Yale President Thumbs His Nose at Federal Law

Peter Salovey, president of Yale, posted this in the Yale Daily News

Since last week’s presidential election, many in our community have expressed concern about the new administration’s proposals to move toward much more aggressive enforcement of immigration laws. Students and others at Yale and around the country have called for the creation of sanctuary campuses.

Yale’s commitment to its students is long-standing, and I am dedicated to maintaining and strengthening the supports and resources we have in place. We admit students without regard to immigration status, and our financial aid policies assure that no student will be denied an education because of immigration status. These policies will continue.

Yale’s home city of New Haven has adopted practices that are designed to promote the safety of all who live here, regardless of immigration status, and the Yale Police Department has aligned itself with those same procedures. New Haven Police Department (NHPD) policies state clearly that a community member’s undocumented status will have no effect on how the NHPD interacts with that person. As a result, police officers do not inquire about a person’s status unless investigating criminal activity and do not inquire about the immigration status of crime victims, witnesses or others who seek police help. Moreover, the NHPD does not enforce the civil provisions of U.S. immigration law (which are the responsibility of federal immigration officials), and only shares confidential information when required by law.

I have asked Yale Police Chief Ronnell Higgins to review the department’s formal written procedures to make sure they reflect these practices, a request which he wholeheartedly accepts. Any law enforcement agent who wishes to enter our campus is expected first to check in with the Yale Police Department. Further, Yale does not permit access to our campus by law enforcement officers unless they have a search warrant….


Letter to Yale Daily News

J. GatsbyThere is a difference between legal and illegal immigrants. The unilateral nullification of the federal immigration law is a slap in the face to all of us who came to this country legally.

Author

32 thoughts on “Yale President Thumbs His Nose at Federal Law

  1. University of California president Janet Napolitano, who was previously the head of DHS, has just decreed the same for UC campuses. Campus police will not cooperate in immigration enforcement matters with federal agencies including the department she once headed.

    Incredible.

  2. So, in addition to illegal immigrants, what other violators of Federal law shall Yale accommodate on its campus?

    Child pornographers, drug traffickers, kidnappers, racketeers…
    just curious.

  3. Maybe the presidents of yale, hahvahd, uc-beserkely, and the university of Wisconsin at Moscow (sorry, Madison) will care more about federal law when President Trump cuts off, not just research funding, but Pell Grants and federal student loans to the special snowflakes.

  4. “police officers do not inquire about a person’s status unless investigating criminal activity” yet a “community member ” who is in the country illegally is , by their presence , engaged in a criminal activity . Consequently it seems the presidents statement is logically incoherent .

  5. Letting universities have control of uniformed and armed officers has been a courtesy and convenience, probably because we never really foresaw University Presidents acting like kings of their own kingdom like this. The day your fake cops point a gun at a real cop and tell him to leave is the day you have jumped the shark.

  6. Question for Yale, what other federal laws do you intend not to support? Minimum wage? Fair Housing, Gun laws? and how would you react if other institutions choose to enforce laws that you revere?

  7. TL;DR: Yale president proclaims the university is *above the law* and boasts that it will harbor fugitives from justice.

    FU, YU!

    Here’s hoping the full force of a Trump administration bears down on Yale and makes you and New Haven squirm!

  8. Lost in all of this debate is that pain, suffering and death unfettered and uncontrolled immigration. The journey to get to the US is a dangerous one and these “sanctuary Cities” only make it worse. So they may believe they are being compassionate, but they are in actuality only creating more suffering.

  9. Since when is the left concerned about the rule of law? The left feels free to ignore any law that they don’t like rather than working to change those laws. I wonder if they realize what they are doing leads to tyranny or they just don’t care.

  10. Since thee Constitution does not authorize the federal government to give taxpayers’ money to Yale in the first place, stop doing so. No threats, no ultimata. Submit to the Constitution. Just stop.

  11. I hope that under President Trump this man will deservedly be charged with conspiracy to break the federal laws, and convicted.

  12. So, Yale promotes lawlessness. Color me unsurprised. Will Yale’s president call the cops if his home is invaded? He should not. Instead, he should offer the criminal a bed, food, his bank account, access to his wife and children

    Yale also promotes joblessness for its and all American citizen graduates. For the past ten years, legal and illegal aliens have received primacy over Americans in the job market. I’m sure that Yale students will be happy when the illegal aliens, whom they intend to coddle, get the good jobs while citizens sit jobless in their parents’ basement or work as baristas.

    It is certainly reassuring that Yale has its priorities in order: for the illegals, everything; for the citizens, nothing.

  13. What kind of an example is this? How is it that Yale has elevated itself above the law? I hope that soon, such actions will be treated as the crime they are, and appropriate action take. I would also like to see federal funding for Yale cut off.

