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Imagine youre an academic researcher. Youre writing a pitch for funding to the National Science Foundation (NSF), the independent agency of the federal government that funds projects designed to advance our understanding of the world. But you cant use the words excluded, historically, socioeconomic, systemic, or women. Go. Thats the quandary that researchers across the country find themselves in thanks to a misguided attempt to try to eliminate what President Donald Trump and lackey Elon Musk would likely describe as woke research. The Trump administrations drive to tamp down studies that promote an agenda pushing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) involves hitting small nails with very big, very blunt hammers, with all ongoing and future research projects reportedly being analyzed to see whether they contain any number of newly forbidden words. Among them are terms that Trump and others might dislike, such as diversity, inequities, or multicultural. But there are also words that almost certainly get caught in the dragnet inadvertently, including women and historically. The mood is pretty glum here, says one academic, granted anonymity because of a fear of reprisals. While my work has implications for DEI, its not explicitly DEI in writing. For academics who do work in this space, its a death knell. It really seems like a huge mess, says a second academic researcher, also granted anonymity to be able to speak over fear of reprisals or their research being targeted as a result of speaking out. The list is long and vague enough that all kinds of research will potentially be harmed. Everything from biomedical research to engineering to research in the social sciences. That researcher says they believe the guidelines have been drawn vaguely by design, not an accident, in order to give the governmentthrough the NSFenough leeway to block anything they want to. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the worlds largest technical professional organization for tech research in academia, declined to comment for this story. ACM supports technology research in a wide array of areas and understands that priorities for funding of research can shift for a variety of reasons, Jody Westby, vice chair of the Association for Computing Machinerys US Technology Policy Committee, wrote in a statement to Fast Company. ACM hopes, when this happens, that funding from other sources also shifts to fill gaps so needed research can continue. Researchers will still likely pursue their work under the current administration, even if the NSFs list of forbidden words stymies them. It just means they may have to take a page out of the book of online content creators, and understand how to deploy algospeakor the rephrasing of words in order to avoid blocks put in place by online platforms, most commonly found on social media. There have been many examples of researchers using different terms to try to get their work funded by different organizations, particularly private philanthropic foundations which often have an only slightly hidden political or ideological alignment, the anonymous researcher says. Euphemistically referring to subjects that might otherwise be seen as sensitive using a crude check of content in order to evade censorship could well be a path that researchers have to follow, fears Carolina Are, a researcher at the Center for Digital Citizens at Northumbria University. Are has studied platform censorship and how rank-and-file users avoid its clutches. With the broligarchs in power greatly affecting and influencing the way the U.S. is run, bolstered by Trumps politics, [what content creators had to do] is being broadened out to research. It’s possible to use doublespeak or euphemism to dance around contentious phrasing, Are explainsbut it does significantly impact the ability to disseminate that content, and finding work-arounds taxes thinking that could otherwise be put to the broader problem that needs addressing. Are also worries that researchers will end up in a cat-and-mouse game with the NSF in the same way that creators are, where terms and words that are being used euphemistically are added to block lists and the effect is nullified, meaning people have to find new ways of subverting barriers. Its not a long-term solution for people, she says. One of the researchers Fast Company spoke to is more pessimistic than that. Im not sure were going to see people successfully using different terms for the banned research terms because when you cant even use words like female or systemic, theres not really a way to get around that, they say. All biomedical research that looks at more than men is potentially out of bounds, and thats by design.
