November 15, 2012

Volume XVI, Issue five

November 15, 2012

The Scripps Voice

On lt s e Tak Assau l a u x Se Scripps does its part to increase Women in Public Service

Inside...

By Kara Odum ‘15 Staff Writer

T

he Women in Public Service Project is speakers from Kosovo and Cambodia as in parliaments and legislatures around the an initiative started by Hillary Clinton well as former Secretary of State Madeleine world [and] here in the United States, our to get more women involved in public poli- Albright and current Secretary of State Hill- percentage is even lower, 17 percent. And it’s not just politics. Only 3 percent of Fortune cy. The project’s goal is to achieve “at least 50 ary Clinton.

The speeches emphasized the importance 500 CEOs are women.” percent female leaders in civics and politics As a part of the California’s Women’s by 2050.” Through a coalition of women’s of encouraging and supporting women in colleges and other organizations, the project public service, in light of the massive un- Colleges Institute, Scripps College is partis focused on improving training, network- derrepresentation of women holding office nering with Mount St. Mary’s College to around the world. host female political leaders from Latin ing, and mentoring to support the next America for policy forums and workgeneration’s women leaders. shops. This event will take place in Originally the East Coast sister colMarch. leges, which include Barnard, Bryn Recently, Josefina Vazquez Mota, Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith and Mexico’s first female presidential canWellesley, developed the WPSP as a didate to run under a major political joint effort with the US State Departbanner, spoke to students from Scripps ment. and Mount St. Mary’s about her expePresident Lori Bettison-Varga took rience as secretary of public education the initiative to get Scripps College and as a presidential candidate for the involved in the project by writing to photo courtesy | Scripps College National Action Party. Similar public Hillary Clinton. Since then two other California schools, Mount St. Mary’s President Lori Bettison-Varga meets with Secretary of State policy leaders will speak at the West Coast WPSP Institute next semester; College and Mills College have joined Hillary Rodham Clinton (center) and Madeleine Albright (fourth from right) during the Women in Public Service the project, forming the California’s Institute held on December 15, 2011 at Wellesley College. however, the speaker line-up is still being organized. For more information Women’s Colleges Institute.

The first WPSP Institute was held at Clinton shared the astounding fact that on WPSP, visit the website at womeninWellesley College in June and included “women hold less than 20 percent of all seats publicservice.org.

The Claremont Equestrian Team: ready for show

Sexual Assault: Scripps speaks up pages 5-8

Upcoming Play: “A Doll House”

By Dagny Lu ‘15 Staff Writer

T

he Claremont Equestrian Team had a triumphant weekend at Cal Poly Pomona on Oct. 27th and Oct. 28 for their first two shows of the school year. Each team member who participated in the show brought home a ribbon. Ribbons at horse shows are awarded to competitors placing 6th and above.

“I’m so proud of our team!” said Rachel Fidler (SCR ‘14), one of the show team’s captains this year.

The collegiate equestrian team competes under the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) against teams from Arizona State University, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State Fullerton, Mount San Antonio College, University of Arizona, Universities of California Irvine, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and San Diego, University of San Diego, University of Southern California and Whittier College.

“Though, in the past, the Claremont Equestrian Team has not necessarily been as competitive as some of our rival schools, we are ready to be noticed and both of the team’s show team captains, myself and Stephanie Morley (CMC ‘13), are very confident that our enthusiastic and very talented riders are up to the challenge,” said Fidler.

Founded in 2006, The Claremont Equestrian Team is made up of both recreational and competitive riders from all five colleges. “We have about 35 active club members in total, with approximately 11 students who are show team competitors,” said Fidler.

All club members are required to take part in a one-hour lesson each week at one of three designated barns: Falcon Riding

Academy in San Dimas, Rainbow Canyon Ranch in Azusa, or Trendsetter Performance Horses in Chino Hills.

“We welcome all types of riders to the team; some of our members in the past had never ridden before, and were interested in starting lessions and being a part of an equestrian community on campus,” said Fidler.

Four of the show team members who took part in the Oct. 27 and 28 shows had never competed in IHSA before. Fidler said that watching some of the new team members place at the team’s first show of the school year was one of her most memorable experiences as a member of the team.

“I was joking with Stephanie that I was going to cry from joy and overwhelming pride!” said Fidler.

Fidler has been a member of the Claremont Equestrian Team for two and a half years. “I know that I will look back on my time with the Claremont Equestrian Team fondly,” she said. “I have so enjoyed the team experience photo courtesy | Rachel Fidler ‘14 and leading the team this semester as a show team captain has been such a joy.”

Outside of shows and lessons, the team has done year-end trail rides and holiday parties in the past. “I think, currently, the other captains and I are really motivated to develop a more close-knit community within the team, giving us an opportunity to create fun traditions for the future!” said Fidler.

For more information about the Claremont Equestrian Team please visit their website claremont-equestrian.aspc. pomona.edu or contact them at Claremont.equestrian@ gmail.com.

page 9

Celebrate Diwali! page 2

Upcoming CMS Sporting Events page 12

1030 Columbia Avenue | Claremont, CA 91711 | Box 892 email: scrippsvoice@gmail.com | website: voice.scrippscollege.edu

2•News

The Scripps College Journal

By Ann Mayhew ‘13 Contributing Writer

A

lthough The Scripps College Journal has been around for years, many students still haven’t heard of the college’s annual literary magazine.

In spite of its relative anonymity on campus, many professors and students have a special place in their hearts for the journal. The journal is student-run. Students such as Natalie Cannon ‘13, content editor Annie Dreshfield ‘13, and myself, take pride in providing the opportunity for all writers and artists on campus to publish their creative work. The Director of the Writing Program, Professor Kimberly Drake, is the journal’s faculty supervisor.

The student-run publication features the writing and art of students from all of the Claremont Colleges, including the winners of the Sands Award, an award given to the best essays produced by students for their Writing 50 courses. Published once a year, The Scripps College Journal is consistently a beautiful, professionally printed and bound tribute to the talent of Scripps students and students of the other four colleges.

“I absolutely love seeing the work from my fellow students here at Scripps,” said Dreshfield.

“I’ve seen great work from people who I didn’t even know were interested in creative writing or art.”

Not only does the Scripps College Journal provide a place for students to publish their work, but it’s also a way for students to get editorial and design experience. As Cannon puts it, working for the journal “is a great excuse to read a bunch of fantastic work and drool over some epic artwork!” Assistant editors are assigned genres for which to solicit and curate content. Editors often assist with design as well. Selecting work for a high-quality literary journal encourages students to examine and revise their own writing, a vital part of the writing process.

The Scripps College Journal

brings together students who are passionate about writing, art, design, and editing. “We’re a small group and everyone is willing to try something new,” said Dreshfield. “It’s thrilling to see our finished magazine around campus—especially when I see people flipping through it in the Motley.”

The Scripps College Journal is looking for assistant editors and designers for 2012-2013. Prior experience is not required.

The Scripps College Journal is having its first meeting of the academic year on Dec. 2 at 3 p.m. in the Wilbur living room.

