CU Denver Bans Travel To Help Earthquake Victims

Fifteen years ago yesterday, Haiti was hit with a terrible earthquake that killed 250,000 people (2.5% of the country’s entire population), injured another 300,000, and made 1,500,000 people homeless. Fifteen years ago today, the University of Colorado Denver banned its faculty and students from traveling to Haiti to offer assistance with this announcement. Out of 10,000’s of natural disasters, this is the one and only time that CU Denver took this action, when the victims were Black. I complained and luckily CU Denver changed their cowardly, racist stance and changed course Jan. 22, 2010.

BUT CU DENVER NEVER APOLOGIZED TO HAITI FOR THEIR RACIST FACEBOOK POST.

Chancellor Wilson's response to my criticism.

Chancellor's Communiqué Jan. 22, 2010 Haiti. Fellow Staff, Faculty and Students, As we continue to watch the horrific and heartbreaking events unfold in Haiti, I was compelled to take a moment and write to you about our university efforts to help in the ways we can. First, I believe an earlier message regarding a travel ban left some feeling as though we were not compassionate to the plight of those suffering so greatly. Additionally, it may have left the impression that our institution would not allow any individuals – even those with expertise desperately needed at this time – to aid in that country’s recovery. I regret this erroneous impression. We were fortunate, as so many groups and organizations were not, that students and faculty from our campus community left the country mere hours before the devastating events. It was our concern for our faculty and students continued safety that prompted the initial travel restrictions. I know that many of you have trained throughout your lives in areas that could provide comfort and healing to the struggles in Haiti. If you feel compelled to go, faculty and staff may use vacation leave to do so. Additionally, I have authorized the use of unpaid leave. As is typical, any leave must be approved by your supervisor. If you intend to use this option, go to this website and complete the simple process outlined there (http://www.ucdenver.edu/faculty_staff/alert_ARCHIVED/internationaltravel/haitiquake2010/Documents/Haiti%20Fillab le%20Form%20Final.pdf) . Our Office of Student Life has been working to establish counseling services for those touched by the tragedy who need support. We have a small contingent of students with ties to the country and we are doing all we can to assist them in this time of crisis. If you would like to help, but are unsure how you might do so, our website has options (http://www.ucdenver.edu/faculty_staff/alert_ARCHIVED/Pages/HaitiQuake.aspx) for providing support through organizations that can truly make a difference. It is during these times that we must stand together as a people, without national boundary or border, to help our fellow human beings. We are doing our best to stand with the countless relief efforts as they struggle to save a country and a people. And, like all world citizens, we keep the people of Haiti in our thoughts and hope for a swift and complete recovery.

Sincerely,

M. Roy Wilson, Chancellor

Chancellor Wilson resigned a few months after this change of course and non-apology apology.

I wrote the following apology for CU Denver and allowed them to plagiarize it.

“CU Denver apologizes for publicly banning employees from traveling to Haiti to assist victims in their time of greatest need. We apologize for stigmatizing Haiti on Facebook and we understand why many people consider our post racist. Upon reflection, we should have remained silent as we had on every other natural disaster in our history, and worked to organize assistance and a way to deliver it. CU Denver now admits that the announcement was racist, and we are sorry. CU Denver regrets the harm we have caused Haiti, we learned from it, it will never happen again, and we will do our best to make it up to Haiti. Thank you Haiti for being a beacon of hope and an example of incredible strength when faced with unfathomable challenges.”

Because I embarrassed CU Denver by exposing their racism and chose to travel and work in Haiti, they went on a campaign to destroy my professional reputation and fire me. Provost Nairn was unaware that Haiti had suffered a great earthquake when he first met with me to discuss me leaving. His testimony at my dismissal hearing showed that he was coached about the travel ban, he made excuses for the racist travel ban, never admitted the mistake, and never offered an apology.

Megan Clark (CU Attorney):All right. Drawing your attention back to 2010, do you recall travel restrictions being put in place concerning travel to Haiti?

Provost Nairn: Yes.

Megan Clark: Was everyone restricted from traveling to Haiti?

Provost Nairn: Yes. It is my recollection at the time there was a State Department warning about travel to Haiti because of the earthquake. I think there were some people at a few institutions around the country that went under an emergency medical arrangement to help with the earthquake itself.

Megan Clark: Who put the travel restrictions in place as far as CU Denver goes?

Provost Nairn: I think that at the time it would have been in response to State Department and other directives. So it would have been probably Chancellor Wilson. I think he was chancellor at the time.

Megan Clark: And what's Chancellor Wilson's academic background?

Provost Nairn: He's a physician, an ophthalmologist. He also had quite a bit of experience in the Caribbean area in general, was well aware of issues around what might be going on in Haiti with regard to the circumstances and trying to deliver health care.

Megan Clark: Did the travel restrictions have anything to do with the race of the majority of the people living in Haiti?

Provost Nairn: Nothing whatsoever.

Megan Clark: Do you know why the restrictions were eventually lifted?

Provost Nairn: I think that over time, the situation in the country changed enough to allow for people to go and help. I know that at different times there were physicians at the Anschutz medical campus that went down with emergency relief. There were others who wanted to go who were not physicians necessarily but wanted to help with different aspects of what was happening in Haiti.

And when it was safe to do that, then the restrictions were lifted and I think people were able

to participate, including from our campuses.

Megan Clark: Did the restrictions being lifted have anything to do with a Facebook post written by Dr. Cronin, to your knowledge?

Provost Nairn: Absolutely nothing.

Megan Clark: Are you aware of the campus imposing other travel restrictions concerning other locations over the years?

Provost Nairn: When they are being -- I mean, we – we work with our staff in the office of international affairs who keep track of what's going on in terms of government warnings, whether that's coming from, you know, our own federal administration or from groups

like WHO. I mean, there are things going on in countries all over the world at any given time. We

have faculty, students, staff that, you know, are often interested in being in those countries or may be in those countries for different reasons. So we monitor them and we have to respond to them. It's not an uncommon thing, unfortunately.

Megan Clark: Thank you. I want to draw your attention now to the late summer of 2018. Did you on multiple occasions discuss Dr. Cronin's concerns with him?

Provost Nairn: Dr. Cronin and I certainly had several meetings around that time about various issues that were going on with him.

The truth remains that CU banned all travel to a disaster zone just once, the Haiti earthquake. I complained and the travel ban was lifted a week later. Provost Nairn was unaware of the earthquake when we first met to discuss me leaving. Nairn and others at CU Denver have offered excuses for the shameful racist Facebook post, but has never offered an apology. The closest apology was Chancellor Wilson weak “I regret this erroneous impression. ” What impression do you expect from “Because of unsafe and unstable conditions in Haiti after yesterday's earthquake, UC Denver has had to ban all travel to Haiti.”?

Read this post for Haitians’ response to the travel ban.