Letter to Trustees Dear Whitman College Board of Trustees, We, the undersigned Students of Whitman College, are writing

to inform you of unacceptable standards of behavior we have experienced on this campus. Many of us have felt bullied and victimized over the course of the past week for simply trying to speak out against racism and cultural appropriation on campus. Many of the conversations took place over Facebook and the website Whitman Encounters, and quickly devolved into personal attacks. It is clear that not only do many Whitman students not understand the basics of how racism functions, but are more than willing to attack those speaking out against it from the protection of anonymous websites. We are deeply concerned that this website is not only harmful to the student body but casts an unfair reputation on Whitman College and its academic programs. Whitman College is not living up to its standards of sustaining a diverse community in which individuals are valued and respected. We are asking each one of you to stand up for the community Whitman College should be, and take action to ensure no student has to undergo these kinds of racist attacks again. We recommend the following: Disable Whitman computers and the Whitman Wireless network from accessing the website Whitman Encounters, so that Whitman owned resources are not used to engage in this behavior A statement from the administration condemning cultural appropriation and cyberbullying, as well as acknowledging the need for better education on issues of discrimination on campus within 1 week Mandatory workshops for students, staff, and faculty to engage in a discussion about the structures of power on campus and the meaning of racism and cultural appropriation. We recommend making the Power and Privilege symposium a mandatory one day event, and including student input at every stage of the planning process

We sincerely hope that you move forward with each of these recommendations promptly to ensure that Whitman College maintains a tradition of leading the fight for social justice and supporting its students of color. Each of us came to this campus hoping to learn and to make a difference, and now we are asking for your support to do so. Signed,