INTERNSHIPS AND FELLOWSHIPS
Developing emerging leaders in antiracism The Center is a profound departure from existing university-based racial research centers, which are not designed to be drivers of racial change. Other centers are typically smaller, insular ventures, supporting the research projects of individual scholars and students in a given school or department. In contrast, our Center has a national outlook, with an orientation toward establishing local collaborations and harnessing the broad-based research expertise of BU, a top private university. To further our mission of building an antiracist society that ensures equity and justice for all, the Center for Antiracist Research seeks to build a legion of scholars, scientists, students, and professionals at the doctoral alma mater of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: Boston University.
Undergraduate and graduate student internships at the Center With the aim of training the next generation of antiracist leaders, the Center recruits talented Boston University undergraduate and graduate students to join our team as paid interns. These internships provide students who are passionate about antiracism with the invaluable practical experience of working with our talented faculty and staff, regardless of their financial background. Our interns make a direct impact on the Center’s ability to understand and address emerging issues of racism and racial inequities. In its first year of operation, the number of applications for the Center’s internship program far exceeded our staff capacity and financial ability to host interns. With philanthropic support, the Center seeks to grow
and scale its internship program, in order to expose more young leaders to our work in antiracist research, narrative, advocacy, and policy.
Supporting the next generation of antiracist lawyers To be antiracist means to challenge policies and practices that produce and sustain racial inequities. Antiracists locate problems in power and policies, rather than in people, and they develop narratives, effective policy solutions, and advocacy in response. As the persistence of longstanding racial injustice and inequities in our society has shown us, particularly since the spring and summer of 2020, the legal profession needs attorneys who are committed to antiracist work now more than ever. The Center, in collaboration with the Boston University School of Law, has developed a new program that will prepare students of all backgrounds to use the power of the law to advance social and racial justice. This program, called ASPIRE: Antiracist Scholars for Progress, Innovation & Racial Equity, consists of four primary components: • Increasing access to a BU Law education through financial aid • Enhancing that education with specific training in antiracism • Providing each cohort of students with a faculty/staff mentor to facilitate their training in antiracism and their growth as antiracist leaders • After their 1L year, placing students in summer jobs and internships at law firms and companies where they will gain professional experience and opportunities.
ASPIRE will allow the Center for Antiracist Research to pursue research and policy projects to eliminate racial disparities, while at the same time giving future lawyers invaluable experience in antiracist work. We welcome philanthropic gifts from individuals, law firms, and corporate partners, which will help us scale and grow the ASPIRE program.
By supporting the Center’s internship and ASPIRE programs, you will help develop the next generation of antiracist leaders.