The Bowdoin Orient

Dear Richard,

I’m afraid we never got the chance to meet. My name is Megan, and I graduated in 2014. I’d like to share with you some advice, and I’d like to do it in a public forum so others can read it too, if you don’t mind.

The basis of my advice, to you and to other white people such as myself, is that which has served me so well for so long and continues to do so.

When it comes to things you know nothing about, shut up and listen, and listen well.Listening can take many forms, not simply auditory. Listening can be seeking out articles, YouTube videos, blog posts and books; listening can be engaging in a sociology or gender and women’s studies course; listening can be attending a discussion, sitting back, and taking it all in.

These forms of listening are especially important when you can never truly know whatever it is you’re attempting to learn about. For instance, people without a uterus can never really know what it’s like to be denied abortion access; cis people can never really know what it’s like for your gender identity to not be protected under employment law; and, as in this instance, white U.S. citizens can never really know what it’s like to experience racism.

You ask, “Where is the rule in the social code that says you can’t wear a sombrero?” Let me refer you to the first point of said code, which states “Conduct which is unbecoming of a Bowdoin student [constitutes a breach of the social code]. Examples include…behavior or activities that significantly disrupt the educational experience of other students; and other conduct that…infringes upon the…dignity and integrity of any person.” Since my time at Bowdoin, students of color have been expressing that acts of cultural appropriation and ethnic stereotyping are disruptive, distracting, stressful and intimidating. For years, students who have come and gone and still remain have explained how such actions contribute to a hostile environment. I would argue that the answer to your question is hidden in plain sight, would we all just shut up and listen.

Another point I’d be remiss to not address before concluding is your point on diversity of opinion. I completely agree with you; intellectual diversity is indeed important. But I’d challenge you to understand that, in this instance, there is actually no discussion to be had. There are no two sides. If 99 percent of scientists over the past 10 to 15 years say human induced global warming is a real, measurable thing, a group of politicians can’t say it isn’t. If a group of women say that rape jokes made at women’s expense aren’t funny, then they aren’t. If a group of Latinx people say that dressing up in sombreros, ponchos, mustaches and candy skulls is disrespectful and offensive, then it is, and no non-Latinx person can say otherwise. End of story.

Now I’m not claiming to be perfect. I am certainly not anyone’s unproblematic fave. I have made a great many mistakes, at times being an unwitting agent of white supremacy. But my Bowdoin education was invaluable in what it taught me. It taught me how to do science, how to write, and how to think critically. The most important thing it taught me, though, was that there are occasions when you’ve just got to shut up and listen. And I’ve found that, sometimes, it’s the best way to learn.

Yours most sincerely,Megan Massa

Megan Massa is a member of the Class of 2014.