faculty and staff will have an opportunity to further discuss some of these issues at an all-campus forum that will be held on Thursday, March 12^th at noon in the Frank Blue Room. This forum is sponsored by the Workers Support Committee and Empowered Latino/as in Action.
If anyone has information about this bias-related act, please contact either the Office of Campus Life (7-2239) or the Dean of Students Office (1-8017).
Sincerely,
The Pomona College Incident Response Team:
Miriam Feldblum, Vice President and Dean of Students
Daren Mooko, Associate Dean of Students
Sarah Visser, Associate Dean of Campus Life
Student Representatives from:
Asian American Mentor Program
Latino/Latina Liaisons
Queer Resource Center
Women’s Union
Subject: Bias-Related Incident at CMC
Sent: Monday, November 24, 2008 7:24 AM
From: Marana, Jennifer
Dear Members of the CMC Community:
On the night of Saturday, November 22 between 10:00 and 11:00 pm, anti-Christian slurs along with a sexually explicit drawing were written on the door of a student in Benson Hall.
The comments and drawing were highly inappropriate, offensive, and hurtful. They violate CMC's Harassment policy in which all community members are called to "maintain an environment for students, faculty, and staff that is free of sexual, racial, and other unlawful harassment." CMC values and respects the dignity of each person and acts of bias will not be tolerated.
If you have any information regarding this incident, please contact the Dean of Students Office at x18114 or Campus Safety at x72000.
Jennifer Jimenez Maraña
Associate Dean of Students
Subject: bias related incident/s
Date: Sunday, November 23, 2008 6:33 PM
From: "Guy Gerbick" <guy_gerbick@hmc.edu>
The use of a demeaning depiction of a religious symbol to promote a party is clearly offensive to many people. HMC is a community that value everyone. This is not okay on a campus that strives to inculcate real respect for people with differing backgrounds, opinions, and values. We can do better than that.
Since there has been much discussion lately about what constitutes a bias related incident, let's use this example so that everyone understands.
This student reported that he was offended--as a Catholic--to the dean on his campus about a flyer posted by our students on his campus (or maybe he saw one on Platt when he came to Jay's Place).
The bias related incident protocol (http://www.hmc.edu/about/administrativeoffices/dos1/studenthandbook1/policies1/communications.html) states:
"Bias related incidents are expressions of hostility against another person (or group) because of that person's (or group's) race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, gender or sexual orientation, or because the perpetrator perceives that the other person (or group) has one or more of those characteristics. As used in this Protocol, the term 'bias related incident' is limited to conduct that violates one or more of The Claremont Colleges' disciplinary codes and which is not protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution or by analogous provisions of state law."
The student complained that the flyer was offensive to him because of his religion. That satisfies the first part of the definition. Does it violate an HMC disciplinary code? Let's check the Discriminatory Harassment Policy (http://www.hmc.edu/about/administrativeoffices/dos1/studenthandbook1/policies1/discriminatoryharassment.html):
"B. Discriminatory Harassment is defined as behavior that creates an offensive, demeaning, intimidating, or hostile environment. Discriminatory harassment must meet the following criteria:
* The conduct is related to race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, ethnicity, disability, gender, sexual orientation or any other classification or characteristic protected by law
* The conduct is unwanted or unwelcome
* The conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with
or otherwise unreasonably adversely affecting an individual’s employment, educational opportunity, work performance, or organizational participation."
This incident certainly meets the first two criteria. Does it meet the third? That is very difficult to judge. Given the subjective nature of determining whether someone has been reasonably or unreasonably affected by something, we have generally defaulted to the complainant's definition of the situation. This student, by bringing the matter forward, has seemingly deemed the depiction unreasonable.
If there's a doubt about whether a picture can be discriminatory, the policy further clarifies: "Examples of discriminatory harassment may include:... 3. Visual conduct: demeaning depictions (pictures, objects, posters, video, audio, or broadcast material) in a public place."
Now, HMC has a separate poster policy that says (in short) that if you find something on a flyer offensive, you pull one down and contact the person who made the poster to complain (http://www.hmc.edu/about/administrativeoffices/dos1/studenthandbook1/policies1/publicity.html).
However, our posting policy seems to be incompatible with our discriminatory harassment policy. This is an area that we need to reconcile.
I hope this long explanation clarifies how the deans of students of the Claremont Colleges make decisions about handling bias related incidents. I also hope that you don't lose sight of the feeling of hurt that these types of incidents cause. We can often get tangled in discussions of rights and forget about the people who are truly hurt by the insensitivity of others.
