In Hollywood, no one should get away with it

As the #MeToo movement spread, I began reacting in a similar way to each account of sexual assault or harassment. On social media, many people that I just barely knew began briefly explaining their stories or posting a hashtag, declaring that they were victims of some form of sexual harassment.

Trump’s Jerusalem declaration will be disastrous for all sides

I am Jewish. It’s an identity and a status that’s immeasurably important to me, and it’s the source of my strong ties to Israel. In Jewish custom, twice each year, at the conclusion of the Passover Seder and at the conclusion of Yom Kippur Ne’ilah services, we say as a group, “le-shanah ha-ba’ah bi-Yerushalayim,” or “Next year in Jerusalem.”

Editorial: Mental health and academic culture: Reevaluating our undergraduate experience

Fifteen years ago, the University announced the creation of a Commission on Undergraduate Education (CUE). This Commission aimed to evaluate the Hopkins undergraduate experience and give recommendations on how to improve it.

Letter to the Editor 12/07/2017

In response to "Free speech is a vital part of social progress" published in the Nov. 30 edition of The News-Letter. 

Internet viciousness and relearning how to argue

People say we are living in a more divided America than ever. Objectively, however, America has seen a lot more division in the past: a border dividing it into North and South; and laws that enforced segregation or gave men more rights than women. In most schools, we now learn that these ideas aren’t okay and that the people who fought them are heroes. Though some disagree, at the very least we are united in the eyes of the law and popular ideology. Taking this into account, what makes America today appear more divided than it was back then?

Can we use social media as a form of activism?

Two words: #MeToo. One hashtag was all that was necessary for sexual assault survivors to show that film producer Harvey Weinstein was not an anomaly, that sexual assault has been normalized for far too long. The message spread not only across the U.S. but also internationally, and Weinstein is now just the first of many public figures charged with sexual assault in the past month whose careers have been irrevocably damaged.

Why is net neutrality important?

The internet has become a crucial gateway for accessing information. Just look around Brody Café or wherever you’re reading this piece: People are writing papers, conducting research, reading articles, buying a new pair of shoes or watching TV, all through the internet. Whether it is education, business or entertainment, the internet has become a practical necessity for us to engage in society today. For our democracy and economy to function, it is paramount that people have equal access to the internet.

Silicon Valley’s corporations abuse their power

Silicon Valley and its affiliated companies are often associated with the progressive, the cutting edge, the delightful future in which technology unites us all as a global community with ready access to the joys of borderless capitalism. Indeed, the services some of the most well-known tech giants offer have made our lives — that of an upper class with disposable income — collectively easier.

Free speech is a vital part of social progress

June 15, 1215: King John of England signs the Great Charter of Liberties (Magna Carta) guaranteeing rights and privileges to all free men, subjecting even the King to the rule of law.

What role should safe spaces play on campus?

In recent years, the concept of “safe spaces” has become an integral part of conversations on college campuses across the U.S. Originally coined to help educational institutions resist forms of harassment and hate speech against the LGBTQ community, the term has taken on much broader connotations. Now a “safe space” generally refers to a place or a forum where marginalized individuals gather to share their experiences without having to feel uncomfortable or discriminated against.

Voting against net neutrality is not in the public’s interest

After two years of constant debate, on the Tuesday over Thanksgiving break, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finally released its plans to repeal the Obama-era net neutrality rules enacted in 2015. This decision may be the most damaging to the American consumer in this nation’s history.

Editorial: Let’s streamline how undergraduates find research opportunities

Hopkins frequently boasts about its status as “America’s first research university.” It’s said every day by tour guides and splashed across promotional materials. People come away with the impression that finding research positions as an undergraduate is as easy as sending an email. That’s not always the case.

Understanding Swedish and Finnish NATO Accession as a Question of Sovereignty

With Russia’s reemerging penchant for asserting its political, military, and economic influence over neighboring states, including the 2008 war with Georgia, its ongoing intervention in Ukraine, and, most recently, a large military exercise conducted in Belarus in September, is it any wonder that Finland and Sweden are experiencing an acute sense of insecurity?

Letter to the Editor 11/16/17

Dear Editor,

Editorial: The University’s history of offshore investments undermine its integrity

Last week, a leak of financial documents exposed the offshore financial holdings of a slew of important individuals and corporations. Dubbed the “Paradise Papers,” the documents shed light on the hidden financial activities of people like the Queen of England and members of Trump’s cabinet.  The leaks also shed light on organizations such as Facebook, Apple, and our very own Johns Hopkins University.

Major wins for Democrats are also victories for our country

It’s already been a bad few weeks for President Trump. Two of his former campaign workers got indicted on corruption charges and a couple more are under serious questioning from the FBI for their possible roles in Trump-Russia collusion. His legislative agenda has gone nowhere as per usual. By any metric he isn’t doing well, but the only metric that matters is what the voters think. And last week, on Nov. 7, they showed us just how angry they are.

The media needs to investigate Hillary Clinton

Israeli settlements hurt Palestinian livelihoods

This past August, 80 children in the town of Jubbet ad-Dhib arrived to their first day of school to find their classrooms gone. Concrete slabs sat in the place where, the evening before, six trailers stood with whiteboards, pens, papers and books awaiting the students and their teachers. Undeterred, or perhaps without any other options, the children began to study in the hot August sun before the school set up a tent large enough for most of the children.

Fraternity culture is inherently misogynistic

About once a year, the fraternity debate is reignited at Hopkins, and the same arguments are trotted out. Fraternities are good, look at the brotherhood; fraternities are misguided, they need Bystander Intervention Training (BIT); fraternities are neutral parties, the problem is alcohol. People avoid condemning fraternities as a whole institution. The administration does not want to anger a large portion of the student body, and non-affiliated students don’t want to face the social consequences of criticizing fraternities. I think fraternities are misogynistic and cannot be reformed.