Dear alums,

As a nation, we are hurting deeply. We are in the midst of fighting a viral pandemic where hundreds of thousands around the world have lost their lives, and so many more are being economically impacted. And at the same time, the reports of racism in the news is incomprehensible.  There have been many recent egregious events, with the unsettling incident that Christian Cooper had to face, and the appalling deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, representing versions of racism that African Americans face every day in the United States.  I know many of you are feeling shock, outrage, frustration, and sadness.  It’s incredibly difficult to comprehend the tumultuous world we find ourselves in right now.   

Please know that my commitment to diversity and inclusive excellence for this School is unwavering.  As a School, we aspire to be an inclusive community of people who work together to develop the next generation of healthcare leaders, produce bold research ideas and advance the field of pharmacy. Soon you will see our Office of Organizational Diversity and Inclusion’s strategic plan and actions for the coming year.  These are focused on recruiting and retaining diverse talent, preparing culturally intelligent professionals, and building an inclusive community. We all must be part of the solution, and we can and will do more. 

Our School has curated resources below to help us all educate ourselves about things we can do today to stand against systemic racism:

• Take action: 100 ways you can take action against racism now

• Get involved: Color for Change – use your time, voice, and resources to take a stand against discrimination, racism, and the senseless violence devastating communities across our country

• Do something: 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice

• Watch this three-part video series: What will it Take To Bridge Our Differences?

• Watch a documentary: 13th (Ava DuVernay) — Netflix

• Read: Bush AA. A conceptual framework for exploring the experiences of underrepresented racial minorities in pharmacy school. Am J Pharm Educ. 2020;84(1):7544. doi:10.5688/ajpe7544

• NY Times: Check in on your Black employees, now

• Bor et al (2018): Police killings and their spillover effects on the mental health of black Americans: a population-based, quasi-experimental study

• Medium: Maintaining professionalism in the age of Black death is….a lot

• Lee & Hicken (2016): Death by a thousand cuts: The health implications of black respectability politics

• The Management Center: How to manage when things are not okay (and haven’t been for centuries)

• ComPsych webinar titled Difficult Conversations During a Time of Unrest Across America. This 47 minute webinar discusses how to have a conversation, what to say and not to say, and how to talk to children about these events. The link to the recording is below. Webinar Recording Link:

• Talk to someone: Text START to 741-741 or call 1-800-273-TALK (8253) for a confidential conversation anytime. The National Crisis Text Line knows we can’t solve systemic racism overnight, but we can show support by helping you get through your most difficult times.

Our call to action is for all of us to better understand, learn, and do our part in building a community of inclusiveness. 

At a time when we are forced to be physically distant, I’d also ask that you reach out to your co-workers, peers, neighbors and family members and show them you care.  Though we are experiencing so much grief and pain, I am hopeful that we can not only support each other, but effect change, together while apart. 

In solidarity,

Angela

ANGELA DM KASHUBA, BScPhm, PharmD, DABCP, FCP
Dean, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy
John A. and Margaret P. McNeill, Sr. Distinguished Professor
Director, Clinical Pharmacology and Analytical Chemistry Core, UNC Center for AIDS Research 
Adjunct Professor of Medicine, UNC School of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases