Taking a Stand Against Racial Injustice and Police Brutality

Racial Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Task Force

The Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (REDI) Task Force has a new website. Learn more about this important initiative, upcoming events and opportunities, and other ways to get involved.

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A Letter from Director Michael McFaul

    
  On June 8, 2020, Michael McFaul sent the following letter to FSI faculty, students and staff following an open forum discussion about racial injustice.  

CDDRL Statement on Building Racially Inclusive Democracies

CDDRL joins other university centers at Stanford in condemning the police murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and David McAtee, and expressing its outrage at police violence towards demonstrators around the country.

Statements of Solidarity from CISAC

The CISAC community expresses anguish and outrage at the brutal killing of George Floyd—and countless other black Americans who have lost due to police brutality and racism.

APARC Announces Diversity Grant to Support Underrepresented Minority Students Interested in Contemporary Asia

To encourage Stanford students from underrepresented minorities to engage in study and research of topics related to contemporary Asia, the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center is offering a new Diversity Grant opportunity. Applications review begins on September 1, 2020.

The Sting of Indifference

The Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) unequivocally condemns the systemic racism that permeates U.S. society and fully supports the recent calls for social justice and equity.

MIP Statement on Racial Justice

The Masters in International Policy (MIP) joins other university centers at Stanford in condemning the police murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, David McAtee, and countless other African-Americans. We express our outrage at police violence and express our solidarity with Black Lives Matter.

About the FSI Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force

Since its creation in the summer of 2020, the Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force has been addressing the ways in which systemic racism manifests at Stanford, at FSI and in the study of global affairs.

Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (REDI) Task Force Members

Gabrielle Hecht, REDI chair and FSI Senior Fellow

Chonira Aturupane, Associate Director of Academic and Student Affairs at MIP
Ankita Banerjea, Second-Year MIP Student
Emily Bauer, First-Year MIP Student
Kelly Born, Executive Director of the Cyber Policy Center
Kristin Chandler, Associate Director for Administration & Finance at CDDRL
Debak Das, PhD Candidate, Cornell University
Karen Eggleston, Deputy Director of Shorenstein APARC
Eva Hangartner, CDDRL Honors Student
Didi Kuo, Associate Director for Research at CDDRL
Prashant Loyalka, FSI Center Fellow
Beatriz Magaloni, FSI Senior Fellow at CDDRL
Sonita Moss, Research Associate at FSI
Gary Mukai, SPICE Director
Uma Mulukutla, Finance Manager at FSI
Stephen Stedman, FSI Senior Fellow at CDDRL
Paul Wise, FSI Senior Fellow at SHP
Kate Yeager, CISAC Honors Student

Letter from REDI Chair Gabrielle Hecht

    
  On September 15, 2020, Gabrielle Hecht, the chair of the Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Task Force (REDI) sent the following letter to FSI faculty, students and staff on the progress of their work and what to expect in the weeks and months ahead.  

New Research from the Poverty, Violence, and Governance Lab Examines Police Brutality

For the last 10 years, a team of social scientists at the Poverty, Violence, and Governance (PovGov) lab at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) have been developing action-oriented research to support human rights and inform policy on the root causes and devastating consequences of violence.

Reassessing American Democracy: The Enduring Challenge of Racial Exclusion

In a recent paper, Didi Kuo argues that American democracy is in trouble. She points to a rise in party polarization, the increasingly bipartisan abandonment of the norms of the democratic process, the rise of populism, and the proliferation of gerrymandered districts and voting restrictions to illustrate the breakdown.

Now is the Time

Too many Americans have found it convenient to ignore injustice, inequality, and racism in our own country while hypocritically chastising others for trampling on values we profess to hold dear, writes Thomas Fingar. "Looking the other way must end."

SIO Surveys Spam, State and Covert Activities During Domestic Unrest

The Stanford Internet Observatory reports that it has seen no evidence to suggest that the current protests in the U.S. have been driven by misinformation or foreign actors instead of legitimate grievance.

Covid-19, Systemic Racism, and Combat Operational Stress

Living through the pandemic has given one scholar at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies a point of departure for understanding mental health in a new way.

Police Reform in Brazil and Mexico: What Works, What Doesn’t, and What the U.S. Can Learn

On the World Class podcast, Beatriz Magaloni discusses how community-oriented policing and constitutional reform can impact violence committed by police.

Listen Now

What Protests For Racial Justice Tell Us About U.S. Democracy

American democracy is facing its most serious challenge in decades, says Larry Diamond on the World Class Podcast. But there are signs of hope.

Listen Now

FSI Summer Lecture Series

Authoritarian Regimes React to Challenges to Democracy in the U.S.

Presented by the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law.

Where Do We Go From Here? Martin Luther King Jr.'s Unanswered Question

Presented by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute.

The Challenges of Reimagining Policing: A Comparative Perspective

Presented by the Program on Poverty and Governance.

Can We Rebuild Social Cohesion in the U.S.?

Scholars in the Media

41 Cities, Many Sources: How False Antifa Rumors Spread Locally — Renée DiResta (The New York Times, 6/22/20).

Anonymous Claims Responsibility for Atlanta PD Website Outage — Herbert Lin (Government Technology, 6/15/20).

Denver’s Marijuana Businesses Lack Diversity in Ownership and Employment, City Study Finds — Keith Humphreys (The Denver Post, 6/8/20).

CIA Veterans Who Monitored Crackdowns Abroad See Troubling Parallels in Trump’s Handling of Protests — Brett McGurk (The Washington Post, 6/2/20).

Former Commanders Fault Trump’s Use of Troops Against Protesters —Michael McFaul (The New York Times, 6/2/20).

Social Media Becomes Battleground Over Days of Street Protests — Nate Persily and Alex Stamos (The Wall Street Journal, 6/1/20).

Scholar-Authored Articles

The Long Struggle for Voting Rights — Larry Diamond (The American Interest, 6/9/20).

This Moment Cries Out for Us to Confront Race in America — Condoleezza Rice (The Washington Post, 6/4/20).

The U.S. is Losing Ground in the Global Effort to Promote Democratic Ideals — Michael McFaul (The Washington Post. 6/4/20).

Taking a Stand Against Racial Injustice and Police Brutality