FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Students Protest Georgias Admissions Ban:

Undocumented and Documented Students Hold Integrated Class at the University of Georgia
on its 54th Anniversary of Desegregation
January 9, 2015
Contact:
Valentina Garcia: 678-542-5214, valentinaegarcia@gmail.com
Jacqueline Delgadillo: 404-483-7764, jacquelined18@yahoo.com
Laura Emiko Soltis: 706-372-4046, lauraemikosoltis@gmail.com
Moore College, University of Georgia Campus, Athens, Georgia

On the 54th anniversary of the racial desegregation of the University of Georgia (UGA),
undocumented immigrant students protested Georgias ban on their enrollment in the states top five
public universities. Undocumented students held an integrated class with their documented student
peers on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, taught by social justice educators and
participants of the African American Civil Rights Movement.
Under Georgia Board of Regents Policy 4.1.6 and Policy 4.3.4, which were implemented in 2011,
undocumented students are banned from the top five public universities in Georgia and prohibited
from qualifying for in-state tuition. Georgia is one of only three states including Alabama and
South Carolina to institute an admissions ban against undocumented students in public higher
education.
The students protest took place 54 years to the date after Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes
entered the University of Georgia. By registering for classes, they became the first Black students to
successfully desegregate a public university in the Deep South. We are holding this protest to honor
the legacy of the brave students who came before us, and to highlight modern forms of segregation
under Georgias current ban against undocumented students, said Sergio Delgadillo, a student leader
at Freedom University. Arizbeth Sanchez added, We seek to rescind Policy 4.1.6 and Policy 4.3.4,
and to promote equal access and tuition equity in higher education for all academically qualified
students. Kevin Ruiz, a member of UGAs Undocumented Student Alliance, said, I am ashamed

that my university denies admission to fully qualified, equally passionate students based on how they
came to the United States as children.
The undocumented students leading the direct action were student leaders of Freedom University, an
Atlanta-based freedom school for undocumented youth. Freedom University provides college-level
classes, college application and scholarship assistance, and leadership development for
undocumented students in Georgia. Dr. Laura Emiko Soltis, the Executive Director of Freedom
University, said, Freedom University students are bright, compassionate, and engaged young
people. Regardless of the discrimination they face, they know that education is their human right.
This makes them unstoppable, and with documented student allies throughout Georgia, they are
carrying on the long tradition of student freedom fighters in the South, and they will win.
More than 40 documented student supporters from the University of Georgia, Kennesaw State
University, and Emory University participated in the integrated class to demonstrate their opposition
to modern segregation at their universities. Fifteen undocumented students wore hand-painted
monarch butterfly wings, which symbolized that their experience of migration was beautiful and
should not be a basis of discrimination. The integrated class featured guest lectures by Lonnie C.
King, the founding chairman of the Atlanta Student Movement, and Loretta Ross, co-founder of the
SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective. Mr. King, in recalling his days
mobilizing students in the campaign to desegregate Atlanta public institutions, told the students,
"You have to be a troublemaker for justice if you want to change anything!" Loretta Ross gave a
powerful, 90-minute lecture that spanned women's rights, racial justice, and movement strategy
building. She closed by telling the students, "You're the ones we've been waiting for!"
The building closed at 5:00pm, but students decided to stay. They began singing freedom songs led
by Freedom University music professor Joel Thompson, including "Oh, Freedom," "This Little Light
of Mine," and "We Shall Not Be Moved." They issued a press release stating that they would remain
in the classroom until their two demands were met:
1) We demand that UGA President Jere Morehead release a statement announcing his opposition to
the discriminatory practices enacted by the University of Georgia in compliance with Policy 4.1.6
and Policy 4.3.4.
2) We demand that the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia rescind Policy 4.1.6
and Policy 4.3.4.
At approximately 8:00pm, campus police entered the classroom and issued an order of dispersal.
Nine students - four undocumented students and five documented allies - stayed in their seats. They
were arrested, charged with criminal trespassing, and taken to Clarke County Jail, where they were
booked and processed. Bail was set at $1,500 per person. Freedom University professors and a legal
team were at the jail, and with donations pouring in from around the country, they were able to
secure their release. The arrestees were greeted with hugs and cheers from their families, classmates,
and professors. Their arraignment date has been set for March 3, 2015.
Follow the listed hashtags on all social media for up to date information on the direct action:
#educationnotsegregation, #54yearslater, #migrationisbeautiful, #fugeorgia
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