9 July 2020

The American Society of Plant Taxonomists explicitly condemns all forms of racism.

Recent events have highlighted how the United States is a cruel and unjust place for the Black community. The recent murders of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and others are abhorrent and build on a long history of violence committed against Black people in the United States. Additionally, the recent mistreatment of Christian Cooper, a Black birder in New York’s Central Park, and the subsequent social media campaigns that it inspired, have demonstrated that Black individuals are victims of racism even when they are simply observing the natural world. In light of these recent events, ASPT explicitly condemns all forms of racism, and we stand united with antiracist protestors and activists against these injustices. We acknowledge that our Society’s leadership is mostly white, and we encourage all ASPT members to engage in antiracist efforts and to repeat that Black Lives Matter.

As a Society focused on the study of the natural world and composed of members with a strong passion for nature, we recognize the need to make outdoor spaces more inclusive and our role in making this a reality. While we strive to make ASPT a more diverse Society, this will not be possible until our Black colleagues feel comfortable observing plants in nature. We recognize that these outdoor activities may not be inclusive either to other Indigenous and People of Color colleagues of our society. Toward this end, we commit to developing and providing short- and long-term initiatives and actions that support the professional development and retention of botanists from underrepresented groups. Our first step will be to determine our constituency via a voluntary membership demographic survey. We will also allocate funds to initiatives that promote inclusion, including research grants for students and early-career members from underrepresented groups, and mandatory training in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for all ASPT leaders.