If you want to dispute my reasoning or discuss these policies or the Wild Wild West flyer further, please use community-l@hmc.edu. That is a good forum for everyone to participate.
If you are a Mudd student, staff, or faculty member who is not currently subscribed, you can do so by writing to listkeeper@hmc.edu and typing only "subscribe community-l" in the body of the text. If you'd like to see the recent archives of community-l, they are at
http://listarchives.hmc.edu/archives/community-l/.
Guy
Subject: Bias Related Incident at Scripps
Date: Sat, 01 Nov 2008 13:12:03 -0700
From: Staci Buchwald <SBuchwal@ScrippsCollege.edu>
Around 11:30 PM on October 31, 2008 a group of Scripps women were returning home from a gathering at Harvey Mudd College. While crossing Platt Blvd a silver sedan with four women purposefully slowed down and threw tortillas out the car window at them. The women in the car were suspected to be either high school or college students, and the driver of the car had blond hair. The students in the car yelled out the window at a second group of people before throwing the tortillas.
This kind of conduct constitutes a bias incident and anyone with information about the perpetrator of the incident should contact an RA, DOS staff member or campus safety.
Anyone in need of support or wishing to discuss this incident is welcome and encouraged to contact the resource which best meets their needs. Resources include:
+ staff at OBSA - (909) 621-8248
+ staff at CLSA - (909) 621-8044
+ staff on the Asian American Advisory Board
+ Res Life Staff - (909) 621-8277 or (909) 607-4307
+ Chaplains Office - (909) 621-8685
+ SCORE staff (909) 607-8869
+ Scripps Diversity Coordinating Committee - (Amy Marcus - Newhall or Marla Love)
+ staff at MCAPS ( Monsour) - (909) 621-8202
+ DOS (909) 621-8277
We are a supportive, caring community and bias related incidents will not be tolerated. Any time a community member becomes aware of a racist, sexist, heterosexist bias incident on our campus, a potential bias incident or hate crime, or any other type of crime, they are urged to appropriate action to combat the incident. These actions might include:
calling campus safety,
photographing the incident,
identifying the perpetrator,
intervening in the moment if safe to do so,
writing a letter or article for one of the student news publications,
sponsoring, attending or participating in educational programming,
encouraging your peers to do the same.
In accordance with the Communication Protocol for Bias Related Incidents for The Claremont Colleges a binder of incidents is kept in the Dean of Students Office, located in Balch Hall, room 112, SARLO and SCORE.
Persons wishing to review this binder may do so during regular office hours Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
Staci J. Buchwald
Associate Dean of Students
Scripps College - The Claremont Colleges
1030 Columbia Avenue
Claremont, CA 91711
(909) 621-8277 (phone)
(909) 607-7081 (fax)
Subject: bias-related incident and race at Mudd
Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 3:57 PM
From: Guy Gerbick <guy_gerbick@hmc.edu>
Last Friday night, an HMC student entered the room of another Mudder where several people were gathered watching an Asian comedy movie. The entering student, quoting a line from another Asian comedy, said "good morning, negao," which is intended to sound like the word "nigga" with a Japanese accent. Realizing that the joke wasn't funny to the group, the entering student quickly left the room.
The next day the host of the gathering wrote to a dorm chat list forcefully expressing her offense at the use of the n-word, even in jest or imitation. Other people similarly wrote of their offense. The offending student wrote to the list explaining why she said what she did and apologized for offending people. She also apologized to the host in person.
While some people may not consider this a bias-related incident or act of hate, it starkly highlights several important points for everyone at Mudd.
1. Harvey Mudd's goal is to provide a safe, supportive community of respect for everyone on campus.
2. While everyone has full free speech rights here, words can have real consequences. When you say something, even in a light-hearted way with no bad intent, people can be substantially, negatively impacted. Your use of language can even affect the great amount of work that many people have done to build a community that values the differences we all bring to being Mudders.
3. Saying racist, sexist, or homophobic things doesn't just affect people of color, women, or gay people. It has real effects on people in majority groups and makes for an unwelcoming environment for everyone. If you want to talk with a supportive person trained in talking about race, please check the list of MAP (Multicultural Ally Program) allies at http://www.hmc.edu/about/administrativeoffices/institutionaldiversity1/map1/allynames.html or talk to your proctor, who has also been through MAP training. Talking with an ally may be especially useful for people who have prejudiced attitudes and would like to change.
