To Alums, Faculty, Staff, and Students of Unity College,

In this moment of national grief sparked by racism, inequality, and tragedy, it is vital for us to reaffirm our core values of honoring diversity and treating all individuals with respect and dignity. Unity College stands in solidarity with everyone who seeks to make our shared world more equitable. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in his Letter from Birmingham Jail: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” We know that true sustainability requires a world that is environmentally sound, economically equitable, and socially just.

Though there are no words that will comfort all of us, and there are no actions that will create a quick fix and reassure all of us, we can recommit to doing our part to make this a better world for all. We can make a concerted effort to be kinder; to be more accepting; to be more supportive; to be more understanding. Some of us are worried, others angry, most disheartened, but all of us are Unity. Let us stand together, committed to our shared values, carrying forward our mission; and not accepting hate, discrimination, nor dehumanization of any kind.

In these scary and uncertain times, I encourage you to think of your friends, colleagues, classmates, and neighbors affected; Reach out to them; Connect with them; Show them that they are not alone. Be someone’s person, show them you care, and I can assure you, it will make all the difference, not only in their world, but in the world as a whole.

Be well, be safe, and be kind.

In Unity,

Dr. Melik Peter Khoury
President
Unity College