I was 9.

For my daughter, this happened on the playground before her 2nd birthday. By another kid.

Right after we relocated to start my postdoc. https://twitter.com/queenmd2024/status/1276566884016459777

While interviewing for my postdoc I kept hearing over and over that “this is a great place to raise a family.” These comments were unsolicited (I didn’t mention my marital or parent status while interviewing).

It’s been a quick learning curve, but I now know what people mean when they make this statement...it means that it’s a great place for SOME families to enjoy the benefits of high their high incomes and high property taxes.

At the exclusion of many minority groups that often don’t have access to those same spaces (pristine public parks, beautiful community centers, and well funded schools).

So the next time you’re working to recruit your next #BlackintheIvory faculty member, postdoc, or grad student...realize that this might not be your best bargaining tool.

And that when they arrive on campus for their initial days od work...their head might still be reeling from the reality of the environment that they’ve just brought their family into. Mine sure was.