Dear DFP Community,
We are cancelling our DFP seminar scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday, June 10) in order to participate in the Strike for Black Lives (#ShutDownStem). The Strike for Black Lives calls for those in academia to put their work on pause on June 10, and to instead focus their energy on educating ourselves about the history of anti-Black violence, to engage in discussions about how academia creates and perpetuates inequalities, and to make action plans for addressing these injustices at the university and beyond.
As a member of DFP, we encourage you to:
- Spend the time freed by this cancellation to read and engage with materials on anti-Black racism
- Look at and contribute to a page of learning resources and emerging discussion topics and ideas, in a shared googledoc (email dfp-admin@dfp.ubc.ca for access)
- Prepare to join upcoming discussion sessions, to examine issues and identify actionable steps. These will occur during Wednesday noon slots, the first announced soon; stand by.
(1-2) Educate ourselves: The bedrock of DFP philosophy and practice is working to support a just, equitable and inclusive environment. As DFP researchers, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves on these issues and implement change.
To this end, we are collecting learning resources in the googledoc. We encourage you to add to them.
(2-3) As a group, we can brainstorm actionable steps we as a Cluster can take towards eliminating anti-black racism in academia. We invite and encourage you to join us by adding your thoughts and ideas to the googledoc, then prepare to engage in ongoing discussion and planning over the coming weeks and months.
Talking about racism isn’t enough. We need to hold ourselves accountable, and commit to taking action.
Karon MacLean (DFP Director) with other DFP leaders, including members of our Seminar Steering and CREATE Management Committees
