August 20, 2020

Dear Fellow ASOR Members:

I write with some exciting news. ASOR will be modifying its name to remove the word “Oriental.” Yesterday (August 19, 2020), the ASOR Board of Trustees voted unanimously to start the organizational and legal process to remove “Oriental” from our society’s name.

Here is the motion approved by Board (30-0) with no one abstaining:

BE IT RESOLVED: The Board of Trustees endorses the Executive Committee recommendation that the American Schools of Oriental Research remove the word “Oriental” from its name. The ASOR Board of Trustees will proceed with all possible speed to seek a vote of the membership on a revised name. Until the membership decides, the organization will use its acronym “ASOR” to identify itself. Moved by Eric Meyers, seconded by R. Peyton Helm.

As President, I am delighted that the ASOR Board has taken this historic step. Words have meaning, but these meanings change over the years as common usage evolves. Along the way they can collect unwelcome baggage and racist overtones as “Oriental “most definitely has. In 2016, the U.  S. Congress unanimously passed bill H.R.4238 to remove the last vestiges of racial terms such as “Oriental” from federal law. ASOR’s decision follows several years of conversation among the membership and in the Board, six months of work by the Ad Hoc Name of ASOR Committee, and extensive consultation by that committee with the membership. Everyone on the Board agreed that now was the time, and ASOR should not wait for the selection of a final name to confirm that we are removing “Oriental” from our name, so offensive it has become to our Asian-American fellow citizens.

What are the next steps? While there was strong support among Board members to retain the ASOR acronym in some form (without “Oriental”), it was decided to return the issue to the Ad Hoc Name Committee without further constraints so as not to incumber their work. That Committee plans to meet next week to finalize a report to the Board and to recommend a name or names. Because our bylaws have minimum time requirements for calling special Board Meetings, we will need to wait until September to discuss the ad hoc committee’s report. We will then ask the membership to vote on a new name—such a vote being required by District of Columbia statutes for non-profit corporations registered in D.C.

In the meantime, I hope that you will contact me with any questions or comments. My e-mail is president@asor.org.

Sharon Herbert
ASOR President