Trans icon Miss Major visits Smith

BY SHEBATI SENGUPTA ’19 AND MADELINE FITZGERALD ’21

In an effort to increase awareness around queer history, Smith College hosted several events surrounding Transgender Day of Visibility last week, including a screening of the documentary “Major!” and a talk with the film’s subject, LGBT rights activist Miss Major. An iconic figure in the fight for transgender rights, Miss Major was a participant in the 1969 Stonewall Riots and today is the executive director emerita for the Transgender, Gender Variant and Intersex Justice Project. Today, she focuses primarily on mass-incarceration and the way it intersects with issues of racial justice and queer activism. Miss Major is also a prominent advocate for prison abolition, an issue which was featured heavily at the talk.

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A strip freeze

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A strip freeze

BY MIA PENNEKAMP ’20 

I suck at being still. I’m the girl who bounces her leg up and down — shaking the table. I’m familiar with the feeling of hands landing on my thigh, and mouths telling me to please “be still.” I tap my pen, play with my hair, adjust my shirt. Chapstick and lotion, apply and reapply. I’m the girl who does calf stretches in the subway station. I rise up on my toes, relevé, plié, tendu. Dancing on my own. I suck at being still, and have for most of my life. I likely lack the discipline. What I do know: I’m intently, intensely curious. Anxious sometimes, always searching and scanning. Perhaps it was this curiosity, or perhaps my expensive and insatiable Sephora habit, that led me to a Mount Holyoke figure drawing class.

Letters to my First-Year Self

To my first-year self,

Where do I begin? You will change majors about four times, and know how to speak six languages by the end of junior year. College is going to start off rough. You won’t have the same friends you started out with, all your expectations of how college was supposed to be will fall apart and you will face reality. There will be lonely, confusing moments throughout most of college and that is fine. These difficult times are going to teach you how to mature, deal with situations and build your own self-respect. You’ll learn how to cut out toxic people and environments from your life and allocate your energy to those who merit it. Do not be afraid of letting go because if there’s one thing I’ve learned, certain people are only supposed to be in your life for that certain period if they no longer have the capacity to grow with you. Give yourself space for the new chapter, which will be more exciting than you could ever imagine.

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Faculty Show reflects the changing senses of humor

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Faculty Show reflects the changing senses of humor

BY SHEBATI SENGUPTA ’19

The first faculty show was held over 100 years ago. In earlier years, it was used as a fundraising tool for the College, to benefit anything from the health center to a scholarship fund and the tradition has continued almost uninterrupted every four years since. It operates on a volunteer basis, with a group of interested staff and faculty coming up with ideas, writing scripts and participating in skits. The writing, planning and the faculty band are prepared in advance. The comprehensive rehearsals, however, start the Monday before the show. This year some of the cast, such as psychology professor KC Haydon, participated for the first time. The longest continuous volunteer, Dawn Larder, coordinator for the economics department, has been part of faculty show since 1976. Regardless of experience and commitment level, all the faculty interviewed reiterated that the show is, first and foremost, supposed to be fun.

Dawn and Miranda: “It is a blind date after all”

Dawn and Miranda: “It is a blind date after all”

BY GRACE FITZGERALD ’20

This week we set up junior Dawn* with senior Miranda* on a date at Thirsty Mind. Dawn described themself as a corny food lover seeking a caring and sarcastic person to spend time with. Miranda described herself as a gregarious and caring person looking for someone to get coffee with and make laugh. Their mutual caring nature and love of art made them seem like the perfect pair! The two wore their cutest red outfits and met in Thirsty Mind. Here’s what happened… 

So what’s the deal with the housing lottery?

So what’s the deal with the housing lottery?

BY FALGUNI BASNET ’21

It’s that time of the year when rising sophomores, juniors and seniors at Mount Holyoke participate in the housing lottery. The process can be stressful, and students often worry about who they are going to end up sharing a room with and whether they will get into their desired residence halls or living learning communities (LLCs). 

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Aleasha & Daphne: Movie date gets five star rating

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Aleasha & Daphne: Movie date gets five star rating

BY GRACE FITZGERALD ’20

This week we set up first-years Aleasha* and Daphne* on a movie date in Skinner Hall, where the pair found a room stocked with movie snacks and a copy of “The Princess Bride.” Aleasha is a “dynamic and dedicated person looking for someone caring who she could make laugh.” Daphne is a film studies nerd looking for someone to watch movies with and be close to. Their similar senses of humor and a love of film made them seem like the perfect match! Here’s how it went...

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Senior gift campaign aims for “donors, not dollars”

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Senior gift campaign aims for “donors, not dollars”

BY SHEBATI SENGUPTA ’19

There is currently a campaign running which, on the surface, seems counterintuitive. The senior gift campaign asks graduating Mount Holyoke students, who as of yet are still college students and not yet earning significant amounts of money, to make a donation to the College. According to Rebecca Hughes ’18, one of two head class agents for the senior gift campaign, the gift “is not a physical gift…it is a sum of money that the senior class fundraises in their senior year which is given to the Mount Holyoke fund.” This fund consists of money “which gets spent on campus the next year,” said Hughes. “You can think of the endowment as the College’s savings account, and the Mount Holyoke fund as our checking account.” The senior gift campaign is only a small part of what goes into the fund, but it can be integral.

