Some students saw Monday as an excuse for a three day weekend. Others saw it as a way to get in an extra night at the frats. Not many took the time to reflect on the meaning of the day or to attend the various scheduled events.
But right now it is as important as ever perhaps even more so than usual for our school to pay attention to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and all that it stands for.
Coincidentally, because Inauguration Day fell on a Sunday this year, Monday also saw the second inauguration ceremony for President Barack Obama, America's first black president. This last fact is inescapable, yet one that many have come to take for granted. Apparently, having a president of color has made racism and prejudice things of the past. Or at the very least, people think we no longer have to work towards combatting these issues. This complacency breeds a society and a Dartmouth campus that are not moving forward in fact, it appears we may even be regressing.
I am sure no one has forgotten the email that went out shortly after Obama's reelection, informing us that a racist comment had been posted on the wall in the Choates Residential Cluster. I have definitely not forgotten, as it was my hallway that was home to such offensive graffiti. At the time, a number of students, myself included, believed that the administration's response dispatching the recently created Bias Incident Response Team to thoroughly investigate a "tiny" remark scribbled on a bulletin board was an overreaction. This was Dartmouth, a school that prides itself on diversity and tolerance. Surely we do not have an issue with prejudice and racism.
Yet we found ourselves in a similar position the afternoon before Martin Luther King Day, learning that, once again, "racist graffiti" had been found in a residence hall. This time, I really took notice. This was not just a one-time occurrence this was a real problem.
A problem echoed on Monday at many of the College's Martin Luther King Day events. While preparing this column, I contacted dozens of students, asking if they or anyone they knew had attended a speech, talk or workshop. The answer, over and over again, was no. At a school with latent racial tensions just take a look at Bored at Baker or the comments section for any article about the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity hazing situation wide swathes of the student body opted not to participate in events meant to raise awareness about the issue. I attended the vigil that walked from Cutter-Shabazz Hall to the Hopkins Center. The majority of the attendees were local adults and children. The student presence largely comprised of students of color.
But Martin Luther King Day is not just a day for the black community, and it is not just for minorities in general. It is a national holiday, meant to be celebrated by people of all races, genders and creeds. It should be an event that sends a message of inclusivity.
That message reaches beyond merely a society more inclusive of race. It is a message of a more inclusive society for all, regardless of skin color or economic background or sexual orientation. It is a message that this campus needs to start paying attention to.
During Dean of the College Charlotte Johnson's remarks following the vigil ceremony, she made that point abundantly clear.
Johnson strongly stated that there is nothing acceptable about hatred on our campus and nothing acceptable about people being fearful in the place where they belong.
The problem is not that our campus is not discussing these issues, but rather that much of the student population fails to join in these discussions or recognize that there is a problem in the first place.
Johnson also stressed on Monday that we as students can be a catalyst for change. Without our active participation, this campus cannot move forward.
Students of color should not be the only ones seeking a better environment. LGBT students should not be the only ones advocating for equality. We all have a responsibility to sustain a community that is welcoming to each of our peers, because the future of Dartmouth and of this country relies not on just one archetype of society stepping up and leading, but on everyone doing their part.
