In the spirit of cooperation, the ALANA students asked, instead, that President Salmon and Provost Low sign a document of "good faith" that stated they will, in cooperation with the students, have a completed ALANA Student Bill of Rights by August 1. They did not agree to that, but agreed to "try" to have a Bill of Rights by August 1. This was not acceptable to the students because the Administration has "tried" for many years and their "attempts" have been marred with broken agreements and broken promises. The following is the ALANA Students Bill of Rights, as presented to President Salmon and Provost Low in June. [May 1, 1996 update: No ALANA Student Bill of Rights was ever completed or signed.]
Let it be known that the Administration of The University of Vermont, represented by President Thomas Salmon and Provost Robert Low, and the New Black Leaders, Asian American Student Union, Alianza Latina and Wahbenowin acknowledge the following ALANA (African, Latino, Asian and Native American) STUDENT BILL OF RIGHTS to serve in preserving, respecting and honoring the rights of ALANA students of The Univeristy of Vermont. Also let it be known that the students referred to in the ALANA STUDENT BILL OF RIGHTS are ALANA students. Let it be known that on this day, June 30, 1995 the above people agree that:
1. Students have the right to live and learn in a university environment that recognizes racism to be race prejudice plus power.
2. Students have the right to live in an environment free from racial discrimination, degradation and harassment.
3. Students have the right to grieve any racial injustice perpetrated against him or her through a process that recognizes the incident as a racial/racist incident and with a hearing board that is specifically trained in anti-racism training.
4. Students have the freedom to practice religious customs and rituals free from police or administrative harassment or interference.
5. Students have the right to live in an academic environment free from racial death threats and other threats of violence.
6. Students have the right to share and learn within a multiracial educational setting, studying a multiracial curriculum with a multiracial faculty.
7. Students have the right to move freely within the university without verbal, mental or physical harassment from UVM law enforcement, or any other law enforcement thereof.
8. Students have the right to live and learn in an environment free from harassment, degradation and discrimination from faculty inside and outside of the classroom setting.
9. Students have the right to be served by Administrators who complete continual anti-racism training so as to better inform their work as Administrators.
10. Student have the right to be informed in a formal and public manner and by the President of the university on the status of race relations on campus and in the community, semesterly.
11. Students have the right to evaluate Administrators and Division Heads in a formal and meaningful performance appraisal process, of which the results will be made public.
12. Students have the right to speak and be heard without fear of being prosecuted or persecuted for the content, tone or delivery of their message.
13. Students have the right to freely choose to live with other ALANA students in a living, learning and cultural environment.
14. Students have the right to access multiracial foods and nourishments from officially sanctioned university dining services.
15. Students have the right to not have their cultures used, exploited or worn.
16. Students have the right to be consulted and conferred with for any officially or unofficially sponsored UVM cultural event or program conducted in their names.
17. Students have the right to attend a university that at least represents the racial demographics of the United States.
18. Students have the right to live and learn in a university environment that is free from racist symbolic structures.
19. Students have the right to be financailly compensated for services they provide in classrooms and courses that deal with racism, race relations and multiculturalism.
20. Students have the right for racial incidents to be defined and recognized as racial incidents.
21. Students have the right to an education free of misinformation.
22. Students have the right to incorporate life experiences outside of the classroom in the classroom and receive full academic credit for the life experiences.
23. Students have the right to access any and all information regarding university administrators and leadership regarding their personal and financial relationships to the university.
24. Students have the right to full civil rights and human rights that are afforded every person of the United States, regardless of university policies or interpretations of policies.
25. Students have the right to meet with the President of the university each semester to discuss the status of race relations on campus and ALANA affairs.
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