SEATTLE — Hundreds of students at the University of Washington’s Seattle campus are protesting what they view as systemic institutional racism at the university.
The Seattle Times reports the students marched through campus Thursday, made speeches and briefly took over a regents meeting. They are calling on UW officials to divest holdings in hedge funds and banks that hold investments in the private prison industry.
Students say the companies are benefiting from mass incarceration policies and harsh prison sentences that have primarily impacted minorities.
UW spokesman Norm Arkans says he doesn’t know if the university’s hedge funds include prison investments, but that only a small portion of the university’s money is invested in those funds.
A student regent is expected to address the protesters’ concerns with university financial officers Monday.
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