  14. This is great news. New AG Sessions will have a binder with all this info on different Univ and different cities available when they began arresting those who refuse Federal laws. After any and all Federal monies are withheld they will proceed with perp walks of Univ Presidents and City Mayors.

  15. “Any law enforcement agent who wishes to enter our campus is expected first to check in with the Yale Police Department. Further, Yale does not permit access to our campus by law enforcement officers unless they have a search warrant….”

    So if law enforcement agents sneak over the Yale border, will you deport them?

  16. I applaud the commitment to provide quality to everyone who can attend the university. The unintended consequence of this policy is that students learn that only the laws which meet their approval are to be followed; Federal law is of no consequence if it conflicts with an individual’s personal views. Aiding and abetting lawlessness should have consequences, else societal norms break down.

  17. American citizens have the unalienable human right of self-determination as a nation of Free People.

    Illegal immigration violates that right; as do those who aid, abet and empower illegal immigration.

    The president of Yale has chosen to break the rule of law that is crucial to the proper function of American society.

  18. Along with other “sanctuary cities” Yale should be stripped of every penny of federal funding and it should be prosecuted as well.

  19. I look forward to Congressional action on the proposals to impose a 10% tax on college and university endowments above some defined dollar value, say $ 3 billion.

  20. Can’t agree with you. Yale, nor any private citizen or group, is responsible for enforcing immigration law. As a private group, they can set standards for who they admit.

    Police have a vested interest in getting witnesses to come forward, including those in this country illegally. I’m glad they’re choosing to solve crimes rather than act as an arm of ICE.

    The only objection I have is the idea of “sanctuary campuses.” If they stop ICE with a warrant from entering their campus, then federal agents should arrest Peter Salovey, put him in handcuffs, and throw him in the hoosegow.

  21. No real surprise that a clearly-Left-leaning academic elitist collegiate administrator would defy Federal law enforcement with regard to Federal law vis-a-vis lawful immigration status of persons present upon his or her college campus, whether present as enrollees/students or otherwise – never mind the clearly-implied defiance of his/her lawful duty as a U.S. citizen to both report the whereabouts/presence of illegal aliens if known (or strongly-suspected), regardless of the alleged reason(s) for such presence, as such illegal aliens are de-facto criminals, in immediate and direct violation of Federal statutes.

    Such Left-leaning elitists are often arrogantly defiant of any and all legal responsibilities and/or requirements, as they all-too-often “know better” just what the laws SHOULD be, inside their own narrow, objectively-destructive skull of mush…

    They really should take care that they are not openly-defiant of FedLaw, though – or they may well have occasion to learn that: 1) Their statements can easily be shown to be altogether fictional as to their imagined “immunity” to Federal law enforcement; 2) If the suspicion of violation of legal-status of any person(s) present upon any location – collegiate campus or otherwise – within the U.S. is sufficiently strong, NO WARRANT or prior notification AT ANY TIME is REQUIRED for entry, investigation, determination of legal presence, and/or appropriate arrest and detention of any person(s) believed to be/accused of illegal-alien status; 3) NO ONE may lawfully obstruct or otherwise interfere with Federal law authorities engaged upon investigation of suspected illegal-alien status of person(s), wherever found in the U.S.; 4) Any and all persons attempting in any way to obstruct or otherwise interfere with such Federal authorities’ investigation MAY WELL be subjected to arrest and prosecution (and possible fine[s] and/or imprisonment) for doing so – even arrogant, Leftist-leaning big-time college presidents.

    Take care – defiance of Federal law, if sufficiently egregious, can prove to be very, very dangerous to the defiant. Consider yourself duly warned…

  22. Agree with above. Your personal feelings do not allow you to ignore the law. Likely retaliation would be the federal government withholding federal funds to Yale.

  23. Easy to solve. Revoke their Federal tax exempt status, pull all Federal funding for all purposes (bye bye juicy climate change research). Watch with glee how fast they fold.

  24. New Haven should be ringed with ICE agents, and it should announced from Washington that whilst they will not enter the city, any illegal alien who steps outside its boundaries will be arrested, tried, and deported.

    After a year, the ICE can this policy with any surviving municipal and university officials.

  25. I want to understand this. Yale takes the position that no outside police officer may ENTER CAMPUS without a search warrant? Really?

  26. It is the arrogance of people like President Salovey that is dividing our nation. It is not his perogative to decide which federal laws he would like to follow.

  27. I’m not sure this is objectionable as long as Yale is not breaking any federal law and not interfering with federal officials charged with enforcing federal law.

    If Yale officials, including faculty and officets of administration, were expected to become immigration enforcers, it would completely change the dynamic on campus.

  28. We need some tools to deal with these lawbreaking institutions. I wonder if their non-profit tax status might be lost if they knowingly violate federal law.

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