A group of students in the U.S. illegally have learned from the Black Lives Matter protesters that occupied colleges across the country last year. Now, they’re demanding that Columbia University make concessions including free healthcare and sensitivity training.
Undocumented Students Initiative (UndoCU) released a list of demands on Wednesday to Columbia University.
“Our daily lived experiences are shaped by national and federal forces that we must face with bravery, but the collective university administration’s inaction has worsened these issues,” the group wrote about dodging federal immigration officials. “Some of us were on the verge of homelessness. Some, including their families, are at high risk of deportation. That the university is not active in aiding and ameliorating these problems demonstrates Columbia’s lack of intrinsic interest in its undocumented students.”
Among their list of demands included financial and housing assistance, to receive the privileges of international students (without the deportations if they overstay their visa) which includes free healthcare, create an administrative position to understand the struggle of UndoCU students, create scholarship fundraisers, counseling service, and sensitivity training for administrators and professors.
This was the same tactic Black Lives Matter employed in 2015 and 2016 and led to major concessions by some universities including diversity training.
According to Campus Reform, Columbia’s spokesman refuses to speak about the demands.
