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jessica hatrick-watson

our education, our university, our manifesto


- first and foremost, we recognize this document as a constant work in progress, items can
always be added, deleted, and edited. to recognize the equal importance of each point, they
will be documented alphabetically to remove any kind of hierarchy of ideologies.
- admission will be granted based on an interview and paper application from individuals,
there will be no need to submit grades, gpas, or standardized tests, we recognize these as
part of a capitalistic based system of unequal education.
- all key decisions will be made by a paid committee of staff, faculty, and students who will
be voted into this committee every semester.
- all people (including students) working for the university will earn between $15 to $30 an
hour.
- even though we bought this land from the u.s. government this university will pay a
monthly land rental fee to the kumeyaay people. we will meet once a year with a member
of each kumeyaay tribe to discuss the rental fee, and how it can meet the needs of the
kumeyaay people.
- graduation will depend on the completion of a certain number of units, students may
graduate with a general education or a specific major (wherein half their units must be
from that department). every student must take at least a quarter of their units from the
african american studies, asian & pacific islander studies, chicanx/latinx studies, critical
gender studies, ethnic studies, indigenous studies, race and resistance studies, or third
world studies departments.
- housing, healthcare, and meals for all students (should they want it) will be provided for
free. we recognize these as human rights, not only for those who can afford them.
- our focus as a university is not to research, but to retain and educate students.
- our university does not recognize the u.s. government, or u.s. laws as integral to our space.
we understand that the u.s. continues to occupy these lands illegally, and considering it
does not adhere to its own laws (there is no upholding of freedom of speech when one
holds political prisoners), we will not invest in reproducing these laws or rights. we will
hold ourselves responsible to kumeyaay laws and beliefs, as we are on their land. these will
also be discussed during the yearly meetings with the kumeyaay nation.
- our university recognizes militarism as key to the construction of the u.s., alongside higher
education. we disavow any connection to the military. we will not invest in murder and u.s.
imperialism via an investment of the military. despite this, we recognize the military as a
historical pathway to economic and/or social freedom for many people of color, and respect
their choice to partake in it.
- our university recognizes our individual complicity and complacency in the
heteropatriarchy, capitalist, white supremacist and other oppressive systems of the society
we live in, and we work to educate ourselves on these privileges.
- our university recognizes the trauma that white men as a collective have inflicted on the
world and continue to inflict as well as the trauma they represent for many students of
color, and will strive to not have white men functioning within leadership positions or as
representatives of the university.
- our university recognizes traditionally feminine qualities such as kindness, caring, or
nurturing as opposed to traditionally masculine qualities such as aggressiveness,

jessica hatrick-watson

competitiveness, or independence as central to our understanding of what is needed to


create a society where all members are valued.
our university recognizes "they" as the singular pronoun of all students until a student
requests otherwise.
our university understands palestine to be experiencing ongoing colonization and genocide
by israel, which has been supported by the west. we do not support any investment in this
colonization and ongoing act of genocide.
our university will remain in constant communication with students regarding current
events as an integral part of ability to be retained within our university.
our university will work to represent the realities of the world we live in, our university
will this have at least 75% people of color student body, staff, and faculty; as 75% of the
people in this world are not white. it will meet monthly with students to discuss how this
looks, but considering the extremely pervasive anti-blackness in higher education in the
u.s. the student body will stand to have at least 10% black students at all times.
there will be no hierarchal system of administration, we will have administrative positions
whose job it is to organize certain elements of the university.
there will be no tuition or fees for attending this university. this university will remain free
to students.
there will not be a police presence on campus, we will have a small security team whose
sole purpose is to deal with any violence, but they will exist in an on-call positions only,
they will not patrol, nor will they have weapons.
we are a non-violent organization, and will respond to any violence, be it physical, sexual,
psychological, verbal, or symbolic. to combat any incidents of violence we will partake in
restorative and transformative justice.
we recognize mental health as key to a students retention, and mandate at least one meeting
a semester for every student, as well as making psychologists, psychiatrists, and trained
community members available to help students with their mental health as frequently as
they desire.
we recognize that despite our intent to make education free, many students will need to
work, there will be positions available on campus for them.
we recognize that each students physical, intellectual, and psychological abilities differ,
and we will work with each individual student to adapt our university to their needs in
every way possible.
we recognize that the ongoing oppression of the working class and poor as integral to
capitalism. we recognize these communities as disproportionately people of color. we
recognize that the subjugation of the knowledge produced by these communities has been
key to the construction of higher education, and we think this knowledge is as valuable if
not more so than dominantly accepted knowledge.
we recognize that while this university is attempting not to be shaped by heteropatriarchal,
white supremacist capitalism, that it is present in all other aspects of our lives and how we
have been socialized to understand the world and thus will probably function as an
in/visible force within our university. we will fight for a constant critique of this, and listen
to all perspectives on these issues.
we recognize the individual needs of queer students, and will work with them to meet their
needs. we are invested in critiquing the heteropatriarchy, while critiquing the

jessica hatrick-watson

abnormalization of queer people that happens within the rest of the nation-state, and will
provide whatever resources we can to retain our queer students.
we recognize the individual needs of trans, agender, genderfluid, and gender nonconforming students and will work with them to retain them, they are integral members of
our community and of the revolution. we are invested in critiquing the heteropatriarchy,
while critiquing the abnormalization of trans people that happens within the rest of the
nation-state.
we recognize the individual needs of undocumented students, and will work with them to
help them gain citizenship should that be what they desire, or if not, then in their dealing
with the u.s. government, and their right to exist on any side of colonial and imperial
borders. we do not believe any human can be rendered illegal, especially by an illegal
nation-state.
we recognize the use of the english language as part of the ongoing colonization and
imperialization of people of color, and so are able to provide translations of any lectures
for any students upon request.
we refuse to invest in u.s. imperialism, and will not support it, nor will we invest or use
research that supports it.
we understand the prison industrial complex as a force that shapes every aspect of our
students lives even once they have reached higher education. we will not invest in it:
economically or morally. we believe in the abolition of systems of incarceration. and we
will recognize the role it plays in the lives of our students, particularly for black,
indigenous, and latinx men as a shaping force of their experiences in this world.
we will hold weekly town-hall meetings at different times each week for students to
attend and discuss the campus climate, as well as having members of the administrative
team available from 8am to 8pm everyday to discuss these issues, should someone not be
able to make these town hall meetings.
we will only accept funding via unconditional donations that do not hold any kind of
stipulations with them.

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