Our message of support
We strongly support our College's commitment to creating an environment where all are welcomed, valued, and respected. We are angered and deeply troubled by the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and countless other Black people killed by police officers sworn to protect and serve their communities. We stand in solidarity with our Black student leaders who are calling for change. We recognize and condemn the systemic racial inequalities and violence that have maligned and silenced the voices and lives of Black people, Indigenous peoples, and people of color for far too long. America's educational institutions and our own discipline of Geography bear a legacy of racial injustice and underrepresentation that we contend with still today. As a department and discipline, we promise to address this history and combat anti-Black and other forms of racism in our scholarship, teaching, and service while advancing the values of social and spatial justice, equity, and care that continue to be affirmed by new and more diverse generations of geographers and strands of inquiry. We know meaningful research and teaching can only be forged from and practiced by the voices of many. Thank you to our Black student leadership for their powerful letter and call to action. Black lives matter on this campus, in Reno, the U.S., and around the world. In the days and months ahead, we will identify concrete steps to combat racial injustice and create safe and inclusive environments at the University of Nevada, Reno and within our broader local and global communities.