If you have questions or want to submit work in the spring, email: scrippscollegejournal@gmail. com.

photo| Tianna Sheih ’16

SASsy SAS Update

An open letter to the Scripps senior staff:

Diversity, inclusion, and microaggression at Scripps

By Stephanie Park ‘13 SAS Multicultural Relations Chair

H

i Scripps! I’m Stephanie Park, your SAS Multicultural Relations Chair. Officially, my role is to “represent the interests and concerns of underrepresented students to SAS and administration, and facilitate community dialogue around issues related to diversity.”

Diversity is a hot topic for Scripps College right now. Last year, our WASC reviewers wrote that “much work remains to be done” with regards to diversity at Scripps. Now, Scripps is in the process of writing a new Strategic Plan for Diversity, which will provide the framework for how we look at and engage with diversity in the years to come. As MCR Chair, I’ve been asked to gather qualitative data on student experience and opinion for the school in order to inform this plan.

As I began gathering this data, I saw that isolation, exclusion, and devaluation are very real experiences for the students of color, low-income students, LGBTQQIA students, and disabled students on our campus. At the same time, I realized the utter lack of opportunity for people to come together at the community-wide level to have these kinds of conversations.

I have written this open letter to the Scripps senior staff in order to let you all know what I’ve found in my investigations so far, and invite you all to join the conversation.

Diwali: the Hindu Festival of Lights

By Poonam Daryani ‘13 Contributing Writer

T

his Tuesday, Nov. 13, marks the largest and one of the most important holidays on the Hindu calendar. Diwali, or Deepavali, translates to “row of lamps” and is widely recognized as the Festival of Lights.

Celebrated with great enthusiasm in the Indian subcontinent and its diaspora, Diwali signifies the triumph of good over evil and brightness over darkness. Interpretation of its significance varies considerably between different traditions and geographical regions, but the shared underlying principle is to honor the awakening of an inner light that dispels ignorance and vice.

Generally, the five day holiday is commemorated with prayer ceremonies, family gatherings, bursting firecrackers, twinkling lamps and lights, and an exchange of gifts and sweets. Communities are illuminated with the radiance of diyas, earthen candles that light a path to homes in order to guide and welcome the revered goddess of wealth, Lakshmi.

Each day of Diwali is remembered with its own story and significance, but in Northern India, masses rejoice in the return of Lord Rama, his wife Sita, and his brother Lakshman from their 14-year long exile and triumphant battle against the demon-king Ravana. Warmth and joy consume communities as they are lit with the brilliance of the festivities.

The 5C Hindu Society, with support from various people and organizations (including the Office of the Chaplains, SAS, EKTA, and ASPC), is thrilled to invite you to this year’s 5C Diwali celebration happening Saturday, Nov. 17 at the Edmunds Ballroom in the Smith Campus Center at Pomona College. The Hindu Society—spearheaded

by Scripps seniors Tania Bhatia, and Roshni Kakaiya, and me—is committed to bringing together the community to share in and spread awareness of issues and holidays important to the Hindu religion (including HOLI in the spring!).

I also challenge you all to do something about it. With the writing of the new strategic plan, we as students have enormous potential to affect the direction our school takes in the upcoming years.

Don’t let it go to waste.

Student concerns regarding diversity and inclusion on campus fall 2012: • The racist, classist, sexist, heterosexist, ableist, and generally privileged attitudes that pervade our campus, and the ways in which they become apparent through acts of microaggression For those unfamiliar with the term, microaggressions are “brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward minority communities.

Microaggression usually involves demeaning implications and other subtle insults against minorities, and may be perpetrated against them due to race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and ability status.”

When students discuss problems they’ve encountered regarding issues of diversity at Scripps, they almost always give evidence of microaggrescontinued on page 11

photo | Poonam Daryani ‘13

The festivities for Diwali will begin at 5:00 p.m. with a puja, a prayer ceremony that commemorates and gives thanks the goddess Lakshmi for one’s wealth, good health, and continued prosperity. At 6:00 p.m. a traditional Indian dinner will be served free of charge to all who attend the event. This will be followed by dance and musical performances put on by students, including performances by the 5C Bollywood Dance Team. Over the past few years, the event has boomed in size and popularity, and this year it is sure to be ever grander! All members of the Claremont Colleges community are welcome and encouraged to come learn, experience, and participate in the festivities.

So on Tuesday, be sure to say Happy Diwali (deeWAL-ee) or Diwali mubarak (moo-BAR-ak) to your friends!

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue five

Opinions & Editorials•3

The Scripps Voice Editors-in-Chief Rosemary McClure & Lauren Prince Advisor Sam Haynes Design Editors Lily Comba Aidan Harley Copy Editors Megan Petersen Star Schneider Alexandra Vallas Photo Editor Caroline Novit Business Manager Jasmine Kusumowidagdo Web Assistant Jane Condon Staff Writers and Columnists Lily Foss Rachael Hamilton Rachel Hennessey Stephanie Huang Kehau Jai Elizabeth Lee Hannah Long Dagny Lu Caroline Nelson Kara Odum Priya Srivats Stephanie Steinbrecher Abby Volkmann Staff Photographers Pink Chutrakul Tianna Sheih

Comments and letters can be sent to Scripps College The Scripps Voice, 1030 Columbia Ave, Box 892, Claremont, CA, 91711. You can also email The Scripps Voice at scrippsvoice@ gmail.com or visit our website at voice. scrippscollege.edu. If you want to contribute to The Scripps Voice send your articles or photos to editor.scrippsvoice@gmail.com. The Scripps Voice is a student forum and is not responsible for the opinions expressed in it.

Dorm Foodie Lesser-known

5C

eateries

By Hannah Long ‘15 Food Columnist

photo | Stephanie Huang ‘16

Although the 5C dining halls offer an exceptional variety, some of my favorite meals here are actually from the many other cafés and snack shops around campus.

While I often stop by the Motley for a midday caffeine fix or grab a latenight snack at Jay’s Place, a few of the lesser-known eateries also offer delicious and more unique snacks, meals, and treats.

Pomona’s Sagehen Café, located right next to the photo | courtesy of Pomona College Coop Fountain, is a sit-down lunch restaurant with a great selection of gourmet sandwiches, salads, and pastas.

One of my favorite healthy options is a salad topped with fresh grilled salmon and rich slices of avocado. The café also serves a wide selection of classic sandwiches, such photo | Stephanie Huang ‘16 as turkey, BLT, and club, while a great option for vegetarians is a hot panini piled high with a variety of grilled vegetables and melted pepper jack cheese. The café, which has a more subdued and elegant atmosphere than the nearby Coop Fountain, would be the perfect spot for a lunch date or a meal with visiting parents.

For lovers of Peet’s strongly-roasted coffee, the Sagehen Café also has a complete drink menu made with the company’s beans. Although their most popular items are the standard hot coffee and latte, they also offer a variety of iced and blended beverages. For refreshing treat, I personally love the mocha and caramel Frios, the café’s take on a Starbucks Frappuccino.

