Space industry responds to protests against racism, police brutality

As protests against police brutality and violence erupted around the world, space companies have spoken out in support of those taking to the streets.

Why it matters: These statements suggest that the industry at large is trying to engage with what's happening on the ground and how it affects its employees.

Driving the news: Blue Origin, Axiom Space, Virgin Orbit and others released public statements.

• The Planetary Society's statement commits the organization to fight racism and find concrete ways to make its portion of the industry more inclusive and diverse.
• For All Moonkind, a nonprofit, is sponsoring a "Race in Space" webinar on June 18 to bring the conversation about race in the industry to a wide audience.
• Phase Four — a company focusing on building a new kind of thruster — put out a statement explicitly in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and donated to ACCE Action as well.

Yes, but: It's not yet clear whether these statements of support will translate into specific action focused on bringing more diversity to the industry.

• 87.5% of aerospace industry workers identify as white and 5.6% identify as black or African American, according to 2019 numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.