Massive changes brought by the Trump regime in United States research institutions along with the fears of foreign-born and American scientists of color being detained without due process are causing many scientists in the U.S. to rethink their career choices here.
Of the 1,608 American scientists who responded to a poll in the journal Nature, three-quarters say they are considering leaving the United States. Canada and Europe were among the top choices for relocation.
“The trend was particularly pronounced among early-career researchers,” the magazine said. “Of the 690 postgraduate researchers who responded, 548 were considering leaving; 255 of 340 PhD students said the same.”
“Tens of thousands of federal employees, including many scientists, have been fired and rehired following a court order, with threats of more mass firings to come. Immigration crackdowns and battles over academic freedom have left researchers reeling as uncertainty and disruption permeate all aspects of the US research enterprise.”
Nature, first published in 1869, is considered world’s leading multidisciplinary science journal. It publishes peer-reviewed articles from its offices in England.
Last week, three highly respected Yale University professors fled to Canada over Trump regime concerns. They are set to join the University of Toronto’s Munk School. European institutions have begun targeting American scientists for employment in what is being called “scientific asylum.”
“US President Trump’s administration had announced to freeze funding despite a court order for research deemed to involve diversity, certain kinds of vaccines and any mention of the climate crisis in February,” Jurist News reported last week.
“However, the defunding of government science agencies has already led to at least 6,000 releases of scientists last month. Native universities which researched the topics mentioned above faced repercussions, such as the University of Pennsylvania, which is precluded from $175 Million in federal funding on the basis of their sports policies regarding transgender persons.
“The restrictions also begin to affect researchers abroad, as those funded by federal American grant providers are now being asked to fill in a 36-question poll sent by the US Geological Survey to disclose their institution’s compliance with the new policies. It strikes out research on climate change and diversity while measuring its contribution to making the US independent from global organizations such as the UN.”
Scientists leaving America recalls the many prominent scientists, particularly those of Jewish descent, who left Germany in the 1930s, seeking refuge from persecution and anti-intellectualism.
Notable figures like Albert Einstein, and Max Born and Erwin Schrödinger who were both instrumental in the development of quantum mechanics, among others, departed Germany for more left-leaning countries like the United States and Britain.
Similarly, artist and intellectuals including writers like Thomas Mann and Bertolt Brecht, left Germany for the United States along with about 1,500 musicians, including Arnold Schoenberg.
You can read more about the Nature survey and the reasons given for the responses here.
Read more stories about science in New York.
Illustration: Protesters advocate for science at the Stand Up for Science rally on March 7th in Washington DC (Kent Nishimura-Reuters).
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