Thread by @alan_townsend

Some thoughts on academic leadership (and leadership in general), spurred by this one year anniversary of a terrible day. 1/x

Earlier today, the @MansfieldCenter shared this. It’s a good quote, and it reflects something I’ve thought a lot about over the last few years. Without question, we need to find ways to lessen divisions in this country if we are to solve our most pressing challenges.

But here on the anniversary of a very dark and dangerous day, I also find myself thinking about the essential need to tell the truth. Lies, deception….and a willingness to let them slide are all threatening our country, and our planet.

It is incumbent on all of us, but especially those of us in leadership roles, to be willing to stand firm for truth, even when that may bring professional (and yes, sometimes personal) risk.

Leadership requires compromise, hearing multiple viewpoints, and bridging differences. But it also brings a moral obligation to stand for what is right and true. For those of us fighting to ensure a livable planet - for our children and theirs - we are at a critical moment.

Earlier this week, a friend I admire greatly - @ChristineArena - shared something she was told a year ago. "You have to decide if you want to be liked, or if you want to make a difference." Those of us in leadership know this to be true.

@ChristineArena But, I believe too often we focus that principle much more internally - w/in our organizations - than externally. Externally, we are often pushed to compromise, to let things slide, to allow dangerous falsehoods to go unchallenged, in the name of keeping organizations “whole”.

When it comes to the survival of our democracy, to the pursuit of true equity, or to the maintenance of a livable planet, those moments of complicity add up to something deeply dangerous. If we do not push back relentlessly for what is right and true, we will get what we deserve.

I love this country. I love this planet. And I love the university I have the privilege to serve. So a year from that awful day, these are truths on my mind.

We have one political party that is increasingly and openly focused on undermining democracy, truth and the will of the people - at nearly any cost, including lives.

We are not making anywhere near enough progress on slowing climate change, or on halting the other environmental threats to this planet. Again, at the cost of livelihoods, and lives.

We are not facing up enough to the realities and human costs of structural racism and other forms of inequity, bias, exclusion and abuse of basic rights. Once more, at the cost of livelihoods and lives.

The descent of our political reality in this country and the lies fueling it, the historical legacy and continuing presence of racism and other inequities, and the fate our of planet, are all inextricably linked.

If we fail to speak and fight for these truths, we are failing our moral obligation to those who will follow us. Our children know and see this. We must do better.

Of course, it’s easier to say all this than to hold to it, when doing so can risk potential income streams, job performance metrics and more. But that’s the point. If we are not willing to risk these things for the truths that matter most, we are not leading as we must.

We are in a fight for the soul of this country, for true equity, and for the survival of a planet that can sustain us. Not choosing a side in this fight is, by default, choosing to abandon it to others. And that is a failure of leadership.

When I look back, I see too many moments where I let something slide. Where I allowed a falsehood, a mistreatment or a dismissal of the truth to go unchallenged. I’m not alone - most of us in leadership do this sooner or later, too often. It’s the reality of the system.

But that cannot be an excuse, for the stakes of the moment we face could not be higher. So on this day, for all my belief in our need to unify as well, I find myself thinking more of these two quotes.

May we find the love, and the courage, to look in the mirror and see when we are falling short, to lead with truth, to not be complicit to forces that tear us apart and threaten our children’s future, and to fight to make this the world it can be. /end