The Claremont Progressive

Letter from national and regional labor organizations and legal centers in support of Pomona students, faculty, and workers.

November 30, 2011

David Oxtoby
President
Pomona College

Pomona Board of Trustees
Teresa Shaw
Secretary of the Trustees

Pomona College
550 N. College Ave.
Claremont, CA 91711

Re: re‐verification of Pomona employees’ immigration status
Via e‐mail, hand‐delivery and U.S. mail

Dear President Oxtoby and Trustees:

We are national and California‐based organizations whose mission it is to safeguard and advance the labor and civil rights of working people. Together, we have many decades of experience advocating for both immigrant and non‐immigrant workers across the United States. We write to ask that the Pomona College Administration end its I‐9 reinspection process affecting workers who are attempting to organize a union on its campus. Continue reading →

Dear Pomona College Board of Trustees:

As a Pomona College alumnus, as well as a recent two-year Visiting Assistant Professor in the Politics Department, I feel compelled to respond to your recent letter to the Pomona College Community regarding efforts to verify the legal status of faculty, students, and staff of the College.

At the outset, let me state that I think everyone within the Community should take some comfort in the fact that the Board of Trustees is treating this matter with the respect and concern it deserves. Nevertheless, your letter provides inadequate justification for the actions the College has taken at the Board’s urging, relies on unsupported and incomplete assertions about the potential consequences to the College, and displays an all-too-eager willingness to adopt inclusive resolutions without equal enthusiasm for giving true meaning to the expressed principles. Continue reading →

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Email: concerned.pomona.students@gmail.com

POMONA COLLEGE STUDENTS HOLD VIGIL IN PROTEST OF EMPLOYEE DOCUMENT VERIFICATION

We, a group of concerned Pomona College students, are holding vigil outside Alexander Hall, which houses Pomona College’s administrative offices, in response to certain actions the College has taken regarding employee documentation.

On Monday, Nov. 7, 84 members of the Pomona College community – including faculty, staff, and students – received letters stating that there were deficiencies in their work documents. These individuals were given a deadline of Dec. 1 to re-verify their paperwork. As students committed to community engagement and social justice, we are deeply concerned about this impending deadline and the possible termination of members of the Pomona College community. We believe that the circumstances surrounding these planned terminations have been unclear, unjust, and in direct violation of the values espoused by Pomona College. Continue reading →

[Editor's Note: A statement of presence put out by the same group of students.]

Dear President Oxtoby, Dean Conrad, Dean Feldblum, Office of Campus Life, and Campus Safety:

In response to recent events regarding calls for employee document verification, we, a group of concerned Pomona College students, have established a peaceful extended vigil in front of Alexander Hall. After considering a number of possible forms of action, we have made a deliberate decision not to conduct an obtrusive action such as occupying a campus building. It is our hope that the particular course of action we have chosen will not hinder people wishing to carry out their daily work or education. Our statement to the community, which was distributed through email today, contains additional background information on our actions.

We wish to request from you cooperation, open communication, and respect throughout the duration of our presence, and we intend to fully uphold these values ourselves. Continue reading →