Safety without sanctuary

Editorial: At home in all lands

A petition is currently circulating through the Bowdoin community, in Brunswick and beyond, to make Bowdoin a sanctuary campus. According to the petition, this would mean those documented under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and undocumented peers “are able to remain on campus and focus on their education instead of their fears of being forced to abandon their education and separate from their families.” The initiative comes in response to President-elect Donald Trump’s threat to deport undocumented immigrants from the United States during his presidency.
The petition—addressed to President Clayton Rose, Dean of Student Affairs Tim Foster, Dean of Multicultural Affairs Leana Amaez, Director of the Student Center for Multicultural Life Benjamin Harris and Director of Safety and Security Randy Nichols—seeks to “protect our current and future students from intimidation, unfair investigation, and deportation.” The petition urges administrators to take action prior to Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2017.
The Orient’s editorial board vehemently endorses the establishment of Bowdoin as a sanctuary campus. In an email to the campus community on November 10, following the debrief of the election organized by the McKeen Center, Rose noted “that Bowdoin is among a small number of institutions in America that are designed and especially well-equipped to engage, understand, and debate ideas, to build the skills necessary to respectfully disagree and bridge differences, and to transform ideas into action.” He continued to note that taking action is “[at the] center of our purpose, and also at the center of our democracy.” Establishing Bowdoin as a sanctuary campus is a way to transform conversations about support into action establishing inclusion.
Many cities, including Portland, Maine, Boston, New York, Washington, D.C, and Seattle are designated sanctuary cities. Sanctuary refers to cities who have pledged to refrain from assisting federal officers seeking to deport undocumented immigrants.
In addition to established sanctuary cities, many campuses across the country have launched similar petitions and staged walkouts over the course of the last week. We believe Bowdoin should join this effort for national action. This is one of many ways the College can take an active, public stance in favor of the Common Good both on and off campus.
Bowdoin as a sanctuary campus not only embodies the Offer of the College, but contributes to the Common Good. Given the nation’s current political climate, working towards the Common Good and ensuring everyone knows that they are accepted and have a true home here is more important than ever. To echo the petition, “This is not a time for silence.”
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Marina Affo, Julian Andrews, Steff Chavez, Grace Handler, Meg Robbins and Joe Seibert.

Editorial: A system of the same

Earlier this week, MacMillan House advertised a party planned for tonight called Gender Bender. The posters read: “dress as a woman, dress as a man, dress in between, dress best as you can.” Upon creating a Facebook event for the party, MacMillan quickly received criticism: students on campus addressed how the events’ posters implied a gender binary and how the event brought a sensitive conversation into the insensitive environment of a campus-wide party.
One of the major criticisms was the lack of partnership with Gender Matters, a new discussion group and supportive space for trans/genderqueer/non-binary students to come together to share common experiences and seek support from one another. No member of MacMillan House openly voiced knowledge of this student group.
Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, prior to advertising the party, members of MacMillan discussed the event and met with the Bowdoin Queer Straight Alliance (BQSA). Following that meeting, MacMillan planned to host a panel to explore issues of gender before throwing the party. This programming, however, fell through. Although the House’s intent was not malicious, without this fundamental part of the programming the planned campus-wide was still hurtful and offensive for some. The House should have canceled the party as soon as the plans for the panel failed to come to fruition.
In recent years, students have criticized the College Houses for being predominantly white spaces. In addition to racial homogeneity, however, College Houses consistently attract clusters of applicants who are members of similar campus groups and who socialize with similar people.
The Office of Residential Life’s website describes members of College Houses as “thoughtful leaders in the broader campus community.” In order to be leaders of the greater campus community, however, there must be representation of the student body as a whole in the College Houses. While Bowdoin makes efforts to diversify the overall campus, the College still needs to work to diversify existing spaces, such as the College Houses. This begins with diversifying the makeup of the College House system.
The fact that relevant student communities were overlooked in the planning of the party highlights the lack of social diversity within College Houses. It is important to recognize that for the panel and party to have been properly executed, the makeup of MacMillan—and all College Houses, for that matter—must be representative of all identities that make up the student body.
College Houses seek to be the “living rooms” of Bowdoin’s campus—but if the College House system is not diverse, how can the Houses be truly welcoming spaces? The current social stratification on campus is exemplified by the homogeneity in College Houses. As we move forward in conversations like these, it is important to be mindful of who the conversations include.
This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Marina Affo, Julian Andrews, Steff Chavez, Meg Robbins and Joe Seibert.

Editorial

This piece represents the opinion of The Bowdoin Orient editorial board.

December 1, 2016

Since the election, a petition calling on the administration to designate Bowdoin as a sanctuary campus has circulated among students, alumni and community members. President Clayton Rose emailed all students and employees on November 22 in response, noting that “legal counsel tells us that we have no such power.” The email also expressed that the College will not take action to put community members “in this kind of jeopardy” unless “compelled by law.” He concluded with an expression of support to the community.

In our most recent editorial, the Orient Editorial Board endorsed the establishment of Bowdoin as a sanctuary campus. We stand by the statements we made, but we acknowledge the legal implications explained in Rose’s email and appreciate the clear and honest tone of his communication.

However, the fear and uncertainty among undocumented students and students with undocumented family members remains. Acknowledging that we don’t have a strong understanding of the relevant laws, we believe that Bowdoin can still harness its many resources as an institution and provide support structures for the community beyond campus.

Providing emotional support for undocumented students on our campus was a focus of Rose’s email. In addition to the recognition of members of our campus community, helping students who have undocumented family members should be an equal focus.

The Bowdoin Admissions website expresses a commitment to providing undocumented students “with the support and resources they need to excel.” To accomplish this goal, bringing students with undocumented family members into this conversation is crucial. If a student’s family situation is precarious, they, too, face uncertainty, which provides a barrier to experiencing Bowdoin to the fullest.

Bowdoin has an extensive network of alumni and others committed to the College. There is an opportunity for Bowdoin to harness this network in a new way given the concerns outlined in the sanctuary campus petition.

The College should utilize its resources and take advantage of its far-reaching alumni network to educate and inform undocumented students and undocumented community members about what President-elect Donald Trump’s intended legislation means for them. This could include information about individual rights or available legal counsel.

Expression of support from the campus community for students from all backgrounds should continue to be a focus. This includes facilitated conversations, safe spaces and access to on-campus resources that already exist. In addition, Bowdoin must actively pursue research into what is legally viable given the administrative structure and network available to the College. Though the promise of a sanctuary campus is not legally viable, Bowdoin must take explicit action to assist undocumented students and families in whatever way it is able to. President Rose’s email cannot be the end of this conversation.

This editorial represents the majority view of the Bowdoin Orient’s editorial board, which is comprised of Marina Affo, Julian Andrews, Steff Chavez, Grace Handler, Meg Robbins and Joe Seibert.

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