ON THREATS OF VIOLENCE

ON THREATS OF VIOLENCE

Statement by NADOHE President Paulette Granberry Russell on Recent Campus Bomb Threats

January 12, 2022

The National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education is deeply concerned about recent bomb threats at colleges and universities, and in particular the troubling pattern of threats against HBCUs and Black student spaces. 

These threats underscore the importance of cultivating safe, inclusive spaces for the students, faculty, and staff that comprise our nation’s colleges and universities. Students cannot do their best learning in environments where they feel their lives are threatened; faculty and staff cannot engage in the critical work of transforming lives through education if they must constantly watch the gates for fear of violent attacks.

We must hold to account those who seek to intimidate Black students, faculty, and staff. We must remain vigilant against future threats to those from historically marginalized communities. We must continue our urgent work of leading higher education toward inclusive excellence, creating welcoming campus environments where justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion are cause for celebration, not hate.

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The National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) is the preeminent voice for chief diversity officers. As the leader of the national conversation on diversity, equity, and inclusion, it investigates, influences, and innovates to transform higher education so that inclusive excellence lives at its core.