Joint Statement of President and Chancellors against Bigotry
August 16, 2017
Members of the Rutgers Community,
As the administrative leadership of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, we want to express with abundant clarity that acts and statements of bigotry, racism, anti-Semitism, and white supremacy are morally repugnant and have no place in our society or on our campuses.
Our university values and respects the humanity of every individual from every background, and we embrace the diversity that defines Rutgers and has so profoundly enriched our community.
Rutgers is a melting pot of differing ideas, beliefs, and value systems, and we defend the right of all members of our community to express their viewpoints in public forums as private citizens, including viewpoints that the university itself may not share. We urge all members of the Rutgers community to continue to engage respectfully in debates surrounding our differences.
We abhor and condemn the acts of hatred by the KKK, neo-Nazis, and white supremacists who marched in Charlottesville last weekend, and we honor the heroism of Heather Heyer and all who bravely stand up against this hatred.
It is distressing that we should even have to issue such a statement at this point in our nation's history, but we cannot allow any equivocation on this subject.
Sincerely,
Robert Barchi, President
Nancy Cantor, Chancellor, Rutgers University–Newark
Deba Dutta, Chancellor, Rutgers University–New Brunswick
Phoebe Haddon, Chancellor, Rutgers University–Camden
Brian Strom, Chancellor, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences