Sky & Telescope - October 2020 - 4

SPECTRUM

by The Staff of Sky & Telescope

Amateur Astronomy for All
MOST OF THE TIME we at Sky & Telescope ponder
what's up there, in the sky. But sometimes we need to
focus on what's down here, on Earth. Events can force
us to consider our role in society, examine our values,
decide what's important to us, and speak out. Now is
such a time.
In recent months, the United States has been coming to grips yet again with the entrenched racism and
inequalities in our society. At Sky & Telescope, we wish
to state our unequivocal support for Black Lives Matter
and related movements and initiatives to end systemic
racism here and elsewhere in the world. We also support our parent organization, the American Astronomical Society, in its ﬁght against racism in professional
astronomy, and we pledge to address the same problem
in amateur astronomy.
It's no secret that backyard astronomers are overwhelmingly white. Blacks and other minorities are
seriously underrepresented in our ranks. In professional
astronomy, people of color represent only 3% to 5% of
physics and astronomy faculty at American universities,
even as they compose about 30% of the U.S. population.
The disparity may even be greater in amateur astronomy.
We take this imbalance to heart, because Sky &
Telescope aspires to serve not just one segment of humanity but all of humanity. Our desire to share the wonders of the heavens with others encompasses everyone
everywhere. We believe all people are captivated by the
universe and its mysteries and should have the chance
to observe it. Is there a person on this planet who hasn't
had (or wouldn't have) the same "Wow!" reaction upon
seeing Saturn for the ﬁrst time in a telescope?
That caveat - "wouldn't have" - speaks volumes.
It's easy to think that nothing embodies egalitarianism more than looking at the stars. Anyone can gaze up

Editorial Correspondence
(including permissions, partnerships, and content licensing): Sky & Telescope, One Alewife Center, Cambridge,
MA 02140, USA. Phone: 617-500-6793. E-mail: editors@
skyandtelescope.org.
Website: skyandtelescope.org. Unsolicited proposals,
manuscripts, photographs, and electronic images are
welcome, but a stamped, self-addressed envelope must be
provided to guarantee their return; see our guidelines for
contributors at skyandtelescope.org.

OCTOBER 2 02 0 * SK Y & TELESCOPE

at the night sky; the Moon, planets, and stars do not
discriminate but shine their light on all. Yet in reality,
there's also inequality in stargazing. Not everyone who
wants to observe the night sky actually can. Most underserved people live where light pollution is worst, and for
them resources like time, adequate income, decent science education, and access to dark-sky sites or even basic
observing equipment might not exist.
How can we at S&T begin to tackle this longstanding,
deep-seated inequity in amateur astronomy?
We realize that addressing these issues must start
with S&T itself: its print and web content, its staff and
contributors, its mission and worldview. Listening is
most important. In what ways are we unconsciously
helping to perpetuate the status quo? What biases are
we allowing to creep into our efforts? What barriers do
we need to remove? How can we provide truly useful
resources for the wider community?
Assessing how well we're doing will include gauging
tangible results in terms of hearing from more voices
and otherwise broadening our demographic. We're not
talking about just public outreach and education, but
active participation by people of color in amateur astronomy. From now on, we plan to be proactive rather than
reactive (or, worse, unreactive) while understanding that
the role of allies is to assist, not to tell how.
There's no quick ﬁ x. We're a small staff, and achieving genuine results on this front may take years. But
we want our subscribers, web readers, supporters, and
followers to know that our heart is in it, and we will
commit time, funds, brainpower, and other resources to
it over the long haul.
What do we have in mind? We'll make greater efforts
to work with researchers, journalists, photographers,
and illustrators who are people of color. We will con-

Advertising Information:
Tim Allen: 773-551-0397
E-mail: tallen@skyandtelescope.org
Web: skyandtelescope.org/advertising
Customer Service: Magazine customer service and
change-of-address notices:
skyandtelescope@emailcustomerservice.com
Phone toll-free U.S. and Canada: 800-253-0245
Outside the U.S. and Canada: 386-597-4387

Visit shopatsky.com
Shop at Sky customer service:
shopatsky.com/help
Subscription Rates:
U.S. and possessions: $54.95 per year (12 issues)
Canada: $69.95 (including GST)
All other countries: $84.95, by expedited delivery
All prices are in U.S. dollars.

http://www.shopatsky.com http://www.shopatsky.com/help http://www.skyandtelescope.org/advertising http://www.skyandtelescope.org http://www.skyandtelescope.org

Sky & Telescope - October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky & Telescope - October 2020