“It’s the End of American Science As We Know It” says Chanda Prescod-Weinstein (and many other scientists) in her latest newsletter addressing Trump’s newest form of political denigration:
I am not exaggerating when I say that today is the day that this historical travesty becomes our terrifying present. While the Trump administration has already done egregious damage to science, today the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) unveiled major changes to how federal funding is allocated and distributed. For the first time, they are sharing their plans to permanently and systematically move American science from a system that values evidence-based evaluations to a political patronage system. This will not only damage American science but the entire global research ecosystem since the U.S. has historically been the world’s biggest investor in scientific research. Other countries are not stepping up to make up for the losses, which means that unless something changes, the losses will be globally permanent.
These rules, which we have 45 days to comment on starting today, will affect every federal agency, affecting Housing, Education, Health and Human Services, NASA, the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy among all the others.
It’s pretty bleak but rather than roll over and accept it—like many are doing with AI technology—there are things you can do which are outlined in the rest of the newsletter which you should definitely read. The main thing is to write to representatives and let your voice be heard. That’s what they’re supposed to be there for.
Filed under: Black women Chanda Prescod-Weinstein education NASA people of colour research