Dear Readers,
This summer has been a tumultuous one. Set in the backdrop of an ongoing pandemic, the U.S. presidential campaign is nearing an end. Concurrently, as Covid-19 case numbers and death tolls continue to rise, the country grapples with the decision of whether students should return to the physical classroom.
After delaying the in-person reopening to the beginning of October, Choate is now preparing to welcome students back to campus in less than one week. This year will look different: instead of dorm brunches and team dinners together in the dining hall, our meals will take place scattered across campus with our family units. In addition to being tested on the material we learn in class, students will also be tested for the coronavirus each week.
But we know all too well that Covid-19 is not the only thing weighing on Choate students’ minds as we return to campus for the first time in seven months. This summer’s escalation of racial tensions has shed a new light on old issues, pushing communities to take a closer look at the institutions they belong to. Choate has not been spared in this process, with the School being forced to reckon with its own history of intolerance and discrimination.
Across multiple social media platforms, the Choate community has spoken out like never before, sharing experiences that have gone unvoiced for years. These personal stories have reached a wide audience, with students, alumni, and faculty alike calling on the administration for acknowledgement and action.
The School has had a varied response to not only these stories but also the community’s growing desire for the administration to bring about meaningful change and take accountability for past decisions, such as inaction in response to racist incidents perpetrated by both faculty and students. Though the creation of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Task Force and the Choate Fund for Justice, among other measures, are certainly steps in the right direction, there is no doubt that Choate still has a long way to go before the campus environment matches the values of integrity, respect, and compassion that the School has laid out in its mission.
This isn’t to say that The Choate News as an organization has done enough to provide a platform for marginalized voices in our community. Specifically, Black students, Black voices, and Black issues have historically not been featured as they should in this newspaper.
It’s time we begin to remedy that.
In this inaugural issue, themed articles across every section seek to highlight how this summer’s events have changed the landscape of social justice movements, race, and identity both at and beyond Choate. On the front page, we detail how the administration and the broader Choate community responded to the racial trauma and subsequent calls for change that began last spring. While this article is by no means an exhaustive account of the efforts of students, alumni, faculty, and administrators to address this issue, we hope it will serve as a starting point for further discussion and attempts to understand.
We recognize that our efforts cannot stop with a single themed issue. We as a newspaper must keep this dialogue going and acknowledge that even if the national conversation surrounding these issues subsides, we must continue to support our Black peers. The Choate News commits to using its platform as a means to amplify and uplift Black voices.
While sweeping institutional change will not happen overnight, we hope that this year will be a step toward a school in which all students feel supported. We know that it is not easy to see that the School one cares about has harmed many of its members, but we must remember that rarely is change born in a place of comfort.
That same sentiment applies to us as editors of The Choate News. We hope to cover the Choate community as thoughtfully as we can, and that means creating issues with a diversity of perspectives and voices. If you ever feel that The News’s coverage is flawed or falls short of this, we always welcome you to write a letter to the editors or send us feedback via email at thechoatenews@choate.edu.
