Dear School of Architecture Community,
The recent events in our country compel me to write this message. At my core, I am an optimistic person. I am trying to temper the anger I feel with the strong belief that together, we can move forward in a positive way.
We have been confronted with a global pandemic that has quickly revealed the rapid increase in social inequality, seen the deaths of more than 100,000 Americans and the filing of over 40 million claims for unemployment.
The underlying symptoms of inequality and racism in our society are brought into stark relief by the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and the prior deaths of many other African-American people.
I was personally optimistic that with the election of Barack Obama, America had finally begun to reconcile its issues with race and inclusivity. The past 3 1/2 years have shown us how fragile the notion of post-racial America was.
What can we as individuals and as a profession do? We can certainly use our architectural skills to design a better world, a better nation, and better places to live and work. The old paradigm applies – think globally, act locally.
I am proud of the public interest design focus of our faculty, staff, and students and with our studio work in under-served Pittsburgh neighborhoods. Our outreach programs are designed to attract underrepresented minorities so that our profession can look more like the society that we serve. We can still do much, much more. I believe that if all of us continue to be thoughtfully engaged, we truly can make the world a better place.
My advice to each of you if you feel so inclined – safely join a protest to make your voices heard, volunteer to work with a non-profit, work with your neighbors at home to make positive change where you live but most importantly, please vote this November.
Take good care,
Steve Lee
Professor & Head
School of Architecture
Carnegie Mellon University