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Fall Farewell Issue 2017
dailycardinal.com
Hate and bias reports often do not get follow-ups, leading to few sanctions for students By Lawrence Andrea CAMPUS NEWS EDITOR
With reported hate crimes on UW-Madison’s campus increasing from two in 2015 to twenty in 2016, reports of hate and bias on campus have resulted in surprisingly few sanctions. In fact, the Spring 2017 Bias Incidents and Reports Summary from the Dean of Students Office revealed that 15 percent of those who filed a bias report were anonymous reporters, and just 34 percent of reporters asked for action or follow-up from the university relating to their incident. This is not unusual, according to Bias Response Coordinator Satya Chima. Chima, who handles all bias reports filed to the Dean of Students Office, said this happens “fairly frequently” because, in some of these cases, students do not know who the suspect is and think a meeting would not accomplish much. Some students, she said, just simply want the university to know an incident happened. Mariah Skenandore, co-president of the indigenous student organization Wunk Sheek, was one such student who filed an anonymous report. Skenandore said that although she felt the need to report the incident she experienced, she reported it anonymously because she did not think she could contribute any additional information about the incident. Additionally, she said she would rather just alert the university to the issue. Some cases require further action Some students, however, do
request a university follow-up. According to Chima, once she receives a bias incident report that includes contact information, she reaches out to the student affected to arrange a “support meeting.” During the meeting, the student can explain their situation and get connected to resources that make them feel “supported and safe.” If the “respondent,” the person alleged to have instigated the incident, is known, the Division of Student Life will contact them for their side of the story.
“I think the campus always has work to do, and I think the [Division of Student Life] knows that.”
Satya Chima bias response coordinator Dean of Students Office
Chima said the division takes an “educational” response when dealing with respondents. She said her division does not deal with disciplinary issues, but rather intends to inform the respondent about how their behavior has affected the reporter and the community. “If there is an educational moment to be had, an opportunity for growth, then I will always try to engage with that,” Chima said. “When I’ve had those conversations with students, they go really well.” Skenandore echoed these sentiments, explaining that when she filed yet another hate and bias report
earlier this year after one of her professors “responded poorly” to a negative comment about natives, Chima and the Dean of Students Office was quick to respond. “I thought it was really nice that they reached back out and let me know that my report was [acknowledged],” she said. “It is important to know that people aren’t exhausting their energy with these reports for no reason.” In fact, Skenandore had a meeting with Chima and her professor, during which her professor was “super helpful and apologetic.” She now meets with her professor each week to talk about her experience in class and arrange independent study assignments when lecture material may be “triggering” to her. “[Chima] will actually reach out to me periodically to check in and make sure things are still going well in the class,” Skenandore said. “This process has been super helpful, and [Chima] has been so responsive.” Cases involving conduct violations are referred Since the Division of Student Life does not handle disciplinary actions but rather provides emotional support, all bias complaints that allege behavior in violation of student conduct policy are referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards. According to the Spring 2017 report, just two of the 74 bias-related incidents were put through the non-academic misconduct process. One of the two students was found in violation of non-academic misconduct, though the university did not release which sanction — a
CAMERON LANE -FLEHINGER/THE DAILY CARDINAL
The Division of Student Life takes an educational approach when handling incidents of hate and bias, informing students of the impact of their actions. university reprimand, probation, suspension or expulsion — this student faced for fear of revealing the student’s identity. None of the incidents were found to be hate crimes. Tonya Schmidt, the director of the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards, attributed the low number of misconduct incidents again to the number of students requesting university intervention. Although Schmidt said that students often do not request additional contact because they are unsure of who the suspect is, the office does encourage students with information to come forward. “These are really sensitive situations, and we want them
to have some power and control over the choices they make,” Schmidt said. “We want people to tell us these things happen, but we don’t want to force them to give us more information and go through a process they are not interested in.” Chima said although the spring’s numbers have been on par with other semesters, she thinks many incidents on campus go unreported. “I think the campus always has work to do, and I think the division knows that,” Chima said. “We need more people reporting and coming forward with their stories if they feel safe and comfortable enough to do so.”
Trump’s DACA Repeal: What would it mean for local communities? By Gina Heeb CITY NEWS EDITOR
Erika Rosales came to the United States illegally when she was 12 years old. Today, she is a UW-Madison employee and a UW-Milwaukee student. Those accomplishments were possible, she says, because she is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient. But it wasn’t always that way. Rosales recalls living in fear before she became a DACA recipient. “It has been extremely tough, being in fear the majority of our lives since we arrived here,” she said. “Driving without a driver’s license for about three years. Driving from my home to work and then having a police officer behind you and just getting terrified for the sole fact that I was driving.” Rosales’ story is not unique in Madison. City officials, alongside members of Latino community center Centro Hispano, urged community members Wednesday fight against a national repeal of DACA proposed by President Trump earlier this year. “Policies protecting innocent immigrants from mass detention and deportation keep our community safe and stable,” said Deputy
Mayor Gloria Reyes. “They allow us to continue everyday life without families being broken up and law abiding people from being sent away.” In September, President Trump told Congress members they have six months to “legalize” the Obamaera legislation, which offers undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children protection from deportation and opportunities to gain citizenship. The repeal, if passed, could also raise questions surrounding Madison’s status as a so-called sanctuary city. For months, the city has been unable to say whether or not it officially falls under the definition. “We’re sitting back and monitoring it, but it’s open for interpretation,” assistant City Attorney Marci Paulsen told The Daily Cardinal last month. Madison Police Department Chief Koval wrote in an email to the Cardinal that until there is a “definitive federal policy governing immigration,” like a DACA repeal, local law enforcement will operate as usual. “We will NOT be utilized as deputized agents of ICE in efforts that
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Dane County community members have rallied against President Trump’s proposed immigration rules, including repealing DACA, limiting so-called sanctuary cities and implementing a controversial travel ban. center exclusively on deportation issues,” Koval wrote. “There are priorities far more compelling for us to focus our resources on. Meanwhile, the state is looking for a way to tax Dane County if it doesn’t comply with federal immigration standards.
A bill, authored by state Rep. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, would bar local governments from enacting “sanctuary” policies that block or hinder ICE. Municipalities would be fined for each day of noncompliance. Mike Mikalsen, a spokesper-
son for Nass, told the Cardinal that Dane County is not currently in compliance. “The real impact of our bill would be at the county level,” Mikalsen said. “They have an obligation to cooperate with the federal government.”