Growing up in Southern Florida, I lived in an affluent, predominantly white suburb and attended a traditional, conservative private school, where the word “liberal” carried a negative connotation and often invoked visceral reactions. Clearly, coming to Amherst was a culture change, but one I was — and still am — excited to experience.
Late this past Sunday night, Buzzfeed reported that actor Anthony Rapp, best known for being a part of the original cast of “Rent”, had accused Kevin Spacey of sexually assaulting him when Rapp was only 14 years old (Spacey was in his mid-twenties at the time). Hours later, Spacey released a response on Twitter, in which he claimed to not remember the events and that he owed Rapp “the sincerest apology.” This alone would’ve been problematic enough, as “I don’t remember doing that” does not excuse one’s actions.
A few days ago, reports came out that four American soldiers had been killed in an ambush in Niger. President Donald Trump has disavowed responsibility and put the burden on the military. Niger holds one of the largest concentrations of U.S. forces in Africa, and the American military has been strengthening its presence on the continent with the goal of training local forces to help them fight extremists. According to The New York Times, the reasoning behind this is that the United States is trying to avoid larger deployments.
In what ultimately proved to be a shootout, the Amherst football team defeated the Tufts’ Jumbos by a score of 31-26 last weekend. The Mammoths scored 28 points in the first half and managed to withstand a second-half surge by Tufts to secure the victory. With the win, Amherst’s record improves to 6-1, while Tufts falls to 4-3 on the year.
Matthew Chow ’18 is an English and economics double major. His thesis examines the intersection of the Christian gospel and Shakespeare’s tragedies. His advisor is Professor Anston Bosman in the English Department.
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) is holding a new series titled “AmherstChatBack: Dialoguing Across Difference” to provide a space for students to talk about differences and intersections in their lives. Co-facilitated by Dialogue Coordinator Ismaris K. Ocasio and Race, Gender and Sexuality Education Specialist Babyface Card in Keefe Campus Center, the first dialogue took place on Sept. 29 while the most recent dialogue on Friday, Oct. 27 — the fifth of seven — addressed nationality. Past topics have included class, gender, ability and sexuality.
Loretta Ross, a human and women’s rights activist who helped coin the term “reproductive justice,” spoke about the origins of the reproductive justice movement and how it can be used to dismantle white supremacy on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Her talk was part of Reproductive Justice Week, which was hosted by the Women and Gender Center and the student-run Reproductive Justice Alliance.
