Opinion

The opinions presented below are solely the views of the author and do not represent the views of The News-Letter. If you are a member of the Hopkins community looking to submit a piece or a letter to the editor, please email opinions@jhunewsletter.com.

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THE PUBLIC EDITOR: Who appeared in The News-Letter this fall?

By JACOB TOOK | December 5, 2019

When I started recording data on the number of different types of perspectives represented in The News-Letter, I wanted to give editors a benchmark to measure the scope of each week. That’s not to say they should always strive to increase these numbers — at some point, the paper will reach critical mass and just be too full. Instead, I hope it can offer a new way to track coverage from one week to the next.

COURTESY OF CLAIRE GOUDREAU Leff and Mollin feel that the policy updates harm student clubs, while Shade thinks there are positives to the changes.

Opposing Viewpoints: There are benefits to SGA's club policy updates

By TIM SHADE | December 5, 2019

If you’re reading this article, there is a very good chance that you’re actively involved in one or more of the 350 student groups that receive Hopkins funding. That means that you’re likely already familiar with the controversial reforms the University has recently taken in this area.

Letter to the Editor

By JOANNA BEHRMAN | November 21, 2019

The recent article in The News-Letter (“What obstacles do Hopkins international students face?”) highlighted the difficulties faced by international undergraduate students. We wish to bring additional attention to the burdens faced by international graduate students. 

Hopkins must take a stand against its nuclear weapons production

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | November 21, 2019

After years of protests from students, the University continues to invest in fossil fuel companies. It has an exclusivity contract with PepsiCo, a company that uses suppliers who violate child labor laws, going against ethical and sustainable business practices. Most recently, the University was slow to end contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the government agency that is responsible for separating families at the U.S.-Mexico border.

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FLI students do not owe Bloomberg support

By SAMUEL FARRAR | November 22, 2019

This time last year, Michael Bloomberg announced that he would donate a historic $1.8 billion to the University, to be used exclusively for undergraduate financial aid and related services. Earlier this semester an administrator told myself and a group of other first-generation and limited-income (FLI) students that we should consider writing Bloomberg a thank you letter for his gift to the University. 

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FILE PHOTO Maras feels that Hopkins students undervalue themselves and their accomplishments.

You are doing enough. It’s time to be proud of yourself.

By GRETA MARAS | November 20, 2019

My friends and I have talked about the exact moment when we found out we got into Hopkins. Everyone remembers their own story in almost perfect detail. I was sitting in my German class on Dec. 14 watching Elf, more nervous than I had ever been, waiting until the clock hit 2:00 p.m. CST. 

The Supreme Court may rescind DACA. Hopkins must reaffirm its support for Dreamers in our community

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | November 14, 2019

Under Donald Trump, the U.S. has become increasingly unsafe for undocumented immigrants. Shortly after announcing his presidential campaign, Trump infamously called Mexican immigrants criminals and rapists. In 2017, he announced plans to rescind Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an Obama-era executive order granting work permits and protection from deportation to over 700,000 Dreamers — undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. 

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THE PUBLIC EDITOR: Popping the humanities bubble, one section at a time

By JACOB TOOK | November 14, 2019

As the Public Editor, I scrutinize the ways the paper represents its readers. The News-Letter is a campus newspaper, and undergraduate students make up the primary readership. I think a lot about the different types of undergrads that the paper represents, as well as who is most likely to pick up a fresh issue on a Thursday afternoon. 

College journalism must take itself seriously

By ARIELLA SHUA | November 15, 2019

I was quite surprised to hear that two news stories about college journalism were circulating this week.The Harvard Crimson, the daily newspaper at Harvard University, has recently come under fire for its coverage of an anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) rally. The rally, held on Sept. 12, was hosted by student group Act on a Dream. The Crimson writers reached out to ICE for comment to be included in their article on the rally, though they did not respond.

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Daniel Schwen/CC By-SA 4.0 Shade argues that Obama and Trump’s surprising victories prove electability has changed. 

Electability is still important, but its definition is outdated

By TIM SHADE | November 14, 2019

A few weeks ago, The News-Letter  published the op-ed “Focusing solely on electability will not get Democrats elected.” The article presents a well-written, cogent argument against the prioritization of “electability” in the Democratic primary race. It followed an earlier piece on the necessity of a moderate Democratic nominee in 2020.

Baltimore updates must prioritize accessibility

By TYLER ADAMSON | November 14, 2019

It’s always an exciting time when new construction happens around campus. Is it going to be a new restaurant? A bar? It is exciting, at least, for those not potentially displaced by it. As I walk around Charles Village, I’m struck by the level of construction happening throughout the neighborhood.

COURTESY OF ARIELLA SHUA Sidewalks are continuously rerouted due to ongoing construction on Saint Paul Street.
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Is Hopkins supporting its growing FLI and international student population?

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | November 7, 2019

We all remember our first week of freshman year. Nervous and cautious, we moved into our dorms, met our roommates and wandered around campus and Baltimore for the first time.  For many of us, the transition to college life was difficult. For first-generation, limited-income (FLI) students and international students, however, that transition can be even more complex. The University has made commendable efforts to provide additional support. We question, however, whether it has done enough. 

COURTESY OF ELAN MEDOFF Students are known to study day and night in the Milton S. Eisenhower Library and in Brody Learning Commons.

We need to talk about our competitiveness

By PHILLIP YOON | November 7, 2019

I remember asking the student tour guide when I visited Hopkins as an accepted student: “Is Hopkins a competitive school?” The tour guide answered: “It is a common myth that Hopkins is competitive, but that’s not true! I know that a lot of people collaborate and cooperate....” After this, I started to wonder whether the University’s competitiveness is a myth or a reality. 

There is a new fight for fossil fuel divestment at Hopkins

By LAIS SANTORO | November 11, 2019

Refuel Our Future, the University’s student-run divestment organization, is starting Fossil Free Fridays, a weekly strike on Fridays going off of the national Fridays For Future (FFF) climate strike movement. Instead of protesting for climate justice and a Green New Deal, which is the basis of the fight for the youth FFF movement, Refuel will protest for fossil fuel divestment, a fight that the organization has been trying to win for a few years. 

NEHA SANGANA/PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Members of Refuel Our Future at their first DivestFest event in September 2019.
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Elijah Cummings embraced country over party. Throughout the impeachment process, Congress must do the same.

By THE EDITORIAL BOARD | October 31, 2019

For many of us in Baltimore, Representative Elijah Cummings was a hero. Cummings, who’d lived in a West Baltimore row home for over three decades, was a tireless fighter for civil rights. During the Uprising, he walked among protesters and police, calling for peace. He advocated for the state to pool more resources into treating drug addicts in our city. Most recently, he spoke out against U.S. President Donald Trump after he called Baltimore a “rat and rodent infested mess.”