<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default"><div style="text-align:center"><font face="georgia, serif"><img src="cid:ii_j6f9lyzy0_15debff0d47fa31e" width="544" height="163"></font></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Dear Undergraduates,</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal" id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-33dc6238-ec01-17b0-92bf-4c8ca5aef3d1"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.656;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">We, the Undergraduate Association (UA) Committee on Community and Diversity, are dedicated to creating an environment in which you feel welcomed and valued as members of the MIT community. In that effort, we write to address the events in Charlottesville, VA this past weekend.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.656;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Under the name "Unite the Right", white supremacists, neo-Nazis, members of the Klu Klux Klan and other far-right groups gathered in Charlottesville to protest against the removal of American Civil War Confederate symbols from public spaces. Specifically, they rallied against the proposed removal of a sculpture commemorating Robert E. Lee, a Confederate general, from Emancipation Park (formerly Lee Park). Counter-protesters, who gathered to oppose the Unite the Right rally, were physically and verbally attacked with pepper-spray, lighter fluid, lit torches, and racist and anti-Semitic chants. As the rally progressed, the protesters became increasingly violent, eventually resulting in dozens of injuries and the death of Heather Heyer, a counter-protester. This was an act of domestic terrorism.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.656;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">The functioning and success of MIT are upheld by the central tenets of inclusivity and respect. Open discourse and diversity of opinions and beliefs are encouraged and protected here. However, we must draw hard lines when support for freedom of speech leads to the degradation, and in this case, personal injury of members of our community; this directly and indisputably clashes with the values of our institution. </font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.656;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Discrimination affects us all. Attacks like these, whether targeted to you personally or not, will inevitably impact someone you know: a friend, a colleague, a neighbor, someone that is close to you. We explicitly condemn these destructive and discriminatory ideologies and behaviors, and we value the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students, which combine to make our community better, stronger, more impactful. MIT is dedicated to inclusivity as a premier value, and bigotry has no home here. </font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.656;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">In this difficult and disheartening time, we encourage you to stay educated about the situation, its fallout, and the various responses from individuals, groups, organizations and institutions around the nation. And, with equal emphasis, we encourage that you take measures to make yourself available to the people that make up your support systems on campus. Now, as always, we must ensure the upkeep of our physical, mental and emotional well-being, share support with one another, and show love.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">We also encourage you to use our campus resources for support, including but not limited to: </font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Student Support Services (S^3)</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3#" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3</font></span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">617-253-4861</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">MIT Mental Health</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://medical.mit.edu/services/mental-health-counseling" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">https://medical.mit.edu/services/mental-health-counseling</font></span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(86,82,97);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">617-253-2916</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Office of Minority Education (OME)</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="http://ome.mit.edu" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">http://ome.mit.edu</font></span></a></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(71,71,71);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">617-253-5010</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><font face="georgia, serif"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><br class="gmail-kix-line-break"></span><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Office of Multicultural Programs (OMP)</span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><font face="georgia, serif"><a href="https://studentlife.mit.edu/omp" style="text-decoration:none"><span style="color:rgb(17,85,204);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">https://studentlife.mit.edu/omp</span></a><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"> </span></font></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">We hope you all have had a peaceful summer break, and we are excited to start the new school year in the next few weeks. Please take your last bit of summer to practice self-care and enjoy yourselves.</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><b style="font-weight:normal"><font face="georgia, serif"><br></font></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">Warmly,</font></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant-ligatures:normal;font-variant-caps:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap"><font face="georgia, serif">UA Committee on Community and Diversity</font></span></p></div><font face="georgia, serif">-- <br></font><div class="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Annie Abay</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Massachusetts Institute of Technology</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Department of Biology</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Co-Chair, UA Committtee on Community and Diversity</font></div><div><font face="georgia, serif" size="2">Class of 2019</font></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>
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