Joint letter: Urging presidents and governing boards of all 50 United States flagship public universities to divest from entities complicit in the genocide of Uyghurs

To the Presidents and Governing Boards of US Flagship Public Universities:

The People’s Republic of China is engaged in a global campaign to exterminate the culture, religion, and language of the Uyghur people.

According to a January 19, 2021 determination by the US Department of State, the Chinese government’s atrocities against Uyghurs, including the forced detention of more than one million civilians, forced sterilization of thousands of Uyghur women, widespread restrictions on free religious practice, widespread use of torture, and efforts to reduce or eliminate entirely the use of the Uyghur language, amount to genocide. On March 30, 2021, the Biden administration formalized this determination, affirming a nonpartisan consensus that China’s actions constitute genocide. Around the world, atrocities against Uyghurs have been recognized as genocide by the independent Uyghur Tribunal and by Canada, the Czech Republic, France, the United Kingdom, and a growing number of other countries.