On Nov. 6, 2025, I gathered with many students at Davis Ballroom for the joint presentation hosted by the Black Students’ Alliance (BSA) and the Latin American Students’ Organization (LASO).
For my first Cromwell Day, I had many expectations but no frame of reference for what to actually expect. I had heard things here and there about past Cromwell Days from other students, and this year’s events, comparatively, seemed to have far less hype. I don’t think I fully understood what Cromwell Day was supposed to be. I mean, sure, we were meant to celebrate Otelia Cromwell as the first Black Smith College student, but what does that really mean?
So I went to the workshops and events searching for an answer to that and found myself at the BSA and LASO collaboration workshop. The workshop included a history of the day, an interview with BSA and LASO alumni, and a collaging activity at the end. If it weren’t for an Instagram post about it, I am not sure I would have known about this student-led program.
When the workshop ended, I felt that Cromwell Day was not what all my peers had led me to expect. However, understanding it was my first, I spoke with BSA and LASO members to help me fill in some of the gaps. BSA Chair Sudeen Dwyer ’27, LASO Caribbean Rep Karolina Suarez Aldarondo ’28, and DEI Head Itzel Aleman Flores ’27 shared their experiences and comments on the program.
BSA and LASO collaborated on their Cromwell Day program for the first time last year in Seelye 106. After its success, they decided to keep it as an annual tradition.
Flores said that last year’s event was huge, albeit not as large as this year’s, where they had to continuously pull out chairs in Davis Ballroom.
“One thing I really wanted everybody to gain was actually pushing the real message and theme of Cromwell Day this year,” Dwyer said. “(BSA and LASO wanted to) show that other people’s interpretation of it was not necessarily what we align with and we wanted to bring the focus point of Cromwell Day back to what it really was, about community and learning, especially with this year’s theme which was building community during contentious times.”
Flores added that the two student organizations switched the structure of the program to be more hands-on to promote that theme. “A lot of times Cromwell Day happens and then that’s it, there’s nothing that really comes out of it, so we wanted people to actually remember the impact.”
The most beneficial part of the programming for me was the alumni interview. Seeing alumni who graduated in different decades was really important for me because it showed that the struggle continues and that the stories that were told took place not long ago. Often, we think of struggle as in the past and being over with. Seeing the faces of classes ’90, ’92, ’09 and ’19 collapsed that view. They are still here, and their experiences are still relevant.
Each of the alumni who spoke shared similar stories about fighting for spaces for their affinity groups: sit-ins, marches and other forms of protests in response to derogatory statements left in notes or spray-painted on buildings and sidewalks, across decades. Notably, alum Amanda Kim ’92 spoke about notes being left in Chapin House, and how “women of color not safe in their own homes, was the momentum that ended up unifying us and us creating things.” She described sit-ins in College Hall, a march and a fast. Cromwell Day “ended up being one of the concessions that the administration agreed to because of all of this activity that had been happening,” she said.
This new understanding of how Cromwell Day came to be is especially striking. Much of the focus is on the celebration, not the lengths it took to get there. And this emphasis on community is still present in recent years. Alum Daisy Astorga Gonzalez ‘19 discussed the importance of being willing to jump in and defend others who can’t defend themselves.
Aldarondo said that her archival work to produce images for the collage portion of the event revealed much: “We had those pictures available to collage with as a reflection of the history of the community and history of LASO and BSA, and this is what we need to focus on and keep building. We are really in dangerous times right now, so we need to make sure we look back to our community and think ‘this is how they got through it and we can also get through it,” Aldarondo said.
They also agree that representation matters at Smith. This applies to BSA, LASO, and any other affinity group here on campus. For Aldarondo, representation is “seeing people who look like me doing things that I want to do.” For her it is also important to “(feel) like I’m being accurately represented.”
Dwyer added, “Representation is something that is not forced, it just happens naturally…to me representation isn’t an afterthought and we are always in the forefront of everybody’s minds to make sure that equity actually happens…it’s not just looking for yourself in things but looking for other marginalized communities…”
Viewing those alumni interviews was impactful for Cromwell Day’s theme surrounding community and collaboration. To continue progressing, we must work together across differences to maximize change.
Hearing the speakers talk about their experiences as direct beneficiaries of the Civil Rights Movement gave me a sense of responsibility. It not only reminded me how recent in time it was, but also inspired me to keep it going.
As a Black student at Smith College, I am deeply inspired by the alumni who came before me, and seeing what changes they have made and continue to make is important in deciding what kind of legacy I would like to leave. It lets me think about what I could be doing now.
It also makes me wish for more transparency between the students — especially students of color — and the administration here at Smith, a place where we can hear about decisions being made and the ability to have our input heard as those directly affected by those decisions.
For me, it’s always been a matter of representation. If we do not see reflections of what we are and can be, how else will we be able to be steadfast toward our goals?
This is why I say everyone should’ve attended the BSA and LASO workshop. It reminded us that even though we have arrived at a place of accomplishment and progress, the real work starts now.
