To the University of Rochester Community:
The University of Rochester is committed to being an antiracist institution where everyone, regardless of their identity or the challenges they face, is lifted up to realize their hopes and dreams and to become their best selves. However, we know that the University, like the nation, has work to do to meet that objective.
Eleven months after George Floyd’s horrific death in the custody of Minneapolis police, a verdict in the trial of former officer Derek Chauvin has been handed down. The trial of Derek Chauvin and its eventual outcome were not just a product of our adversarial justice system, but also a product of our imperfect society. Any outcome in this case would have made some people feel passionately that justice was served, while others would believe just as passionately that justice was denied.
But this moment is about more than a single trial. This is but one inflection point in a history of structural racism that we hope our nation is finally beginning to fully confront. The tragedies of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Daniel Prude, Adam Toledo, Daunte Wright, and countless other Black people reaching back centuries, only serve to remind us of how far we as a society must progress to achieve our shared goal of justice for all.
Many members of our community are grieving. Some are feeling fearful, some are angry, some are feeling a mix of emotions hard to define. The University is committed to providing a safe and supportive environment for everyone to process and share these powerful feelings in an atmosphere of safety and respect.
In coming days we will announce facilitated conversations in person and over Zoom, plus safe zones designated for quiet reflection. We offer many other resources for help and support:
- CARE Network Resource Center (University-wide for students)
- University Counseling Center (University-wide for students)
(585) 275-3113—24 hours a day
- University Faith Communities at the Interfaith Chapel (for students, faculty, and staff)
(585) 275-4321
- Chaplaincy Services (at Medical Center for students, faculty, and staff)
(585) 275-2222—24 hours a day
- Staff Support—Employee Assistance Program (University-wide for faculty and staff)
(585) 276-9110
- M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence
(585) 463-3265
As we process together the verdict in the Chauvin trial and its meaning, let us harness these powerful feelings to fulfill our commitment to making this university, and this community, ever better. No one in the University of Rochester community should feel alone in this quest to fulfill the promise of the better angels of our nature.
Sincerely,
Sarah C. Mangelsdorf
President
G. Robert Witmer, Jr. University Professor
Robert L. Clark, Jr.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Research
Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Mark B. Taubman
Dean, School of Medicine and Dentistry
CEO, University of Rochester Medical Center