10/28/2020

In Search of Equity and Justice

Reimagining scholarly communication

In trying to capture the essence of this post, I am finding myself stuck in what it’s not. It’s not another set of predictions about how the world will change post-pandemic (I’m sure you’re as tired of those prognostications as I am). Nor is it simply a case for a shared, open future or an argument for the deep, systemic changes needed in our society and organizations (though it is both of those too).

Forced to slow down and stay in one place, 2020 has been a year of deep reflection for me. Both personally and professionally, I’ve been privileged and lucky. I can comfortably work from home, my organization has proven itself to be creative and resilient, and my close circle of family and friends are all doing fairly well. At the same time, there have been many moments when events have pierced that bubble of security and I’ve felt wrong-footed, uncomfortable, frustrated, angry, guilty and deeply saddened. As I reflect on the work PLOS and many other scholarly communication organizations are doing to address the current racial reckoning, I’ve come to the same conclusion both personal and professional: it’s not enough.

Today’s challenges reach far beyond discrimination and marginalization in the workplace. Yes, we are far more aware of the weight of systemic injustice and racism borne by our coworkers of color. But even if we do all of the right things within our organizations, it’s not enough. We need to deliver a fundamental shift in the way we work internally and with all of our stakeholders in response to a watershed moment. It’s about strategy as much as it is our people policies. We have to grapple with the reality that the racism and inequality we are collectively calling out has been going on for centuries. And that our organizations have played a role in perpetuating it.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Scholarly Kitchen.