Category:
E-Commerce
This week, skincare brand Kiehl’s debuted a hairy new font, Starbucks continued to roll out its feel-good nostalgia marketing, and an iconic 80s soda was revived for the year 2025. Here’s all the branding news we’re keeping up with. [Image: Kiehl’s] Kiehl’s gets in on the custom type craze The news: The skincare brand Kiehls just unveiled a new custom font made from an unexpected material: pubic hair. Big picture: The font comes as a response to the backlash that Kiehls received in August for an ad campaign for a new product line targeting ingrown pubic hairs. Those initial ads featured fully covered models with just a glimpse of hair peeking out from the sides of their underwear. But several stores censored or removed the campaign after public criticism. We were taken aback, Steven Waldberg, SVP of brand engagement and communications for Kiehls, told MediaPost. Its not like we were showing peoples genitalia or anything. Now Kiehls is hitting back at the haters with a fuzzy custom font made entirely out of pubic hair. The new print ads, which have taken humans out of the equation altogether, feature sarcastic statements like, Apologies, we wont ever show pubic hair again, and Our photos of models with pubic hair were censored so we removed the models. Why it matters: Weve seen plenty of custom brand fonts latelyfrom the Other Hand font for Cheetos to Kellogg’s logo-centric fontbut we have to hand it to Kiehls, this one might be the most outside-the-box yet. Its not exactly a versatile typeface, but it’s nice to see Kiehls refusing to back down from a challenge. [Illustration: FC] Back-to-basics strategy at Starbucks The news: Starbucks is making a wide-sweeping effort to return to its branding roots, and it seems to be paying off. Big picture: Since CEO Brian Niccols joined the company last September, the brand has been slowly working to incorporate the personal touches that were once its signature, like handwritten names on to-go cups, a free milk station, and an overall focus on craft. The back-to-basics concept at Starbucks has been gradually appearing in a larger campaign this year, with several new ads highlighting the coffee-making process and out-of-home billboards featuring a handwritten look. In an interview with the podcast Rapid Response, Niccols said of the changes, Were in the customer service business, and anybody thats been involved with that knows the details do matter. And the reason why the details really matter for Starbucks is, frankly, those details are our point of difference. Its how we get to another level of connection. Why it matters: The market seems to be responding positively to the changes so far, considering that Starbucks recently beat Wall Streets fourth-quarter earnings expectations with $9.4 billion in revenue. The irony in all of this feel-good messaging is that Starbucks has recently taken the much-criticized step of barring noncustomers from using its restrooms, seating, and patio space. In a column for Fast Company, writer Rob Walker argued that the new code of conduct is really just a de facto admission of what its brand is really about: The coffee giant is not really in the community space business at all. Its a luxury brand, and it has been all along.” [Photo: Suja Life] Sodas new lease on life The news: For the second time in two months, an iconic soda of the 1980s is getting a new lease on life with a revival designed to attract a new era of soda drinkers. Big picture: Slice soda, first launched in 1984 by PepsiCo, is set to return to shelves under the ownership of juice brand Suja Life. To tap into the wellness movement and functional beverage craze, todays Slice will have low sugar, no high-fructose corn syrup, and plenty of gut-healthy prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics in a variety of flavors, includig orange, lemon lime, classic cola, grapefruit spritz, grape, and strawberry. Why it matters: Slices return is part of a larger industry trend. Just last month, energy drink company Redcon1 announced it would be bringing back the infamous Jolt Cola from the 80s with a new functional twist. However, as Fast Company noted at the time, the new branding is pretty lackluster. Slice, on the other hand, looks just as cool as it did back in 1984. Suja Life has clearly based its new look on the OG design (rather than the clunkier 90s version), including a typeface thats literally sliced at the bottom, fruity icons dotting each i, and a diagonal label. The design has also been updated for the 21st century with brighter can colors and a trendier secondary font. While Slice certainly looks pretty, its staying power is questionable at best. The brand has already been revived several times, including as a failed sparkling water in 2018, swiftly followed by a failed low-cal soda in 2021. It remains to be seen whether Slices new branding aesthetic will be enough to keep it afloat this go-round. [Photo: Kellanova] Snacking goes cold The news: Eggos and Rice Krispies Treats are getting a frosty glow-up. Big picture: The snack company Kellanova is partnering with Gold West Food Group to turn some of its most popular brands into ice cream treats. On the Eggo side, fans can expect pints of Buttery Maple, Chocolatey Chip, and Blueberry ice cream, as well as waffle sandwiches of those three flavors. For Rice Krispies fanatics, there will be a pint of original flavor ice cream (we can only assume this tastes like the treats themselves), as well as original, strawberry, and triple-chocolate ice cream sandwiches made with Rice Krispies Treats as the sandwich bun. Why it matters: Kellanovas new dessert play comes after a major shake-up in the companys ownership. Back in August, Kellanovawhich also owns Kelloggs (and its three subcompanies), Pop-Tarts, Pringles, and morewas acquired for a whopping $39.5 billion by Mars, owner of M&Ms. At the time, Andrew Clarke, global president of Mars Snacking, told Fast Company that expanding the companys snacking portfolio would be a major priority post-acquisitionand it looks like that starts in the freezer aisle.
