In the spring of 2020, we, the members of the editorial board of the American Journal of Surgery, committed to using our collective voices to publicly address and call for action against racism and social injustices in our society.

One year later, it is now heartbreakingly clear that we must continuously speak up and openly address ongoing injustices and hate. This week, 8 Americans, including 6 Asian Americans, were killed solely based on their race/ethnicity. Since the pandemic started, the Stop AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) Hate coalition has received nearly 4000 reports of anti-Asian harassment, ranging from verbal harassment to physical violence,“… the fear and uncertainty inherent to novel infectious disease, the presumptive origin of COVID-19, and the perpetual foreigner stereotype make Asian Americans especially vulnerable to racism and disease scapegoating. (1)”

We again pledge to continue to publicly address injustices at all levels, to work to ensure that the American Journal of Surgery represents the diverse voices of the surgical community and encourages an open discourse in health inequities and research.

We stand in solidarity and we will not be silent.

Herbert Chen
Paula Ferrada
Gregory Kennedy
Brenessa Lindeman
Erika Newman
Carmen Solorzano
Dana Telem
Tracy Wang
Michael Zenilman

Reference
1. Chen HA, Trinh T, Yang G. Anti-Asian sentiment in the United States e COVID-19 and history. Am J Surg 2020; 220: 556-557.

The tragic murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and many others, again highlight that racism, hatred, and social injustices remain embedded in the fabric of our society. These injustices have been further brought to light by the current COVID-19 pandemic given that black and underrepresented minority Americans have been disproportionally affected. The citizens of this and other nations have gathered in demonstrations against racism and to urge much needed social justice policy changes. The American Journal of Surgery stands in full solidarity against racism and discrimination of all types, and we are committed to raising consciousness and addressing the disproportionate effects of structural violence against people of color who suffer at the hands of hatred and racial inequities .We are committed to learning and educating ourselves and others on how to be antiracists and effective allies. We pledge to publicly address and call for action against injustices on a local, regional and national level, condemning all acts of prejudice, police brutality, and racial inequality.

We are immediately taking action by:

• Ensuring our editorial board has diverse representation to assure all voices are heard and that we are addressing issues of racism, discrimination and structural violence in an open and inclusive way.
• Creating a space which values and encourages rigorous research and scholarship into the areas of health inequities and will move the field forward. We will put out a call for papers in this domain and make this content free for all to view.
• Using our resources and influence to support charities which address health inequities and racial discrimination.

We will not be silent.

Herbert Chen
Paula Ferrada
Gregory Kennedy
Brenessa Lindeman
Erika Newman
Carmen Solorzano
Dana Telem
Tracy Wang
Michael Zenilman