A relatively new coalition of scientists, health professionals, and community members will hold a rally in Albuquerque on Saturday to highlight ongoing political interference in publicly funded research.
The “Stand Up for Science” rally is part of a larger grassroots movement sparked by the sweeping cuts to publicly funded research by the Trump administration over the past year.
Just days after taking office last February, Trump announced he cut $4 billion dollars of medical research funding and thousands of workers at federal science agencies. However, several lawsuits and a surprising budgetary challenge from Congress has brought back some of that funding.
The administration claims it is sniffing out widespread “fraud,” “abuse,” and perceived “woke” ideologies furthering diversity, equity, and inclusion in academia.
“We're not done fighting to change the way this administration is changing the scientific field, and a big part of that is raising awareness for what is happening,” Kalina Fahey, one of the lead organizers of the New Mexico rally, told KUNM in an interview.
Fahey is also a postdoctoral research scholar at the Center for Alcohol, Substance Use, and Addictions at the University of New Mexico.
Fahey said Stand Up for Science held its first rally last March at the state Capitol building in Santa Fe. Around 100 people showed up.
This year, Fahey says the group is focused on the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement popularized by current Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“So, a big example is his anti-vaccine stances,” Fahey said. “Other concerns are attitudes towards general health and wellness.”
Kennedy has been actively using his role to reshape the United States’ approach to the childhood vaccination schedule and to delegitimize peer-reviewed scientific research. That has spurred widespread concerns among public health professionals, who worry the shift will have deadly consequences.
Since last October, rotavirus, COVID-19, influenza, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and meningococcal vaccines are no longer recommended for all children and, instead, are only offered to some based on a narrow set of risk “criteria.”
In February, 15 Democrat-dominated states – including New Mexico – filed a lawsuit challenging the changes, arguing they are politically motivated and stir confusion among the public.
The Stand Up For Science rally will take place Saturday from noon to 2 pm at Albuquerque's Civic Plaza downtown. Updates can be found here.
Featured speakers from the University of New Mexico and New Mexico Department of Health will include:
- Zachary Sharp, Earth and Planetary Sciences
- Sumira Phata, Postdoc, Pharmacology
- Leslie Brick, Addiction Scientist
- Ivan Deutsch, Physics and Astronomy
- Dylan Pell, Mental Health Epidemiologist
- Sharina Desai, Autophagy, Inflammation, & Metabolism
