Endangered Scholars Worldwide is deeply concerned about the ongoing racial tension experienced by students, faculty, and staff of color in educational institutions across the country.
This issue was recently brought into the national media spotlight through a series of student protests, beginning at the University of Missouri and spreading to campuses across the country, including The New School. The University of Missouri’s protests gained the most media attention due to several headline-worthy elements, and they served as a catalyst for students around the nation to call attention and demand change to the widespread inequity, racism, and fear experienced by people of color in American educational institutions.
These protests have sparked a national conversation, but mere conversation is not enough. The ongoing and increasing severity of threats made against students and faculty of color generate great concern regarding the ability of intellectuals to work safely in American educational settings, particularly at the university level where education is elective. Targeting scholars is particularly distressing, and it harms the entire educational community by undermining universities' abilities to meet their educational, research, and social responsibilities.