News
Letter to the Editors from President Ralph Hexter and Dean of Student Services R. Michelle Green
There are any number of assertions and arguments in Mr. Lutz's piece with which we disagree. We vigorously reject the claim in the headline that such a policy is "ill-intentioned." If it continues to be to some extent "divisive," it may be that some do not fully understand what college policy and practices are. Others may simply disagree with the principles on which our policy is based, which is their right. But we believe it is highly appropriate to enable students to choose and maintain residential situations to the extent possible free of the hostility that in our society, alas, still continues to be directed at some groups more than others.
Response from The Climax Editorial Board
We affirm the importance of a free press at Hampshire College and believe that meaningful discussion requires an open and honest engagement with potentially unpopular viewpoints. We are leery of high-ranking members of the college administration using the power of their office to target the views of individual students. Hampshire students must be comfortable in their ability to express any opinion, and we hope that The Climax will continue to facilitate important discussions on campus.
Legislation may affect Hampshire unions
Hampshire College labor supporters celebrated last week when the House of Representatives passed a bill aiding the formation of new unions. If enacted, the bill would remove many of the obstacles faced by union organizers in 1994 and 1997. Read More
Electrical heaters in Greenwich against fire code
Residents of Greenwich donuts received bright yellow notices after winter break warning them to "exercise caution when utilizing electric outlets above or near these electric heaters." These notices did not pop up out of the blue, but were the result of an inspection of the electrical heaters and outlets by the Amherst Inspection Services before winter break. Read More
Walter Benn Michaels discusses the trouble with diversity
Walter Benn Michaels came up with the idea for his book The Trouble with Diversity when he gave a lecture to a seemingly very diverse group of a few hundred Harvard students. They "were extremely proud of their diversity,"he said, but "were completely indifferent to the one way in which they were not diverse, which is to say they all came overwhelmingly from the top 5 to 10 percent of American wealth." Read More
Smith cuts MassPIRG funding
In the final week of February, Smith students voted to stop funding their chapter of the Massachusetts Public Interest Research Group (MassPIRG). Over 600 students voted through the Student Government Association website and results were available within hours. Those students represent roughly 23 percent of Smith's student population, and voted 331 to 277 against funding renewal. Read More