We asked SPH students, faculty, staff, and alumni who gathered on April 22:
Why are you marching?
Emily Groene, student
We face more challenges in the world it seems than ever before and it’s time to really look into the science of how we can solve the problems.
Jim Neaton, faculty
I’m marching for future generations because science evolves slowly. If we curtail what we’re doing now, it will affect my grandchildren and future great-grandchildren.
Deb Wentworth, staff
It’s really very simple: I have a daughter.
Keerthanaa Jeeva, student
What has science done to you other than make you live longer?
Jim Pankow, faculty
Public heath is advanced if we rely on the very best science, not on political expediency or alternative facts or ideology.
Vic Massaglia and Jenna Egan, staff
Vic: I’m marching to validate science, and public health is all about science. And we can’t live in a fantasy of made up “facts.”
Jenna: I’m marching because I don’t want funding cuts. Science is real and we need it to help people and the planet.
Birgit Grund, faculty
I’m marching today because facts are important.
Rachel Ogilvie, student
I’m specifically marching today to oppose the proposed NIH cuts . . . I work in cardiovascular disease and we have studies on dementia right now. There is a lot we don’t know and if we cut funding, people’s lives will be lost and those lives are not things we can bargain with.
Maria Sundaram, student
Science saves lives. We really need it. We really, really need it. We can’t ignore it. It’s objective truth. We need that.
Pam Schreiner, faculty
I am marching for public health because prevention is our future in an aging population. If we make health care available to everyone, we’ll not only save money but will improve quality of life and keep our workforce active. And we need to set an infrastructure for our children, so the next generation will have the same opportunities we had to make the word better.
Faye Norby, student
I am marching for our future and the health of the world.
Yang Liu, student
Because climate change is real and I think we can work harder together to fight it.
Michael Oakes and Family, faculty
We’re marching for the importance of science in society, the importance of science in public health, the importance of the world and truth. That’s why we’re here today.
Adam Schwartz, student
I’m here today because it’s Earth Day and it’s the right thing to do.
Chelsie Todd and Junia Nogueira De Brito, students
Marching in Washington, D.C.
Chelsie (left): I’m marching to support multiple disciplines — public health, nutrition, and conservation — which are critical to our nation’s well-being.
Junia (right): I’m marching because policy making based on scientific evidence is being threatened by individual beliefs, ideologies, and financial interests.
Sara Lammert, student
I am marching for the young scientists who are not able to march right now.
