NASA says it can't find any record that James Webb, the State Department and NASA leader for whom the agency's groundbreaking new space telescope is named, was aware of homophobic government purges — but a bunch of astronomers are clapping back at the agency's claims.
"After an exhaustive search of U.S. government and Truman library archives," administrator Bill Nelson was quoted as saying in the agency's press release about its decision, "NASA’s historical investigation found, ‘To date, no available evidence directly links Webb to any actions or follow-up related to the firing of individuals for their sexual orientation.'"
In their own statement — which follows a 2021 Scientific American editorial and numerous other calls urging NASA to rename the telescope — astronomy experts Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, Lucianne Walkowicz, Sarah Tuttle and Brian Nord are calling shenanigans in the strictest terms.
"NASA’s press release utilizes a practice of selective historical reading," the open letter reads, pointing to the agency's insistence that the original Webb was unaware of the firing of Clifford Norton, a NASA budget analyst who was canned in 1963 after being arrested for making a "homosexual advance" on someone. At the time, Webb was head of NASA.
The argument — which makes sense, if you think about it — is basically that Webb was either aware of the institutionalized homophobia in a way that didn't survive in existing documentation, or unaware of a key dynamic at the workplace he was in charge of. Neither option is flattering.
"Because we do not know of a piece of paper that explicitly says, 'James Webb knew about this,' they assume it means he did not," the experts wrote. "In such a scenario, we have to assume he was relatively incompetent as a leader: the administrator of NASA should know if his chief of security is extrajudicially interrogating people."
"We are deeply concerned by the implication that managers are not responsible for homophobia or other forms of discrimination that happens on their watch," they continued, noting that such a stance is "explicitly anti-equity, diversity and inclusion" that puts "responsibility on the most marginalized people to fend for ourselves, and it is in conflict with legal norms in many US jurisdictions."
It's "deeply unscientific," the astronomy luminaries added, that "NASA is engaging in historical cherry picking" with a figure who was, along with the state-sanctioned homophobia that occurred on his watch, accused of engaging in Cold War-era "psychological warfare," in which, as The Atlantic noted in 2018, then-Undersecretary of State Webb assembled a team of hard and soft scientists to figure out the best ways to conduct anti-Soviet propaganda.
NASA and the scientific community at large should, the astronomers wrote in Scientific American, "name telescopes out of love for those who came before us and led the way to freedom."
More on Webb: NASA Drops Stunning New James Webb Image of a Star Being Born
The post Experts Excoriate NASA Report Claiming James Webb Wasn't Homophobic appeared first on Futurism.
Continue reading here:
Experts Excoriate NASA Report Claiming James Webb Wasn't Homophobic
- Is there an alternative to radiation - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Taiwan exploring how nanotech affects health - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- A new way of treating cancer on the way? - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Lasers can destroy cancer cells - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Fluorescent molecules can be biomarkers - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Quick blood tests by using a nanodevice - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Where will medicine be 20 years from now - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- History of nanotechnology - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Nanotech and Cancer - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- Nanotechnology in medicine - November 8th, 2009 [November 8th, 2009]
- How does cancer start - January 25th, 2010 [January 25th, 2010]
- Lung cancer symptoms - January 26th, 2010 [January 26th, 2010]
- Signs of breast cancer - January 27th, 2010 [January 27th, 2010]
- Famous people with cancer - January 29th, 2010 [January 29th, 2010]
- Metastatic renal cancer - January 30th, 2010 [January 30th, 2010]
- What causes skin cancer - January 31st, 2010 [January 31st, 2010]
- How many people die from cancer each year - February 1st, 2010 [February 1st, 2010]
- How much money is spent on cancer research - February 2nd, 2010 [February 2nd, 2010]
- Colon cancer warning signs - February 4th, 2010 [February 4th, 2010]
- Prostate cancer symptoms - February 4th, 2010 [February 4th, 2010]
- Nano-devices that cross blood-brain barrier open door to treatment of cerebral palsy - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Nano-devices that cross blood-brain barrier open door to treatment of cerebral palsy, other neurologic disorders - April 25th, 2012 [April 25th, 2012]
- Nanomaterial properties in complement activation: lessons from nanomedicine - Video - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- OMICS Group :: International Conference and Exhibition on Nanotechnology - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- Use of Nanotechnology in Medicine [FOX 11-27-2011] - Video - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- Cancer Nanomedicine - Detection - Video - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- Cancer Nanomedicine - Video - May 4th, 2012 [May 4th, 2012]
