The brother of a Syracuse-born astronaut said "oppressive racism and misogyny in NASA" is behind the administration's choice not to send Dr. Jeanette Epps to the International Space Station.
Henry Epps shared a MoveOn.org petition on his Facebook page and called for NASA to reinstate Epps to the mission, where she would be the first African-American to become a crew member on the ISS.
The petition, started yesterday, has about 120 signatures. Epps did not start the petition, but he and several other family members signed it.
"My sister Dr. Jeannette Epps has been fighting against oppressive racism and misogynist in NASA and now they are holding her back and allowing a Caucasian Astronaut to take her place!" Henry Epps wrote on Facebook on Saturday night.
Epps, of Tennessee, and other family members in Delaware and Maryland could not be reached Sunday morning. Epps, like his sister, attended Corcoran High School, according to his Facebook page.
"We have lost all of the gains we gained over the past 40 years in one year? No more!" he said. "We cannot continue to tolerate what is going on in America but we must stand together and stand behind our people and ou(r) nation! Take a stand and sign the petition! Thank you!"
It was not clear from Epps' post whether he had spoken to his sister about why she was removed from the mission.
NASA officials have declined to describe why she was passed over, saying it is a "personnel matter."
Epps, a Le Moyne College graduate, was part of NASA 20th astronaut class, announced in 2009. She was one of nine selected out of 3,500 applicants. Epps had been assigned to serve as flight engineer for Expedition 56 and remained on board for Expedition 57, according to NASA.
The crew is set to go to the ISS in June and spend at least six months in space.
On Thursday, the administration announced that Serena Aunon-Chancellor, who previously was assigned to Expedition 58/59, was reassigned to the ISS mission. She's a surgeon who spent nine months in Russia supporting medical operations for ISS crew members, according to her biography.
Epps was born in Syracuse and attended Clary Middle School after Danforth. She graduated from Corcoran in 1988 and went on to 11 1/2 more years of schooling, beginning at Le Moyne College. She graduated with a degree in physics in 1992. She eventually earned her doctorate in aerospace engineering from the University of Maryland.
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