As some of you who have been following the blog here at SmithbySmithies may know, some of our bloggers this semester have gone on hiatus due to a situation with the leadership on the blog that caused many students of color to feel uncomfortable, discriminated against, and not fully represented. Without going into too many specifics (although other bloggers have done so), I wanted to be transparent and thoughtful as I return to blogging.
I have not been posting this month because I wholeheartedly stand in solidarity with my fellow bloggers, especially those from minority background on this campus. As Senior Interviewers, and as bloggers, we have met with people who work in Admissions and College Relations and I am personally feeling really excited with how we are moving forward. The bloggers had a meeting last week where we talked about how we think the main SmithbySmithies blog, which reblogs content from each of our personal Tumblrs, should be run, and what posts should be promoted. We are currently drafting some guidelines to ensure that many different voices are represented equally on the blog and to increase transparency overall. It’s clear to us that it should not have been left up to one student to moderate the blog, and so we are working to help the administration moderate it in a more representative way.
Personally, I think the SmithbySmithies blog is so vital to admissions at Smith because it is one of the only places where prospective students can glimpse what life is really like here, rather than what it might look like on a brochure. However, with any platform that seeks to represent students’ voices, we have to look carefully at whose voices are promoted and whose experiences are prioritized. I represent only a small portion of experiences at Smith. I am not perfect, and what I choose to post should not ever be considered representative of any experience larger than my own.
I also want to be transparent: I am a Senior Interviewer, and so I am paid to run this blog, but I am not censored in any way, besides potentially by my own affinity for Smith. I will do my best to show what life is like here: and I’ll say right away that it’s not perfect. But no college or university is. Smith is not exempt from the climate we exist in. We are not a bubble. Racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, transphobia, all exist in Northampton and on this campus. I would be impressed to find a college campus where they don’t. What I think makes Smith unique is how politically active the student body it, and how willing we are to call out, call in, and push forward. Two weeks ago, I attended a rally to support undocumented students on campus, and demand that the administration make our campus a “sanctuary campus,” which will commit to helping students who may be targeted or threaten deportation under the new administration in January. This is still a work in progress. Similarly, at the same protest, speakers stood in solidarity with the Labor Union on campus which has been pushing for necessary benefits for dining staff and housekeepers. These negotionatics have taken far too long, but it looks like they are finally headed in the right direction, in part due to an incredibly dedicated body of student activists.
If there are any questions I can help answer about any of this, please reach out to me. I am going to continue posting content about my life at Smith, where I am almost a second semester senior (yikes!). Please check out our main blog, @smithbysmithies for links to any of the other (amazing) bloggers.