March For Science Comes To DC On April 14

WASHINGTON, DC — Last year, science supporters quickly put together the March for Science as a rallying cry against what they saw as science denial by some key Trump administration appointees. This year, the march on Saturday, April 14, is more focused. It will be a global expression in support of science this upcoming weekend.

The marquee event takes place on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., with a morning full of activities, speeches and musical entertainment before the march begins at 2:30 p.m. Here are the details for the National Mall demonstration.

Last year, more than 1 million people from around the world came together in what was described as the largest event for science advocacy in history. The idea is to send a message to elected and appointed officials to enact “equitable, evidence-based policies that serve all communities and science for the common good.”

Voter registration will be a key focus of local events with a goal of electing science-friendly candidates to local, state and federal offices.

“The growing anti-science climate among many legislators has led to some scientists censoring their language and research to seem less controversial,” the group says on its website. “Whether certain words are outright banned or scientists are self-censored is immaterial. We sent a message to Congress — and career scientists — that we support ‘science, not silence.’ ”

The march in D.C. is one of about 200 satellite March for Science events are planned.

Since last year, organizers have taken positions on several key issues. Some of them include:

Support for gun violence research: The campaign has been ongoing since November 2017, but after the Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, more than 50 science supporting groups signed an open letter to repeal the Dickey amendment. Passed in 1996 with strong support from the National Rifle Association, it prohibits the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from using government funds to advocate or promote gun control measures. The 2018 Omnibus bill by Congress clarified the Dickey amendment is not a ban on gun violence research, but March for Science organizers say it didn’t go far enough.

Support for evidence-based wildfire policies: The recent wildfire season severely affected both rural and urban communities across the American west, displacing thousands of people and claiming dozens of lives. The organizers recommend a science-based fire management policy that recognizes the ecological reality of fires, invests in proactive measures to prepare communities in fire-prone areas, and prioritizes mitigation strategies that recognize the effects of climate change as part of a response to increasingly severe fire seasons.

Put the “science” back in science: Over the past year, the organizers say the Trump administration has appointed a number of science denialists to vital science positions. “We cannot enact equitable, evidence-based policies if we shut scientists out of the conversation around policymaking,” the organizers say.

Protection for the National Center for Environmental Research: The group says Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt has rolled back regulations that protect the environment, cut scientists from advisory roles, questioned the scientific consensus of climate change, gutted the agency, and shuttered or challenged science-based research projects and departments. In February, Pruitt announced moves to close the National Center for Environmental Research, a department focused on researching the effects of chemical exposure on children and adults.

Photo: In 2017, hundreds of community members from Harvard University and MIT marched toward the Massachusetts Avenue Bridge to join the Science March at the Boston Common in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images)