FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 19, 2016 Students Face Charges for Worker Justice Demonstration LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO– On November 20, 2015, students from the USpeak and Students for Worker Justice initiatives of the Student Government of Loyola Chicago (SGLC) organized a demonstration in solidarity with Loyola dining hall workers. For several months, workers have been struggling to negotiate with Aramark, the food service provider on campus, for a living wage, free healthcare, and protections f or immigrant workers. Following the demonstration, students brought their concerns regarding these injustices to Aramark executives on campus. In response to the peaceful delegation, the Loyola administration is now targeting four student organizers and the entire SGLC with charges of harassment/bullying, disruption, and disorderly conduct. The four students are facing academic probation or suspension, and SGLC could lose funding and access to space reservations, threatening its ability to effectively engage with the student body. As dining hall workers continue to call for dignified working conditions, wages, and protections, central tenets of Catholic social teaching, the students face punishment for standing beside them in their struggle. This directly contradicts the spirit of Loyola’s jesuit mission, a mission that encourages students to seek knowledge through the pursuit of justice. It undermines the Student Promise to care for community, a commitment to making our community and the world more equitable and just. The chilling effect is palpable. Though students and workers are under attack, we refuse to be silenced by the Loyola administration. We remain steadfast in our belief that freedom of speech and the dignity of work are fundamental rights for students and workers on our campus. Please join us in calling on the Loyola administration to drop these unjust charges against student organizers by signing the petition below. https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/tell-loyola-that-students-wont-be-silenced In Solidarity, USpeak and Students for Worker Justice
