Natalie Elder said diversity is what “makes Yale Yale” during a roundtable with elected officials and fellow students. Yale student body President Alex Chen (center) represented students’ anxieties about reports of a proposed settlement, saying students were prepared to fight back against any deal that compromised their academic freedoms. U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal and Mayor Justin Elicker stood alongside a host of Yale students, alums, and professors on Friday and urged the university to avoid a settlement with the Trump administration that would compromise Yale’s “institutional independence.” They issued that collective call during a press conference held outside the Yale Law School. The presser, as well as a roundtable discussion that took place beforehand, were organized by Yale students — and represented the latest and most emphatic action that students, faculty and alumni have taken against a potential settlement over race-conscious admissions practices. The New York Times first reported on the potential Trump-Yale settlement in late June.  Blumenthal, who is also a Yale Law School alum, told students at the roundtable that Yale had already made an offer to settle, and that the Trump administration had rejected the university’s initial proposal. Blumenthal said that he has spoken with Yale President Maurie McInnis twice on this matter; he said that a second offer between Yale and the Trump administration is now pending. In a statement provided to the Independent Friday, a Yale spokesperson declined to comment on any “ongoing legal matter” and said that “we stand firm in the university’s commitment to students’ free expression, academic freedom, and Yale’s ability to determine who is admitted in accordance with the law.” Neither McInnis nor Yale Law School Dean Cristina M. Rodríguez were present at Friday’s press conference. “There’s no excuse for a settlement right now,” Blumenthal said during Friday’s roundtable, which was attended by several students from Yale College and the law school, as well as by the co-general counsel of Yale’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, Marisol Orihuela. Blumenthal said the university was “negotiating against itself,” as the Department of Justice (DOJ) has not completed its investigation into Yale’s admissions practices. The Times reported in May that the DOJ accused Yale of racial discrimination in medical school admissions, but has not made any such assertion about the law school or Yale College. The DOJ did not respond to requests for comment. “The university faces a choice: stand up for truth, academic freedom, and free expression, stand up for the tens of thousands of students, faculty and staff who are the heartbeat of this institution, or surrender our values and give into political intimidation,” said Yale/Downtown Alder Elias Theodore during Friday’s press conference. Theodore was one of several Yale students from the Yale College Council (YCC) and Yale College Democrats to speak to a crowd of about 40 outside Yale Law School.  Alex Chen, Yale’s student body president, also spoke at the presser, along with an incoming Yale freshman, Andres Alvarez, who is from Mexico and had to travel hours every day to attend school in the United States, as well as representatives from Yale Dems including Rishi Gurudevan and Zach Pan. Chen said several students had contacted him this week, expressing concerns about the potential settlement. Students are anxious, he said, having seen universities like Columbia, Brown, the University of Virginia, and Northwestern restrict international students’ rights and free expression on campus and concede to other demands from the Trump administration. He noted that a friend of his who is an international student has not been able to return to his country for two years, for fear of not being allowed to return. Alicia Schmidt Camacho, who is a professor of ethnicity, race, and migration at Yale, raised her hand at the end of the roundtable to bring up educators’ fears about the settlement. She said after the event that with the investigation, the DOJ was communicating to the university that “undeserving people are stealing from the student body,” logic she compared to what the Trump administration has used in arguing against birthright citizenship. “It’s ethnic cleansing and social cleansing,” she said.  Many speakers and attendees at Friday’s event said they see the settlement as having implications beyond the university. Like Camacho, they said that Yale maintaining its institutional independence is crucial for all of higher education, and more broadly, American democracy. Representing the city, Elicker reminded roundtable attendees of legal action the City of New Haven has taken against the Trump administration, emphasizing that the city would “defend and stand by Yale” rejecting the settlement. He also urged Yale to stand in support of the city’s values of diversity and freedom. Downtown/East Rock Alder Christine Kim said she wanted to see “solidarity” between the university and the city. Eli Sabin, a former downtown alder and recent Yale Law School graduate who is now running for a west-side state rep seat, also spoke during Friday’s event. He said he was “proud to be a part of organizing to make this [event] happen. I think that Yale needs to hear from all sides that this is not acceptable.” “I want to thank the Yale community for organizing so strongly around this issue and making your voices heard,” U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro said in a statement Friday. “This outcry demonstrates that you care deeply about Yale’s legacy and independence. I am proud to stand with you in calling for Yale to do what is right and in fighting back against President Trump’s continued assault on higher education and students.” Pan said he felt hopeful after the event, which Gurudevan, who represented the Yale College Democrats with Pan, said took several “late nights” this week to plan. “We don’t want a surrender settlement,” he said. The group that gathered on Friday “shows the unity” against interference from the Trump administration. Incoming Yale freshman Andres Alvarez (right) said he used to travel across the U.S.-Mexico border to attend school, and said he was concerned about whether Yale was considering international students in negotiating a settlement. Mayor Justin Elicker at Friday’s presser. Credit: Adele Haeg photos The post Blumenthal, Elicker Join Yalies In Rejecting Potential Trump Deal appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less