UW–Madison Chancellor Blank and UW System President Tommy Thompson have created a public health crisis at UW–Madison and in Dane County, leading to new record-high cases of COVID-19 while expanding policing on campus. The university's reopening plans have placed the most precarious students and workers, Black and marginalized people, disabled/immunocompromised people, houseless and undocumented people, and poor people in life-threatening danger. The university seems to care more about its budget and creditors than people’s lives. This is unacceptable.

We demand that you take immediate action to:

• Defend Public Health: Implement robust and transparent plans for testing, contact tracing, and campus safety; shift to virtual learning and de-densify campus safely; provide no-cost quarantine accommodations

• Put People Over Profit: Provide continuity of employment, pay, and benefits for all workers during the pandemic; freeze rent and offer flexible leases for University Housing; provide no-strings-attached caregiving grants to all students and workers who need them; allow healthcare plans to be maintained at no additional cost during leaves of absence

• Invest in an Inclusive Campus: Meet the demands of the BIPOC Student Coalition; permanently fund diversity, equity, and inclusion committees for all departments; protect international students from threats to visa status and permanently repeal International Student Fee; invest in community-based transformative justice initiatives and mental health counselors of color

• Disarm and Demilitarize the University: Immediately cut 50% of the University of Wisconsin Police Department (UWPD) annual budget with a plan to fully defund by 2025 and reallocate these funds to inclusive campus initiatives above; instate lethal weapons ban and chemical irritants ban (e.g. CS Gas) for UWPD; refuse cooperation with the Madison Police Department (MPD) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

• Support Virtual Learning: Provide no-cost access to internet and technology; adopt campus-wide flexible attendance and assignment policies; provide option of satisfactory disruption / unsatisfactory disruption grading

UW–Madison administrators chose a dangerous plan over the demands of students, workers, community member, and elected leaders:

• July 18 – UW–Madison students rally in opposition to the Smart Restart plan
• July 22 – The Teaching Assistants' Association approved the first version of these demands at our General Membership Meeting
• August 5 – The University Labor Council, a collection of unions representing workers at UW–Madison, issued a warning to and demands of the university
  
• August 14 – Workers from the University Labor Council rally on campus to demonstrate support for their demands
• August 18 – Hundreds of TAA members and activists send emails to Chancellor Blank and elected officials
• August 21 – The TAA releases its revised Platform for a Safe & Moral Restart
• August 22 – Dozens march to Chancellor Blank's house to demand immediate action
• August 23 – BIPOC students on campus issued demands for the University of Wisconsin–Madison, highlighting the need for a Moral Restart.
• August 24 – Dane County Supervisors, Madison Alders, MMSD School Board Members, and other elected leaders call for pivoting to virtual instruction, de-densifying campus, and disclosing health metrics
• August 28 – Sunrise Madison, TAA, LINK, and BIPOC student organizations rally at Chancellor Blank's house to demand action
• September 7 – Associated Students of Madison issues their call for a Moral Restart
• September 9 – Dane County Executive Joe Parisi asks UW–Madison to de-densify campus and pivot to virtual instruction

This petition will not—on its own—be enough to push Chancellor Blank and President Thompson to do the right thing. By signing this petition, you are helping to demonstrate the broad support for these demands. You are also showing that you are willing to take further action to push the university to protect students, workers, and community members.

The university works because we do.

Please click here for more details about the TAA Platform for a Safe & Moral Restart.