Conduct Prohibited by Title VI
Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, no person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.
Title VI protections extend to students who experience discrimination or harassment based on their actual or perceived:
- shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or
- citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity.
Examples may include conduct that involves or is based on:
- racial, ethnic, or ancestral slurs or stereotypes;
- a person’s appearance, including their skin color, physical features, or style of dress that reflects both ethnic and religious traditions or heritage;
- a person’s foreign accent or foreign name (including names commonly associated with particular shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics); or
- the fact that a person speaks a language other than English, such as Hebrew or Arabic.
University Antisemitism and Islamophobia Task Forces
The climate for Jews, Muslims, Israelis, Palestinians, Arabs and others from the Middle East has been an area of significant concern for the UW, especially since October 7, 2023. In early 2024, President Ana Mari Cauce charged two task forces, the Antisemitism and Islamophobia Task Forces, to work together with the Office of Educational Assessment to assess the climate for Jews, Muslims, Israelis, Palestinians, and Arabs members of our University community. A climate assessment was completed in May 2024.
On October 15, 2024, the task forces issued their reports, which were released alongside the findings from the climate assessment survey and focus groups. The full report document can be viewed in PDF format. Actions the University is taking in response to the findings of the climate assessment and the related reports from the task forces are summarized in a UW News article shared with the UW community and detailed in a letter to the co-chairs of the task forces.