Black Lives Matter
CSUMB community affirms support for racial justice, systemic change
SEASIDE, Calif., June 18, 2020 - Following multiple tragic deaths in the United States including George Floyd’s, President Eduardo M. Ochoa and many others at CSUMB have released statements decrying racism and committing to do more to fight it.
Ochoa called systemic racism “a longstanding stain in our society” and pledged to deepen “our commitment to our values of respect, inclusion, and empathy.”
“We need to redouble our efforts to meet that commitment together. We will take concrete steps to ensure that all our faculty and staff live by those values. We will also take concrete steps to ensure that the educational experience of our students truly uncovers and eradicates the unconscious (and conscious) biases we all have,” Ochoa wrote.
Brian Corpening, associate vice president for the Office of Inclusive Excellence, called the deaths and the nationwide demonstrations that followed “another stark reminder of our continuing national failure to address issues of racial injustice.”
“To erase the scourge of systemic racism requires that we are fully committed to providing our students with the capacity and commitment to be community builders and leaders in moving this society to a new day, a day in which the killing of an unarmed Black man by a member of law enforcement would be a disturbing relic of our past,” Corpening said.
CSUMB Police Chief Earl Lawson joined police chiefs from all 23 California State University campuses in banning chokeholds and pledging to implement policies recommended by a federal task force to ensure accountability, equity and justice.
"We have seen the tragic impact of racism and bigotry, and many in our departments have experienced it personally. We are unitedly determined to take action," the police chiefs said.
Read the complete statements from these CSUMB leaders and others at **INSERT WEBPAGE NAME AND LINK.**
Resources & Organizations at CSUMB
African American/Black Diaspora Resource Guide
Office of Inclusive Excellence
Additional Resources