by Hundreds of scientists marched in front of the Germans offices in Los Angeles on Friday with nationwide protests against the policy of Trump administration under a sunny sky.
They pushed back against perceived threats to research and science and carried on the theme sign, including one with “What would Albert do?”. Accompany a photo of Einstein.
The rally outside the federal building in Wilshire took off doctoral students and professors from USC and UCLA and was captured under the banner of the stand up for science movement, which was inspired by the march for science, which had started his first term in 2017 shortly after the start of Trump.
Many scientists feel attacked again. In A Matter of Weeks, The Second Trump Administration Has Slashed Jobs at Science Agencies – Including the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – Pulled the Us Out of the Paris Climate Agreement (Again), Clawed Back Research Papers Under Review at Scientific Journals to Scrub Terms That The Political Right Has Railed Against, Such as “Transgender,” And Termined Funding for Global Health Programs. The administration has also tried to block grants and reduce funding for research institutions.
“We have seen incredible disorder and attempts to reduce a very effective research infrastructure in this country. And we have to say enough is enough, ”said Judith Currier, Professor of Medicine at UCLA, in the demonstration, which took place in the shadow of offices for agencies including veteran affairs.
At least 32 coordinated rallies took place on Friday across the country, which was anchored in the National Mall in Washington, DC, in which thousands participated.
Duke Han, professor of psychiatry and family medicine at USC, said, although he was not so involved in the march for the science movement during Trump’s first stay in the White House, he decided to participate in this protests because the interference of the interference has grown. Science was historically regarded as impartial, but events in recent years have had those in this area to comment.
“Many of us try to find out what we can do,” said Han. “Some of us are becoming politically active or politically active for the first time.”
For Han, the effects are not theoretical. He says his institution has become more careful to give students offers. A scholarship in which he should finance research in which he is involved to determine early signs of Alzheimer’s disease is five weeks late. He turned to contacts at NIH, but believes, “it is something that happens above them.”
Several people in the protest said that the money for financing scientific work will pay dividends – and that it can have catastrophic consequences for biomedical research, pharmaceutical development and more. Younger scientists shared concern about the event. An international student at the UCLA said that the reason why she came to the USA was the “great opportunities” for research. “But take a look at the situation now,” said the 21-year-old student from India, who refused to specify her name because this could affect your immigration status.
Katherine Karlsgodt, Associate Professor at the UCLA in the departments of psychology and psychiatry, which helped to organize the rally in Los Angeles, said she was “very angry” by the flood of changes and concerned about her effects.
Changes to the financing of the science agency “have the potential to fully derail scientific research and medical research [and] Do you have an enormous impact on universities and university budgets and our ability to train and research students and basically everything we do. “
Karlsgodt caught Wind of the Stand Up for Science efforts, but was disappointed when she did not see a local rally in the books. Then some people from UCLA and USC had to talk, she said. One of her students – Dylan Hughes, a doctoral student in the program for clinical psychology at UCLA – booked the website and tried to spread the floor. The evening before the event, 300 people had RSVP.
Expression of anger and alarm that mixed with hope and solidarity at the rally. Sam Cookes “A Change Is Get Come” played as numerous participants and flashed with pithy signs on cars that ride the Wilshire Boulevard down. Horn triggered cheers. A dog in the crowd applied for a sign that announced: “Dogs against Doge”, around the neck, an indication of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency under the direction of Elon Musk, which has led a large part of the Trump government’s effort.
What is now a national movement began as a bluesky post.
To. February 8, Colette Delawalla, a student of psychology at Emory University, announced online that, according to the New York Times, she is planning a national protest against science. A collective nerve hit, and other scientists quickly hopped on board and developed into a stand -up for science.
There are political goals behind the rallies shown on the group of the group, including the termination of political interference and censorship. Restoration and expansion of research financing; and defense of diversity and accessibility.
Back in LA, Hughes, the UCLA student, who contributed to leading the local event, asked people to take the moment.
“This is a really dark time for science and for humanity,” said Hughes, “but there is an energy that we have created here that is really helpful and has power to change the world.”
This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
