Diversity is core to science
*This post was written solely by Dr. Devineni and does not necessarily represent the views of our department, university, other lab members, or the trainee named below*
This was supposed to be a post about how we received our first funding of the year, an R01 supplement from NIDCD supporting the training of our research technician Yuzhen Chen. The grant was approved by NIDCD on January 17 and we were told that the Notice of Award (NOA) would arrive within a few days. I drafted a post about how awesome Yuzhen is and the exciting research that the award would support, and I planned to publish the post once the NOA arrived. It never did.
On January 20, the new US administration took office and nearly all federal grants related to “diversity” were cancelled. Our type of R01 supplement falls into that category, as it aims to support the training of individuals from underrepresented or disadvantaged backgrounds. NIDCD used to have a great webpage about it featuring all the amazing scholars supported by the award - dedicated young scientists who have overcome challenges to pursue research careers and contribute to scientific discoveries. When we got notice that our grant was approved, I beamed with pride knowing that Yuzhen would soon be featured alongside them.
That webpage has been taken down now. “Diversity” is a bad word under the new administration. The argument is that diversity undermines competence, but overwhelming evidence has shown that diverse groups perform better than homogeneous ones. Individuals from different backgrounds contribute different perspectives and ideas, which is key to scientific innovation and discovery. Beyond these tangible benefits of diversity, we have a moral obligation to ensure that scientific careers are accessible to people of all backgrounds. Countless studies have documented the systemic barriers that individuals from underrepresented groups face.
Maybe we’ll still get this grant eventually (a judge has ruled that banning diversity-related grants is unconstitutional), but I’m not counting on it. An executive order can wipe out our grant, but it can’t erase our commitment to building a diverse lab and cultivating an inclusive environment. Our lab members have included people from many different countries and racial and ethnic groups, people who practice different religions, those who identify as LGBTQ, and people from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Our lab’s diversity makes us better. Our country’s diversity makes us stronger. We won’t stop fighting to make sure that science includes everyone.
