Groups Call Brown’s Settlement With Trump Administration “Profoundly Disturbing”

Groups Call Brown’s Settlement With Trump Administration “Profoundly Disturbing”

In a joint press statement issued Tuesday, three groups — ACLU of RI, GLAD Law, and RI Center for Justice — criticized the agreement Brown University signed with the Trump Administration last week.

“Brown University’s agreement with the Trump administration is profoundly disturbing. We are especially alarmed by the university’s seeming willingness to use transgender people as a bargaining chip by adopting the narrow definition of sex from the administration’s discriminatory executive order that denies transgender people’s existence,” wrote the groups.

Brown capitulated on a sweeping array of issues — READ HERE

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“We stand with all students, faculty, and staff who feel hurt, disrespected, and fearful following the announcement of this agreement. It is shocking that an institution that has long welcomed, celebrated, and protected LGBTQ+ people on campus would so quickly cave in to the administration’s cruel and coercive agenda,” said the groups.

As part of the deal, Brown will pay $50 million for work training programs.

“Brown University has responsibilities to support all students, faculty and staff — including transgender individuals — under state and federal law, and we hope they will continue to do so despite this announcement. We encourage any members of the Brown community directly affected by new policies related to the university’s adoption of the definition of sex in the Trump administration’s anti-transgender executive order to contact one of our organizations,” said the groups.

As GoLocal unveiled last month, Brown is looking to move 21 properties with a combined assessed value of $30 million.

“Our democracy can’t function without independent institutions of higher learning to develop and safeguard the knowledge and tools we need to advance the values and ideals of a healthy, thriving society. Yet the Trump administration is engaged in an unremitting campaign to undermine these institutions and values. Students and faculty alike need the freedom and resources to think, study, learn, research, and innovate if our country is to remain a leader in our increasingly complex world. We hope other universities and educational institutions will stand strong against this administration’s bullying and coercion to protect the core values of the pursuit and protection of knowledge and understanding, academic freedom, freedom of expression, and openness to a range of different perspectives and experiences,” said the group in the statement.