Current students created affinity programming for prospective Black students during admission’s Previews this week. ILLUSTRATION BY NASIR GRISSOM ’22 AND KYLE SCADLOCK ’19.
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Stop & Shop workers go on strike
New England Stop & Shop workers went on strike on Thursday after months of tense negotiations with the grocery chain. Five United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) chapters, representing 31,000 workers in the area, organized the strike.
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Students of color raise concerns about CSS
Black students and students of color have, as early as 2017, expressed discontents in experiences with Campus Safety and Security (CSS) that they believe demonstrated implicit bias. Students and administrators are collaborating in hopes to begin listening sessions among CSS, Vice President for Campus Life Steve Klass and those who have reported negative interactions with CSS.
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Black activist mothers from Chicago to discuss love, justice
Holmes, Wells and other activist mothers stand before a banner in Colombia that reads, “Who feels for our dead? May the mothers’ pain transcend borders.” PHOTO COURTESY OF GLOBAL NETWORK OF MOTHERS IN RESISTANCE.
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Community celebrates, commemorates 50 years of Africana studies
Fifty years ago, (left to right) Richard Jefferson ’70, Preston Washington ’70, Michael Douglass ’71 and 31 other students from the Afro-American Society occupied Hopkins Hall, prompting the creation of the Africana studies program. PHOTO COURTESY OF COLLEGE ARCHIVES.
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Students, faculty spar over free speech, speaker invitations
Last Wednesday, Nico Perrino, Steven Gerrard and Luana Maroja responded to student questions surrounding their positions on free speech at the College. ARRINGTON LUCK/NEWS EDITOR
The Society for Conservative Thought hosted a panel and discussion last Wednesday surrounding issues of campus free speech and expression, titled “Considering the Case for Campus Free Expression.” Sponsored by the political science department and the Class of 1971 Public Affairs Forum, the panel consisted of Associate Professor of Biology Luana Maroja, Professor of Philosophy Steven Gerrard and Communications Director of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) Nico Perrino.
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College expects to meet sustainability targets
With less than two years remaining, the College is poised to reach its 2020 sustainability goals, according to the Zilkha Center for Environmental Initiatives. It expects to reduce campus emissions to 35 percent below 1990 measured levels and to achieve carbon neutrality through carbon offsets.
Graphic courtesy of Caroline Weinberg ’19.
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Beyond the Purple Bubble
Stop & Shop releases “final offer” to workers threatening strike
Following weeks of tense negotiation, Stop & Shop updated its “final offer” to the five local unions that authorized a strike against the grocery store chain in March. Among the unions moving toward a strike is United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1459, which represents workers in Western Massachusetts.
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College reverts to disposable to-go containers following loss of reusable shells
The College reverted to disposable shells after losing nearly all reusable ones. SABRINE BRISMEUR/PHOTO EDITOR
The College has reverted to using disposable to-go shells after losing practically all of its reusable plastic containers over the past several months.
“This most recent pilot program with the plastic shells was an attempt to revive a former program that used a similar product in recent years,” Vice President for Campus Life Stephen Klass said.
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Licensing company reprimands theatre department
Following the College’s March production of Stephen Adly Guirgis’ play “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot,” the theatre department received a reprimand via email from Dramatists Play Service for breaking copyright law and breaching its licensing agreement.
These accusations stemmed from decisions made during the production process to cut lines actors found to be offensive, as well as the inclusion of a dance number in the performance. Dramatists, one of the three main companies that sell play licenses, emailed the department after being tipped off by a letter from community member Ralph Hammann, a local teacher and director, who wrote a letter to the editor for this issue of the Record.
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Staff discuss low morale, feelings of alienation
Custodians recount discontents with management; some cite Williams Staff Committee, strategic planning as encouraging steps toward staff inclusion
Among College staff, a “significant morale issue on campus, especially among support staff workers” has existed for up to a decade, according to the Williams Staff Committee (WSC).
Staff members say that they feel expendable and unvalued at the College, a perception that is exacerbated by a lack of involvement in decision-making and an inability to advocate for themselves. Fear of “retaliation,” staff members said and WSC confirmed, often dissuades staff from voicing their concerns to management.