Category:
E-Commerce
Pedro Rioss paternal grandparents were both born in the United States, yet the government forced them to move to Mexico in the 1930s. They were teenagers at the time. Rios, the director of the American Friends Service Committees U.S.-Mexico Border Program, guesses that government officials sent his grandparents on trains to the border, but he doesnt know the story. Neither of them talked about the experience. He said his grandmother seemed to be unable to forgive the part of herself that led her to be expelled from her home country. She despised being Mexican to some extent, Rios said. I think it was because of the discrimination that she lived through. Over its history, the United States has repeatedly worked to exclude and remove people in moments when xenophobic, nativist, and white supremacist voices have swayed public opinion toward fearfrom the exclusion of Chinese immigrants, to the forced removals of Mexicans and Mexican Americans, to the relocation and incarceration of Japanese and Japanese Americans. The result of those efforts was often generational trauma, with elders unable to talk about what they went through, as in the case of Rios family. Now, with promises of mass deportation from the Trump administration, many academics see that history poised to repeat itself. Roberto D. Hernández, a professor of Chicano and Chicana studies at San Diego State University, said the racialization of Mexican and Mexican American people during deportation efforts of the 1930s and 1950s is similar to the messaging from white supremacist groups today. He pointed to a letter that circulated in Oregon in December calling for white residents to identify and report people they suspect of being undocumented, as part of a coming brown round-up under President Donald Trump. He said it contained the same messages of anti-Mexican racism that buoyed the movement in the 30s. With reports of Border Patrol agents carrying out mass arrests in Bakersfield, California, even before the inauguration, fear has grown in immigrant communities. In the days since Trump took office, an increase in immigration arrests is further stoking that anxiety. This kind of fear has long-term generational consequences, said Kevin Johnson, a professor of law and Chicano studies at the University of California Davis. Rios has witnessed that firsthand. Its unfortunate that the politics take precedence over peoples lives and the destruction that separation and forcefully removing people from their homes causes to family, Rios said. Rooted in Racism From their earliest appearances, the U.S.s laws, policies, and practices that limited certain nationalities ability to come or to stay were tinged with racist concerns about nonwhite men marrying white women and with fears that immigrants would take jobs away from people born in the United States. In the 1800s, Western states, including California, passed laws limiting Chinese and other Asian nationalities from entering their territories, owning land, and marrying white women. In 1879, Californias new constitution enabled state officials to remove immigrants who they deemed to be detrimental to the well-being of the state. Johnson said vigilante groups also took it upon themselves to scare Chinese residents into leaving. In the 1870s, many Chinese workers lived in Truckee, California, where they helped tunnel through mountains to complete the Transcontinental Railroad. One night in 1876, a group of white vigilantes went to the homes of some Chinese workers in that town and set them on fire. As the cabins burned, the vigilantes shot the people who fled, killing one. The vigilantes were tried for murder and acquitted by an all white jury, Johnson said. The group later received a cannon salute in celebration, and one of the members went on to become the towns constable. The incident became known as the Trout Creek Outrage. Now theres basically no Chinese presence in the town of Truckee, Johnson said. In May of 1882, Congress codified these fears into law by passing the Chinese Exclusion Act, which banned Chinese people from immigrating to the United States for 10 years. Officials built a prison on Angel Island in San Francisco to detain arriving Chinese immigrants. The ban was later extended, and as immigration laws evolved in the United States, lawmakers continued to find ways to keep most Asian nationalities out until a major change in immigration law in 1965. Its been often forgotten in California that our citizens as well as our government as well as the federal government engaged in these horrible acts, Johnson said. Mass Deportations With the onset of the Great Depression, state and local officials blamed Mexican immigrants, who had previously been welcomed during the labor shortages of World War I, said Hernández, the San Diego State University professor. Back then, Hernández said, the anti-immigrant rhetoric was purely economic. He said thats different from the Trump administrations tactics, which have used criminalization in addition to economic complaints to vilify immigrants. Though the federal government will lead deportation efforts under the Trump administration, the plans include deputizing local law enforcement to assist and pulling in military or National Guard for support. Hernández and Johnson both worry that these plans hearken back to practices in the 1930s and 1950s that saw U.S. citizens deported alongside immigrants. In the 1930s, local authorities, including police, rounded up people believed to be Mexican and sent them south. Most were taken away on trains and ships, Hernández said. I remember the big cattle boats coming down from Los Angeles, shipping Mexicans back to Mexico, Herb Ibarra, hen principal of San Diego High School, told The San Diego Union newspaper in 1979. My mother knew that a relative of ours was on one of the boats, so she took me with her to San Diego Harbor. I wont ever forget the boats, the humanity packed onto the decks under armed guard. The state and local officials leading the effort didnt put deportees through a formal process, Johnson said. There were no hearings. There was no due process, Johnson said. A lot of [U.S.] citizens were removed as well as immigrants. Some chose to self-deport, he said, including the family of former California Supreme Court Justice Cruz Reynoso, who was born in Orange County. Johnson said he worries that the fear inspired by Trumps rhetoric will similarly push families to leave on their own. In 1954, the