Special Statement and Resources from the ASA Regarding Police, Race and Violence

In this hyper-partisan climate where it has even become political to say that Americans who are out jogging should not be chased and gunned down by armed citizens/murderers (Ahmed Aubury), it is both more relevant and important than ever to discuss these issues.  The ASA has released a public statement and provided resources for teachers to use to discuss these issues.  This should provide both comfort and legal support to teachers who feel threatened to teach about these issues.

First, ASA is the professional organization supporting the teaching of sociology in the US.  The organization endorses and supports the teaching of issues like race and policing.  And the National Standards for Sociology include teaching about inequality and race.  Here is a link to the statement from ASA, and here are the National Standards for High School Sociology.  Specifically, domain 4 addresses racial inequality:

Second, the ASA has provided resources for teachers to discuss these issues.  It is important to note the issues are not opinions but conclusions based on sociological research.  The ASA's statement is based on empirical research, facts and data.   Here are the resources:

https://www.asanet.org/news-events/asa-news/resources-race-police-violence-and-justice

and,

here is access to several resources about structural racism and police violence; causes, impact and reform

https://journals.sagepub.com/structural-racism

Lastly, here is the June statement from the ASA regarding George Floyd: