Women in Physics, Allie Hughes WiP Publicity Officer
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In response to continued police violence, a Scholar Strike has been proposed for those of us in higher education to take a stand in solidarity with our students and the communities we serve, to take place for 48 hours on September 8-9. This time can be used for education about police brutality and violence and for taking action to help dismantle systemic racist systems. Links to: an article details about the strike, the organizers' initial statement, and a form to sign on in support. As a part of Scholar Strike, WiP will be hosting a BBL on Wednesday, September 9 at Noon to discuss the recent report from the American Institute of Physics titled The Time is Now: Systemic Changes to Increase African Americans with Bachelor's Degrees in Physics and Astronomy. The report is based on a two year comprehensive study and also includes recommendations and guides for implementing changes in departments. I suggest starting with the Executive Summary, on Page 12. As a reminder, everyone is welcome to join in the discussion! For folks who don't know, BBL (short for Brown Bag Lunch) is where we get together and have an open and casual discussion about a diversity in STEM (or related) topic, usually based around a specific piece of media. If you are still unsure as to why anti-racism action in STEM is important, I suggest you read this article, which has many sources to back up its explanations. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to participate in WiP's discussions about the culture of our department and to educate themselves about the issues.