federal government under the guidance of then-President Dwight Eisenhower led a second push to remove Mexicans through an effort that included a racial epithet in its name. This time, Johnson said, the deportations ran more like a military operation, with the National Guard providing some logistical support. During that time, many ended up in Mexicali, where they resettled as farmers, according to Jose Mena, who lives there and coordinates a coalition of migrant shelters. The fear and trauma left behind in the community that remained in the United States were profound. Former state Senator Martha Escutia told a story during her time in office about her father, who was afraid to walk to the corner store without his passport because he lived in Los Angeles during the 1930s and had a darker complexion that could have led police to racially profile him as an immigrant, Johnson recalled. Johnsons own mother, who is Mexican American, told him when he was young that his family was Spanish, even though they went to visit his grandmother in Mexico, he said. It had a lasting impact on the Latino community in Southern California in terms of sense of belonging and identity, Johnson said. Forced Moves Many Japanese Americans know that generational trauma well. During World War II, the U.S. government rounded them up and held them in hastily constructed prison camps. Trump has indicated that he might invoke the same law, the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, as part of his mass deportation plans, and that he will similarly construct facilities to hold people during the removal process. Much as Rioss grandparents didnt talk about their sudden forced moves to Mexico, Erin Tsurumoto Grassi, associate director of Alliance San Diego, an advocacy group for inclusive democracy, said her grandparents didnt say much about their time in U.S. government custody as Japanese American children. Her grandfather turned 12 the day then-President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which led to the relocation and incarceration of more than 120,000 people, including children. Her grandmother was 7 at the time. They remember the dust. They remember a ton of dust, Tsurumoto Grassi said. Dana Ogo Shew, a board member of Amache Alliance, which works to preserve and educate about the history of the Granada Relocation Center, also known as Amache, in Colorado, said that anti-Asian sentiment had been festering long before the Japanese military bombed Pearl Harbor. That hatred included organized leagues that tried for decades to get rid of Japanese people. That, she said, made it easier for the federal government to forcibly remove Japanese people from communities. After the executive order, the military worked with various civilian agencies to identify and move people. In the process, the government created the War Relocation Authority to lead the charge. Tsurumoto Grassi said the removals caused a repeated fracturing of the community. First, the government sent families to assembly centers. Her grandmothers family, she said, was held in a horse stall. Then, they went to long-term holding areas that had been quickly constructed, most in areas with extreme temperatures. Each time they moved, friendships and families were split apart, Tsurumoto Grassi said. The removals also had economic repercussions, Shew said. Some families quickly sold off what they owned before they left, often at prices far below market value. Those who owned property often lost it because they were unable to pay the mortgage. Others had their belongings stolen while they were imprisoned. The amount of loss in terms of dollars, theyve never been able to put a number on it because it would be so hard and so high to calculate, Shew said. Collectively, Shew said, the Japanese American community struggled to overcome the emotional toll in the years after they were allowed to return. They had so much fear and shame and felt like they had done something wrong, Shew said. They were afraid it would happen again, so they didnt talk about it. Not Going Quietly The descendants of those held in the prison camps are doing the work now to try to heal the generational trauma, Tsurumoto Grassi said. Though long dormant, the Alien Enemies Act is still on the books. Other immigration laws have changed, adding procedural requirements before someone can be deported, but its not clear whether the changes will be enough to prevent a repeat of the past. Many anticipate that whatever the Trump administration does will end up in legal battles. Its how the courts are going to interpret [the laws] in this context, said Adam Isacson of the human rights advocacy organization Washington Office on Latin America. In 1944, the Supreme Court decided in the case of Fred Korematsu, a Japanese American man represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, that there was military necessity to the forced removals. In 1983, a legal team got the case reopened, and a district court judge overturned Korematsus conviction for violating a military order, but the Supreme Court ruling remains precedent. Descendants of those harmed by U.S. policies of exclusion and forced removal hope that the country can learn from the pattern of misleading and discriminatory information making way for policies that uproot families and cause generational trauma. Lets just not make the same mistakes and get caught up in the same kind of hysteria. I mean, literally, its hysteria, Shew said. She said Japanese Americans have stood by other groups in moments of discrimination and marginalization, and that she expects them to do the same this time. Tsurumoto Grassisaid that if the government does return to the tactics of the last century, shes prepared to fight. She learned about what happened to her grandparents after attending a talk in college that brought her to tears. Her search to understand her familys history led her to the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles. While there, she could hear a pro-immigrant protest outside, she said. She realized then that she was meant to work in social justice. Weve learned the lessons of what happened, and I dont think were going to let people go quietly into the night anymore, Tsurumoto Grassi said. By Kate Morrissey, Capital & Main This piece was originally published by Capital & Main, which reports from California on economic, political, and social issues.
Category:
E-Commerce
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