Thousands Plan To Attend March For Science, Including The Field Museum
By Stephen Gossett in News on Mar 2, 2017 5:22PM
Getty Images / Photo: Alex Wong
"This has been a conversation that needed to happen for a long period of time; and we’re having it now."
Adam Arcus, one of the organizers behind the Chicago satellite of the nationwide March For Science, has been concerned with the science-hostile climate that has been fermenting for some time—and which appears to be hitting a grave apex now at the federal level.
The March for Science is scheduled to coincide with Earth Day, on April 22. At some 300-plus satellite marches, concerned demonstrators will gather to celebrate science and urge political leaders to pursue "evidence-based policies in the public interest," as the Mission Statement claims.
The March For Science finds itself in a somewhat precarious position, as it seeks the support of non-partisan institutions while also fielding concerns that any steps into more explicitly political waters could be counterproductive. Indeed, Arcus, a Chicago native who studied mechanical engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, diplomatically avoids the word "Trump" in our conversation, but he's also clear about the emergence of a pronounced anti-science streak.
"A lot of people have different catalysts as to why they want to join the organization," Arcus told Chicagoist. "And theres definitely been recent events, in policy and administration, that put a spotlight on a lot those pain points within certain scientific fields. But this didn't happen in a vacuum... In general, were definitely making it a nonpartisan effort, as a pro-science movement."
Co-organizer Monica Zabinski, a Chicago native and doctor of clinical psychology, stresses a similar point: "Science in its purest form is not partisan. The results should not be affected one way or the other, and we want to represent that," she said.
Or as the mission states, "political decision-making" not hinge on "personal whims and decrees"—a call that gathers renewed urgency in a landscape in which a climate-change denier heads the Environmental Protection Agency and vaccine skeptics are reportedly asked to study vaccine safety.
The Chicago chapter received a major boost in such efforts on Wednesday, when the Field Museum announced it would participate in the local march. “The Field Museum’s mission is to fuel a journey of discovery to enable solutions for a brighter future. The March for Science closely aligns with this mission,” said Field Museum President Richard Lariviere in a statement. “By marching for science, we’re supporting curiosity and the pursuit of facts that enable us all to better appreciate our world and make it a place where we can live rich, healthy lives."
The Field—they of expert #DayOfFacts shade—is the first science institution to publicly align itself with the Chicago action.
Organizers so far have not yet announced a site for the march, but Arcus and Zabinski say the group is working closely with the city to coordinate all necessary permitting and safety issues. If even a fraction of the several thousands who have registered on Facebook attend, it will indeed be one of the largest rallies of its kind.
"It's so important to show that science is for everyone," Zabinski said.
You can follow along the Facebook page for updates and volunteer or donate to the effort here.