People pictured in photo, from left: Christina Parrish Stone, Florida Humanities; Claudia Schippert, AAR Executive Director; Alex Weeden, Legislative Assistant to Representative Maxwell Frost; Joy Banks, Council of State Archivists; Nashid Madyun, Florida Humanities
A Letter from AAR’s Executive Director, Claudia Schippert
We are in the middle of challenging, turbulent, and uncertain times. Over the last few months, in the United States, we have experienced unprecedented attacks on educational funding, academic freedom, bodily autonomy, legal immigration, due process rights, and first amendment rights to free speech. An aggressive spread of global far right ideologies, white Christian nationalisms, and seemingly boundless propagation of lies and conspiracies appear hellbent on attacking educational institutions, demonizing expertise, erasing civil rights and legal protections, negating critical thinking, and destroying civil society.
Many American Academy of Religion members are personally experiencing the harmful effects of related strategies: the weaponization of antisemitism to suppress democratic dissent and criticism of state sponsored violence; the weaponization of a perverted version of gender equality to attack and literally erase trans and queer lives from historical records, public view, and bodily existence; the weaponization of (an inverted caricature of) civil rights to gut voting rights, falsify history, deny access, and aim to erase the very existence of black and brown bodies; the recruitment of violent xenophobia in the normalization of callous persecutions of immigrant bodies (no matter if undocumented, documented, legal residents, or otherwise); the criminalization of academic speech and democratic dissent, and the subsequent coercion of universities into ceding control of core educational functions, policies, and academic standards.
As AAR members, we find ourselves in the middle of a coordinated and relentless attack on civil society, institutions, law, and the very notion of expertise. Fear for self and others, self-censorship amidst uncertain legal interpretations, and frustration amidst the lack of institutional responses or resistance to the harmful changes are understandable reactions. I have heard from some of our members: What is AAR doing? Is there anything we can do, collectively?
I am writing to assure you that the American Academy of Religion continues to be firmly committed to our mission: to foster excellence in the academic study of religion and enhance the public understanding of religion. We are committed to promoting academic excellence, professional responsibility, free inquiry, critical examination, diversity, inclusion, respect, and transparency within the academic study of religion and in our own work. While some of our members individually or through their institutions may be affected by policy changes or cuts in public funding, the AAR’s operating revenues are exclusively derived from member dues and conference registrations. We are funded by and accountable to only our members, i.e. you. While all of us are reeling from the current challenges and experiences of violence and injustice, the AAR will continue to uphold our central values. You can see these commitments reflected in the programming we offer all year, in our WebinAARs, mentoring cohorts, or our publications as well as our Annual Meetings. Everyone who is committed to our values and seeks to further our mission has a place in the AAR. And the AAR seeks to be a resource and community that supports all our members.
In addition to fostering meaningful programming that supports excellence in the academic study of religion, we are also actively working on several advocacy strategies to resist the compounding negative impact of current political developments, policy changes, and legal challenges. For example, we seek to document and demonstrate the value of religious studies in ways that we hope can reach the larger public and those who make decisions about funding and policy directions. While not all these attempts are always fully visible, I invite you to check out what our members are doing on our new website. At the same time, I invite our members to mobilize and actively participate in raising the public visibility and awareness of Religious Studies and its relevance and importance for a free society and meaningfully functioning democracy.
There are things you can do right now:
- Submit an Impact Statement. We are soliciting statements that demonstrate the value of Religious Studies to America as a whole. We are collecting and forwarding all useful entries to congressional staffers. There is more bipartisan support for the Humanities on Capitol Hill than some might think, but we must continuously demonstrate our relevance and centrality to corporate and national competitiveness and career readiness in this moment.
- Sign up for our 15-Minutes Online Teaching Series. We are asking members to give 15-minute talks in their area of expertise aimed at curious students, colleagues, and the public. Talks will be recorded via Zoom and featured on AAR’s website as well as social media channels to reach a broad audience.
- Donate. AAR is mobilizing resources and exploring ways we can support our most vulnerable members at this moment. If you have the means, please consider making a gift of any size. All contributions help us provide life and career changing opportunities. You can donate directly to the membership support fund that will ensure that members who cannot renew their dues because of job loss or related economic challenges will continue to have access to member benefits and resources. Or you can donate to the Academy Fund which contributes to the AAR’s many operations and programs, including advocating for religious studies in public.
AAR is fortunate to be a member of several institutional coalitions (such as NHA and ACLS). These organizations play a critical leadership role in times of upheaval, and they have been essential partners as we organize. We are stronger when we work together, and we will continue to work in collaboration with other organizations whenever possible. Thank you for being an AAR member – and for collectively advocating for the value and relevance of Religious Studies, especially in these complicated times.
In solidarity,
