Conservative-driven book banning has seen a resurgence these past three months with new censorship debates popping up in schools, courts, and homes across the country. Book banning is not a new phenomenon nor is it a practice isolated to a single political party or ideology. This wave of censorship, however, has been particularly far-reaching in terms of its geographically expansive nature, the quantity of books banned, and the broader implications it has when it comes to banning books in 2022.
Read moreHypocrisy in the Media: How the Oscars Deals With Scandal
To preface—the purpose of this article is not to condone or antagonize Will Smith’s slap against Chris Rock. Merely, it is the starting point at which we will unravel The Academy’s twisted way of dancing around scandal when it is convenient for them.
Read moreThe Read Scare of 2022: Who benefits from new books being censored and why does it matter?
Photo by Bella Hynes
Conservative-driven book banning has seen a resurgence these past three months with new censorship debates popping up in schools, courts, and homes across the country. Book banning is not a new phenomenon nor is it a practice isolated to a single political party or ideology. This wave of censorship, however, has been particularly far-reaching in terms of its geographically expansive nature, the quantity of books banned, and the broader implications it has when it comes to banning books in 2022.
Don't Say Gay
On Tuesday, March 8, a bill titled Parental Rights in Education passed the Florida Senate. Then, on March 28, Governor DeSantis signed it into law. While the name sounds fairly innocuous, this bill became known in public discourse as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, for its true agenda.
Read moreThis Is Bigger Than Sports: Trans Rights and Athletics
Over the last few decades, the LGBTQ+ community has made tremendous progress in the United States and some other countries. However, there is still a long way to go in most of the world towards liberation, and unfortunately we are in the midst of a backlash which focuses on a particularly vulnerable subset: transgender people. How did we get here, and what does this mean for the future?
Read moreThose Who Fail to Learn from History: COVID Restrictions
For the last 2 years, restrictions have been instrumental in containing the spread of COVID-19 and continue to be the first line of defense in protecting us from the virus which has claimed millions of lives worldwide. However, individuals and governments alike have spent the last few years caught in a cycle of loosening and subsequently tightening restrictions, never learning from failures or breaking the cycle of mistakes.
Read moreJoe Rogan and Spotify: It Isn’t About Free Speech
In May 2020, when the pandemic was still in its infancy, Spotify paid over $100,000,000 to become the exclusive platform of mixed martial arts commentator Joe Rogan’s popular Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast. Now, nearly 2 years later, this decision, which received relatively little media coverage at the time, is coming back to bite them.
Read moreThe Pollution of Politics: What We Can Learn From This Year's UN Climate Conference
The unfortunate reality highlighted, once again, by this year's COP is that we cannot rely on our governments, their theatrical conferences, and various overly optimistic speeches given by political leaders to be the catalyst for change needed to curb the catastrophic climate destruction. That being said, the greater attention this year's conference received and subsequent voices of dissent towards the inaction of our current leaders have been an encouraging sign for the future and changes that are hopefully soon to come.
Read moreWe Need to Pay More Attention to SGA and Here's Why
Community participation in SGA is one of the few assured ways that institutional change can be made with definitive cooperation with the student body. Being involved and supportive of SGA means, first and foremost, voting in elections, but it also requires voicing students’ opinions to SGA, so they know how to work with the administration to best benefit the entire student body.
Read moreWho Are the Terrorists, Anyway? The Worrying Use of State Violence Against Civilians in the Middle East
It is clear that the US and Israel’s practicing of “counterterrorism” is quite similar to actual terrorism, even though we seldom see this military policy described as such. These states provide good case studies of this phenomenon due to their high reliance on rhetoric surrounding terrorism in the Middle East and their history of using violence against civilians. Without changes in behavior, the United States and Israel will have a hard time making the case that their efforts to fight “terrorism” are distinctly different (and more admirable) than the actions of “terrorists” themselves.
Read moreWhat Should Title IX Be?
