Greeners react to Evergreen compliance of privacy abuse

author : Necashaw Montgomery topic : student privacy

By Necashaw Montgomery

As previously reported in Works In Progress (July 2008), The Evergreen State College, was served with subpoenas that included a 90 day non-disclosure clause as part of a Thurston County criminal investigation. The College chose to honor the subpoenas and the non-disclosure clause and engaged in no internal discussion about challenging these subpoenas or the non-disclosure clause in any way raising questions about the College's commitment to student privacy.

After the Dead Prez incidents on Feb 14, which led to the vandalism of four police cars on Evergreen campus, confidential student information was released to law enforcement officials, resulting in the arrests of four Evergreen students. Those students whose information was released were not immediately notified, which stirred the campus community, leaving the student body and faculty disappointed, unsettled, and fearful.

Faculty member Peter Bohmer stressed that the actions of Evergreen during these investigations were chilling. "In a very oppressive atmosphere, I think it is important for all of us to challenge this whole attack on people's civil liberties [because] anybody resisting racism, and issues with equality is being constantly surveilled."

He referenced a resolution introduced during a 2002 conference for Evergreen faculty in response to the Privacy Act, where the Evergreen Administration resolved to support the student's right to privacy and notification of disclosure. During the investigations after Valentine's Day this resolution was ignored, leaving students uninformed for up to 90 days after their information was released.

Other staff members indicate that the administration was out of line for keeping their investigations clandestine. One member asked to be left anonymous to protect her position as an employee. In private, she recounted the oppressive environment during the sixties that kept her protesting and in constant fear due to the lack of community support. After Evergreen's unbridled cooperation with the police departments, this fear has been rekindled among students at Evergreen.

Laura Holden, a 2008 graduate, was shocked to hear that Evergreen cooperated so easily with law enforcement officials, but understood the school's legal responsibility after being subpoenaed to release this information. Legal responsibilities aside, Laura found Evergreen's choice to withhold this information from students unethical, frightening and unexpected.

This unexpected behavior is a part of the hypocrisy that senior Alex Kime attributes to his school. He describes Evergreen as a school that nurtures and teaches its students to think beyond the norms of society while governed by an administration that conforms to the very society that its students are learning to challenge.

The administrations decision to share private information left its student body and faculty feeling unsafe, but while Evergreen is an institution that pushes the boundaries of society from within its school walls, it is also an institution that answers to the demands of the outside world. How this school should respond to those demands is still in question. If those interviewed are representative, the community at large will remain unsettled until a compromise can be met.