Yale University

Nine-year-old girl tours Yale labs after neighbor reported her to police for spraying lanternflies

Nine-year-old Bobbi Wilson of Caldwell, New Jersey was welcomed to Yale for a "Black girl led Science Tour" after a viral incident where her neighbor called the cops on her while she was protecting trees from lanternflies. The little girl had been spraying a formula to help exterminate spotted lanternflies - an invasive species in New Jersey - when her neighbor reported her to the police, who then stopped and questioned her. In response to this incident, Ijeoma Opara, Yale School of Public Health assistant professor, designed a tour to introduce Bobbi to Black female scientists and reward her for her efforts to save the environment.

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Published: Sunday, December 4, 2022