News
“Racism is a threat to successful research”
Published: 13 October 2022
A former PhD-student at SLU has been exposed to racist comments in social media following an interview and front cover picture in a magazine from the Swedish Forest Agency. The incident has been widely spread on social media and created debate.
– Racism, discrimination and harassment do not belong in the public debate. When an individual researcher is exposed to racism, regardless of form and expression, this is a threat to research in general, says Göran Ericsson, the dean at the Faculty of Forest Sciences.
The former supervisor as well as the head of the department where the former PhD student was employed have been in contact with the person to provide support.
SLU works systematically to prevent and counteract discrimination and harassment. It is crucial for the continuous work that offensive events and actions are brought to the surface.
– We encourage anyone who experiences racism or any kind of harassment to get in touch with their supervisor or head of department. In this way SLU can provide support and enables SLU to take our full responsibility for the work environment and create basic conditions for successful research, says Elias Andersson, vice dean for gender equality and equal opportunities.