The Grove House is another popular lunch spot on campus. Located at the north end of Pitzer’s campus, right near the Brant Clock Tower, it is open every weekday morning and afternoon. As one student barista says about the Grove House’s signature item, “We’re really a sandwich place.” The numerous toppings in-

clude tuna salad, bacon and barbequed tofu. All sandwiches are finished off with a unique and flavorful spread, such as chipotle sauce or sun dried tomato pesto, while choices of bread include whole wheat sourdough, rosemary garlic, 6 grain, and cranberry. For a sweet treat, the Grove House also bakes exceptional cookies. The selection changes regularly, but some of the more interesting options include oatmeal fruit and the decadent double mocha.

If you’re looking for a quick snack between classes, another great spot is Pitzer’s Pit Stop, which is conveniently located near Scripps in the Bernard building. Although it is often busy, there are many outside tables that are the perfect place to study or meet friends. The café offers the typical coffee and tea drinks, along with snack foods such as bagels and muffins. Prepackaged meals such quiche, salads, and sushi are also a great option for a quick and easy lunch.

Finally, a great place to stock up on snack food for the dorm room is the Hub Store, which is located right next to the Hub Café at CMC. Although shelf space has decreased this year due to storage restraints, there is still an amazing variety of snack food for any taste. If you need some extra energy to get through a long night of studying, the store has all sorts of candy as well as many beverages, including Starbucks’ bottled, caffeinated coffee drinks. For colder nights, I also appreciate the Hub’s selection of packaged soups, including Cup of Noodles and Thai Kitchen, which can easily be heated up in the microwave.

So the next time you’re looking for a quick meal or snack on campus, I encourage you to forgo your usual choice in favor of one of these novel and noteworthy spots.

photo | Tianna Sheih ‘16

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue Five

4•Opinions & Editorials

I Am Scrippsie, Hear Me Roar

Tree Hugger

“Proud to be

an American”

By Lily Foss ‘13 Feminist Columnist

Y

ou know that song, “Proud To Be an American?” Ugh, I hate that song. Not because I hate America or anything—I’ve hated the song ever since I was in elementary school and our music teacher made us sing it for every Memorial Day assembly. One of the reasons I hated it then was the line, “And I’m proud to be an American/Where at least I know I’m free/And I won’t forget the men who died/Who gave that right to me.” Little Lily did not like the words “men who died.” What about the women? I always tried to cram the extra syllables “men and women who died” into the song, but it’s not enough. Why doesn’t this country properly honor our female veterans and soldiers?

For those who don’t know, Veteran’s Day was Nov. 11. It was originally called Armistice Day to honor end of World War I, but now it’s just a day for us to honor the people who have served our country. Note the word “people,” and not “men,” Lee Greenwood, author of the song “Proud To Be an American.” Women are veterans too, such as Tammy Duckworth, Congressperson-elect from Illinois.

Ms. Duckworth is the first disabled woman to be elected to the House of Representatives, having lost both her legs serving in Iraq in 2004. You’d think everyone would agree that someone losing their legs in the line of duty is a huge sacrifice for their country, right? Well, Joe Walsh, her opponent in the Congressional election, would not agree.

He complained that she talks about her service on the campaign trail “too

much.” Would he be saying that about a male veteran who, just to recap, LOST BOTH OF HIS LEGS while serving? My guess is no.

How many male war heroes can you name?

How many female ones? Even if we go way back to the Revolutionary War, have you every heard of Margaret Corbin? Sybil Ludington? How about the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) of World War II? They flew planes for the military, but they weren’t even considered “official” veterans until 1977. Know how many current female generals are serving today?

Fifty-seven. Can you name any of them?

Why the selective memory when honoring our veterans and soldiers?

Well, it doesn’t really fit with female gender norms, does it? Women are kind, nurturing, blah-dee blahdee blah. But the military is a “brotherhood” of tough guys fighting for freedom (at least, that’s the reason I’m guessing a lot of them would give for fighting, whether you agree or not). Until a few months ago, women weren’t even allowed to train for combat. Think about it: only in 2012 did Congress decide, “Oh hey, maybe women can fight too.”

Ignoring the service of women in the military is not only disrespectful, it plays into that gender-normativity that tells women who serve that they aren’t “feminine enough.”

Disrespectful AND mean. So go hug the next female veteran you find (get permission beforehand, lest you come off all creepy). Thank them for their service. It’s about time we all did.

photo | Caroline Novit ‘14 Female members of the Claremont Colleges ROTC program, from left to right: Jocelyn Wensel (CMC ‘15), Rebecca Ciszewski (CMC ‘14), and Nike Roman (SCR ‘16).

photo | Caroline Novit ‘1

Food activism:

What’s the catch?

By Abby Volkmann ‘13 Environmental Columnist

L

ast Friday I had the exciting opportunity to hear UC Santa Cruz professor Julie Guthman reflect on the nature of the current alternative food movement, which works to build more locally based, sustainable, and self-reliant food economies (think farmer’s markets, organic food, community gardens, etc).

Guthman’s lecture showcased the extent to which food politics has captured the nation’s attention.

She argued that contemporary food activism, while not ill-willed, ignores deep social injustices that have developed as a result of our nation’s food production and consumption. Food activists desire a physical connection to the movement (getting their hands dirty in the soil) but are disinterested in the bigger, over-arching political ties. Guthman advocates a topdown approach to activism, targeting issues of pesticide control and methods of food production over providing alternatives to the consumers in food deserts, which are areas lacking access to healthy produce.

I agree with Guthman that policy should play a greater part in the solution to food injustice. Statutes such as government subsidies on organic and local food in low-income communities and Proposition 37, which would pressure the industrial agriculture industry to stop the proliferation of genetically modified foods, would confront these issues on a greater scale than individual

activism. However, while our nation waits for the government and corporations to instate these changes, I optimistically believe activists’ efforts to bring affordable, local, organic, and non-GMO foods to low socio-economic status consumers are valuable. While there should be no pretense that action targeting the consumers rather than the producers will solve the problem, people should not be criticized for making choices that work within our current agricultural reality.

Newly established community gardens in food deserts may not captivate the attention of the residents of area’s lacking physical and economic access to organic food, but it is a noble goal to improve healthy food options for people in these areas. I think Guthman’s critique of the alternative food movement is too cynical and her theories too widely applied to food deserts everywhere. As she suggests, community gardens may not take off in inner city, predominantly African-American communities for a number of reasons (e.g., connotations of slavery), but perhaps they are a sound solution in food deserts in different areas or with different demographics.

In time, I hope to see change that will target the social injustices propagated in the production and consumption of our nation’s food, but for now I commend the work of activists involved in the alternative food movement.

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue Five

Features•5

TRIGGER WARNING : SEXUAL ASSAULT for pages 5 through 8

Rape literacy: words and ideas you should know

By Rosemary McClure ‘13 Editor-in-Chief

Sexual assault: Any sexual act committed without consent. Includes, but is not limited to: rape or attempted rape, sexual violence, unwanted touching, verbal harassment, someone watching or photographing you in sexual situations, someone exposing him/herself to you.

