LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Author: [no author name found]

To The Editor:

I just wanted to share this wonderful letter from a visiting mom of a prospective student concerning the Latino Symposium last weekend. She gave me permission to share this with the community. The students of ALIANZA and friends did a fabulous job. They put together an informative, challenging and fun weekend full of cariño. By doing so, they create an inclusive community where all were welcomed.

— Julia Alvarez, Writer-in-Residence

I would like to share a brief note about the kindnesses bestowed on my daughter and I during our recent visit to Middlebury. I sent a note to the admissions office as well and told them that these young people were the best recruiters I had ever met. Amanda is graduating this year at 16, having skipped her junior year. She has many plans for a year off including studying in Spain and doing a service project in Mexico or South America, training her horses, writing and working. She plans to apply early decision to Middlebury this fall and, if all goes well, enroll in 2003. We both enjoyed Julia Alvarez's reading in Chapel Hill recently. I would like to thank her for taking the time to respond. I look forward to seeing Ms. Alvarez and the community again sometime at Middlebury.

— Susan Gladin, Hillsborough, North Carolina



To The Editor:

This letter responds to the one written by Karl Whittington in last week's Campus. Erroneously, he conflates the Drag Ball sponsored by Middlebury Open Queer Alliance (moqa) with the "Art of Kissing" protest held the week before. moqa did not protest the "Art of Kissing," only some members of moqa did. The protest's goals should not be simplified to solely addressing sexism, as racism and heterosexism were also inherent to the event. Similarly, we cannot simplify drag into a "gay" phenomenon.
No event on campus sponsored by moqa attracts more supporters than the drag ball. Unfortunately, the drag ball has suffered from poor attendance in the past three years. This correlates to a lack of participation in moqa by straight-allied and supposedly "out" members of the Middlebury community. Perhaps the event's popularity relates to publicity, but as many of us who organize know, college students want to party.
Drag subverts the status quo. In fact, civil rights and drag have an interrelated history. Do not forget the drag queens at Stonewall who fought for what we so inappropriately term "gay" rights. Mr. Whittington's letter inaccurately places the advancement of "gay" politics in the hands of a normative "gay" community, which is ahistorical and inaccurate. We should discuss what "gay" means and why it is an exclusive way of conceptualizing sexualities. As a queen who is not "gay," I sign this letter with my drag name that I used for the first time when I was 16.

— Aubry D. Threlkeld '03 (aka Brinka Orgasm)



To The Editor:

I feel that in the April 24 article "Unrestrained Aid To Israel Must End: Blind Allegiances Perpetuate the Crisis in the Middle East," junior Wasim Rahman's criticism of Jews' stance on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is misplaced, and the Hillel national slogan "Wherever we stand, we stand with Israel," misinterpreted. To stand with Israel means to support the Jewish state and the people who live there. After the centuries of persecution faced by Jews throughout the world, the concept of a Jewish homeland is extremely important to many. In times like these, when terrorism has made normal life in Israel impossible, and mounting international pressure has left the country increasingly isolated, it is important that Israel's friends stand up and be counted.
However, it is wrong to assume that just because Jews "stand" with Israel, they endorse everything that is done in its name. Ariel Sharon is a very controversial figure and there are many Israelis who oppose his policies. Even those who recognize the need for Israel to respond to the provocations of the Palestinian terrorists understand that a way has to be found for the two peoples to ultimately live together. Although many Jews feel for the suffering that has been inflicted on the people of Israel, they also recognize that the Palestinians have suffered a great deal as well.
To accuse all who support Israel of supporting everything that its most extreme spokesmen endorse is intellectually dishonest, since it ignores the broad range of opinions about what is going on in Israel. It would be like saying, for example, that all people who support the Palestinian cause approve of the suicide bombings and other attacks that have killed hundreds of innocent Israelis. It is not fair to make assumptions about what people believe, especially over such an extremely delicate and controversial issue. It is even less productive to attack people who may have differing opinions. Hopefully someday people on this campus with conflicting views can sit down and have a peaceful dialogue based on mutual respect. At least that would be a start. If we cannot even hold a peaceful discussion on the Middlebury campus, then how can we possibly have hope of ever finding peace in the Middle East?

— Sarah Goodwin '04



To The Editor:

In response to Kevin King's letter; there was chicken.

— Joe Schine '03, Mikey Azzara '03.5, Charles Acher '04.5