Message on Violence in Buffalo, NY

KU’s Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging grieves the racially motivated and admitted act of white supremacy that occurred in Buffalo this Saturday. We condemn this senseless act of premeditated violence which resulted in the deaths of 10 people and left 3 others wounded and hospitalized. Our hearts go out to the victims’ families, friends, and community members who mourn the loss of their loved ones. We lift the injured and their families with hope for a full recovery.

Part of our work in DEIB is to help educate our campus about the existence and eradication of anti-Blackness and antisemitism exposed in the white nationalist manifesto of the shooter. Our goal is to educate our campus to recognize and challenge exclusion and violence.

We support all Jayhawks in advocating for change on our campuses and beyond. We continue our work with our DEIB leaders and Equity Advisors in academic and administrative units. Together we are equipped with resources to empower our community to thrive and learn about anti-Blackness and antisemitism.  Every Jayhawk deserves to be seen and heard in their fullness.  

We ask that our fellow Jayhawks take this moment to reflect on what each of us can do to make certain that we are leading change. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are not work, but a way of life that we must commit ourselves to daily so that we can assure everyone in our community has an expectation of protection and belonging. Take some time to reflect in reverence of the lives lost, both in Buffalo and in other recent shootings in California and Texas . We encourage you to learn something new about how you can make a difference today. Strength builds in increments. Together, we can do our part to change our human story.

We offer the following educational resources for our community to recommit themselves to our collective quest for equity. We also remind you that there are many support resources available across the university.

Sincerely,

NHP

Nicole Hodges Persley

Interim Vice Provost of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging

Associate Professor in the Departments of American Studies and African and African American Studies