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In March, when Tara Reade first came forward with her allegation of sexual assault against former Vice President Joe Biden, I did not pay much attention. In light of recent corroborative evidence, however, it has become clear that dismissing Reade’s allegations was a major mistake. Her accusations are grave and credible. Democrats cannot shy away from the possibility Biden committed a terrible act of violence.
The morning that I left Hanover — after Provost Joseph Helble announced that at least the first five weeks of spring term would be remote — the sidewalk was filled with groups of friends saying goodbye. In contrast to the nonchalant departures of a normal term, the mood was somber. Disappointment about spring term hit hard, compounded by the regret I felt over all the things I wished I hadn’t put off during the winter. But as I hugged my friends one last time, I was reminded of the love and connection I have found at the College. Those things were easy to forget about during the stress of finals period, but they’re much harder to ignore now. So let’s not forget that. Even when the day comes that this pandemic is a distant memory, I hope we will no longer take for granted what Dartmouth has given us.
Even commercials are talking about coronavirus. Companies from Walmart to Pizza Hut want Americans to know that they are “here for you” in these unprecedented times. When every connection to life outside the home is colored by the pandemic, at what point does it become too much? Mention of COVID-19 has become obligatory in everything from calls with friends to emails with professors, and it crops up everywhere from Zoom classes to television.
This past fall, I was diagnosed with an eating disorder — specifically, a restrictive form of anorexia. This became a label, one that began to be all I thought about. I seemed to spend every spare moment agonizing over my caloric intake and obsessing over how many miles I would run at the gym that day.
Social distancing imposes tremendous costs on all of us. Colleges shut down, students stay home, employers go bankrupt, salaries dry up, economies free fall and governments lose trillions. Still, the coronavirus continues to spread faster than authorities can keep up with.
“Wouldn’t classes be better if girls always had to speak in class before boys were allowed to participate?” A professor asked me this last term in an attempt to build rapport. The question was rhetorical and my opinion was taken for granted. Surely I, a young woman, wouldn’t disagree.
The international reputation of the U.S. has suffered greatly as a result of its response to the coronavirus pandemic. Our lack of preparation to ensure a sufficient supply of protective equipment for health care personnel, coupled with President Trump’s insistence that he had the spread of the virus “totally under control” as the U.S. surpassed every other nation in terms of coronavirus cases, has shown that America does not always do it best. Even worse, we have failed to learn from and cooperate with other nations who can, in some cases, do better.
The eruption of COVID-19 has led to more than 22,000 deaths nationwide, with devastating social and economic ramifications. In a time of crisis, an increasingly desperate America has looked to the federal government for guidance and support as the lives and livelihoods of millions are put on hold. But the country as a whole has been let down by President Trump, whose actions have only deepened the systemic inequalities previously cultivated under his administration.
On April 4, The New York Times featured the article “College Made Them Feel Equal. The Virus Exposed How Unequal Their Lives Are,” written by Nicholas Casey. Casey juxtaposed the lives of two students studying at Haverford College, one who “sat at a vacation home on the coast of Maine,” and the other who had to “keep her mother’s Puerto Rican food truck running.” I applaud Dartmouth’s decision to make spring term credit/no credit to accommodate students who, like the New York Times story pointed out, must work a job or care for their family. However, social class and alleviated academic pressure aside, the online learning experience has not measured up to Dartmouth’s traditional classroom setting.
When Dartmouth announced its intention to host the entire spring term online, many students and professors were both disappointed and anxious. It was nearly impossible to imagine how the Dartmouth experience would translate to a remote format. As expected, attending Dartmouth virtually has not been the same as the on-campus experience. However, in our first week and a half of remote learning, professors have been remarkably innovative and accommodating. The online format, and the hard work of professors to make it work well, have allowed many students to continue their education relatively smoothly in spite of the challenges of learning from home. If Dartmouth can accommodate all 6,500 of its students learning in a remote format with only three weeks’ notice, the College should be able to offer a remote option for undergraduates who might need to take a term at home in the future.
Dartmouth’s enactment of a mandatory credit/no credit grading system was met — perhaps surprisingly — with widespread frustration among students. Students have cited various issues with this new system, including the lack of opportunity to raise one’s grade point average or to show achievement in a particular course. This reaction is a testament to the strong work ethic of Dartmouth students. While it’s natural for high-achieving, aspirational students to feel lost in a class without the incentive of an A, we don’t have to see things that way. Instead, now’s the chance to view the credit/no credit grading system as an opportunity to embrace learning for its own sake and — as too infrequently happens at Dartmouth — to focus on our passions without the stress of grades.
It’s not an election year unless Florida has a surprise up its sleeve, and this year the surprise in question just might involve the restoration of voting rights to felons. Just last week, a federal appeals court ruled that the state cannot use unpaid fees and fines related to conviction to bar felons from voting. This decision built off a 2018 amendment passed by referendum that promised to enfranchise over a million Floridians with felony convictions who had completed their sentences.
Put complaints of an overlong ceremony, political speeches by out-of-touch celebrities and awards predictability aside. Today, the most significant issue with the Oscars is the lack of diversity.
Flip to any news channel or open any newspaper or news site — or take a stroll across Dartmouth’s campus — and I doubt you’ll be able to last more than a few minutes without encountering the concept of “electability.” With the upcoming Democratic primary and New Hampshire’s today, voters want to pick whoever they think has the best chance of defeating Donald Trump come November. And while there are many bright, politically astute people on this campus and in this town who are wrestling with this concept and this decision today, I encourage them to fret not — because the concept of “electability” and everything it entails should be your last priority at the voting booth.
Dartmouth College remains one of the few remaining elite, academic stalwarts clutching to the tradition of a “swim test” one untimed 50-yard lap in the pool as a graduation requirement. And try though I may, I simply cannot shake my befuddlement as to why this exercise sticks around.
During the 2018 midterm elections, a record-breaking 185 women ran for congressional seats, resulting in an historic 117 female members of Congress. The unprecedented surge of women’s congressional participation led many to call 2018 “The Year of the Woman.” The election of so many women into the top political offices of the United States electrified feminists across the country, and the 2020 election cycle has seen more women than ever before seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.
The next Democratic debate, on Jan. 14, will likely have only five presidential contenders. There will be the three clear frontrunners — Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren — along with Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar, both of whom recently cleared the DNC’s threshold for a debate stage appearance.
In the next few days, people will come together to mark the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. As a moment of triumph over division and repression, the event deserves recognition. But it would be a mistake to believe that the bringing-down of the wall, and the reunification of Germany that followed, marked an end. Germany is still not a unified nation, and the repercussions of this are only now coming to popular attention.
The term “cancel culture” is the latest euphemism for political correctness. Often a term lobbed leftward, cancel culture refers to the online public shaming, usually of a celebrity, for some past action now deemed inappropriate. The intention is to encourage others to “cancel” consumption of the celebrity’s work.
This term has been particularly trying for me. My run-in with a head injury and my adjustment to a more social Dartmouth experience has sent my highly structured schedule as a freshman last year into a new chaotic normal.