- HBIO Reports First Quarter 2012 Revenue Growth of 8% Over First Quarter 2011 - May 5th, 2012 [May 5th, 2012]
- Nano science, focus of Education Ministry - May 7th, 2012 [May 7th, 2012]
- Drug-resistant Bacteria - Designing Nanoparticles For High Antibiotic Doses - May 7th, 2012 [May 7th, 2012]
- Research and Markets: Global Market for Nano Silver - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Cracking study makes nanotech breakthrough - May 10th, 2012 [May 10th, 2012]
- Nanoparticles may pose environmental threat - May 16th, 2012 [May 16th, 2012]
- Global Nanobiotechnology Industry - May 17th, 2012 [May 17th, 2012]
- 'Inability to give back Singur land my biggest regret' - May 20th, 2012 [May 20th, 2012]
- 'KOREA PACK 2012' for Packing process industry to be held at KINTEX - May 23rd, 2012 [May 23rd, 2012]
- New ISO Technical Report Guides Characterization of Nanomaterials in Toxicology - May 29th, 2012 [May 29th, 2012]
- DNA strands create tiniest Smileys - May 30th, 2012 [May 30th, 2012]
- Health and fitness agenda: Evolution Asia Yoga Conference - June 2nd, 2012 [June 2nd, 2012]
- UC Davis work in humanities receives $150,000 in UC-wide grants - June 2nd, 2012 [June 2nd, 2012]
- Computer-designed proteins 'may help fight variety of flu viruses' - June 3rd, 2012 [June 3rd, 2012]
- 'Nano technology' [program can pay off big for IRSC students - June 3rd, 2012 [June 3rd, 2012]
- Computer-designed proteins programmed to disarm variety of flu viruses - June 3rd, 2012 [June 3rd, 2012]
- Jugaad innovators don't plan - they improvise - June 6th, 2012 [June 6th, 2012]
- Health and fitness agenda: World Blood Donor Day - June 9th, 2012 [June 9th, 2012]
- OMICS Group :: Journal of Nanomedicine - June 9th, 2012 [June 9th, 2012]
- Researchers develop a 'time bomb' to fight cardiovascular disease - June 10th, 2012 [June 10th, 2012]
- Nanotechnologists develop a 'time bomb' to fight cardiovascular disease - June 10th, 2012 [June 10th, 2012]
- 'Time bomb' to fight cardiovascular disease developed - June 11th, 2012 [June 11th, 2012]
- Asia's First Graphene Nano-Tech Facility Opens In Singapore - June 13th, 2012 [June 13th, 2012]
- How worms are pioneering remote control medicine - June 13th, 2012 [June 13th, 2012]
- Golden Helix Establishes Direct Presence in Japan - June 13th, 2012 [June 13th, 2012]
- STDs Blocked by Nano Gel, Study Suggests - June 15th, 2012 [June 15th, 2012]
- Real Products, Different Results - June 15th, 2012 [June 15th, 2012]
- The Puridone Program - A Breakthrough for Painkiller Addiction - June 15th, 2012 [June 15th, 2012]
- Six startup medical device firms compete in Memphis for fame and fortune - June 19th, 2012 [June 19th, 2012]
- International Nanomedicine Conference bound for Sydney: July 2-4, 2012 - June 19th, 2012 [June 19th, 2012]
- Taming light with graphene - June 21st, 2012 [June 21st, 2012]
- Today on New Scientist: 25 June 2012 - June 26th, 2012 [June 26th, 2012]
- A step towards the future - July 1st, 2012 [July 1st, 2012]
- Genia Technologies Collaborates with Professors Jingyue Ju at Columbia and George Church at Harvard to Develop a ... - October 4th, 2012 [October 4th, 2012]
- Scientists Invited To Submit Proposals For Biological Research In Space - October 4th, 2012 [October 4th, 2012]
- Research and Markets: Micro-Nano Technology XIII from the 13th Annual Conference of Chinese Society of Micro-Nano ... - October 6th, 2012 [October 6th, 2012]
- $80M research facility to open at UMass Lowell - October 6th, 2012 [October 6th, 2012]
- Nano-revolution in drugs delivery - October 8th, 2012 [October 8th, 2012]
- SENAI/SESI of Sao Paulo Selects NanoProfessor as Foundation for "Nanomundo" Nanotechnology Education Initiative - October 8th, 2012 [October 8th, 2012]
- Delivering an integral approach to emotional and mental health - October 9th, 2012 [October 9th, 2012]
- NanoGuardian's On-Dose NanoEncryption Brand Protection Technology to Be Presented at AAPS Annual Meeting - October 11th, 2012 [October 11th, 2012]
- Il Nano Mondo del professor Ennio Tasciotti - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Deakin University - Practical Science - Nano medicine - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- 2012 Deakin University 3 Minute Thesis Finalist - Jarrad Altimari - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Nano Medicine from "Development of Nanotechnology in Hong Kong" - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- NANO Medicine 1 3 xvid - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Nanolääke // Nano medicine - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- NANO Medicine (1-3) - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Jefferson County, Colorado's Bioscience Industry - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- NanoMission - Nanomedicine NanoBot - Video - October 30th, 2012 [October 30th, 2012]
- Study aims to unlock mysteries of autism - November 20th, 2012 [November 20th, 2012]
- Catherine Griwkowsky - November 22nd, 2012 [November 22nd, 2012]
- Kulkarni to be feted at Bangalore Nano 2012 - November 26th, 2012 [November 26th, 2012]