[UA Community] On Charlottesville

[Annie Abay]

Dear Undergraduates,


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.


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.


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.


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.


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.


We also encourage you to use our campus resources for support, including
but not limited to:


Student Support Services (S^3)

https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3 <https://studentlife.mit.edu/s3#>

617-253-4861


MIT Mental Health

https://medical.mit.edu/services/mental-health-counseling

617-253-2916


Office of Minority Education (OME)

http://ome.mit.edu

617-253-5010


Office of Multicultural Programs (OMP)

https://studentlife.mit.edu/omp


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.


Warmly,

UA Committee on Community and Diversity
-- 
Annie Abay
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Department of Biology
Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science
Co-Chair, UA Committtee on Community and Diversity
Class of 2019
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