Letter to the Editor: The College's erasure of Asian activist chalking

BY SIGGY EHRLICH ‘26

MOUNT HOLYOKE COLLEGE STUDENT

To the Mount Holyoke Community, 

The behavior of Marcella Runell and the Administration around the chalking by the Stop Asian Hate group is deeply upsetting. They were clearly deliberately erased, considering it happened a day after they were done, and it does not seem to me and many others to have been “erased in error” as claimed in the weekly Dean’s Corner. She diminished the harmful washing away, the dumping of water onto messages of support for Asian and Asian-American students, by saying “erased.” Her small paragraph in the Dean’s Corner is an embarrassment to the institution that prides itself on a diverse student body and makes me question her own knowledge and understanding of our campus history. In spring 1997, the work of student activists centered around many issues of inclusivity, including creating more support and academic spaces for Asian students. This activism established the Jeannette Marks LGBTQ+ and the Asian Center for Empowerment cultural centers. They also advocated for the establishment of an Asian-American studies program through a series of protests, rallies, and a sit-in in Mary Lyon Hall. Clearly, however, the institutional scaffolding they created then is not enough to support our students, but this cannot be completely to blame those in power in 1997. 

It is rather the responsibility of white students like myself to continue to evaluate our own privilege and behaviors towards Asian and Asian-American students. Asian international students are looked down upon by many white students, staff, and faculty. We must do our part to support our peers because it is becoming increasingly clear that our administration is not doing theirs to support Asian and Asian-American students. Community requires work, support, and activism from all of us, not only for those that we share identities with, but most importantly for those we do not.

We pride ourselves on being a liberal institution and the past few weeks have reminded me again that it is the responsibility of students, staff, and faculty to uphold this standard through our actions. We must continue to support and advocate for our peers and call out the actions of others. #StopAsianHate

Siggy Ehrlich ’26

Letter to the Editor: Anti-Asian racism at Mount Holyoke

BY IVY ZHOU ‘27

MOUNT HOLYOKE COLLEGE STUDENT

To Fellow Mohomies,

A few days ago, a piece of paper saying “ching…and so” was found under a large rock near Ham/Macgregor. This led to wide range discussions on Fizz, and many Asian students felt uncomfortable, hurt, and unsafe. Yesterday, the school shared that the preliminary investigation indicated that “the signage was part of a larger message that was not a slur.”

But intention does not remove impact. The paper might not intend to be racist, but the harm it’s causing is real. The huge issue now is how our community responded.

On Fizz, Asian students were met with comments saying we were “overdramatic,” “begging to be discriminated against,” or that “ching is not racist,” brushing off the discomfort that many of us felt. For Asians, racism often shows up in small, subtle, ambiguous micro-aggressions that pile up over time. So when we finally speak up, being told we’re “overreacting” hits especially hard. As people who are directly targeted by this slur and — many of us — as second-language learners of English, we even found ourselves having to explain the painful history and meaning of the racist slur to people whose native language it comes from.

At this point, the problem is no longer the sign itself.

The problem is how quickly some people rushed to downplay the harm and invalidate those who were hurt.

As Asians, we are the last ones who want to see anti-Asian racism happen. But given today’s political climate and seeing so many hate crimes have happened on campus in the past, how could we not relate this incident to racism? Especially when all we saw was a single paper, held down by a huge rock, with an anti-Asian slur on it. In that moment, thinking the worst is a natural instinct.

This incident shows something important: Our community lacks basic awareness about anti-Asian racism.

I’m not here to cancel anyone. The truth is, the heavy cancel culture at MHC already keeps people too scared to speak openly and honestly. And this fear is exactly what turned Fizz into such a toxic place, where anonymity gives people the courage to say the things they would never dare to say out loud in public.

I’m writing this because we, as a community, still have A LOT of work to do.

Dismissing harm doesn’t make people safer.

Silencing pain doesn’t make it disappear.

We deserve to be heard, believed, and supported.

PS: I am putting down my name because I stand by my words. Anonymity can enable courage, but it can also enable harm without accountability.

Ivy Zhou, ’27