Acknowledging my silence

I have spent pages and pages on this website devoted to scientific problems and how I have fought to solve them. It's true, I have spent a great deal of energy attempting to solve many of these problems. 

Throughout my career as a graduate student and as a postdoc I have repeatedly been told by multiple people to stay quiet on larger endemic societal and cultural issues that relate to race, sex, and discrimination. The thinking was that to enact meaningful change, I needed first a seat at the table. To get a seat at the table meant doing the research (enumerated in pages on this website). That's all that mattered to get a permanent position.

While well-intentioned, this cannot be the advice that we give to our astronomy community. If we want to build an equitable community we cannot be silent any more, and we must work together to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to pursue the mysteries of the Universe. I failed my community by heeding past advice. Now I must right that wrong. 

---

A commitment to Diversity and Equity

To address the systematic racism issues within academia I am committing myself and my future research group towards combatting the barriers for under-represented minorities to thrive within the astronomy community. This commitment will consist of (but is in no way limited to): 

1. Education for myself and the future students and members of my research group. This is a constant search for ways to improve the environment, culture, and hiring practices of people in my group, department, and in the field. This crucially means that the impacts of academic discrimination and racism will be part of the conversation, and education about its impacts will be a part of the curriculum. 
2. Diverse hiring is vital to improve the demographics of the field. This includes using best practices for evaluating applications, but also casting a wide search through diverse and equitable channels. Stepping outside of the tired channels to appeal to traditionally under-represented communities. 
3.  Fostering inclusivity amongst everyone working with me. Everyone belongs in science and it is on me to establish the culture where everyone feels like they belong. This means that everyone feels comfortable exploring the Universe both in class and during their research. 
4. Allocating time to everyone for community outreach that enables and fosters diversity and inclusivity within the group. This means that a mandatory minimum amount of time will be expected to promote diversity, equity, and inclusivity within the field of astronomy. Of course, what this looks like will be different for everyone involved, but the expectation will still be established. 

This is a learning process and I know that this list will expand to better address the pressing issue. I always want feedback on how I am doing and I welcome suggestions to improve my ability to help address the systemic problems in astronomy.