90 Miles From Tyranny

Sunday, August 20, 2023

Legal group calls fellowship a ‘blatant violation’ of federal law

White faculty are excluded from a National Science Foundation-funded “inclusive science” fellowship, in what one legal group calls a “blatant violation” of federal law.

The “Inclusive Science Communication Fellowship” is “supported by a $2.8 million collaborative National Science Foundation grant” and run by the University of Rhode Island Metcalf Institute, Michigan State University’s Knight Center for Environmental Journalism and the University of Rhode Island Science and Story Lab.

The fellowship “will address a significant gap in science communication research and training by centering the motivations, experiences, and priorities of racial and ethnic minority scientists,” according to its description.

A requirement is that applicants “[s]elf-identify as Black or African American, Indigenous or Native American, Hispanic or Latina/e/o/x, Asian or Asian American, Middle Eastern or North African.”

This raises legal issues according to the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism.

“Barring application based on race, skin color, or national origin is a blatant violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act,” Leigh Ann O’Neill, managing director of legal advocacy, told The College Fix via a media statement.

“We are very disheartened to see the eligibility requirements for the upcoming SciComm Identities Project,” O’Neill said.

“Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits Federally-funded programs from discriminating against individuals on the basis of race, skin color, and national origin – precisely what the SciComm program openly admits to doing,” she said.

While the group “enthusiastically support[s] efforts to ensure greater diversity and inclusion in every professional field,” this “must be done by legal means.”

The Fix asked the National Science Foundation if an attorney had reviewed the program to ensure compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and why white faculty were excluded. The spokesperson ignored those questions.

“As a federal leader in STEM education and workforce development, NSF has a long history of support for STEM education and continues to pioneer new programs and science-based approaches to broaden participation,” the spokesperson told The Fix. “Through strategic partnerships and investments across the agency, it has long supported research to...

Visage à trois #1630

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

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Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #1283

Visage à trois #1629

Three Videos For Your Viewing Pleasure:

Three Additional Bonus Videos:

Quick Hits Of Wisdom, Knowledge And Snark #1283

Harrowing footage shows Fargo cop annihilate Syrian asylum seeker, averting mass shooting. Crickets from media.

Hair-raising bodycam footage of a fearless Fargo police officer stopping a would-be mass murderer in the middle of a busy street was released by North Dakota’s Attorney General Drew Wrigley on Thursday, leading many to wonder why they had never heard about the July 14th event that left one officer dead and three people wounded, including two more officers and a fleeing bystander.

Police were responding to a routine car accident when Syrian gunman Mohamad Barakat, 37, opened fire on them in a deadly ambush.

Barakat was allegedly on his way to a Fargo street fair, evidence suggests, with enough explosives in his car to create a national tragedy, the Daily Mail reports.

Officer Zach Robinson’s bodycam footage shows the moment shots from Barakat’s weapon rang out.

**WARNING: GRAPHIC!**

Robinson can be heard yelling, “Shots fired!”

“We’ve got three officers down – send everybody,” he shouted.

The bodies of 23-year-old rookie cop Jake Wallin and Officers Andrew Dotas and Tyler Hawes can be seen lying motionless on the ground.

Tragically, Wallin lost his life in the attack.

Barakat can be seen taking cover next to a parked car as Officer Robinson charged toward him, repeatedly ordering him to put down his weapon and put his hands in the air.

Ultimately, Robinson, who was taking fire, shot at Barakat 31 times, killing him.

According to Wrigley, investigators later discovered “guns, a homemade grenade, more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition, three containers full of gasoline and two propane tanks — one completely filled and the other half-filled with homemade explosive materials,” The Associated Press reports.

The past five years of Barakat’s internet queries revealed such searches as “kill fast,” “explosive ammo,” “incendiary rounds,” and “mass shooting events,” authorities said.

Most disturbing among the queries was one for “area events where there are crowds.” The search led to a news article with the headline, “Thousands enjoy first day of...