On March 7^th, there will be nationwide rallies to counter the current regime’s attack on science. They’re being held under the umbrella Stand Up For Science, and I’m very pleased to let y’all know I’m participating. I’ll be at the DC rally giving a short talk about all this — the damage Trump’s rabidly anti-science stance and minions are doing to our country and our planet.

One thing I love about this event is that it’s a truly grassroots phenomenon, dreamed up and implemented by a group of just five early-career scientists. They got on social media (notably Bluesky) and started talking about it, and a lot of people jumped in to help, including me. They now have over 100 volunteers, and they’re planning simultaneous rallies in a dozen states with many more in the works. If you want to help in your state, let them know!

The goals of the rallies are listed out on their site: Secure and expand scientific funding, end censorship and political interference in science, and defend diversity, equity, inclusivity, and accessibility (DEIA) in science. 

Those goals would be important at any time, but with an increasingly tyrannical government — and one that’s targeting science institutions like the National Institutes of Health, NSF, NASA, and more — it’s absolutely critical. It’s also extremely important to remember that these attacks are not just on science, but also on the scientists who do the research. Trump has specifically aimed his bigotry at Blacks, women, people of color, transgender folks, disabled people, and more, saying that DEIA is unfair to white people. That’s absolute BS. Helping those who have been historically marginalized and underserved doesn’t create a bias against whites, it makes sure that everyone has a fair shot.

In any kind of service, and especially in science, don’t you want the best, most qualified person in that job? For decades we’ve been excluding a vast swath of our population, and it’s long, long past time we even the odds. That’s what DEIA is all about.

It plays a huge role in science, because we need outside views, people with different perspectives, to see the problem in a way one person or one group of people cannot on their own. Heck, that’s why so much science is done in teams in the first place; each has their role to play but also everyone can add their input, help seek answers to questions that someone else might have missed.

That’s why I’ll be at the rally at our nation’s capital. It’s a funny irony: I want to make sure that voices from people who don’t look like me are represented, but it’s also important for other people who look like me to see people who look like me support those who don’t look like me. That’s the society we live in now, but I’m hoping to do what I can to change that society.

And right now, that change has to happen at the very top. We must remove the boot of Trump, (the Orwellian-named) DOGE, Musk, and all their flunkies from the throat of this country. There are a lot of ways to do this, and one is by standing up for science. 

I hope you can help out and go to your local events. We need everyone we can.

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