Kenneth L. Davis, MD
President and Chief Executive Officer
Mount Sinai Health System
Dennis S. Charney, MD
Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
President for Academic Affairs
Mount Sinai Health System
Gary C. Butts, MD
Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer
Mount Sinai Health System
Dean for Diversity Programs, Policy, and Community Affairs
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Attack on an Asian Student
As many of you are already aware, an Asian member of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai community was attacked near our campus recently by an assailant who used a racial slur. While she did not experience serious physical harm, this was, sadly, one of a large number of violent attacks on Asian and Asian-American people, including at least one fatality, that have occurred across the country in recent weeks.
We want to say again, as we have consistently said, that Mount Sinai opposes and condemns all forms of racism, bigotry, and hate. We stand with our Asian and Asian American students, faculty, trainees, patients, and staff, and with all members of our community who experience marginalization and bias. An attack on any one of us is an attack on us all.
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, we issued a statement of solidarity with Asian American members of the Mount Sinai community, and today, we recommit to our effort to create a learning and work environment that is free of anti-Asian violence and racism, to develop interventions that are responsive to racial trauma, and to provide resources to support students, faculty, and staff members who are directly impacted by any form of racism. We have been working with groups like the Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association (APAMSA) and the Mount Sinai Health System Asian Resource Network Employee Resource Group and will continue to do so. The Racism and Bias Initiative Chats for Change program mentioned in April is still going on, and you can find the current schedule here.
If you or someone you know is involved in an incident, there are a number of ways to report it. If it has happened on our campuses and involves another employee, faculty member, or student, you should report it to your manager or Human Resources, or you may submit a confidential report via the Compliance Helpline at 800-852-9212. If an incident occurs off campus and does not involve another member of our community, you can reach out to Mount Sinai Security for assistance (212-241-6068). They can provide a number of resources, including escort services between campus and your home.
We encourage each member of the Mount Sinai community to offer support to your friends and colleagues during these challenging times, and to join us as we continue to engage in dialogue and action so that we may deepen our understanding of, and ability to address, racism.