Resolution in Solidarity with Occupy Wall Street

Passed on October 28, 2011 by the Doctoral Students’ Council of the City University of New York

WHEREAS, Occupy Wall Street has brought national attention to income inequality, social injustice, and corporate influence in politics; and

WHEREAS, the concerns of Occupy Wall Street participants directly relate to the social, economic, and political welfare of New York City and State and thus to the student body of CUNY; and

WHEREAS, Occupy Wall Street’s Declaration of Occupation of New York City calls for transparency through lateral democratic processes at all levels of society while CUNY becomes increasingly centralized, hierarchical, and less democratic, as duly elected faculty and student governance are replaced by centrally-appointed administration; and

WHEREAS, Occupy Wall Street’s Declaration of Occupation of New York City states they are protesting against those who have “held students hostage with tens of thousands of dollars of debt on education, which is itself a human right,” as CUNY students have faced recent tuition increases of historic proportions, with additional increases threatened for the coming years, while also struggling with rising cost of living expenses; and

WHEREAS, Occupy Wall Street’s Declaration of Occupation of New York City implores people to “exercise your right to peaceably assemble, occupy public space, create a process to address the problems we face, and generate solutions accessible to everyone,” reinvigorating the claim to rights constitutionally guaranteed; and

WHEREAS, Article I, Policy 1.2 of the Manual of General Policy, under which CUNY operates, states: “The City University of New York should remain a forum for the advocacy of all ideas protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution and the principles of academic freedom. (CPM,1973,11-12,p009)”; and

WHEREAS, CUNY students have been subject to intimidation, police brutality, and the militarization of security forces for attempting to peaceably exert their First Amendment rights in public spaces at Occupy Wall Street protests; and

WHEREAS, individual CUNY students, as well as academics, intellectuals, and public workers from around the world have voiced their support for Occupy Wall Street; and

WHEREAS, the Doctoral Students’ Council is the democratically elected representative body for all doctoral and master’s students at the CUNY Graduate Center; THEREFORE BE IT

RESOLVED, the Doctoral Students’ Council of the Graduate Center supports and stands in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street; and

FURTHER RESOLVED, the Doctoral Students’ Council reasserts the rights of students to peaceably assemble, demonstrate, and petition businesses, the government, and CUNY for a redress of grievances.

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