Posted 12:20 p.m. Thursday, April 22, 2021
Sent to all UWL students, faculty and staff
Dear students and colleagues,
Earlier today, justice was served in Minneapolis when a jury found Derek Chauvin guilty of all charges in the killing of George Floyd. And our UWL campus Diversity and Inclusion leaders and I would like to note that this day serves as a stark reminder of the brutality and racial injustice that are all too common in our country. Although the Chauvin trial has come to a clear conclusion, it does not fill the voids it laid bare in our criminal justice system and, indeed, in our society at large. A guilty verdict won’t bring about systemic change. The larger question is and, in some ways, has always been: What now? What can we do as one person, one campus, one community, one nation to move us forward so the tragic killings of black and brown humans don’t happen again?
Here at UWL, we are committed to creating an environment that is safe, equitable, and supportive for our students, staff and faculty. And we understand the leadership role we must play in the La Crosse community to promote diversity, equity and inclusion of all. We must continue to support the strides being made together as a campus community, and we must stand against violence of any kind. Progress is only possible if each of us does our part to restore trust, confidence and faith in one another.
Members of our university community may decide to come together to respond to the final verdict in the Chauvin case. As always, the university supports students, faculty and staff in their desire to demonstrate and their right to free speech. And while there are many differing viewpoints, let us each express ours peacefully and respectfully.
In the meantime, we encourage anyone who requires support in processing this event to contact any of these offices for assistance:
Resources for the university community
- Counseling and Testing Center at 608.785.8073
- Student Life at studentlife@uwlax.edu
- Office of Multicultural Students Services (OMSS) at omss@uwlax.edu
- Campus Climate at campusclimate@uwlax.edu
- Student Support Services at sss@uwlax.edu
- Pride Center at pridecenter@uwlax.edu
- ACCESS Center at ACCESSCenter@uwlax.edu
- Upward Bound at upwardbound@uwlax.edu
- Faculty and staff who need support should use the Employee Assistance Program.
Resources for dialogue
- Difficult Dialogues National Resource Center: The DDNRC’s resources provide tools to engage in difficult conversations in classroom and other settings.
- Living Room Conversations: Provide a simple guide to begin to engage in conversations across topics of conversation such as race, nationality, gender, age, and more.
- Talking About Race: The National Museum of African American History and Culture’s Talking About Race guide may be helpful in preparing to navigate discussions about race and racism.
Processing spaces
- Dialogues Circle: This is a space to discuss the outcome of Derek Chauvin’s trial. This is not a space for debate, but a supportive space. Register here.
- Wednesday, April 21st, 2021 at 12-1pm
- Thursday, April 22nd, 2021 at 1-2pm
Office of Multicultural Student Services will be offering community space too (students check your email).
Virtual events
- Voices of UpRising: The Road Toward Racial Justice, The first in a series of conversations centered on uprisings and social justice. This conversation, spurred by the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers and the ensuing worldwide protests, will provide context and insight from panelists whose professional and personal lives are deeply entwined with issues of racism, police brutality, and social justice.
- Voices of UpRising: The Crossroads of Whiteness and Masculinities, The second installment of the Voices of Uprising series focuses on challenging Whiteness and White supremacy on our campuses and in our communities.
The historic verdict rendered today is a powerful reminder of our need to rededicate ourselves to eliminating inequalities and injustice, and I look forward to continuing to collaborate with our diversity and inclusion leaders toward these essential goals.