Consent: Voluntary agreement to an action based on knowledge of what that action involves. Person consenting must have the option of saying no. Consent can be withdrawn at any point. Note: intoxicated, underage, and certain mentally disabled individuals cannot give meaningful consent.

Enthusiastic consent: “Yes means yes” rather than “no means no.” The idea that consent should be given to each piece of sexual activity. Consent to one activity (such as vaginal penetration) does not indicate consent to another (such as vaginal penetration without a condom). An unsure or hesitant “yes” is not consent. The absence of “no” is

not consent.

Rape culture: A culture that normalizes, excuses, condones, tolerates, or trivializes sexual violence. Leads to the belief that sexual assault is inevitable.

Includes jokes, media, images, laws, jargon, advertisements, and practices that foster contempt for victims and their well-being. Example: deterministic evolutionary biology arguments that explain away rape as an “adaptation” for men who would not be able to spread their seed consensually. Barf.

Victim blaming: Suggesting that victims of sexual assault can provoke rape, especially by “tempting” rapists. Perpetuates rape culture. Common tactic used

by rape apologists to promote the myth that victims, not rapists, are responsible for rape and rape prevention. Example: “How was he supposed to know? Did you see what she was wearing?”

Slut shaming: Degrading or mocking a woman who engages in sexual activity that violates patriarchal gender expectations. This activity includes: having sex, enjoying sex, acknowledging or acting on sexual feelings, having one or more sexual partners, or being rumored to engage in any of these activities. The classic double standard.

Domestic violence/Patriarchal home violence: Violence in the home based on the belief that it is acceptable for more powerful individuals to control others through the use of force. Includes hetero- and homosexual intimate partner violence as well as adult/ parental violence against children.

Rape kit: A set of tools used by medical personnel to collect evidence (such as DNA) that can be later used in court— if the victim chooses to report.

Internalized sexism: The involuntary internalization by women of the sexist messages present in patriarchal culture.

The way in which women reinforce sexism by utilizing and relaying sexist messages that have been internalized. Leads to: self-loathing, self-alienation, irrational competition with other women, blaming oneself or one’s group members for one’s oppression.

Sexual objectification: Representing or treating a person as an object (a nonthinking thing that can be used however one likes) that serves another’s sexual pleasure.

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue Five

6•Features

Scripps Speaks The following are personal experiences of two Scripps women that experienced a form of sexual assault on the 5C campuses.

By Anonymous

S

exual assault. Rape. Ugly words, words no one he began to spend time with another student in my wants to associate with themselves. Yet they dorm, leaving me hyper alert and anxious even in happen all the time, even within the “Claremont my own living spaces. A moderate level of anxiety bubble” that gives off such a friendly, safe vibe. surrounded me from day to day, spiking unexpectAbout two years ago, I was sexuedly and leaving me panicked for ally assaulted by another 5C stu- 54% of sexual assaults hours when reminders of him mandent. And no, he was not a shady are not reported aged to work their way into my creep that pulled me into the bushconsciousness. I couldn’t fall asleep es on my way back from a party. He was someone I at night, yet slept excessively during the day. My loved and was in a committed, long-term relation- appetite fluctuated wildly and was sometimes acship with. At the time, I was so shocked and con- companied by nausea. fused by what had happened that the words “sexual I was afraid to walk assault” didn’t even cross my mind. All I knew was on his school’s campus that it was the first time I was ever afraid of him. without friends.

There were so many excuses: He was just too These feelings might drunk and didn’t realize what he was doing. I seem like an overreacshouldn’t have let him come over that night. We tion, paranoid, and unneceswere a couple, and couples sary. I kept telling myself that I was being silly, yet can explore sex freely. He nev- my body and mind reacted in this way. Whether I er forced penetration, so that’s wanted them to or not, my feelings of safety on the not rape, right?

5Cs had been shattered.

Because of this confusion, I began the process of finding a therapist, and in I immediately forgave him the meantime went to several staff members from and blocked the event from my school to discuss my options. This is what we my mind. He did not sexually assault me again. are taught to do, right? If you are sexually assaulted After dating for another six months, we eventu- or raped, our progressive systems will protect you… ally went through a drawn-out, messy breakup that While I was listened to and comforted, I could ended in cutting off all consee the reasons to not attact. Avoiding him for the rest tempt a formal investiof the school year was difficult gation clicking together and painful, but I managed to as these staff members get through it. spoke. A formal invesSummer break was the best tigation would include thing that could have haphearing both sides and pened at that point. I imgathering evidence to mersed myself in my passions, determine whether a spent time with friends, and explored life away rape or assault actually happened. I was asked if from the 5Cs. Separated from that environment, I there was a witness to the assault. When I said no, I finally was able to accept that what had happened could hear the disappointment, as witnesses would to me was sexual assault. I recognized that it was “simplify this process.” As if I could choose where, not my fault; it was something my attacker chose when, and around whom the attack occurred. to do to me on his own, and I did everything in Details about the investigation process were also my power to physically and emotionally survive the unclear, as each school has its own way of dealing experience (including the long period of denial). In with sexual assault reports, and the investigation this separation from school, I thought I had made takes place on the campus of the accused student. peace with this fact.

I was promised information But as the new school year approached, flutters when my attacker’s school got of anxiety began creeping into my stomach. What back to the staff member. would happen when I encountered him? And if It took over a month for me he was drunk? What to receive this would he say about information. me? That I was his “craBy this time the anxiety had bezy” ex-girlfriend and a gun to slowly fade and I was reguliar who wanted to ruin larly seeing a therapist. Not wanthis reputation? ing to relive the pain and undo a My first few weeks back were a nightmare. I month of emotional healing for the stressful process had thought that coming to terms with my assault of reporting, I declined to meet with the school. would be empowering, but it instead brought up The healing process is long, complex, and nonall the bottled-up anxiety I had ignored. After my linear. It took me over a year to accept what had first sighting of him that nearly sent me into a panic happened to me, as well as experience the full emoattack, I lived constantly on edge. What was worse, tional effects of the attack. I am not the only one

who is a survivor of sexual assault or rape at the 5Cs. As much as we like to believe it could never happen to us, it is less a matter of protecting yourself, and much more a matter of circumstance and luck. No one chooses for this to happen to them, and no one wants to accept that they were a victim of this degrading crime.

I hope that the 5C community will work towards fully realizing the sensitive and complex factors that play into sexual assault, and how the rules and regulations in place affect the safety and comfort of victims. While these measures and responses are far better than some at other schools (such as the reactions to the woman who recently wrote about reporting her rape to Amherst College), their attempts to balance the support of survivors with preventing false reports led to me personally feeling distrusted, alienated, and with fewer rights than my attacker. He violated 15% of rape and sexual assault me, yet reestablishing safety and victims comfort at my own school would require a long and emotionally painful process. Even simply being banned from a single dorm (a compromise that still involved the same amount of investigation) would affect him very little, while his continued allowed presence constantly affects me. are under age 12 Even more frightening is that even if I suffered through the report, there is no guarantee that my story would be believed. On top of the humiliation of the assault, there would be an added one of being labeled a liar.

