Dear Campus Community,
I write to you in the midst of a rise in anti-Asian American hate crimes that have been taking place across the country. The xenophobic language and false allegations used to describe the COVID-19 virus highlight that words matter and that those very words should promote the active inclusion of all people, not stoke unfounded fears, promote hate or marginalize any members of our community.
We must use the momentum of this movement towards equity and justice to not only understand hate crimes, but also to acknowledge and address harassment, aggression and other acts of exclusion. We must continue to commit ourselves to combat racism and discrimination. The “othering” of our Asian American communities harms us all.
We, the UC Merced community, condemn these acts of violence and must continue to always stand up in the face of hate. As such, the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion will be working to bring the necessary resources to our Asian American community members and to the allies who are ready to support.
You can find a list of anti- racism resources on our website to contextualize the hate crimes taking place, information on how to respond to a hate crime that occurs to you or someone you know, as well as how to be an ally.
We will also be holding a radical healing session this Wednesday, March 3, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. in partnership with the Office of Social Justice Initiatives and Identity Programs to provide a space where we can all heal and reflect collectively. For the most up to date information, feel free to join our email list and keep an eye out for our campus-wide emails as we work on developing additional programing to provide our campus community with more spaces to reflect and create collective action that leads to transformative change.
Together, we can and will support one another because we are #BOBCATUNITED.
Always with you and in solidarity,
Dania Matos
Associate Chancellor and Chief Diversity Officer
Pronouns: She/Her/Ella
