Dear HDAG members and Harvard community,
We want to first state that Black lives matter. As a club, we stand in firm support of everyone seeking justice for the murder of George Floyd and countless other individuals as a result of deep systematic racism.
We understand the emotional turmoil that this has on the black community, and we solemnly support movements that counteract racist and discriminatory institutions and individuals in the nation now and forever in the future. As an organization, we want to support all of our members and ensure that HDAG is a safe space and community for all individuals.
We strive to be strong allies to the Black community and know that a lot of change is needed in this country to fight against racial injustice and protect those who face a system of oppression.
As a new organization, founded this past January, we are constantly trying to improve ourselves and navigate the best way to convey our beliefs with the community. We apologize for the delayed response, and we want to outrightly stand in solidarity with the BLM movement and do our best to support it.
We will be matching $500 in donations to the charity of your choice. Please send us a screenshot of your donation to our email, contact@harvardanalytics.org, or direct message our Instagram page, @harvardanalytics, with the dollar amount and date donated, and we will match that donation.
Further, we want to use our mission statement to help better support the cause. Here is a list of datasets relating to police that we urge all of you to explore in order to help highlight the need for change in this country. We know this cannot be easy, particularly for Black Americans who have felt the direct implications of racist laws and individuals in this country, but we want to help use data to highlight the need for change.
We are more than happy to share your findings and insights using these datasets to support the BLM movement on our website and with our members.
We also want to highlight some other ways you can help support the movement if you cannot donate. This is by no means an exhaustive list of ways you can help the BLM movement.
Join our summer Think Tank, through which undergrads can collaborate to conduct independent research on pressing issues. If you’d like to join/lead a team researching police brutality / racial injustice related topics, we would love to support you. Please indicate interest here.
Watch and share videos where the ad revenue will be donated to black organizations fighting against racial injustice:
Sign and share petitions that actively call for change (here are just a few):
George Floyd - https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/peti…
Raise The Degree - https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/peti…
Arrest All Four - https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/peti…
Raise The Degree - https://www.change.org/p/minneapolis-...
Engage in conversations regarding race and police brutality with family members. Here are just some resources and tips on how to do so.
Read and learn more about the history of racial discrimination and white supremacy in this country. Here are some:
A Decade of Watching Black People Die on Code Switch — a podcast on race and identity from NPR
13th — a Netflix documentary on the criminalization of African Americans in the US criminal justice system
For Jobs and Freedom: Race and Labor in America since 1865 by Robert H. Zieger
Email your local politicians and lawmakers and demand change.
Attend local protests and show your support for the BLM movement.
We are deeply saddened to even have to send this email, but unfortunately we still live in a time where racism and white supremacy negatively affect millions of people. As an organization, we vow to continue to push and strive for change, but through internal reflection and also our support of BLM movements.
We want to thank you all for your support and urge to donate to the charity of your choice, where we will match your donation.
We also want to express that we encourage conversation and learning and that we are happy to talk with any interested parties. Our email is contact@harvardanalytics.org.
In solidarity,
HDAG Board