So I ask you all to think about how we can change this. Why do we live in a community where action is immediately taken against bias related incidents without question, yet a sexual predator can move freely within living spaces of their victim simply from lack of proof? My story is one of hundreds within our community, and through telling it I hope to help break the pattern of silence. We need to get away from the idea that we can “slapgrabtwistpull” ourselves out of every sexual assault situation, and start realizing that most of them are instigated by people we wouldn’t fight back against because we know them, have been involved with them previously, or even love them at the time. As much as we can try to pretend rape and sexual assault don’t happen on campus, this view only serves to punish survivors and silence their voices. Instead, we need to accept it as reality and begin offering genuine support to those who have been through these horrific experiences.

my feelings of safety on the 5Cs had been shattered

so that’s not rape, right?

California has the largest known rape kit backlog in the US

My first few weeks back were a nightmare

UP

of the college women who are raped only 10% report it about 1 in 6 women in America will be a victim of sexual assault

By Anonymous

A

fter reading the “Walk of Shame” editorial published in the previous issue of The Scripps Voice, I felt compelled to address some of the issues raised about slut shaming and, more specifically, about the conduct of a Claremont sports team. A story like this, in which a young woman walking home in the previous night’s dress is ridiculed by a group of people chanting “WALK OF SHAME,” should not be such an unusual thing to read about in a women’s college newspaper. Women’s colleges are seen as overly critical of men and overreactive when it comes to issues of sexual violence. Yet it isn’t a part of our everyday dialogue. Often when I read stories like this, I agree with the editorial’s critique, but then I move on. But that editorial spoke to my own personal experience of sexual assault and subsequent ridicule at the hands of a sports team. This time I spoke up.

I feel compelled to write because when we tolerate the verbal harassment of young women for their conduct—when we make concessions, when we support the “groupthink” of sexual dominance and submission, when we remain silent to any degree—we are silently consenting to the non-consensual.

While the details of my personal experience do not need to be graphically hashed out for public entertainment, it is specifically those details I cannot remember which make my experience so bewildering and hard to explain. I had slept with him before, and several times we had been drunk.

But this time was different. I don’t remember much but falling and being pulled. I don’t even remember the sex itself, but I remember the aftermath and the confusion.

For weeks afterwards the bruises and scrapes on my body from being unable to walk home unassisted would painfully remind me of what I still can’t remember.

It’s easy for me to blame myself. It’s easy for me to justify it by explaining I was younger and more irresponsible and am the only one responsible for personally drinking myself into near unconsciousness. After talking to friends, who told me that I was raped, I still can’t blame it all on him. I never reported the incident because I could never fully take the blame off myself.

For a long time I didn’t understand that what

happened was something that I could or should rible things about how I’m such a slut and a bitch report. Given the feelings I had for him and our which is so weird because they only came from one previous sexual history, I became the last person in place but she’s not sure she trusts them anymore my life able to call it “rape.” I also decided that no and could she be friends with me instead? matter how angry I was, I didn’t want to potentially Why are we accepting and fostering this kind of ruin his life. Somehow, behavior by a group of people on their bully pulno matter how angry, pit? Is it that we are allowing athletes some sort of hurt, or shamed I felt, social high ground above their peers? It should be being a survivor of rape noted that it would be outrageous for any group of just didn’t seem as tragic people—men or women—to conduct themselves as potentially ending in the way our fellow playsomeone’s college career ers have. or future opportunities.

If this were any other The reason I feel so 90% of all college campus group, especially a group compelled to share these of women or mixed genrapes occur past events now is that, der, this behavior would under the influence to me, the worst part not be tolerated. What of alcohol is the branding. I hate makes it worse is their being called a survivor. identity as a cohesive unit I hate being one of the who apparently chooses 1 in 4 college-age women to experience sexual as- to act rashly and crassly while being identifiable sault. But even worse I hate being representatives of prestigious institutions. It’s hypocalled a whore. critical that the same group that is perpetrating this I knew him. I thought maybe cruelty also parades 1 in 4 women in college today everything would go back to nor- around campus in have been the victim of rape mal and we’d be cordial again. their jerseys, seen and nearly 90% know their Instead he avoids me and mem- as emblematic repbers of his sports team have spoken for him—and resentatives of pres- rapist it is nothing close to an apology. tigious institutions. It is unacceptable for anyone I don’t necessarily mean to group every mem- to make anyone else feel singled out or ridiculed, ber of the team together, but there has been some even more so when that group is masking itself ungroup action. Durder the privilege and protection of a ing game season, school-sanctioned team. his team has dinI appreciate the opportunity for me ner every Thursday and persons involved to remain anonin the same room ymous. While I am “calling out” this in the same dingroup of people, it is to call into quesing hall. They artion their conduct as human beings rive sometime around six. It’s now a place I have to and as an entity that represents prestigious colleges. avoid. Pub is out of the question. The Muddhole While we are a consortium of friends and peers, any time after Pub is another place I am pointed we must not forget the responsibility that comes out and observed. Men from the team turn to look with adulthood, and the bullying of this team to at me before turning back into each other and dis- the women of our campuses is no longer something cussing me. There’s no denying the cruelty, sexism, I or anyone should remain silent about. and arrogance in this kind of groupthink.

I encourage other victims/survivors/people in I know not all of them are guilty, I’m sure not need to seek help if they have been through a simiall of them know anything about me, but there are lar experience. For women who are survivors of specific members who seem to haunt me wherever sexual assault or abuse, there is a survivor’s group I go. I’ve had to block complete strangers on Face- that meets at Monsour on Thursdays from 3:00book and fortify my privacy settings because of ha- 4:30 pm headed by Fiona Vajk, Ph.D., and Katy rassment by memDorsheimer, Ph.D. If you’re bers of the team. interested, please contact Katy I can’t go to a Dorsheimer at katyd@cuc.claparty and meet new remont.edu or (909)621-8202 people without at least one girl coming up to me and explaining how cool I am and “Speak, Survive, ROAR!” how surprised she is because she’s heard that I’m --Staceyann Chin a great person, but she’s also heard all these hor-

it is nothing close to an apology

we are silently consenting to the non-consensual

99%

we like to believe it could never happen to us

Features•7

of rapists are male

would painfully remind me of what I can’t remember

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue Five

there are specific members who seem to haunt me wherever I go

why are we accepting and fostering this kind of behavior?

8•Features

The Scripps Response:

YOU

How our community is advocating for

What is SAARC?

photos | Lauren Prince

Amherst rape incident prompts student-led dialogue on the future of sexual assault policy at Scripps

By Lauren Prince ‘14 Editor-in-Chief On Friday, Nov. 9, Theresa Iker (SCR ’14) and Rachel Weiner (SCR ’13) held a student-led forum to discuss the Amherst College rape scandal. 15 Scripps students convened in the Dorsey living room to discuss what sexual assault looks like at Scripps and the 5Cs. Iker and Weiner are members of the SAS Sexual Assault Committee, which works with the administration and the Sexual Assault Awareness and Resource Committee (SAARC) to find solutions to the prevalence of sexual assault on the 5Cs. Many ideas and solutions were discussed and analyzed. First, the creation of a peer advocacy group was discussed. Students could turn to these advocates for advice, help, and information regarding sexual assault reporting and investigative procedures.

