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EXCLUSIVE: UChicago Reverses Discriminatory Policy Against Unvaccinated After Thinker Starts Asking Questions

The university has gone dark, refusing to answer any additional Chicago Thinker inquiries.

Daniel SchmidtbyDaniel Schmidt
January 30, 2022
in News
Reading Time: 5 mins read
7
EXCLUSIVE: UChicago Reverses Discriminatory Policy Against Unvaccinated After Thinker Starts Asking Questions
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Last week, University of Chicago administrators informed on-campus students and the Chicago Thinker that unvaccinated students are banned from eating in dining halls—a policy that appears to be inconsistent with city law. After the Chicago Thinker further inquired, the dining policy was reversed with no explanation. It is unclear whether the university ever actually enforced the policy. Currently, the university is ignoring all questions from the Chicago Thinker. 

On January 22, UChicago students living in Liew House, a UChicago dorm community, were informed by a university-employed resident head that unvaccinated students “are not allowed to eat in the dining halls” because “per the Chicago ordinated in place, any unvaccinated individual is not allowed to eat inside a restaurant. This also means that those unvaccinated now have unlimited to go meals.”

The resident head confirmed this policy in an email to the Chicago Thinker, writing that unvaccinated students “now have their swipe card activated for unlimited to go meals.”

The Chicago Thinker again confirmed this policy with a second resident head for Wallace House. According to this resident head, “[u]nvaccinated students have to take their meal[s] to go.”

The Chicago Thinker received further confirmation of the policy upon calling Housing & Residence Life, an administrative entity that oversees UChicago’s dorms and dining halls.

Despite the Liew House resident head attributing the new policy to Chicago’s recent indoor-dining vaccine mandate, the policy seems to be inconsistent with the city’s ordinance. As the Chicago mandate specifically notes, individuals who have received a medical or religious exemption and tested negative for COVID within 72 hours are exempt from the mandate. 

All unvaccinated UChicago students are required to receive a medical or religious exemption and be tested for COVID every week. As a result, all unvaccinated students at UChicago are compliant with the Chicago mandate and should not be barred from Chicago indoor dining, so long as they have received a negative COVID test result within the preceding 72 hours. The university’s dining policy made no such accommodations for unvaccinated students.

Confusingly, when the Chicago Thinker contacted UChicago Communications for a statement, the policy’s existence was denied.

According to spokesperson Gerald McSwiggan, “[a]s noted in the December 31 message to campus, dine-in service on campus currently is limited to UChicago students and employees, as they are required to comply with University vaccination requirements, including the exemption process. Students in residence halls previously have been advised that if they are unvaccinated, they must maintain six feet of distance from other students when dining.”

McSwiggan further clarified that “[t]he University does not have additional vaccination requirements for students in dining commons. We apologize for any misunderstanding among students or staff.”

The Chicago Thinker asked McSwiggan on January 27 why university administrators confirmed the existence of the policy and from whom the policy came. McSwiggan ignored the Chicago Thinker’s requests for information and clarification.

The Chicago Thinker also contacted Richard Mason, assistant vice president for campus life and associate dean of the college, to ask the same questions. Mason confirmed the statement given by McSwiggan but did not answer any questions, referring all further inquiries back to UChicago Communications.

Barely an hour after the Chicago Thinker contacted Mason, the first resident head who confirmed the policy to the Chicago Thinker sent a new email to all students in Liew House. Contradicting what they previously relayed, the resident head stated that unvaccinated students “are permitted to eat in the dining halls.”

The Chicago Thinker asked this resident head the same questions that were not answered by McSwiggan and Mason. No response was given. 

A few days later, a different Liew House resident head contacted the Chicago Thinker, writing that we “can reach out to the University Communications Office for all information [we] need for [our] article.”

As previously mentioned, the Chicago Thinker reached out to UChicago Communications on January 27, but the department has since gone dark, refusing to even respond to the Thinker.

Many questions remain unanswered:

  • Why did university administrators confirm the policy’s existence?
  • Who, or which administrative department, proposed the policy?
  • Why was a policy that appears to be inconsistent with city law promoted by university administrators?
  • Will a formal apology be given to unvaccinated students for telling them to abide by a discriminatory policy seemingly inconsistent with city law?
  • Did the university reverse this policy only because the Chicago Thinker inquired about it? 

UChicago Communications and Housing & Residence Life refuse to answer these questions. This article will be updated if the Chicago Thinker receives new information.

Tags: boosterbooster mandateCOVIDCOVID policyCOVID-19lockdownlockdownsmandatemaskmask mandatemask policymasksThe University of ChicagoUChicagoUChicago AdministrationUChicago studentUniversity of ChicagoVaccinationvaccinationsVaccinevaccine mandatevaccine passportsvirtualVirtual Learning
Daniel Schmidt

Daniel Schmidt

Daniel Schmidt is a University of Chicago freshman interested in studying Economics and History. Originally from Tennessee, he hopes to combat the contempt for Middle America that is common at elite universities.

Comments 7

  1. Rick says:
    1 year ago

    If those who are vaccinated can still get and transmit the virus, why are they not required to be tested regularly as well?

  2. Paul says:
    1 year ago

    The vaccines neither reduce transmissability nor prevent infection. The statistics that claim that the vaccines reduce hospitalization are highly questionable and the product of poor-quality, goal-seeked studies. The safety of the vaccines is provably poor. The necessity of vaccines in college-age students approaches zero.

    If the administrators cannot clearly explain the necessity of vaccines which are both dangerous and ineffective, they should resign immediately for enforcing policy which endangers the lives and liberty of students.

    I am a doctor.

  3. Gayle says:
    1 year ago

    Keep up the fright for freedom. The draconian Covid policies over the last TWO years have been the Crime of the Century. Rick raises a very legitimate question: Why don’t the vaccinated have to be tested regularly, too? They are carriers and spreaders of the virus.

  4. Oliver Clozoff says:
    1 year ago

    Administrators are refusing to respond to inquiries because they are literally and rightly ashamed of themselves.

  5. Smarg says:
    1 year ago

    Mask and jab mandates are about power, control and ballot fraud, not health.

    Remember this.

    Thanks to the UChicago students for fighting tyranny.

  6. John says:
    1 year ago

    More clueless idiots and they are supposed to be “educating” the uneducated…seems to me the “uneducated” are obviously waaaay smarter than the schmucks who are heading the university.
    Good god- by now everyone knows the “vaccine” is a joke! That Covid freaks are blind sheep,,, they would all walk off a cliff together because someone said it’s just a small hill.
    The truth will prevail and the best part is all the “vaccine believers” at least to me are a hilarious show to watch. I have yet to discuss this with any “believer” and get past the second question before they say something along the lines of “oh well that’s not what I meant” or “you just don’t get it” (meaning me) and they ALWAYS walk off.
    How come none of the vaccine experts will debate non-vaccine experts. Not one… they are all wool covered sheep baaaahaa baaahaa and really fun to watch. GO BRANDON, GO JOE ROGAN- GO USA!!!!

  7. Judith says:
    1 year ago

    Bravo Daniel! Keep going. You are the right man for the wrong state. I won’t be back. My city is gone and my former state is governed by a grotesquely overweight dude who is a billboard for unhealthy living and virus liability.

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