Letter of Support: 2006 Graduate

NOTE: For personal privacy reasons, the name of this letter's author will only be provided to the Board of Directors of Weber State upon submission.  However, the text of the author's letter may be read in full below.

To Whom It May Concern:

As a proud Weber State Political Science and History Alum, I strongly encourage you to heed the petition circulating campus urging the Board to vote in favor of a resolution calling for increased transparency from Weber State University’s electronics suppliers. For I, too, am concerned about the ongoing crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the unintended contributions electronics consumers may, unknowingly, make in full transparency's absence.   

As a concerned global citizen, I've learned that the key driver of the conflict in eastern Congo-the illicit trade in minerals that go into our electronics products, such as cell phones and digital cameras-is generating over $180 million in annual profits for the armed groups responsible for the continuing violence and atrocities. Nearly six million people have died as a result of the war, and hundreds of thousands of women have been raped in eastern Congo over the past decade. The armed groups that are perpetuating the violence finance themselves through the trade in four main minerals, tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold, all of which make our consumer electronics products function properly. 

This requested resolution is a valuable step toward symbolically neutralizing the conflict in eastern Congo and ensuring Weber State University's electronics purchases are not financing crimes against humanity. 

Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully,

2006 Graduate