Ike and Weiner presented statistics for the number of reported sex offenses in the consortium. The statistics were staggeringly low. For Scripps, the figures are: 2009 – 0, 2010 – 3, 2011 – 0. For the 5Cs combined: 2009 – 2, 2010 – 7, 2011 – 7.

Iker mentioned that she hears of more sexual assaults in one weekend than are reported all year.

The fact that sexual assaults go unreported when they happen on a regular basis is troubling. Students report that one of the main reasons they do not report sexual assault is the unwelcoming and uncomfortable vibe surrounding the Dean of Students Office. Because this is one of the first steps in the investigation process, it hinders stu-

dents from starting that process.

A second topic of discussion were the orientation events focused on sexual assault awareness.

Each year, there is a speaker that talks about sexual assault and teaches incoming first years how to look out for themselves. This year’s speaker discussed knowing the rapists personally (as opposed to the “slap-grab-twist-pull” stranger rapist defense workshop of years past). Students concluded this year’s event was more beneficial, especially considering the fact that 90 percent of college rape victims know their perpetrator.

The issue of consent and how it is defined is not well known. Nor is there a universal 5C definition or policy yet, although one is reportedly in the works. photo | Stephanie Huang ‘16

By Lauren Prince ‘14 Editor-in-Chief

The Sexual Assault Awareness and Resource Committee (SAARC) was formed this fall to gather representatives from the Scripps campus who are involved in initiatives related to sexual assault awareness. SAARC plans to increase community awareness of sexual assault issues, acting as a go-between for students and 5C administrators.

SAARC will provide feedback to students as policies are reviewed and revised. “The creation of SAARC indicates in a concrete way the desire of the administration to affirm this as an issue on our campuses,” said Emily Hampshire (SCR ‘15).

“I am most interested this semester in starting a chapter of Pomona’s Advocates for Survivors of Sexual Assault at Scripps. This resource is currently Pomona-only, and I think a peer-led advocacy and support group is essential to the relative safety of every Scripps student,” said SAARC member and SAS Treasurer Caitlin Sweeney (SCR ’13). “Through SAARC, I am able to find support for my initiative, as well as gain more information as to what other student groups are doing.”

Other members include Dean of Students Bekki Lee, various professors and faculty, as well as Motley employees and members of It Ends Here.

SAARC is currently working on bringing domestic violence advocate Tiombe Preston (SCR ‘95) to campus this semester to lead a consent workshop.

Anyone is welcome to join the conversation. The next SAARC meeting will be Nov. 30 at 1:30 p.m. in Vita Nova 104. Email Dean Lee if you are planning to attend.

Emily Hampshire ‘15, Rachel Weiner ‘13, Emily Morris ‘14, Dean of Students Bekki Lee, and other SAARC attendees.

Resources to know: Monsour Counseling & Psychological Services day phone: 909.321.8202 after-hours emergency number: 909.607.2000

Pomona College Advocates for Survivors Scripps Associated Students (SAS) Sexual Assault Committee of Sexual Assault FMI: Rachel.Weiner@scrippscollege.edu Hotline: 909.607.1778 advocates@pomona.edu SAARC/Dean of Students Bekki Lee 909.621.8277 Campus Safety Emergency No. RLee@ScrippsCollege.edu 909.607.2000

Project Sister 24-hour help line: 909.626.HELP (4357)

Project Sister 24-hour hotline: 909.626.HELP (4357)

National Sexual Assault Hotline 1.800.656.HOPE (4673)

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue Five

arts & entertainment • 9 Keep it Reel This week’s Netflix Instant fix: “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance”

By Caroline Nelson ‘16 Film Columnist

I

n the wake of the recent election and its questions about what it means to be an American, what shape the future of our country should take, and what it means to live in a democratic state, one could do worse than to turn to John Ford’s masterpiece “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.” This film is an examination of how the democratic principle and a desire for civil society take root amongst a motley assortment of people, eventually bringing us the commonwealth we inhabit today.

But it is also a look at the darker side of this process. The film delves into how the process is grounded in violence, illustrating the price we all pay for civilization and the lies and compromises on which we base the most fundamental aspects of our existence. It is a Western that lives up to the genre’s full potential.

In the past few decades the genre has come under fierce critique to the point that people who have never seen a Western are convinced of their fundamental stupidity and jingoism.

John Ford both helped create and critique the conventions of the genre. This film takes many of the assumptions about the

photo courtesy | dvdbeaver.com

form and turns them on their heads to the point where most of the “innovations” of the revisionist HBO show “Deadwood” are really borrowed from Liberty Valance along with most of the central themes. Where one expects wide, open spaces, this film offers claustrophobic interiors. Instead of a celebration of a character taking justice into his own hands, one finds a sad portrait of lost idealism. And in the place of an affirmation of traditional gender roles, this film questions the value of many traditionally masculine traits.

This movie is made by one of American cinema’s greatest directors (the only one to have ever won four Academy Awards for directing) and when one carefully studies the mise en scene and framing of the shots it’s not hard to see why. The story of “The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance” is a long flashback narrated by the protagonist Ransom Stoddard (played by the classic Hollywood nice guy Jimmy Stewart) when he returns to the town where the events of the film take place along with his wife (a spirited and touching performance by the lovely Vera Miles) in order to attend the funeral longtime friend Tom Doniphon (played by the quintessential Western star John Wayne). These characters and this community’s attempts at self-governance pit them against the psychopath after whom the film is named— Liberty Valance, portrayed with frightening viciousness by a compelling Lee Marvin.

All these actors give brilliant performances. Jimmy Stewart is always brilliant as the idealistic character. But he plays one whose darker side is revealed when pushed past breaking point.

John Wayne is at his best as the knight in sour armor. While struggling with a sense of greater decency, his stoic façade lurks for violence and self-destruction. The knowledge that he will be shot does little to diminish Valance’s threat. He is hired by moneyed interests to prevent political organization with his particular brand of violence, bullying, and sexual sadism. All these factors sort themselves out in one of the greatest plot twists in the history of cinema and a heartbreaking conclusion that evokes the unknown sacrifices that paved the way for modern society.

Upcoming play: “A Doll House” Kehau Jai ’16 Staff Writer

O

ften considered a feminist play, “A Doll House,” by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, opens at Seaver Theater on Nov. 15. Advocating women’s rights was not actually Ibsen’s original intent. In truth, when “A Doll House” was first performed in 1879, the term “feminist” wasn’t yet coined and women’s rights weren’t on Ibsen’s mind.

So why is Ibsen’s masterpiece so often assigned a feminist theme?

This conclusion is primarilay derived from his plot. The play follows the seemingly carefree Nora Helmer, a wife and mother indulged and treated as a child by her doting, domineering husband Torvald Helmer. However, when Nora realizes the “doll house” nature of her marriage, she faces a life-shattering decision that must be made in a male-dominated world.

