Flight from Afghanistan
Efforts continue to rescue scholars, students and higher education personnel in Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover and the collapse of the Afghan government eight days ago. Academic groups in the U.S. are seeking to mobilize support for Afghan scholars and students. A
letter organized by the Scholars at Risk Network and signed by more than 1,000 people[, including Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and other members of the Vanderbilt community,] urges the U.S. government to take immediate action to help, including by continuing evacuation flights "for as long as possible so as to include scholars, students and civil society actors who have supported the forward-looking, pluralist vision of Afghanistan that the US mission embraced." The letter calls on the government to take steps to ease visa processing for Afghans [and] . . . calls for the government to “establish a dedicated funding stream for scholars, students, and civil society actors from Afghanistan, including men and especially women and ethnic and religious minorities, to undertake study, fellowships, lectureships, researcher positions or temporary academic positions at U.S. higher education institutions . . . . (
Inside Higher Ed - Aug. 23, 2021)