The Council for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (CEDI) — a collection of Antioch Univeristy students, faculty, and staff dedicated to social justice and collective liberation — was formed as a grassroots graduate student/alumni led and run cooperative organization.

CEDI’s mission is to drive anti-racist action and propel systemic change across Antioch campuses and programs to advance Antioch’s commitment to racial, social, economic, and environmental justice.

After the horrific murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 5, 2020, Antioch University Chancellor William R. Groves, declared Antioch an “Anti-racist University.”

CEDI has just launched a petition to bring attention to this issue and offer tangible steps for Antioch to take to embody what it means to be an “Anti-racist University.” CEDI wants to help Antioch live up to its potential as a leading anti-racist institution.

As Republicans across the nation escalate their attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education, it is more important than ever that universities such as Antioch actively and tangibly strengthen their commitment to anti-racism, CEDI believes.

While some anti-racist efforts have been made, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) students, faculty, staff and administrators continue to be harmed regularly through micro/macro aggressions, tone policing, gaslighting, minimizing, stonewalling, extra labor, white-centering, and other methods of white dominance.

Additionally, a number of curricula, texts, hiring/matriculation protocols, and teaching/administrative methods are not in alignment with anti-racist values and practices. CEDI was formed in response to this discrepancy.

Individuals who believe in racial justice, diversity, equity and inclusion at the university level and beyond, are invited to sign and share the CEDI petition at https://www.thecedicircle.com/petiton.