Science thinks it is racist, which doesn’t make a lot of sense. Science however is going on strike today to stop itself from being racist, which makes even less sense. Each day of the George Floyd unrest brings newer and dumber takes on racism and this is Wednesday’s contribution: Scientists are taking a break from sciencing on June 10, to address the raging racism of science.
Science is knowledge. It is a system of organizing provable facts. It is not biased or racist and has no agenda other than getting to the truth. For some reason, many scientists think that their discipline is racist and started a hashtag-heavy movement:
On June 10, 2020, we will #ShutDownAcademia, #ShutDownSTEM, and #Strike4BlackLives.
5,000 scientists as well as 2 major scientific journals have signed on to this nonsense.
In the wake of the most recent murders of Black people in the US, it is clear that white and other non-Black people have to step up and do the work to eradicate anti-Black racism. As members of the global academic and STEM communities, we have an enormous ethical obligation to stop doing “business as usual.” No matter where we physically live, we impact and are impacted by this moment in history.
Those of us who are not Black, particularly those of us who are white, play a key role in perpetuating systemic racism. Direct actions are needed to stop this injustice. Unless you engage directly with eliminating racism, you are perpetuating it. This moment calls for profound and meaningful change. #ShutDownAcademia and #ShutDownSTEM is the time for white and non-Black People of Color (NBPOC) to not only educate themselves, but to define a detailed plan of action to carry forward. Wednesday June 10, 2020 will mark the day that we transition into a lifelong commitment of actions to eradicate anti-Black racism in academia and STEM. We join with members of Particles for Justice in calling for a #Strike4BlackLives.
This is already dumb, but have a look at this idiocy:
Our responsibility starts with our role in society. In academia, our thoughts and words turn into new ways of knowing. Our research papers turn into media releases, books and legislation that reinforce anti-Black narratives. In STEM, we create technologies that affect every part of our society and are routinely weaponized against Black people.
If scientific research reflects unfavorably on black people, don’t blame science, blame black people. Also, how exactly is technology being weaponized against black people? I told you this is dumb.
STEM stands for “science, technology, engineering and math,” which takes this strike to an even higher level of idiocy. How the hell is mathematics racist? ‘Cause maph be hard and shit?
On top of being anti-scientific, this meaningless gesture is also delusional:
Our collective efforts will lead to eradicating anti-Black racism because Black lives depend on it.
There is no more institutional racism in this country since Republicans took it away from the democrats, but even if there were, how would a bunch guilty white liberals taking a day off put an end to anything? I guess it would put an end to productive research, but it sure as shit isn’t going to stop something that doesn’t even exist.
The science of liberal idiocy predicts that Thursday will bring something profoundly dumber than than this Wednesday science strike. My informed guess is that the left will claim that weather is racist against black people and there will be a demand to defund the Meteorological Society.