Jewish activists rally for DREAM Act

BY MOLLIE GRUBMAN ’20 

On Thursday, Feb. 8, the sound of air forced through a ram’s horn reverberated through the streets of Northampton. This ram’s horn is a shofar, a Jewish ceremonial instrument. Some hear this as a primitive call to battle, while others may hear the cry of a dying goat. Either way, the instrument represents an awakening, a call to action and a respect for Jewish tradition. Spearheaded by the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action (JALSA) alongside the Pioneer Valley Worker Center, the rally called for a clean DREAM Act. A clean DREAM Act, in their eyes, would not include concessions to Trump’s wall, funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement  and their detention centers, or the mandatory E-Verify — a vision that seems unlikely under Donald Trump’s administration.

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The Ivy Reminder

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The Ivy Reminder

BY MIA PENNEKAMP ’20 

I remember the blackened tooth my sister had for a year because I let go of the rope. The game was tug-of-war; she was three and went crashing down onto the hard marble floor. I think I won that round. Ivy, four years my junior, looks a lot like me — with a few key variations. While I’m pale, she’s sun kissed. While I wear my dark hair straight and long, she embraces the natural tumble of her lighter locks. All of our shared features are softer on her. In both looks and personality where I’m sharp, she’s soft. I thrift cleavage-bearing tank tops, blue jeans and mini-skirts. She buttons up in head-to-toe J.Crew. Our differences become increasingly apparent beyond the physical. She’s calm and content while I’m loud and restless. Sweet where I’m snarky. Faithful where I’m questioning. She is orderly and organized, relishing in routine. I don’t make the bed, or the curfew. She would never let go of the rope. 

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Letters to my First-Year Self

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Dear scared, anxious first-year Amy Yoelin:

Hello from 2018, the year where things finally come together for you. You are fresh out of  high school, and the high-energy chants from your class screaming “2018, 2018, 2018” still ring in your ears. Of course, it will take four long years to get there. 

Current history dept. flyers parallel 1972 conversation

Current history dept. flyers parallel 1972 conversation

BY FALGUNI BASNET ’21

The Mount Holyoke history department is one of the earliest academic departments, with records dating back to 1837, the year the College was established. According to a report from the archives “first-year students were required to know American history when they entered, were launched on a sweeping survey of ancient and modern times, [and] while in the last year, the minds and morals of the seniors were informed by the study of ecclesiastical history.” 

Second Amendment Sisters chapter fired off pro-gun rhetoric

Second Amendment Sisters chapter fired off pro-gun rhetoric

BY STEPH BRIOUKOVA ’20

Mount Holyoke’s first constitutionally-charged club was the College’s chapter of the Second Amendment Sisters (SAS), which strived to protect the nation’s Second Amendment and change regulations on gun laws in Massachusetts.

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The paper struggles to feature voices of color

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The paper struggles to feature voices of color

BY EMILY BERNSTEIN ’18

In 1883, 46 years after the College was founded, Hortense Parker made history as the first known black graduate of Mount Holyoke. It would not be until 89 years later — and more than half a century after the creation of the school newspaper — that Mount Holyoke News would provide a dedicated space to the voices of black students.

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Taylor and Elliott: Neighbors get closer

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Taylor and Elliott: Neighbors get closer

BY GRACE FITZGERALD ’20

First-year Taylor* was looking for someone she would be happy to spend time with. Elliott* — also a first-year — was looking for a partner with complimentary vibes. Both envisioned going out for coffee and getting to know each other as their perfect date.  This week we set Taylor and Elliot up on a date to get coffee before visiting  the Beneski Museum of Natural History at Amherst College. What could be more romantic than a walk amongst dinosaur fossils on a winter day? The two met on the PVTA and here’s what happened…

How to do love letters for Valentine’s Day virgins

How to do love letters for Valentine’s Day virgins

BY MIA PENNEKAMP ’20 

“I love last Valentine’s Day, our first. Purple orchids and high black boots. You gave me a letter and a memory and a bottle of maple syrup wrapped in paper, and it was the best present I had ever received,” begins the Valentine’s Day card I wrote this year. It continues with 12 more “I love…” until the last one: “I love you. Happy Valentine’s Day.” Signed: “Always, M.” 

Should I stay or should I go? A look into Mount Holyoke transfers

Should I stay or should I go? A look into Mount Holyoke transfers

BY FALGUNI BASNET ’21

For many, the phrase “applying to college” evokes the image of an anxious 17-year-old, laden down by a multitude of test prep books. But for some, applying to college is a process which occurs again, this time as a college student, sitting on a sunny quad or secluded in a dimly lit library. 

Deputy Chief Barbara Arrighi reflects on time at Mount Holyoke

Deputy Chief Barbara Arrighi reflects on time at Mount Holyoke

BY SABA FIAZUDDIN ’21

Deputy Chief Barbara Arrighi has worked for the Mount Holyoke police department for almost 44 years. Throughout her career in law enforcement, Arrighi maintained a fervent passion for karate. She has an eighth-degree black belt and is possibly the only woman in the world to be awarded the title of Hanshi, a name given to teachers of masters in Shito-rya International Karate DO Kai. 

Roses are red, violets are blue, Valentine’s Day is for ace people, too

BY SHEBATI SENGUPTA ’19

Throughout Mount Holyoke’s history, there have been numerous student organizations which cater to members of the queer community. One of the most recently founded organizations is the Coalition for Asexual and Aromantic Awareness (CFAA)... Last week, CFAA held their first Valentine’s Day event, a self-care night entitled #NOROMO.

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Penelope and Helen: Love and music in the air

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Penelope and Helen: Love and music in the air

BY GRACE FITZGERALD ’20 

It’s Valentine’s Day season and love is in the air! For this special edition of MoRomance, we set up junior Penelope* with senior Helen* on a romantic date to drink coffee, listen to live music and potentially fall in love

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