The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and tragically, many other Black Americans have left many Americans outraged and in pain and sparked a movement of protest across the country. At SHEEO, we stand with those fighting against racism, racial violence, white supremacy, and the racial injustices in our country and affirmatively declare that Black lives matter.
SHEEO’s vision reads, “Together with its members, SHEEO will promote an environment that values higher education and its role in ensuring the equitable education of all Americans, regardless of race/ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic factors.” We stand behind our vision and are reflecting on how we can work together to combat and dismantle racism through our work. We stand with the Black community and those peacefully working to advance equity and opportunity. As a staff, we will work together to help make systems of higher education places of learning and community for Black students, faculty, and staff, and places free of institutional and systemic racism.
For words to be meaningful, they must be followed by specific action. We have much work to do and will develop an inclusive plan that details how we will move forward. For now, we offer our strong support to our members who are working on plans to address systemic racism, advance equity in educational opportunity, and in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
