Happy fall from the MSU Forensic Anthropology Lab! I am Dr. Carolyn Isaac, one of the three faculty forensic anthropologists and the director of MSUFAL. I am so happy to be getting back into the swing of things after bringing a tiny human into the world in May and being home with her and, thanks to the pandemic, her 2-year-old sister (terrible twos + newborn = lots of fun). Needless to say, I’m ready for some adult interactions.
Well they say hindsight is 20/20, which has taken on a completely new meaning in this unprecedented year of extreme weather and fires, calls for social justice*, and a global pandemic. Any of these events on their own would be enough to cause fear, stress, and sorrow, but combined makes 2020 the most difficult year we have ever faced with no “return to normal” in sight. But perhaps, not returning to normal is actually a good thing. Perhaps this is a historical moment where we are given the opportunity to fundamentally change and improve our lives and the lives of others. Perhaps, in hindsight, 2020 will be the year that we started to make headway on climate change; the year that meaningful transformations occurred, both individually and systemically, to address implicit biases, healthcare inequities, and police brutality for our Black neighbors and friends; and the year that a terrifying virus forced us to take a step back and appreciate the wonderful people in our lives that we previously took for granted.
As we are easing back into a strange fall semester where remote working, teaching, and learning are the new normal, the MSUFAL is also facing a lot of changes. First, we want to thank Amber Plemons for all of her amazing work as the Laboratory Manager this past year and we are excited to have Micayla Spiros take the reins for 2020-2021. Micayla has already been hard at work with a number of interesting and challenging cases, and, like her predecessor, is invaluable in ensuring the lab runs smoothly.
While the MSUFAL was deemed essential and has remained open to provide services throughout the pandemic, numerous protective measures had to be put into place to ensure our health and safety. Normally, every case would be attended by a faculty member (Dr. Fenton, Dr. Hefner, or myself) and one or more graduate students. For cases that required processing back at MSUFAL, graduate students would work in tandem to complete the task. This teamwork approach allowed us to efficiently process, analyze, and complete case reports, while providing invaluable experience for our graduate students. Now only faculty are permitted to travel to medical examiner offices for casework; laboratory time at MSUFAL is pre-scheduled so only one person is using the space at a time; the MSUFAL can only be used for work that cannot be completed remotely, like skeletal processing and analysis; increased sterilization protocols for shared surfaces has been implemented; and, of course, all the masks. While these social distancing measures are necessary, they certainly add to the social isolation that we all feel and limit the reprieve, comfort, and camaraderie we find in each other while performing the often mentally and emotionally challenging work of forensic anthropology. However, we remain dedicated to providing casework experience to our graduate students, a collaborative environment for teaching and learning, and a commitment to provide the highest quality analyses and reporting for the decedents that we serve.
We also have extremely important work to do to understand how systemic racism and our own implicit biases and privilege impact our practice and the field of forensic anthropology. We acknowledge that the forensic sciences and physical anthropology have contributed to the structural inequalities in the criminal justice system. We will actively seek and engage in resources to enhance our understanding and improve ourselves and the work that we do. In this current time and place in history, where it seems every topic causes division, I feel like I must explicitly state that our support of Black Lives Matter does not mean we are against law enforcement. We regularly interact with officers who tirelessly and passionately serve their community, and we sincerely hope together we can make the criminal justice system more equitable for our families, neighbors, and friends who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.
To end on a high note, we also have some exciting news to share. After decades in E. Fee Hall, MSUFAL will be moving to a renovated lab space in Giltner Hall. Our new home will bring us closer to our Anthropology colleagues and provide adjoining spaces for graduate offices, teaching, research, and forensic work. While we do not know when the move will happen, we have high hopes that our new digs will be ready before the year is out.
While I think we are all ready for 2020 to be in our hindsight, I hope we never forget the lessons that it has taught us about our resiliency and our ability to adapt and initiate change to make this world a better place for everyone.
*Please read the Department of Anthropology’s Statement on Racism, Anti-racism, Diversity, and Inclusion