Black Lives Matter.
On this Wednesday June 10, 2020 the UCI Department of Physics and Astronomy will be hosting two events in solidarity to the #Strike4BlackLives / #ShutDownSTEM / #ShutDownAcademia movement.
Wednesday June 10, 3-4pm Seminar Discussion on Racial Injustice and its Impacts in STEM
Wednesday June 10, 4-5pm Town Hall on Supporting Black Community Members in Physics and Astronomy and the Black Community at Large
We will use the seminar discussion to educate ourselves about the systemic anti-Black racism and how it impacts Physics and Astronomy. We will then brainstorm ideas and make action plans during the Town Hall. Participants are asked to read the assigned material and think about the issues and what actions we can take before the meetings. (More details can be found below).
We very much look forward to your participation on Wednesday.
Tim Tait, Mu-Chun Chen, Franklin Dollar, Zuzanna Siwy, Mike Cooper, David Kirkby
Ground Rules for the Meetings:
Our Code of Conduct will be in effect for this virtual event, but in particular, please abide by the following ground rules:
Be Respectful. The Discussion and Town Hall should be a place where we listen and converse with respect and empathy. We ask the participants to be thoughtful and respectful when making comments.
Be Relevant. The focus of the Seminar Discussion is to educate ourselves. The core purpose of the Town Hall is to make action plans. It is important for the participants to adhere to the focus of the sessions when making comments.
Take Responsibility. A careful examination about racial injustice and taking meaningful actions against it are long over due. It is especially important for the non-POC members to recognize this. The conversation will be difficult and we ask the participants to please bring an open mind, own the responsibilities, and strive our best to do better.
Seminar Discussion on Systemic Anti-Black Racism and its Impacts in STEM
The Department of Physics and Astronomy will be hosting a Seminar Discussion on Racial Injustice and its Impacts in STEM on Wednesday June 10, 3-4pm. We will start by examining Systemic Anti-Black Racism in America and then move on to the question, “Why there are so few Black people in Physics, Astronomy, and STEM in general?” The discussion will be based on the suggested reading listed below. The participants are asked to read the material before the session.
Co-moderators:
Professor Judy Tzu-Chun Wu
Director of the Humanities Center
Professor of Asian American Studies, Chancellor’s Fellow
Professor Mu-Chun Chen
Equity Advisor, School of Physical Sciences
Vice Chair of Graduate Studies, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Video recording – link (closed caption available)
Slides for the Seminar Discussion:
Systemic Anti-Black Racism – link
Impacts in Physics, Astronomy and STEM – link
Videos:
The New York Times 1619 Project Podcast Series, Episode 1: The Fight for True Democracy (See suggested reading material below)
Race: The House We Live In (documentary excerpt) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW764dXEI_8
Trevor Noah: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpXXUC623ow
Department Town Hall on Supporting Black Community Members and the Black Community at Large
The Department of Physics and Astronomy will host a Town Hall on Wednesday June 10, 4-5pm, to discuss ideas and make action plans to support our Black community members in our Department and Black community at large. We ask the participants to think about the issues and what we can do before the meeting. We look forward to hearing you ideas.
Co-Discussion Leaders:
Professor Tim Tait, Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy
Professor Franklin Dollar, Vice Chair of Inclusive Excellence
Moderator: Professor Mu-Chun Chen
If you would like to submit your ideas anonymously, you may do so at
https://forms.gle/5haMb5nHVwGE1ecR8
Suggested Reading before the discussion:
The 2%: Navigating UCI as a Black Student. An original documentary created by UC Irvine undergraduate student Iyanna Blackburn in association with Anteater TV
The New York Times 1619 Project Podcast Series, Episode 1: The Fight for True Democracy
The Long Reach of Racism in the U.S., by Orlando Patterson, Wall Street Journal (2020/6/5)
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-long-reach-of-racism-in-the-u-s-11591372542?shareToken=stbbebe7c8573548858b1311cbfaa5f81e&reflink=article_email_share
(Or access here
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c3r3jI4ENuZBTAdBD6pfxy9mhW6eiNEE/view?usp=sharing )
Why Are There So Few Black Physicists? A New Report Describes What Needs to Change, by Ryan F. Mandelbaum, Gizmodo (2020/1/28)
https://gizmodo.com/why-are-there-so-few-black-physicists-a-new-report-des-1841059183
Additional Reading and Resources:
We will be constantly adding resources in this section. If you have found any information that you think would be good to share, please let us know (Contact muchunc [at] uci.edu ).
To learn about the experience of our fellow Black academics in academia:
https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlackintheIvory?src=hashtag_click
Additional reading can be found at: