Scientists in solidarity

This is a crucial time for a discussion about race in our country that we must not shy away from. At Scripps Research we continually strive for inclusion and diversity, but the institute’s leadership also wants to emphasize that we are unwavering in support of the Black community within the institute and throughout the nation and the world.

Black Lives Matter.

We understand that Black members of our community are hurting, and please know that we see you, we care about you, and we are here for you. We see the momentum of support for the Black community swelling, and we will be a part of that. We insist that we use this time of crisis as a catalyst for change.

While we have much work to do, and we must act now, we have tremendous hope for the future based on the concrete actions of our young scientists on campus. A consortium of organizations led by our graduate students released a powerful statement in the wake of the recent tragic series of racially biased incidents. Most impressively, they provided a specific list of actions individuals could take, as well as sources of information. Every individual should seek their own path of activism in their lives outside Scripps Research, be it through dialogue, protest, outreach or simply voting.

What can we do collectively within Scripps Research? The core enterprise at Scripps Research is training, education and scientific discovery. For that enterprise to thrive, there must be inclusion and diversity across the institute. We must begin by initiating a dialogue and looking within. Over the coming weeks, we need to openly discuss any challenges, to enumerate opportunities and to implement an inclusive plan of action that is actively anti-racist.

We acknowledge that there is a general problem of underrepresentation in American science, and Scripps Research is no exception. We can do better. There is currently considerable energy on the subject of race, and we have the opportunity to channel this energy to effect real change for the Black community, as well as for other underrepresented groups. The leadership of Scripps Research is committed to accepting the challenge of improving diversity and inclusion on our campuses. Our science will be better for it.

Jamie Williamson, PhD
Executive Vice President
On behalf of Scripps Research