April 8, 2025
Dear Members of Our Campus Community,
We recently announced a Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Antisemitism as part of a broad initiative to improve our campus climate, understand differences, and strengthen the bonds of our community. Noting our UC Santa Barbara Principles of Community, we reiterated our rejection of all forms of hatred, including Islamophobia, racism against Palestinian, Arab, Black, Hispanic, and Asian peoples, homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny. We stated: “An institution of higher learning dedicated to teaching, research, and public service depends on a civic culture in which all members of our community can live and work without fear of prejudice, discrimination, or intimidation.” We also referred to the UC Regents Statement of Principles Against Intolerance (Regents Policy 4403), which states: “Each member of the University community is entitled to speak, to be heard, and to be engaged based on the merits of their views, and unburdened by historical biases, stereotypes and prejudices. Discourse that reflects such biases, stereotypes or prejudice can undermine the equal and welcoming learning environment that the University of California strives to foster. The University seeks to educate members of the community to recognize, understand and avoid biases, stereotypes and prejudices.”
There are ongoing campus efforts and initiatives to combat bias and hatred. In 2020, many of our departments developed plans to combat anti-Black racism. Members of our community have more recently expressed serious concerns about an increase in anti-Palestinian racism, anti-Arab racism, and Islamophobia. In an effort to understand and address these specific concerns, we are creating a Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Islamophobia and Anti-Palestinian Bias. This committee will advance our understanding of campus climate by seeking to assess experiences of faculty, staff, students, and community members, and identify concerns and needs, building upon rigorous research and previous efforts in this domain. The committee will help develop educational and pedagogical initiatives, informed by the histories, cultures, and global contexts of Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim members of our community, to help convey their experiences of prejudice, and to promote mutual respect and understanding. As part of a broader effort to address the impact of all forms of racism and bias, including in this community, the committee will advise how we can foster a respectful, empathetic, and pluralistic dialogue that will model civil discourse even where we disagree, consistent with policies and principles that protect academic freedom in research and in the classroom, including the UC Regents Statement of Principles Against Intolerance, which states: “The University will vigorously defend the principles of the First Amendment and academic freedom against any efforts to subvert or abridge them.”
The committee will provide ongoing guidance and recommendations about how to ensure that there is a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment on campus for all members of our community. The committee will include faculty, staff, students, and alumni, and will consult with relevant community members and organizations. As we previously stated: “The purpose of this and other similar groups that will be convened is not to divide us further but to help us come together across differences to understand each other better. Rejecting those who would divide us, we aim to understand and address the experiences of our faculty, staff, and students in order to strengthen our community and our common cause, and ensure that UC Santa Barbara has a supportive and productive environment for everyone who studies, teaches, and works here, regardless of their views or beliefs. We embrace the mandate of the University of California to be an inclusive public university, offering the highest quality education and research in a state that reflects the diverse and global society in which we all live.”
The Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Islamophobia and Anti-Palestinian Bias will be appointed soon after we complete consultations about membership, and we will continue to consult and communicate about other parts of this initiative to improve campus climate.
Sincerely,
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
David Marshall
Executive Vice Chancellor
Complaints and concerns about discrimination and antisemitism can be reported through our Title IX Compliance and Discrimination and Harassment Prevention Office.