Ultimately, this play is about freedom, maturity, and human rights, not just women’s rights. Indeed, in his address to the Norwegian Women’s League in 1898, Ibsen says that he wrote “A Doll House” as a “description of humanity,” and did not “consciously [work] for the women’s rights movement.”

Even today, while many continue to argue for the presence of a feminist theme, Ibsen scholar Joan Templeton defends the play’s original intent.

She says, “Nora’s conflict represents something other than, or something more than women’s [rights].”

Scripps student Hope Simpson (’13), who plays Nora’s character foil Christine Linde, believes that “A Doll House” isn’t a feminist play in “modern definitions of feminism.” Still, she says,

“Back in the 1870s and 1880s, when women had very strict gender roles, Nora definitely did her own thing . . . despite a lot of limitations.” Nora’s story is therefore one of self-discovery and free will.

In 1879, bourgeois white women often faced Nora’s “doll house” of false realities brought on by marriage. Yet Ibsen’s message of breaking free and recognizing one’s full potential applies to more than women.

Ibsen’s powerful, shocking ending was at first changed by his agent because he felt that it was too scandalous and unacceptable. This fact demonstrates the strength of Ibsen’s defiance in his theme of human rights.

5C students are performing “A Doll House” in its original form Nov. 15-17 at 8 p.m. and 17 and 18 at 2 p.m. at Seaver Theater.

photos | Caroline Novit ‘14

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue five

10 • arts & entertainment

Restaurant review: Dr. Grubb’s Priya Srivats ‘13 Staff Writer

T

wo years ago I discovered Dr. Grubb’s, and I’ve never looked back. It’s a small restaurant in the Village, with enough seating for maybe 20 or so. The restaurant is set up with three categories: proteins, sides, and sauces. The proteins offered are blackened chicken, herbgrilled chicken, salmon (prepared with the same two options as the

chicken), grilled tofu, and tiger shrimp.

I usually switch off between the two chicken options, and am never disappointed. I tried the tofu for the first time last week, and was surprised by how flavorful it was!

I’m usually skeptical of tofu that isn’t prepared Asian style (with the help of lots of spices), but this tofu held its shape and was

Pitzer prepares for 11th annual Reggae Festival Elizabeth Lee ‘16 Staff Writer

N

ext weekend marks Pitzer College’s 11th Annual Reggae Music and Arts Festival, a celebration of the reggae music, culture, and artistic community originally developed in 1960s Jamaica.

This year’s festival runs from 1:00 p.m. on Nov. 17 to 1:00 a.m. the next night, giving students and community members ample opportunity to come experience the reggae festivities.

Music performances in the early to late evening will feature Mykal Rose, the Reggae Angels, We the People, Full Wattz, and Cultural Soul. In addition to musical performances the festival will include free interactive workshops during the afternoon.

Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in capoeira, yoga, and drumming, as well as observe live art showings.

And as a particularly enticing incentive for our often-ravenous college students, there will be vendors providing free food from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

“This festival prides itself on being free and open to the

public,” says Pitzer junior Miranda Gonzales-Brown. “We hope to reach out to our surrounding community and invite them to be a part of our campus culture.”

One of the first juniors to head the committee responsible for bringing Reggae Festival to the Claremont community, Gonzales-Brown adds, “It’s a lot of responsibility, but I’m happy to be able to be a part of the movement to bring reggae to campus…I’m most excited to see how everyone’s contributions come together. The committee has been working tirelessly to make the logistical aspects come together, but it will be the workshops, light structures, vendors, Shakedown food, and amazing artists that will make this a truly spectacular event.”

This year’s festival is sponsored

by Pitzer, Pomona, Scripps, and Harvey Mudd Colleges, as well as Claremont Graduate University, the Campus Life Committee, EcoCenter, BSU, and FemCo. More information can be found about this event on its public Facebook page “Pitzer College’s 11th Annual Reggae Music and Arts Festival.”

really nicely prepared.

The sides range from veggies to pasta to salad, but I go for the roasted baby potatoes, couscous, or sautéed veggies. The potatoes are incredible, and definitely a crowd favorite. They are crunchy and bursting with flavor. The couscous has a really nice lemon flavor that pairs with all of the sauces and protein options wonderfully, and the veggies include baby corn (always a win in my book).

Dr. Grubb’s offers a variety of sauces; the garlic apple aioli, lemon-thyme vinaigrette and honey mustard tend to be my favorites. You order proteins, sides and sauces in whatever combination you like—there’s really no way to go wrong here.

Last but not least, the employees here are absolutely wonderful. A few summers ago I became a daily customer, and they were always there to greet me with a smile (and some extra couscous if I’m having a

particularly bad day). Two years later, they still recognize my voice over the phone! It’s the perfect balance between a mom and pop restaurant and healthy, delicious food that’s acceptable to eat every day. As I write this, I’m already craving Dr. Grubb’s again—looks like I know where I’ll be eating tomorrow!

photos | Priya Srivats

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue five

Student Life•11 SAS Update: Diversity continued from page 2

sions that they or someone they know has experienced.

They range from racist comments made in class that go unchallenged, to one-offs made by everyone from students, staff, and faculty; but they pervade every level of our community.

Navigating microaggressions is difficult because most would not qualify as bias-related incidents, as they are more subtle than “expressions of hostility” that have qualified as bias-related incidents in the past. Whether Scripps needs to take a look at the way bias-related incidents are defined or address microaggressions in a different way, it has become increasingly clear that this is one of the most pressing issues we face if we seek to address “diversity” within our community.

For more information on microaggressions and the various forms they can take, please visit: www.microaggressions.com.

• The presence and facilitation of “difficult dialogues” in Core I Core I is meant to act as the foreground to all Scripps students’ intellectual endeavors, yet it instead has become a site of conflict and problems.

Students last year raised three issues with Core I: 1. The Core curriculum, “Western-centralized,” fails to prepare students to discuss important issues in a global context.

2. Throughout the past years, students of color have felt uncomfortable, silenced and/or attacked (implicitly or explicitly) in Core discussions. While we acknowledge that students bring their own views and stereotypes into the classroom, it is the role of the professor to intervene and facilitate these discussions.

3. Professors are underequipped tohandle offensive, racist, classist conversations in classrooms (as demonstrated by the recent incident of a student’s report of racist comments in her Core that caused Emergency Intervention Procedure).

I must first point out that these issues remain just as relevant now as when they were voiced last year.

Since then, a presentation called “Difficult Dialogues” that is meant to engage first-year students with dialoguing about difference in the classroom in a respectful manner, has been implemented.

While students generally appreciated the implementation of the “Difficult Dialogues” talk for firstyears and faculty, it had more to do with the idea of such a talk than the content of such a discussion.

In the future, students would like to see a different facilitator or facilitation method used, one that is tailored to the specific issues we face at Scripps.

