On April 11, the organization Students for Social Justice and Institutional Change (SSJIC) held a massive protest outside of John M. Greene Hall that was attended by hundreds of, if not a thousand, students. The event was a response to the overall apathy of the Smith administration in regards to the well-being of marginalized groups; examples include fifty years worth of unmet demands, the hiring of a police chief with racist and anti-immigrant views and “Inclusion in Action,” a conference aimed to celebrate “diversity” instead of promoting inclusion via institutional change. After sitting outside of JMG for three and a half hours, students marched to College Hall while holding signs and chanting to present President McCartney with a list of 28 demands. At that time, she agreed to fully meet one demand by providing learning disability testing to low-income students free of charge. She agreed to hire two full-time mental health counselors but did not confirm that these counselors would be transgender, as specified in one demand. Additionally, in an email sent out the next day, the Affinity Housing Implementation Team announced that they were adding a preference question to the application for affinity housing, asking if students would prefer to live in a community for students who identify as Black. Though one demand asked for a house for Black-identifying students along with an expansion of the Affinity Housing program into a long-term plan (an effort that has not yet been completed), the demand was partially met by the update to the application. Furthermore, on the evening of April 10, President McCartney notified students via email that Daniel Hect, the problematic new chief of campus police, would be put on administrative leave.
Though SSJIC’s protest of Daniel Hect during “Inclusion in Action” and their larger event on April 11 effectively caused some important changes, we must not start to believe that the fight is over. We must not forget that there are two demands that are only partially fulfilled and 25 more that have not been dealt with at all. Additionally, the actions that the administration has taken to address issues outside of the demands have not fully resolved such issues. Daniel Hect is still being paid and receiving benefits even though he is not currently acting as the chief of police. I am glad he is not currently serving this role, but I believe the administration has not gone far enough. President McCartney stated that “members of our campus community have voiced a lack of trust in recently appointed Campus Police Chief Daniel Hect” in the email announcing his leave. Why, then, would a man who is not trusted by the communities of Smith and Mount Holyoke still be paid by the same institutions? During the opening ceremony of “Inclusion in Action,” President McCartney announced another incomplete action: Starting next year, the dining halls will provide food without additional cost during Thanksgiving and Spring Break. Though I admire that the administration made this initiative, I am concerned that it does not fully address the problem. Are students still obligated to pay for housing during these breaks, and will the price of housing go up? I also found it odd that this initiative was only verbally announced during an optional event, not sent out as an email to notify all students. This made the action feel more superficial than it should be, like we should applaud the administration for finally preventing low-income students from going hungry over breaks, even though they may still have to pay to stay on campus to access the free dining services. Overall, I am concerned about the performative nature of the administration’s actions. I worry that change is being made only to create headlines and keep up appearances, not solely for the purpose of helping marginalized students.
In order to effectively help marginalized students, we cannot stop fighting for important issues because if we do, we may be blamed for not doing enough. The administration continually frames this situation as a student-driven effort. When confronted with the list of demands, President McCartney implied that she would be willing to work with us if we show any interest in working with her, as if hundreds of people shouting and marching through College Hall didn’t display enough interest. At a meeting SSJIC held April 9, the two administrators present also seemed unsure if we would be willing to work with them even though this meeting was attended by a conference room full of students holding protest signs and asking questions. If we want the administration to fully understand our demands and recognize how much we care about their completion, we must keep fighting. President McCartney asked students to email her or come to her office hours if they have any concerns, so this is what we must do.
If the burden of communicating the issues on this campus falls on the side of the students, we must do the best we can to carry it together. I wish I did not have to tell a tired campus that we need to work harder. I am so proud of the work Smithies have already put in to make this campus more inclusive and equitable. I know that with our passion and persistence, change is possible. If we can raise our collective voice loud enough so that the entire administration can hear it, then perhaps they will see that we want action — and we want it now.
