FIT President Joyce F. Brown has issued comments regarding racist attacks and hate speech directed at Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders. Her statements read as follows:
March 19, 2021
Dear FIT community,
Recently, I put out a statement condemning anti-Asian rhetoric and violence. It deeply saddens me to think about the number of statements I have issued over the years condemning hate speech—speech that incites the ugly instincts that some harbor against the “other”—people not like themselves. I think of this as I consider the disaster in Atlanta with eight beautiful lives lost, six of them Asian women.
I write now to highlight and support the joint statement put out by the SUNY and CUNY boards of trustees condemning this act of racism and hatred. What happened in Atlanta is intolerable—what happens in every city and town and rural country road that harms anyone because of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation is intolerable.
So today I add my voice to what I hope is a thunderous chorus—a roar of condemnation—from every corner of this country protesting the twisted thinking that produces hate speech and violence and in this case, particularly, violence against Asian women. I refuse to believe that our voices are not effective tools for change. I will continue to speak out and I hope this long loud volley of support brings some solace to the Asian American community, including, of course, our own Asian community at FIT—the students, faculty, and staff members of Asian descent who make up so large and dynamic a part of FIT’s richly diverse family.
Dr. Joyce F. BrownPresidentFashion Institute of Technology
March 11, 2021
Dear FIT community,
There is a long history of anti-Asian sentiment in American society. This continues in spite of the fact that our Asian colleagues, businesses, students and visitors are an integral part of the rich mosaic not only of the FIT community but of our cosmopolitan city as well. In the past year, anti-Asian rhetoric and hate-filled speech have ratcheted up and been reinforced by public statements and private actions such that overt discrimination and violent crimes against our Asian neighbors, relatives and friends have become horrifyingly prevalent in the daily headlines. Indeed, they have reached record levels.
Our collegewide efforts to celebrate diversity, to practice civility, to be mindful of our language and be inclusive in our behavior should ensure that FIT is a safe haven for every member of our community. I hope that these efforts will prevail beyond the walls of FIT—and perhaps influence others as well—so that those in the Asian community are no longer targets of discrimination and violence and are treated with the dignity and respect that every person deserves.
Dr. Joyce F. BrownPresidentFashion Institute of Technology