EDS STATEMENT ON RACIAL INJUSTICE

We in the Department of Education Studies are deeply saddened, pained, and enraged by the numerous instances of racial injustice, police brutality, and abuses against the Black community, marked most recently by the brutal murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor that continue the systemic devaluation of Black lives in this country today. 

We know many of us - students, staff, faculty, colleagues and the EDS community -  have deep personal experience with these recent injustices as well. We stand in solidarity with the Black community and other communities of color under attack and experiencing unnecessary pain, trauma, and death. 

We echo statements from UCSD, CREATE, AERA, CA State Superintendent of Education Tony Thurmond, and more. We reject the actions of those who fuel the societal turmoil and racial unrest, discord, and division, and we instead pledge to even more urgently support actions that promote justice for all members of our community and the world. 

We pledge to even more urgently work to address the inequities in society, stemming from long term institutional, racial and systemic injustice, further exacerbated and disproportionately borne out in our immigrant communities and communities of color -- including during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

We pledge to pursue even more urgently our efforts to form a more just, safe, equitable society through education. 

While there remains much to be done, we (re)commit to the following:

• Develop/create/review/infuse existing EDS courses with current events discussions focused on racism and antiracism in education
• Add more explicit anti-racist courses, coursework, and dialogue to our undergraduate and graduate catalogs and learning experiences
• Continue and expand equity-oriented partnerships with schools, districts, educational and community-based entities throughout San Diego, nationally and internationally, that focus on the well being of students of color and realize EDS ideals in ‘transforming education in a diverse society’
• Continue collaborations with campus and non-campus partners in creating safe and brave spaces for support, dialogue, connecting, and building understanding, for all members of the EDS community
• Engage in rigorous research that addresses the deep inequities and systemic racism in educational institutions and supports the development of policies and practices that allow all individuals to thrive.

We also pledge to continue to expand this list of commitments in collaboration with all in our community.

In this historic and troubling time, we know that words and public statements are incomplete and inadequate. Yet we hope that we can continue to build as an inclusive and supportive community, learn from each other, grow together, and appreciate the diversity of our values, perspectives, and life experiences, while transforming the society in which we live.