4. We need to talk more about race. So, this Friday's Forum will have Gary Kelly leading a discussion on race, including clips from a full-length movie completely devoted to how people feel about the use of the n-word. We can then talk about how to continue the discussions, particularly as the possibility of a black man being president of the U.S. becomes more probable.
Guy and Gary
--
Guy L. Gerbick
Interim Vice President and Dean of Students
and
Gary Kelly
Associate Dean for Institutional Diversity
Harvey Mudd College
301 Platt Boulevard, Claremont, California 91711
(909) 621-8125
Subject: Notification of a bias incident in our residence hall
Date: Friday, October 03, 2008 10:01 AM
From: Miriam Feldblum <miriam.feldblum@pomona.edu >
To: All_Students Mailing List; Faculty; Staff
Dear Members of the Pomona College Community,
During this past weekend and into the early days of this week, homophobic slurs were written on the door of a queer-identified student in Oldenborg. The slur "fag" was written on the dry-erase board on four separate occasions between Saturday and Tuesday.
This action constitutes a bias-related incident and is in violation of the College's Harassment and Discrimination policy. The writing of the slur was targeted toward a queer-identified person, was offensive, persistent and repetitive. Most importantly, this action is a violation of our community trust and standards. Students, faculty and staff of Pomona College have the right to work, study and live in an environment that is free of harassment and the presence of slurs that have a hateful and historical context.
Pomona College is a community that values and respects the dignity of each person and acts of hate and bias will not be tolerated. When a member of our community becomes aware of a hate crime or bias related incident, they are urged to take the following steps:
1) Contact Campus Safety (7-2000)
2) Contact your RA or a Student Affairs Dean
3) Photograph or document the incident
4) Identify the perpetrator
5) Intervene in the moment, if it is safe to do so
Anyone in need of support or wishing to discuss this incident is welcome and encouraged to contact the resources which best meets their needs. Resources include:
Queer Resource Center: 7-1817
Dean of Students Office: 1-8017
Office of Campus Life: 7-2239
Asian American Resource Center: 1-8639
Office of Black Student Affairs: 7-3639
Chicano/Latino Student Affairs: 1-8044
Chaplains Office: 1-8685
Monsour Counseling & Psychological Services: 1-8202
Sincerely,
Pomona College Incident Response Team:
Vice President and Dean of Students, Miriam Feldblum
Associate Dean of Students, Daren Mooko
Student Representatives from:
Asian American Mentor Program
Latino/Latina Liaisons
Queer Resource Center
Women’s Union
Subject: Notification of a Bias-Related Incident
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 2008 18:40:47 -0700
From: Miriam Feldblum <Miriam.Feldblum@pomona.edu>
Dear Members of the Pomona College Community:
This afternoon, a Pomona student discovered that his vehicle and two vehicles parked near his car in the Lawry Lot (the lot north of 6th street) had been marked with anti-Semitic, anti-queer, and ethnic slurs and images. Campus Safety responded and later asked CPD to respond because of the nature of the slurs. CPD is conducting an investigation into the incident and will attempt to determine whether or not the vandalism was targeted toward specific individuals. It is believed that the incident could have occurred sometime between last night and today. This situation constitutes a bias incident.
Pomona College is committed to being a supportive and inclusive community and bias-related incidents will not be tolerated. Any time a community member becomes aware of a racist, sexist, or heterosexist incident on our campus, a potential bias incident or hate crime, they are urged to take appropriate action to combat the incident. These actions might include:
- calling campus safety,
- photographing the incident,
- identifying the perpetrator,
- intervening in the moment if it is safe to do so,
If you have any information regarding this specific incident, please contact Campus Safety (x72000), the Office of Campus Life (x72239) or my office directly (x18017).
Anyone in need of support or wishing to discuss this incident is also welcomed and encouraged to contact any one of the following resources: Staff at the Queer Resource Center, Dean of Students Office, Office of campus Life, Asian American Resource Center, Office of Community and Multicultural Programs, Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services, the Chaplains, Office of Black Student Affairs, or the Chicano/Latino Student Affairs Office.
Sincerely,
Dean Feldblum
Miriam Feldblum
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
Professor of Politics
101 Alexander Hall
Pomona College
Claremont, CA 91711
Email: miriam.feldblum@pomona.edu
Tel: 909-621-8017
Fax: 909-607-7288
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