Today, January 18, 2017, California Institute of the Arts stands with many colleges and universities across the nation in declaring itself a sanctuary campus. This declaration is made out of respect and in solidarity with our students, staff, faculty, and community members, with particular emphasis on supporting community members who have been specifically targeted by political rhetoric and action, including but not limited to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program students (DACA), disabled/differently-abled, international, LGBTQ+, Muslim, women, the economically disadvantaged, and all students, staff, and faculty of color.
CalArts has declared itself a sanctuary campus to reaffirm that each and every member of the CalArts community is afforded the same protections under the law and is treated fairly, legally, and with the respect and rights due to any human being living inside the boundaries of the United States. In declaring itself a sanctuary campus, CalArts reinforces its current and long-standing policy to:
- NOT allow onto campus any immigration or government official investigating residency status without a subpoena or warrant;
- NOT release any residency status or documentation information of undocumented students, staff or faculty to any immigration or government official, nor collaborate with them, unless served a subpoena or warrant;
- INSTRUCT campus safety officers to not ask, collect, or share any information regarding documentation status so that all members of our community feel they can approach Campus Safety officials without fear of being targeted.
In an effort to keep the CalArts community informed on this important issue, the Institute will create and maintain a section on the HUB website (for internal audiences) in order to aggregate white papers, updates, and advisories on residency issues as well as sanctuary campus status.
CalArts nurtures emerging artists to develop their own unique voices and independent ways of thinking. We believe that art has a transformational power in the world and have worked to uphold the conditions of freedom of expression, expansiveness of aesthetics, and critical questioning of the conditions of daily life that make that power possible. We strive to create a space of equity and inclusivity that recognizes and values the contribution of each member of our community to our collective work of teaching, learning, and making art. Hence, CalArts views this Sanctuary Campus declaration as consistent with the ideals and values that are critical to the Institute’s core mission.
Respectfully,
Steven D. Lavine, President
on behalf of the
California Institute of the Arts