The faculty and staff of the biology department strongly condemn the recent killings of Black men and women, including George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, David McAtee, and Breonna Taylor. These murders, along with countless other instances of racially motivated attacks and police brutality, in the midst of a pandemic that has disproportionately killed and harmed Black and Brown communities, demonstrate that racism is the real plague of America. We recognize that systemic racism has shaped every aspect of life on this continent for more than 500 years. We are committed to working towards an end to institutional and individual racism.
We recognize that the community of professionals working in STEM fields, including that of biology, is grossly lacking in racial and other dimensions of diversity. We acknowledge that the histories of our own disciplines are intertwined with racist practices, such as experiments conducted on vulnerable Black, Brown, and marginalized communities without their consent or, in some cases, knowledge. We are dedicated to fighting this and other evidence of racism and racist policies in the lab, in the field, in our disciplines, in the classroom and at the college. We stand in solidarity and in solemn commitment with protesters around the country to call out racism, demand justice, and to practice anti-racism. We will continue to move forward with our commitment to ongoing and collective efforts to combat prejudice and racial violence.
Yours in solidarity,
Pomona College Biology
Andre Cavalcanti
Charlotte Chang
Cris Cheney
EJ Crane
Fran Hanzawa
Fabien Jammes
Karl Johnson
Nina Karnovsky
Mihoko Kato
Rachel Levin
Daniel Martinez
Marty Meyer
Jon Moore
Tina Negritto
Sara Olson
Ross Pringle
Lauren Sauri
Mark Sbertole
Lenny Seligman
Sharon Stranford