Support for our AAPI communities

Dear UMBC Community,

We continue to witness a dramatic increase in discrimination, xenophobia, hate speech, and hate crimes affecting Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. This is happening across the nation but also in Maryland and our local communities. 

We stand with our AAPI community members, including students, faculty, and staff. The climate in the United States has grown far more hostile, frightening, and alienating for the AAPI community, and we must all speak out against violence, discrimination, and injustice. We know that these events can cause undue mental hardship to our community members who are already struggling during the pandemic, and our thoughts are with them and their families. 

We believe it is important to both affirm our commitment to our shared values of equity and diversity and to build a safe and inclusive community. It is our practice to offer resources to those affected or any community member who is struggling. If you feel you have been affected by racism or discrimination, please know that the Office of Equity and Inclusion is available to support all of our students, faculty, and staff. Students in need of emotional support can contact the Counseling Center at their after hours support line at 410-455-3230.  Employees can access support through the Employee Assistance Program. We are grateful to the Asian and Asian American Faculty and Staff Council for developing this list of resources and for supporting community members. We are also sharing this statement of support from Initiatives for Identity, Inclusion, and Belonging (i3b). 

We know that we must continue to address social injustice, and in particular racial equity work. The disproportionate impact of the pandemic on communities of color means this work is more critical than ever. We remain committed to supporting our AAPI community members through these difficult times.

President Freeman Hrabowski and Provost Philip Rous