[FRIAM] Science and Black Lives Matter

[Merle Lefkoff]

“I go to conferences, and I’m often the only person of color in the room.
You sit in a classroom and all the scientists that are being introduced are
white, white, white,” she said. “And then you sit there as a black student,
and you ask, ‘Do I even have a place in science?’”

The voices rising up in protest across America against police brutality and
systemic racism have been clear: Black lives matter. Now scientists are
bringing that cry to their labs and research centers. On Wednesday,
thousands of researchers across the country are on strike, forgoing
research, classes, meetings and other work to instead spend the day calling
for actions to protect the lives of black people.

The strike follows a reckoning, on social media, of how a lack of diversity
in many scientific fields make black students often feel unwelcome,
unsupported, or even unsafe. “Every time one of us is rejected, beat down,
dismissed, ridiculed, or murdered, I question why I am still in
academia,” wrote
Cassandra Extavour
<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/WUeSRmE9R6ywUhWTWQdLRw~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRgw55oP0TSaHR0cHM6Ly90d2l0dGVyLmNvbS9yZWRtYWtlZGEvc3RhdHVzLzEyNjcxOTQ4MTQxMjgyODc3NDQ_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTQmZW1jPWVkaXRfY2xpbV8yMDIwMDYxMCZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0xOTI3MSZubD1jbGltYXRlLWZ3ZCUzQSZyZWdpX2lkPTQ5ODY3MDkwJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MzA1NzYmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTZmMDhiMmFmMGYzN2E5YzE2MmUxZmE5ZGEwMmYzYjY5VwNueXRCCgAfaBnhXuRTt2pSFm1lcmxlbGVma29mZkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>,
an evolutionary and developmental biologist at Harvard University. “I love
science, but justice is more important.”

Research has shown
<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/6E5rq1qPAvbSd7s6AiesaA~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRgw55oP0TgaHR0cDovL3Jlc2VhcmNoLnBvbW9uYS5lZHUvc2NpL2ZpbGVzLzIwMTQvMTEvUGVhcnNvblNjaHVsZHQyMDE0TkNDLnBkZj9jYW1wYWlnbl9pZD01NCZlbWM9ZWRpdF9jbGltXzIwMjAwNjEwJmluc3RhbmNlX2lkPTE5MjcxJm5sPWNsaW1hdGUtZndkJTNBJnJlZ2lfaWQ9NDk4NjcwOTAmc2VnbWVudF9pZD0zMDU3NiZ0ZT0xJnVzZXJfaWQ9NmYwOGIyYWYwZjM3YTljMTYyZTFmYTlkYTAyZjNiNjlXA255dEIKAB9oGeFe5FO3alIWbWVybGVsZWZrb2ZmQGdtYWlsLmNvbVgEAAAAAA~~>
that
“green STEM fields” — the science, technology and math disciplines that
span climate, conservation, environmental, earth and atmospheric sciences —
are among the least diverse
<https://nl.nytimes.com/f/a/nc5J7p3c5Nu7mLKpVIku5A~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRgw55oP0T8aHR0cHM6Ly9ncmlzdC5vcmcvYXJ0aWNsZS9lbnZpcm9ubWVudGFsLXNjaWVuY2UtZGl2ZXJzaXR5LWFzdGhtYS1hcmFkaG5hLXRyaXBhdGktZXN0ZWJhbi1idXJjaGFyZC8_Y2FtcGFpZ25faWQ9NTQmZW1jPWVkaXRfY2xpbV8yMDIwMDYxMCZpbnN0YW5jZV9pZD0xOTI3MSZubD1jbGltYXRlLWZ3ZCUzQSZyZWdpX2lkPTQ5ODY3MDkwJnNlZ21lbnRfaWQ9MzA1NzYmdGU9MSZ1c2VyX2lkPTZmMDhiMmFmMGYzN2E5YzE2MmUxZmE5ZGEwMmYzYjY5VwNueXRCCgAfaBnhXuRTt2pSFm1lcmxlbGVma29mZkBnbWFpbC5jb21YBAAAAAA~>
in
science. That lack of diversity sits uneasily with findings by numerous
studies that people of color are more likely to live in places that suffer
from pollution, and are more at risk of developing associated health
problems, like asthma or heart disease.
Continue reading the main sto
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-- 
Merle Lefkoff, Ph.D.
Center for Emergent Diplomacy
emergentdiplomacy.org
Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
merlelefkoff at gmail.com <merlelefoff at gmail.com>
mobile:  (303) 859-5609
skype:  merle.lelfkoff2
twitter: @Merle_Lefkoff
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