October 2020

As we prepare for this upcoming election, the Center for Culture, Equity, and Empowerment acknowledges the high emotion and critical stakes for our interconnected communities. As a staff team, we have sat with our own uneasiness, nervousness, and exhaustion as we engage in conversations and collective action that center our lives and futures. Voting is a powerful tool for civic engagement and change. If you have the privilege to vote, we ask that you go to the polls. There are people and communities that do not have such privileges, and it is on US to move in solidarity with these communities by utilizing our privilege.

Remember, there are three ways you can vote this year!

Vote by Mail or Drop Box
In-Person During Early Voting
In-Person on Election Day

For more information on ways to vote on or around campus visit https://go.gmu.edu/MasonVotes. Voting out-of–state? Check out vote.org for your state’s voting details.

Take time to review candidates and ballot issues:

Understanding the issues on your ballot may be confusing or overwhelming. Plan to spend at least 30 minutes looking up candidates online, reviewing ballot issues or locating a sample ballot for your political party. Remember, elections are about more than just the President, but also connect with issues in our local and state communities!

Our full-time staff team is available to meet with students one-on-one for processing and support. Staff availability is as follows:

Amber Holton-Thomas (she/her/ella)

November 4th-7th (Anytime for 15 minute blocks. If you need more time, choose 2 blocks that are back to back)
Schedule a meeting here.

Lex Lewis-Semien (she/her)

November 4th (12 – 6pm )
Schedule a meeting here.

Brandi Blake (She/her)

November 4th (open 12 – 5pm for 20 min blocks)
Schedule a meeting here.

Crystal Davidson (She/her)

November 4th and 5th (open 4–8pm for after-hour availability – 30 min blocks)
Schedule a meeting here.

Josh Kinchen (he/him)

November 4th-24th 2020 (open select times for 30 min blocks)
Schedule a meeting here.

LuLu Gezá Kelemen (they/them)

November 4th & November 5th 1-6pm (20 minute blocks each)
Schedule a meeting here.

Dr. Van Bailey (he/they)

November 4th (open 10:30am-12:00pm – 30 min blocks)
Schedule a meeting here.

David Corwin, Women and Gender Studies, (they/them)

November 4th from 3-4pm, November 5th from 1-4pm (All appointments can be in person or via Zoom; 30 minute blocks)
Schedule a meeting by emailing dcorwin@gmu.edu.

As a community, we will offer post-election holding spaces for dialogue and gathering for students. The following spaces and times available are:

FirstGen Students

November 6th | 2-4pm via Zoom and 5-7pm via Zoom

LGBTQ+ Students

November 5th | 3–4pm via Zoom
November 9th | 5–6pm via Zoom
November 16th | 7–8pm via Zoom

Coalition groups and student organizations affiliated with our department (QSLC, BLACC, APAC, HLLA, UndocuMason, NAIA, STEP and SWANA affiliated student organizations), will be directly contacted by our team with upcoming meeting dates and times.

[Statement Made: Sept 25, 2020]

Greetings Patriot Family,

196 days ago, on March 13, 2020, our national and global community, learned of the murder of Breonna Taylor, a Louisville, Kentucky native serving the community as a first responder; her life was snatched away in a “botched police raid”. Months passed before any internal investigation of wrongdoing by the officers involved was completed, or job sanctions enacted. Continual injustice unfolded upon our nation as we heard on September 23, that only one of the three police officers involved in her murder was indicted on a lesser charge of putting other surrounding lives in danger and not for the life that they extinguished without cause.

This week, the system chose to look the other way. But we will not!

University Life’s Office for Coalition Building and Diversity Education (CBDE) and Center for Culture, Equity, and Empowerment (CCEE) at George Mason University, contends acts of social injustices through police involved violence must be called out as destructive, and bear the consequences of that destruction in our courts of law. We acknowledge these acts of injustice are emblematic of systemic racism that has existed for generations. These are deep-rooted national issues; We know that these realities affect our campus community, as well.

We recognized that the outcome of the indictment in Breonna Taylor’s murder is disappointing and some you may be experiencing a range of emotions. We encourage you to center your mental and spiritual well-being in this moment and seek assistance, if needed. Students we encourage you to connect with Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) if you need someone to speak and process your thoughts.

Together, we will #SayHerName and acknowledge that Breonna Taylor’s life matters and the other lives of those who identify as Black and have been unjustly taken matter. We are also committed to you, your well-being, and the mission to actively address racism and anti-blackness through collaborative efforts and activism. In the coming days, our units will work with others to address the well-being of our students and campus community as we work through the range of emotions that we may be experiencing during this time.

This moment – and others — will continue to impact us months from now, and we challenge our campus community to confront bias, prejudice, discrimination, racism and other forms of systematic injustices in your world and area of influence, e.g., Facebook, chatrooms, Instagram, classrooms, departments, and in your local community. It is important above all things to acknowledge one another and take action when needed; there is no liberation without accountability! There is no liberation without collective community care.

If we all dedicate ourselves to the principles of truth, racial healing and transformation, we can collectively bring about the necessary changes in thinking and behavior that will propel our country forward as a unified force where racial biases and violent police interaction will become a distant voice in the past.

Please know the staff in CBDE and CCEE are here for you and if you need to talk to us, or share ideas, don’t hesitate to email us at cbde@gmu.edu and ccee@gmu.edu.

In Solidary,

Van Bailey, EdD (he/they).,
Assistant Dean/Director| Center for Culture, Equity, and Empowerment

Hamal D. Strayhorn, M.Div (he/him/his).,
Director | Coalition Building and Diversity Education

Student Group Meetings

Justice for Breonna Taylor