We must also acknowledge, however, that no one talk can ever fully prepare us for the myriad ways in which difficult dialogues arise in the classroom, and that this cannot be a “one-and-done” conversation. While students appreciate Core I liaison Matt Delmont’s willingness to talk with students, they would like to see a more proactive stance taken on these issues by all of the Core faculty. Since Core I is the academic introduction for all Scripps students, it sets a precedent for students and faculty; it should embrace the opportunity to explore diverse topics and truly work through challenging discussions of privilege, power, and difference as they affect us in very real ways at Scripps.

• The tokenization of students of color and “diverse”-looking students in Scripps promotional materials Students last year noted that “Students of color are constantly tokenized in Scripps publications to make Scripps look better— [this] fails to recognize or address disparity in the actual number of students of color in the student body.”

Students continue to notice the disparity between the Scripps represented on the website and the reality of lived experience at Scripps. Students report feeling “duped” by the Scripps that has been sold to them via the website and promotional materials, and are confused, depressed, and angered by what greets them once they actually enroll.

We understand the difficulty of trying to represent the valid achievements students accomplish here with over-representing diversity; however, the website and promotional materials should not be how we are “getting” students of color, as has previously been expressed. Rather, we should be finding other ways to attract and, more importantly,

support students once they are actually here. We suggest investing more time in comprehensive outreach to minority communities and providing more pro-active, institutional support to students on campus.

• The continued need to examine the relationships between SCORE, SCORE CLORGs, and the student body at large Students are pleased with the progress the college has made in this area, especially regarding the hiring of SCORE coordinators Victoria Verlezza and Yuka Ogino. However, larger concerns remain regarding SCORE as a place, presence, and purpose on campus.

One of the most pressing student concerns is the lack of support for student groups that are not recognized as official SCORE CLORGs. In fact, multiple student groups have voiced a desire to become a part of the SCORE community to SCORE and have been refused. The very fact that this has happened goes against the SCORE mission of being a “community of people committed to enhancing and supporting diversity” and functioning as a “resource to the community.” If anything, expanding the SCORE CLORG community would only serve to empower more students, and to bring more people into contact with SCORE. The harm, meanwhile, is to delegitimize the experiences, needs, and

very identities of those student groups that have been rejected.

Two such groups are Scripps International Students (SIS), and the Disability, Illness, and Difference Alliance (DIDA). While SIS appreciates the presence of Vicki Klopsch, Executive Director of CP&R and Student Affairs Special Services, her role is more technical and focused on career service provision; more important to them is a space to develop a sense of community and camaraderie with other students as part of the greater SCORE CLORG community.

For DIDA, the denial of CLORG status by SCORE is especially devastating because there is no space at the 5-Cs where they can find non-academic, logistic, and emotional support as well as a space to talk about identity and experience as a disabled student. Students from other SCORE CLORGs have no objection to the presence of other groups like SIS and DIDA within SCORE; the decision to give certain organizations “CLORG” status lies solely with the administration.

This conflict also shows that SCORE as a place for student-run organizations has become conflated with SCORE as an official institutional office of the college. The presence and role of both need to be examined, with the understanding that students continue to feel unsupported by current structures and seek change.

• Demand for a Chief Diversity Officer at Scripps College Whether intentional or not, this particular issue was left unaddressed by senior staff.

Yet it has become increasingly obvious that Scripps needs to take a serious look at photo | Tianna Sheih ‘16 how it has structured diversity within the institution so far, and how it plans to shape it in the years to come.

Currently, the diversity initiative rests only among a select group of students, staff, and faculty.

This is part of a pattern in which the duty of diversity advocacy always falls on the same group of people, who are expected to find and identify problems in the community, provide evidence, and come up with solutions to address the problems.

This is a school-wide problem that affects all members of the community, not specific to these students, faculty, and staff (nor even specific to Core I), and these issues will not be resolved until they are recognized and addressed as such. Until Scripps acknowledges the unjust and untenable situation it has placed these individuals in, and commits to providing the institutional support needed to make diversity a full-time issue for at least one paid staff member, our so-called commitment to diversity will in all likelihood remain empty rhetoric.

So there you have it. Whether you hated this letter or loved it, the important thing is for you to start speaking out. If we as a college truly intend to examine and improve our commitment to diversity, these issues need to enter the public sphere and happen at all levels within the college. Join the conversation at: microaggressivescripps.tumblr.com.

November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue five

12•Student Life

The Pomona College Organic Farm:

By Stephanie Steinbrecher ‘16 it’s a thing Staff Writer

S

ustainability at the 5Cs is a major emphasis of the administrations and students alike. But non-Pomona students might not know that a hidden gem of environmental awareness sits at the southern end of Pomona College. The Pomona College Organic Farm is a space dedicated to plant life and student education about environmentally savvy lifestyles.

Managed by the Environmental Analysis Program at Pomona College, this 2.5 acre plot of land is sensible and cost-effective, as well as an ecological space for education and the tending of herb, vegetable, and fruit plants. “The Farm” which employs and is run by work-study students, serves as the backdrop for environment classes at Pomona, and welcomes volunteers and visitors through the Farm Club.

“The Farm is really about being a place for people to learn more than a place to grow food. We are here to teach people about farming and gardening, but also about getting in touch with the outdoors, the value of getting your hands dirty, and the benefits of manual labor,” said Adam Long PO ‘13, the head of Farm Club.

“The Farm is what people make of it — it can be a place to come do some hard work, or a place to get away from campus life and just relax for a little while.”

The Farm is divided into two parts, each with their own goals. “The west side has many different kinds of fruit trees (limes, lemons, apples, peaches, figs, avocadoes, zapotes), an adobe structure called the Earth Dome, various perennial herbs and native shrubs, and plots that students and other 5C community members can check out for a semester,” said Farm Club member Jennifer Schmidt PO ‘14. “Much of the

east side is used for the “Food, Land, and the Environment” class every spring (taught through the Environmental Analysis program), and also houses a greenhouse, more fruit trees, bees, and the compost program.”

Farm Club and Farm employees grow produce in the east side to sell every other Friday at the Farm Stand and the Shakedown Café at Pitzer College. In addition to providing an academic outlet and cultivating produce, the Farm also composts food waste from the Pomona dining halls.

Weekly workshops and work parties as well as Farm Stand are the most common events that the Farm puts on. Special events like the Harvest Party, held once a semester, and the recent Pesto Party provide additional opportunities for students to enjoy the Farm’s amenities. The Farm also invites students to stop by and enjoy the space, volunteer, and attend workshops on gardening.

The older, west side of the Farm was established ten years ago; since then, the Farm has grown to be a farreaching resource for Pomona, the 5Cs, and the city of Claremont.

“The west side’s current projects include renovating the chicken coop so that we can purchase more chickens and starting to distill essential oils from herbs and citrus grown on the Farm,” said Schmidt.

If you’re interested in learning more about Farm Club or the Farm, visit: www.facebook.com/ pomonafarm, email farm@pomona. edu, or stop by The Farm weekdays after 4:00pm.

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claremont@wundabar.com • 201 N Indian Hill #101, Claremont CA November 15, 2012 • The Scripps Voice • Volume XVI • Issue five