Today we #Strike4BlackLives. Organised by physicists including @iamstarnord & @IBJIYONGI this is a day to #ShutDownAcademia & #ShutDownSTEM in solidarity w Black colleagues, Black students & Black people who are excluded from academia (📸: shutdownstem) 1/ 
Today, if you're not Black, join others in taking time to pause your academic work and reflect on your role within the academic institution; work to be anti-racist 4/
Why is a strike needed in physics? A @PhysicsNews report from 2012 shows that in the UK the number of Black physics researchers is a mere 0.1% iop.org/publications/i… 5/
If you are in the UK & are not Black, we suggest you take a moment to count how many Black physicists you have come across in your academic career. Let the number sink in. 6/
It is clear that academic institutions are in need of structural change. Yet with so few Black voices within the system, there is an urgent need for non-Black allies to take an active role in campaigning for change 7/
If you are a non-Black physicist, you can campaign in your dept to change policies on hiring, mentoring & support for Black students & faculty. When organising a conference or collaboration, reflect on who you invite and strive to include more Black voices in the conversation 8/
Here are some links that we have found useful as starting points for earning more about racism in academia, how racism & science are inextricably linked and the case for a more inclusive and pluralist science. We'll be spending today reading more. 9/
Check out the #BlackintheIvory hashtag. Black academics have done SO MUCH work in the past few days sharing their experiences — if you’re not Black, listen to them and learn 10/
Do Black students need to bring ‘unique perspectives’ or are they each valuable in themselves? @JedidahIslerPhD tackles this question @nytimes: The ‘Benefits’ of Black physics students nytimes.com/2015/12/17/opi… 11/
If you were thinking earlier, ‘I don’t really know any Black scientists’ we recommend this from @500womensci last year, including some great Black women to follow on twitter 500womenscientists.org/updates/2019/2… 12/
Look into the Fellows of the National Society of Black Physicists @NSBPInc — why not choose some Fellows who work on topics related to yours and read some of their papers? nsbp.org/nsbp-informati… 13/
Physicists of the African Diaspora is another resource to familiarize yourself with Black physicists & their work math.buffalo.edu/mad/physics/ph… 14/
Have you thought about the links between science as most of us know it today and empire, colonialism and slavery? @IBJIYONGI has a reading list to help medium.com/@chanda/decolo… 15/
It’s also important to acknowledge that colonialism still affects science today. In @NatureAstronomy Aparna Venkatesan et al discuss models for partnering with indigenous communities in astronomy nature.com/articles/s4155… 16/
Who gets to make the decisions for people, for land, for the future? The fight for Mauna Kea and the future of science by Sara Segura Kahanamoku, @massivesci, 2019 massivesci.com/notes/mauna-ke… 17/
First Australians were observing the Sun, Moon and stars long before the Babylonians or Greeks. Check out Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Astronomy @AboriginalAstro aboriginalastronomy.com.au 18/
Want a longer read? The book Superior by @AngelaDSaini unpacks racism in science & the rise of ‘race science’ theguardian.com/books/2019/may… 19/
Have you seen Hidden Figures? Read Katherine Johnson’s story in her own words — Reaching for the Moon: The Autobiography of a NASA Mathematician goodreads.com/book/show/4330… 20/
If you’re into maths, check out the book Beyond Banneker: Black Mathematicians and the Paths to Excellence, by @EricaNWalker maa.org/press/maa-revi… 21/
If you want an academic take on Black women’s experiences in physics & astronomy, read A different kind of dark energy: placing race and gender in physics, thesis by @lauren_marietta, Department of African American Studies, Yale University laurenmarietta.github.io/pdfs/Chambers_… 22/
Like we say, these are just some resources we’ve found useful recently. There's a lot more out there. We’ve compiled a list of them at blogs.nature.com/onyourwaveleng… along w bonus material not in this thread. Please join us and #Strike4BlackLives (📸: Tony Ruth's Equity series) 23/23