Over time, the definition of Title IX has broadened to include protections for victims of sexual harassment and sexual violence. Schools are legally required to respond and remedy “hostile education environments'' or risk losing their federal funding. By this definition, it is a school’s legal duty to protect those whose education is inhibited by sexual and gender based misconduct. They must protect survivors. So why isn’t Skidmore?
Read moreWhy the Democrats Lost in 2021 (And Will Lose Again)
As the first Election Day since the tumultuous 2020 Presidential election, tensions were riding high and the results would be indicative not only of the respective candidates, but also of how the nation felt about the Biden Administration. The results of the election could have been predicted and was not particularly unusual given the events of the past year. Nonetheless, this past election cycle and its results are concerning signs for Democrats as to what will come in future elections.
Read moreThe Case for Compassion: A Commentary on Students’ Reactions to SGBM
The more we stick to love and compassion, the stronger we are. If the Skidmore administration shows us that they will continue to be apathetic and “objective,” we will be the space for empathy and support. History has shown that the people are more powerful than authoritative institutions. The people have the power to create and destroy, to mold and reshape. We can’t do that without love, kindness, and respect.
Read moreIt Didn’t Have To Be Like This: The Skidmore Administration’s Role in the COVID-19 Outbreak
When the Fall 2021 semester began, we all had high hopes for being able to put the pandemic behind us and have a relatively normal college year. Understandably so: after the heartbreak, loss, and frustration of a year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic, we finally had 98 percent of students and staff vaccinated, and the end seemed in sight.
Read moreThe Met Gala Was “Wack This Year," & Not Just For Its Fashion!
This year’s theme was “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion,” which was more broad than others have been in the past. Although the invitees and panel of hosts (Naomi Osaka, Timothée Chalame, Billie Eilish, and Amanda Gorman) seemed to promote diversity, the way in which the protest outside of the event was handled itself showcased how America typically chooses to operate when it comes to the treatment of Black and Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC). As a person who adores and appreciates fashion, the Met Gala is usually an event that I am excited about; but as a Black person, the situation that occurred outside of the event this year is something that is difficult for me to ignore.
Read moreSatire: Fourth Best College Food in New York
Our new normal is basically back to pre-COVID normal, but with masks, and I'm sure everyone’s sick of asking covid safety questions, I am to a degree, but entering D-hall with 100-plus students is still overwhelming when we've been so conditioned to socially distance. Hopefully more of us can be vigilant in wearing masks indoors (like in the library) and the future of our campus won't become a COVID hotspot.
Read moreHow the FYE Summer Reading Can Help the Skidmore Community
Already this year, students on campus are applying the summer reading’s concepts to our own community. Without inclusive and accessible spaces, Skidmore is incapable of either calling itself or working towards being an antiracist institution. Skidmore students have cultivated serious and plausible ideas for how to do this. This semester, as we get settled into new classes and a fresh routine, it is imperative that we take Kendi’s lessons and use them to improve our community for all.
Read more“Stop Asian Hate” On Anti-Asian Crimes: Patterns of Racism Between the Past and Present
The rates of Anti-Asian crimes have increased drastically, by 150% in 2020 in New York City and Los Angeles. But I keep thinking: those numbers are the crimes that are actually reported.
Op-Ed: What Does it Mean to be Latinx?
As members of the Skidmore community, we need to see and call out white people and whiteness. Doing so forces faculty and staff to be a part of the conversation on racial inequality, rather than allowing them to deflect, take a raincheck, and never address it. Doing the work also entails taking strides to figure out and specifically define your race. Ending racism is a community effort; thus, in addition to professors and staff, students must also reflect and address the questions above. Change cannot occur within our community if we (Skidmore staff, faculty, and students) continue to refuse to racialize white people. Thus, the time for change is now.
Read moreOp-Ed: It's Time Universities Implement American Sign Language into their World Languages Curriculums
If the WLL Department took into account the full panoply of deaf culture and its historical progression within this country, they would find ASL to be an appropriate addition to the curriculum. It has the ability to foster effective communication useful in many situations, provides insight into the deaf experience, connects back to fields such as disability studies and social work, and sheds light on the marginalization of deaf individuals within a particular society.
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