More than 1,900 scientists have signed a letter to send an “SOS” about President Donald Trump’s attacks on science.
“A climate of fear has descended on the research community,” warned the letter, published Monday by members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.
“We see real danger in this moment,” the letter continued. “We hold diverse political beliefs, but we are united as researchers in wanting to protect independent scientific inquiry. We are sending this SOS to sound a clear warning: the nation’s scientific enterprise is being decimated.”
Since his second term began, Trump has paused critical meetings within the Department of Health and Human Services, fired employees at the National Weather Service, and pulled research funding for several critical programs, including a grant meant to protect pregnant women from domestic violence.
“For over 80 years, wise investments by the US government have built up the nation’s research enterprise, making it the envy of the world,” the letter said. “Astoundingly, the Trump administration is destabilizing this enterprise by gutting funding for research, firing thousands of scientists, removing public access to scientific data, and pressuring researchers to alter or abandon their work on ideological grounds.”
Last week, under the leadership of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., HHS announced it plans to lay off 10,000 workers and shut down entire agencies. That includes agencies that oversee billions of dollars in funds for community health centers across the country.
On Tuesday morning, layoffs began at the National Institutes of Health, the world’s leading health and medical agency.
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The letter warned that under Trump’s current strategy, the U.S. will fall behind other nations that prioritize science.
“If our country’s research enterprise is dismantled, we will lose our scientific edge,” the letter said. “Other countries will lead the development of novel disease treatments, clean energy sources, and the new technologies of the future. Their populations will be healthier, and their economies will surpass us in business, defense, intelligence gathering, and monitoring our planet’s health. The damage to our nation’s scientific enterprise could take decades to reverse.”