Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging
Reporting Resources, Spring 2021
Sexual and Gender-Based Harrasment
Anonymously Disclose Sexual Harassment with Title IX through ROAD File a Formal Disclosure with Title IXDiversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Reporting
Harvard uses an anonymous reporting hotline which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is run by an independent, third-party provider. There are two ways to report: toll-free by calling 877- 694-2275 or you can submit a report online.Updates from the DIAR Committee
Upcoming Events
Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging Statement
We believe that our community and discipline thrive on diversity.
We are dedicated to ensuring that everyone, regardless of
race, socioeconomic background, nationality,
gender identity, sexuality, religion, or political views,
feels welcome and supported within our department.
We commit to fostering such diversity
through our scholarship and teaching.
DIAR Resources
Database of Classics Diversity Organizations and Groups
Sarah Derbew, Assistant Professor of Classics at Stanford University and Junior Fellow of the Harvard Society of Fellows, has compiled a list of organizations working on diversity in the Classics. We thank Sarah for sharing this valuable list with the Classics community at large!
See also: DIAR
Departmental Microgrant application
The Microgrant Program is open to all members of our department for the development of projects dedicated to a more inclusive Classics, (e.g. talks and class visits by external speakers, reading groups, small exhibits, artistic projects, etc.). We are especially interested in projects that involve collaboration between different groups within the department (e.g. faculty and students; undergraduate and graduate students; faculty and staff).
See also: DIAR
FAS Office for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
GSAS Office for Diversity and Minority Affairs
Harvard Office for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
Harvard Title IX Office
Office of Sexual Assault Prevention & Response
DIAR Welcome Message
The Committee for Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism is a unique standing committee comprising undergraduate and graduate students, faculty (ladder and non-ladder) and staff. The DIAR Committee was established in urgent recognition of the scourge of systemic racism and other forms of discrimination in our society and in the field with the objective of advancing the department’s goals in the areas of diversity, inclusion and anti-racism. Its charge is continuous and ongoing, and the committee seeks to fulfill its mission in the following ways:
Learning
The committee holds regular community conversations and office hours which focus on canvasing input and offering a receptive and productive environment for sharing feedback, concerns, and ideas at all levels within the department on inclusion and diversity in our community, classrooms and in our discipline. We work in conjunction with various FAS and university-wide offices to gather data related to diversity and inclusion metrics on campus and in our department and to develop best practices for pedagogy, scholarship, and community building.
Educating
Our committee organizes and coordinates events that highlight issues of racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination and how best to combat them as members of a department and academic community. We also leverage the existing work of our departmental members and university colleagues by advertising opportunities to increase the diversity and inclusion literacy of the community and spreading the word about learning opportunities at Harvard (e.g. reading groups, research and funding opportunities). We are committed to increasing awareness of information and resources available to members of our community who have experienced sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination and bias.
Advocating
At the core of our mission is the creation and fostering of opportunities that advance the status and visibility of individuals of minoritized identities and other groups historically under-represented in academia not only within the department, but also within the wider field of Classics. Our committee has instituted a Summer Scholarship program for high school and college students who want to study Greek and Latin in the Harvard Summer School. We have also established a Micro-grant Program open to all members of our department for the development of projects dedicated to a more inclusive Classics, (e.g. talks and class visits by external speakers, reading groups, small exhibits, artistic projects, etc.). We are especially interested in projects that involve collaboration between different groups within the department (e.g. faculty and students; undergraduate and graduate students; faculty and staff).
We are committed to making ourselves available and accessible to every member of our community. We are available to offer counsel and support to any departmental committee or officer seeking input on the equity and inclusion implications of specific policies and programs.
While we cannot adjudicate individual complaints of bias, the chairs can direct members to specific campus resources dedicated to investigating and resolving such incidents. We also warmly welcome ideas and suggestions from members of the department on how we can advance diversity and inclusion in our community.
Members of the DIAR Committee, Spring 2021
Irene Peirano Garrison and Teresa Wu, co-chairs
Sarah Eisen
Esteban Gutierrez
Jared Hudson
Ivy Livingston
Rachel Love
Emily Mitchell
Harry Morgan
Matilda Scheftel
Katherine Vallot-Basker
DIAR Bookshelf: What We Are Reading Right Now
Hood Feminism
This book addresses mainstream feminism’s failing, specifically in relation to race, access, segregation, and general livelihood in America. Issues of pay inequality and diversity in higher education are popular platforms for mainstream feminism, but often these issues are solely concerned with how these problems impact white women. In a series of essays, Kendall discusses issues of feminism that relate to food insecurity, gun violence, affordable and safe housing, and how mainstream feminism often fails to see that race, economic class, ableism, and sexual orientation intersect with feminism. This book has been helpful for making me assess how my own approach to feminism has failed and needs to change. — Sarah Eisen (G4).
Classicisms in the Black Atlantic
This volume offers a variety of studies on the literary and political uses of classical antiquity in modern constructions of race and identity in the Black Atlantic. I was particularly drawn towards Patrice Rankine’s chapter entitled “Classics for All? : Liberal Education and the Matter of Black Lives,” in which he focuses on the study of the African voice in the Classical world, the reception of Classics by contemporary Black authors, and the current barriers for students entering the field of Classics. Rankine’s work has provoked me to think about the many paradoxes that exist within the study of Classics and consider the ways in which we may expand the voices within our field. — Katherine Vallot-Basker (A.B. '21)
Minor Feelings
Cathy Park Hong blends memoir, cultural criticism, and history to expose the truth of racialized consicousness, using her own story to offer a deeper examination of racial consciousness in America today. This book traces her relationship to the English language, to poetry and artmaking, and to family and female friendship in search to both uncover and speak the truth. — Anonymous
DIAR Bookshelf: Good Articles To Read
Fragile, Handle With Care: On White Classicists and More Than a Common Tongue: Dividing Race and Classics Across the Atlantic, both by Mathura Umachandran
"As a white, Anglo-American classicist, I have found both of these articles very useful. The first article has motivated me to examine my own engagement with issues of race, and to identify actions that I personally can take to help combat racism and white fragility in Classics. The second illustrates how anti-racist work must be informed by, and tailored to, the specific social and political context in which we are operating, which is a crucial point to bear in mind when trying to effect change within our field." – Emily Mitchell (G3)
The Politics of the Classical Tradition by Simon Goldhill
"I think it does an excellent job of situating current debates in Classics in the broader context of the history of the discipline. It made me reflect anew on how Classics has been (and still is) responsible for various kinds of oppression (political, cultural, religious, etc.), but it also signals a note of optimism: “Classics opens the door to an other place, a place often idealised, which creates a space for the imagination of a better world.” – Harry Morgan (College Fellow)
'Classics for Everyone' Must Be More Than A Slogan by Dani Bostick and Can’t We Work Together? Reframing Inclusivity in Classics by Ian Lockey
"I appreciate that these articles address important issues of how Classics has failed to be inclusive and has reinforced white supremacist narratives, how these problems can be confronted, and what can be done differently to make the field more inclusive (both in the reasons we give for why classics is worth studying and in our day-to-day teaching). The articles help me to see specifically what sort of messaging and portrayals in this field have been harmful and exclusive, and what practically can be done to make the field more welcoming." –Alexander Vega (G4)